“My make up is ruined, isn’t it?” Ashley sniffed weakly.
“You look beautiful,” Michael told her. She did still look beautiful. His gaze swept over her hungrily. He wished they could skip the reception. He wished he knew if he was still welcome in her bed.
“Why are you being so nice to me?” Ashley squeaked, looking at him as though she didn’t quite trust his behavior.
Michael smiled, he had a feeling it came across somewhat bitter, but he couldn’t help it- he was hurting! “Because you’re my wife,” he murmured, unable to keep a possessive edge out of his voice.
“But I-!” Ashley started to argue.
“It’s DONE now, Ashley,” Michael growled, conscious that the car was slowing down to a stop. He glanced out of the window, and so missed the deeply pained look that flashed across Ashley’s face. She did still look thoroughly unhappy when he glanced back at her though. “Smile,” he muttered, as the door was thrown open for them.
Michael forced himself to smile too. He hoped that no one would be able to tell that he was faking. He had got quite good at feigning a happy expression when he was feeling far from happy during the election campaign. He had never imagination that it would come in handy for quite this reason though!
The reception ticked by in the same strange way as the wedding ceremony. Michael was very unaware of time. He was very unaware of other people too. He simply wanted to keep Ashley close until they could get away and talk- for fear that she still might somehow find a way to bolt.
Michael was introduced to his in-laws, and to some of Ashley’s friends. He in turn managed to introduce her to some of his family. He was sure that he didn’t do any of the introductions justice, but he hoped people would make excuses if he were behaving too distractedly.
They heard speeches that Michael didn’t really listen to and were served food that he didn’t eat, but then they were asked to open up the dancing… and Michael couldn’t help but be a little moved by the song that was chosen, How Do I Live, sung by Kelly Clarkson. He didn’t have a clue which of the organizers had picked it out (Ashley? He prayed that it had been Ashley), but they had hit the nail right on the head.
They didn’t speak as they moved around the floor. It was enough for Michael just to hold her- his wife. The label still gave him a guilty thrill. She felt so right in his arms. Surely she had to feel it too? He couldn’t be imagining this connection, could he?
Ashley was looking a little more relaxed at least! Michael wasn’t sure if that was due to anything he had done to set her at ease or the rather large quantity of alcohol she had consumed on an empty stomach? He feared the latter, but was secretly a little glad all the same. She looked more like a bride at the moment at least.
Even so, Michael was eager to leave the reception, and not only for the reason insinuated by many of the male guests! He wanted to get Ashley away from Norman. He wanted to get away from Norman when it came down to it! Michael had managed to avoid being caught alone by his campaign manager so far, but he could see that Norman was dying to talk to him, and he couldn’t go on hiding from him for the rest of the night. He needed to sort out in his own mind what was happening between himself and Ashley before he even thought about talking to the other man however.
“Are you ready to go?” Michael asked Ashley at the very earliest moment that he thought leaving was feasible.
A look of panic flashed across Ashley’s face. “Oh but- don’t we need to stay until- um- until-?”
“Until?” Michael echoed her. A smile actually tugged at the corner of his mouth. He raised an eyebrow at her when she couldn’t answer his question.
“Well, I need to thank my parents, and Cat and Stacy, and-”
“Your parents will pass on your thanks I’m sure,” Michael said smoothly, guiding her over to Mr. and Mrs. Kendall.
“Oh! I need to toss my bouquet too!” Ashley gasped, and then flushed under Michael’s stare. Frankly, he hadn’t thought that she would care about such traditions… not when he thought the whole wedding had been something she had been forced into... “Well, I’ve never been married before,” she muttered.
And she wouldn’t ever get married again, not if he had any say in the matter, Michael thought to himself savagely.
The tossing of the bouquet of course caught everyone’s attention, so it took far longer than Michael would have liked to get away, but eventually they managed it. Stepping out into the cool night air, Ashley looked up at him warily.
“Where are we going now?”
“The Drake,” he said, unable to entirely suppress a grin when he saw her impressed amazement.
“We have reservations at the Drake Hotel?” she gasped. “But- but how? I don’t remember-”
“It doesn’t matter how,” Michael said gently, steering Ashley towards their waiting car. He didn’t really want to go into all of the ‘fake’ organizing that had gone into their supposedly ‘fake’ wedding. It was all real now and that was what he wanted Ashley to concentrate on.
Michael was just a little bit satisfied that he had managed to convince Norman that they needed to book the Presidential suite at the Drake though, even if he had never originally thought that he would get any use out of the room. It would have looked very strange if the papers had discovered that he hadn’t had anything arranged for the wedding night.
Michael gave his head a shake. Now he was dwelling on what should have happened today instead of what had happened!
“Is something wrong?” Ashley asked anxiously, and then she flushed guiltily. “I mean- apart from-” she stumbled over the words. “Oh dear,” she said weakly.
