by Marian Tee
Too damn beautiful, Nicholas thought again. Inside and out. Just too damn beautiful for him.
He took a deep breath, knowing that he couldn't let the words go without saying something in return.
"Tabitha---"
She looked up at him hopefully...just as someone coughed behind her, asking in an amused drawl, "Are we interrupting something?"
Chapter 8
Billionaire stud farm owner Sean Northwood gave the redhead next to him an incredulous glance. Do you see what I'm seeing?
Isla stepped on her husband's foot under the table and smiled sweetly at his wince. Don't. Jinx. It.
Seated across them, another couple was having almost the exact same silent conversation, with billionaire rancher Devon Montgomery similarly struggling to contain his disbelief. Although he and the others had been friends since childhood, not once had any of them seen Nicholas Sutherland acting so blatantly protective towards any woman.
Not even Carly, Devon thought, and that girl had been Nick's baby mama.
Harry's eyes widened in alarm when she saw her husband start smirking, and she quickly forestalled him with a pleading shake of her head. Don't ruin it. Please?
Devon grimaced. Damn. He had just been about to make fun of Nicholas, but having Harriet look at him that way left him no choice but to play nice. Lucky son of a bitch. With their wives' presence ensuring they were on their best behavior, there was only one person left on the table who still had a chance of giving Nicholas hell.
"What was that again about the secret Daniel shared with you?" Logan Hardwall smiled charmingly at Nicholas' wife. "Two words, right? Every time he's trying to avoid PDA, he'd say---"
"I see." Bee could barely suppress her smile at the way Nicholas rolled his eyes.
There was a moment of silence, with Nicholas' friends exchanging a seemingly significant look. Another second passed, and then the three other men said simultaneously, "I see."
Even though it didn't make a whit of sense, Bee couldn't help bursting into the laughter and so did the two other women.
Nicholas gazed darkly at his friends. "Fuck all of you."
And now, the other men were chuckling, too.
Ah, fuck it. Nicholas gave up trying to keep a straight face, and a slight smile eventually tugged at the corner of his lips. He could live with everyone having fun at his expense. Better him than her, he thought, and his gaze flicked towards Tabitha. She was smiling and talking animatedly to his friends' wives, the loose set of her shoulders telling him that she was relaxed and having fun.
Thank God for his friends, Nicholas thought. The moment he had introduced her to his friends as his wife, everyone had simply taken it by stride, with the men teasing Tabitha for choosing a ruthless bastard like him while Isla and Harriet readily offered their felicitations and chatted with her nonstop until Tabitha's tension had visibly eased.
Having forgotten today's brunch turned out to be a good thing, after all, Nicholas thought idly. He would've canceled it if he had remembered, but with this, he was at least able to fulfill another condition in their marriage contract. Since it had specifically requested Nicholas to introduce Tabitha as his wife to any long-term resident of Evergreen, he couldn't think of anyone better than the people in this room, each of whom he would trust his life with.
When his friends finally left, Nicholas turned to Tabitha, thinking to ask how she was but she beat him to speaking. An uncertain look on her face, she asked haltingly, "Do they know about...how we met?"
Nicholas took hold of her hand and brought it to his lips. "You have nothing to worry about," he said softly. "Sean and Devon are just like us."
Her eyes widened. "Do you mean..."
He nodded.
"You're not kidding?" she asked faintly.
"God's honest truth, ma'am."
Bee had never heard him speak with such a distinctly Texan drawl, and it startled a laugh out of her.
"There it is." He gently traced her lips. "Smiles suit you more than frowns, sweetheart."
She just about turned into jelly at the words, and it seemed as if Nicholas also sensed her inner melting, with the way he was suddenly smirking.
"Too much?" His tone was the very definition of devilish.
Bee tried to play it cool for once. "I have no idea---Nicholas, no!"
But the deed was already done. She was now seated on his lap, and with the kitchen having only an open doorway, there was every chance Nicholas' boss could walk in on any them, and oh my God, but what if this would have her husband suspended or, even worse, fired?
Nicholas frowned at the sudden look of distress on Tabitha's face. "What's wrong?"
"I just don't think this is appropriate," she said uneasily. "I mean what if your employer---" She stopped speaking when she saw Nicholas' gaze narrow.
"You know..." His voice was thoughtful. "I have a feeling we've got our wires crossed somehow."
Fearing that he might think her too interfering or presumptuous, she said tentatively, "I really, um, like..." She tried to say the words 'sitting on your lap' but couldn't. "I really, um, enjoy this," Bee said instead. "I'm just worried that your employer might think you've been skiving off---"
"Can I ask you a question?" Nicholas interrupted. "What exactly has Daniel told you about my job?"
"You manage a ranch." She paused. "Don't you?"
"And that's it?"
Bee was starting to feel confused. "Was there anything else he should've added?"
"Nothing much..." It was his turn to pause. "Except the fact that I own the ranch as well?"
Bee burst into laughter. "Yeah, right---"
Nicholas smiled but said nothing.
She stopped laughing. "You're joking."
Nicholas only looked at her.
"You have to be joking."
He said very gently, "I'm not."
"But..." Her heart had started racing, and she was suddenly having difficulties breathing. "It can't..." Her eyes flew to him in horror. "I can't do this." She was just ordinary Tabitha Sandler, a nobody who was fine being nobody. And he was now telling her she had married a man whose ranch was the same size as Rhode Island?
"I can't, I'm sorry, I---"
"Tabitha."
"I don't want to disappoint you. I don't want to ever make a mistake---"
"Tabitha." Nicholas' firm voice cut her protestations short. "Look at me."
Panicky brown eyes lifted to his.
"Do I look like a man who doesn't know what he's doing?"
She slowly shook her head.
"Do you think I would have married you," Nicholas lied without hesitation, "if I thought you wouldn't be able to handle being my wife and everything the position entails?"
After one long moment, she shook her head again.
"Then trust me when I say you have nothing to worry about." Because it was true.
"You're the woman Daniel and I chose." She had nothing to worry about.
Bee hastily blinked back tears. "You have such a way with words."
Since it wasn't her who had been tricked into a marriage by his own son.
"Thank you for believing in me. Thank you for choosing me. Just...thank you."
It wasn't her who had then ended up uttering a thousand lies just to keep the deception.
Nicholas' lips brushed over hers, and he whispered, "No, sweetheart. Thank you."
And it wasn't her, Nicholas thought moodily, who now had no fucking idea about what he really wanted to happen.
Chapter 9
"Good morning, husband."
Sleepy green eyes gradually focused on her, taking note of her still-pink cheeks and the telltale quiver in her voice. A moment later, and the sound of his wicked laughter had Bee turning even redder.
"It's just not that easy calling you 'husband'," his wife said defensively.
"It's only a word," he said lazily.
"It is not just a word," she said huffily. "But never mind about that..."
Nicho
las arched a brow when she reached for the covers and slowly drew them from his naked body.
Her eyes met his shyly.
"Happy monthsary."
And then she was going down on him, and his already aroused cock slid into the tight, moist warmth of her mouth like it was fucking home. She held and pleasured him like the novice she was, teeth occasionally scraping painfully against the swollen head of his dick, but because it was her - because it was his wife - none of it made a difference.
She had him tightly gripping her hair in mere fucking moments, had him shoving his cock down her throat with uncool haste, had him goddamn exploding in her mouth with more load than he could ever remember releasing.
And when he felt her throat working to swallow all of his cum, ah, fuck, it just gave his orgasm a second lease of life, and a hoarse groan escaped him as he felt his balls tighten once more.
By the time he finally managed to pull out, her lips were a deep, swollen shade of red, and it was the loveliest, most erotic sight Nicholas had ever fucking seen.
She crawled up between his legs, palms landing on each side of his body, breasts dangling tantalizingly near his mouth as silky waves of her hair fell down one bare shoulder.
He watched her lips form a smile of hopeful expectation. "Did I please you?"
God, she was the fucking sweetest...
Dragging her head down for a kiss, he whispered against her lips, "Beyond my wildest expectations."
That she almost made him forget none of this could last.
The kiss ended all too shortly, with Tabitha laughingly pulling away with a shake of her head, saying, "We need to shower and change."
"I don't see why we should. We could just stay here and make love the whole day---"
She shook her head again, a mysterious smile now playing on her lips. "You'll see."
He let her pull him up from the bed, playing along but only until they made it to the glass-enclosed shower. He waited only until they were both naked and hot water had blasted from the ceiling-mounted shower head before making his move. She was off his feet in a second, and her stunned gasp had him chuckling.
"Nicholas!" Her legs automatically locked around his waist even as Bee made a grab of Nicholas' broad shoulders for balance. Pulling back, she stammered, "What do you---ah!" He had lifted her up then pulled her back down, impaling her with one swift stroke.
"Oh my God."
And then he was bouncing her on his thick, throbbing manhood, and all thoughts of protest disappeared under an overwhelming surge of sensations.
"Oh God."
Her head lolled back, and she could only hang on to him for life.
Their lovemaking was fast, furious, and wondrously loud and lurid. It was everything she hadn't even known to fantasize about, and she loved every moment of it.
Or at least she did until they had finally stepped out of their bedroom, and she saw how every member of the cleaning staff was giving her knowing looks. It was so obvious that they had heard all those noises she made, and her hands flew to cover her face as she let out a muffled moan of embarrassment.