Michael leant forwards and dabbed a surprise kiss against his wife’s lips. “Stop looking so scared,” he whispered.
“But I- but aren’t you furious?” she whispered, looking so delightfully muddled that Michael wanted to lean towards her again, and steal a proper kiss this time.
“Do I look furious?” he sighed, edging closer.
“Well, no… but-”
But Michael didn’t let Ashley say another word. He placed a hand gently on either side of her head and guided her lips back to his mouth. She gasped, opening herself to Michael and his talented tongue. He explored her mouth with a lazy thoroughness born from the realization that he had the rest of his life to indulge himself in learning the secrets of Ashley’s body… well, if he could convince her that she wanted to stay married to him.
“Michael?”
“Ashley?” he chuckled. “We’re almost there,” he murmured, sitting back in the deep leather seat instead of kissing her again, but he did keep her clasp tightly against his side.
The burst of cold air that had hit them as they walked from inside reception venue out to the car seemed to have sobered Ashley up, Michael realized. He hoped that a few more kisses might manage to relax her again though, because he certainly wasn’t planning on sleeping alone on his wedding night- no matter how the actual wedding might had come about! Fortunately, he could feel her slowly start to soften and mould herself against him.
They arrived at the hotel and checked in, even Michael confessed that he was impressed by the opulence of the building.
“You’ve never stayed here before either?” Ashley asked quietly, as they were shown up to their suite.
“I’ve never needed to use a hotel this close to home before,” he admitted with a shrug, as they stopped outside their room. Michael tipped the young man who had shown them up, and then turned to Ashley with a cheeky smile.
“What is it-?” she started to ask, but the end of question was punctuated by a squeal as Michael lifted her up into his arms.
“Tradition,” he murmured to excuse his own sentimentality, as he carried Ashley over the threshold and into the room beyond. If she had been allowed to toss her bouquet then he was certainly allowed to do this!
Ashley gasped when she saw the size of the suite on the other size of the door. She could live in a place this size! She would have quite liked
to explore, but Michael seemed to only have one destination in mind- the bedroom. He placed Ashley down on the huge king size bed and stared down at her with hungry eyes.
Ashley licked her lips uncertainly. She didn’t understand what was going on! Why wasn’t Michael angry? Why wasn’t he yelling at her, demanding an explanation for her actions, instead of looking at her as though- well, as though he was imagining her undressed?
Perhaps it wasn’t such a big deal for him, Ashley wondered unhappily? He hardly held the state of marriage in particularly high regard, not judging by his first two marriages at any rate. Maybe he thought this would help his campaign even more than the jilting would have done? And so maybe, just maybe, he was just determined to get his use out of her while it lasted?
Why that last thought sent pangs of lust coursing through her body, rather than shivers of disgust, Ashley didn’t want to know. She was busy working out how to turn these theories around to her advantage. Clearly, Michael wasn’t about to toss her out onto the street, so perhaps she would have time to demonstrate the advantages of being married to her?
Ashley was suddenly very glad for the sexy lingerie that was hidden beneath her wedding dress! She pushed herself up on her knees, reaching out a hand towards Michael. She clutched at his shirt and dragged his closer.
“You want me?” she whispered, her voice still hedged with doubt.
“Oh God, Ash! If you only knew!” Michael swore, crushing their mouths together.
Ashley went weak all over. Michael’s was voracious as he plundered her mouth with his tongue, enacting with that slick muscle the act that Ashley knew they would be performing later with their bodies. It was enough to make her hot and achy.
She had been so, so scared all day! The huge relief she felt now, knowing that Michael at least still wanted her body, was making her feel almost unbearably aroused. She wanted him naked, she wanted him inside her, and she wanted it NOW! Michael, however, seemed to be trying to muster some sort of an attempt at restraint.
“Slow,” he whispered, speaking against Ashley’s skin when she started squirming restlessly. “We have all night,” Michael murmured. He smoothed his hands down the sides of her dress, mapping out her figure.
“You don’t have to be slow,” panted Ashley impatiently. “You don’t have to wait!” she cried. She felt Michael chuckle as he held her against his chest.
“I want to savor you,” he confessed roughly, nuzzling at her neck, while his large fingers fumbled with the impossibly small buttons of her wedding dress. His words made Ashley shiver. She didn’t know if she had ever been savored before. It sounded rather nice.
“All right,” she puffed. “If that’s what you want,” she sighed, and shivered a little as the back of her dress was undone and the cool air kissed her warm skin.
“What do you want?” Michael murmured thickly, but he kissed her before she could answer. His hands slipped beneath the delicate fabric of her wedding dress, easing it off her shoulders. “Damn,” he growled, somehow instilling the word with reverence and awe as he glanced down at ingenious creation of silk and lace that Ashley was wearing underneath her dress.
Ashley glowed under his gaze, growing breathless when she looked at his face. A man couldn’t possible look at a woman like that and not want her… in fact, the glint in his eyes almost looked like- but no, Ashley wouldn’t lose her head completely. It couldn’t be love!
Michael bent his head, kissing the creamy swells of her breasts, while he stripped her completely of the wedding dress. “You’re so beautiful,” he growled, pushing her down onto the mattress. “Earlier, at the church, I thought I’d never seen anything so beautiful in my life, but now I’m not so sure if I don’t prefer you like this,” he murmured heavily.
“Oh, Michael!” Ashley gasped, hardly daring to believe what he was saying let alone trust it! She begged another kiss. At least if she kept his mouth occupied he couldn’t confuse her by making such declarations.
Michael’s hands were almost more bewitching than his words however. His fingers drew nonsensical patterns over her skin, scorching her, branding her with his touch. Ashley melted into the mattress, her own fingers slipping clumsily over the buttons of Michael’s shirt.
“I want you naked,” she mewed, tangling her fingers in his tie, and whispered the words against his mouth.
“And you always get what you want?” Michael chuckled.
He was joking, Ashley thought he was joking anyway, but she tensed fearfully anyway. What if he was just toying with her before revealing how he really felt about what she had done?
“Ashley?” Michael said, stilling when he felt the sudden tension that was humming through her veins. “Baby, whatever it is, forget it?” he begged slowly, kissing the side of her neck, while his hands eased her breasts out of their cups, he fondled them tenderly, tweaking the nipples, and making it impossible for Ashley to worry about anything.
32
When Ashley woke up the next morning, it was because someone was hammering on the door to her and Michael’s hotel room. She murmured softly in protest and tried to snuggle deeper under the covers to block out the noise. Michael seemed less inclined to just ignore the disturbance though.
“What the hell?” he growled, rubbing a hand over his eyes. A grumpy frown clouded his face and he started muttering under his breath. “If this is housekeeping then they can forget their fucking tip!” he grumbled, pausing in the middle of his rant to bestow a tender kiss on Ashley’s lips as he gently untangled their bodies.
She watched quite shamelessly as Michael strolled naked across the room. He really was the most impressive specimen of a man that she had ever seen. He picked up one of the complimentary bathrobes and shrugged it on, before he then padded over to open the door (and yell at whoever was on the side if the look on his face was anything to judge by).
“Look, I don’t know-!” he started angrily, but stopped short when Norman pushed right by him and marched into the room.
Norman eyes swept around the suite, bulging almost out of their sockets when they caught sight of Ashley. She held the blankets up to her chin, and tried to muster a little smile and look less obviously shagged senseless.
“Good morning, Norman,” Michael muttered bitterly. He gave the door (which he was still holding open) a longing glance, as though he was imagining tossing his campaign manager back out of the room and into the hallway. Ashley really wouldn’t have complained if he had done just that- her cheeks, and the rest of her, were burning a humiliated crimson! But sadly, Michael shut the door with a heavy sigh. “So?” he continued, tightening his robe’s belt. “What can Mrs. Reese and I do for you today?”
Ashley started at hearing herself addressed as Mrs. Reese, although it was a pleasant sort of surprise. Norm did a double take too- and looked far less pleased about Michael’s phrasing of introduction.
“You could start by telling me what on earth happened yesterday, and by explaining to me what we’re meant to do about it now?” he cried, dabbing at his perspiring forehead with a handkerchief.
Ashley gulped guiltily, but she stayed silent. Michael’s frown had grown even darker. “Norman, could I speak to you privately for a moment?” he asked, nodding his head in the direction of one of the other rooms of the hotel suite. “I’m sure my wife would prefer not to be cross-examined while she’s still in bed,” he growled possessively. “I can answer your questions.”
Norman looked both a little surprised and alarmed by Michael’s behavior. He glanced again at Ashley, and then hurriedly looked away. “I- of- of course,” he nodded, trotting off into the living area of the hotel suite.
“I won’t be long,” Michael murmured softly, turning his attention back to Ashley for a moment. “Stay just where you are,” he added, a wicked gleam flashing in his eyes.
Ashley squirmed breathlessly; just the suggestion that Michael wanted her again was enough to make her body throb for his touch. She would have thought that she should be sated by now!
She was sore and tender… but still hungry for his touch apparently.
She tried to ignore her carnal desires however. There were more important things going on at the moment. “Michael? Michael what are you going to tell Norman?” she asked urgently.
“Don’t worry, I’ll take care of it,” he promised evasively, slipping out of the room, and leaving Ashley on her own.
He was going to tell Norman the truth, Michael thought to himself, as he closed the door between himself and his wife. He didn’t know what else to do. He was just going to have to come clean with the other man.
“Well?” Norman demanded. He seemed to have regained a lot of his composure now that there wasn’t a naked woman in the room with them. “I hope you have a good explanation, Michael? I’m certainly dying to hear it!”
“No.”
The Perfect Candidate Page 19