Nicholas, on the other hand, simply took it by stride, and if she hadn't been so busy drowning in mortification, she might have even gone as far as thinking her husband was practically strutting like a man who had just the best sex of his life - and wanted the whole world to know it.
Just as they were about to enter the dining room, Tabitha shook her head and tugged him towards another direction. "We're not eating there."
Nicholas was bemused. They weren't?
Instead, his wife brought him all the way...to the kitchen, and Nicholas' puzzlement only grew when he saw almost all of his ranch hands gathered inside it, along with his kitchen staff and even Thomas.
At the older man's nod, Nicholas' employees took their party poppers out.
What the---
Pop! Pop! Pop!
And as confetti started to rain, his staff's boisterous cheer rang out.
"Happy monthsary, Mr. and Mrs. Sutherland!"
Nicholas' brows shot up, and then a grinning Tabitha literally jumped into view in front of him. "Surprised?"
"Stunned speechless." And he wasn't lying. Not once had he this kind of celebration with his staff, and most of them had been working for him over a decade.
Rising on her toes, Tabitha placed a kiss on his nose and pulled back with a beam, saying, "And this, Mr. Sutherland, is just the beginning."
His men filed out, and for some reason, she had the two of them following behind the twenty or so men as they went out through the back door. They walked all the way to the other side of the house, and the first thing he saw were festive party streamers hanging over the landscaped garden.
"Happy monthsary!"
Nicholas shook his head in good-natured surprise when he saw that Tabitha had actually invited just about every person working at his ranch, alongside their friends and families.
"Nicholas?"
He pulled her close as he gazed down at her. "What is it, baby?"
"I thought it would be nice if we could celebrate our first week together with your staff." She looked up at him uncertainly. "It's okay, right?"
"It's the perfect idea, Mrs. Sutherland." He smiled down at her. "Thank you for preparing for this."
And indeed, Nicholas couldn't imagine the last time he had this much fun on his own, and without him having to live vicariously through his son. As he laughed and clapped when Thomas and Tabitha started hosting a series of games, which his men gamely joined and competed in, thoughts began to form in the back of his mind. Thoughts that would never have occurred if she hadn't come to his life...
For so long, he had been punishing himself, and he hadn't even known it. While he had continued to meet with his childhood friends, Nicholas realized that those meetings in itself were far and between. He had only shown up if either work or a major milestone was involved, such as when Devon and Sean had gotten married.
And he had been the same with his staff, Nicholas brooded, without realizing it as well.
He watched his wife circulate among his employees, laughing and chatting with them, and it was if as she was the one who had known them her entire life. He heard her congratulate the head gardener for finally finding the courage to ask his dream girl out, someone who apparently worked as one of the cleaners over at Devon's ranch. He watched her move on to another table, and this time she was speaking with his head cook, who was in turn thanking Tabitha for the herbal remedy she had personally brewed for her son's cough.
Just watching her, seeing her dole out smiles like she had never tasted hardship, was more than enough to take his breath away.
Compared to how she had looked the first time he saw her, Tabitha had filled up quite nicely, no doubt due to Thomas and Nicholas alternately doing their best to get her to eat. While neither of them had spoken about it out loud, he had a feeling the older man was paranoid about his wife's seeming frailty and what could happen if she ever fell sick.
He looked at her, and he could only think of one damn thing.
Beautiful.
She was so damn beautiful, he had long stopped counting the number of times he only had to look at his wife, and she would have his heart banging against his chest.
Standing at the opposite of the garden, he saw her suddenly stiffen and begin looking around searchingly. A moment later, her gaze locked with his, and he saw the way she patently relaxed, in a way that made it seem like she didn't feel right until she saw him.
He raised a brow. Missed me?
She made a face. You're so full of yourself. But then her lips curved. Although you're right as always. Shaking her head, Tabitha mouthed, I miss you, husband.
Inclining his head, Nicholas mouthed with mock gravity, I miss you, too, wife.
The first few notes of live music suddenly struck, and his surprised gaze whipped towards its direction. So that was why there had been a makeshift stage set up, Nicholas realized. Tabitha had actuall
y invited his favorite band, and in moments, she was standing right in front of him, her cheeks once again a becoming shade of rose.
"Did I manage to surprise you again?" she asked with an excited grin.
"You did," he acknowledged. "And as a reward---" He took hold of her hand. "May I have this dance, wife?"
The word seemed to have caught her in surprise, causing Tabitha to literally squeal out loud, and Nicholas laughed.
Bee realized then what she had inadvertently let slip and was instantly mortified. "I'm sorry! I was just---oh!"
She found herself being literally whirled into the grassy dance floor, and in the next moment, he had her bent backwards in a graceful dip. A breathless, choked laugh escaped Bee, and Nicholas smirked at the sound.
Oh, dear God, how can this exquisite man be her husband again?
Nicholas' lips twitched at the now familiar dazed look on Tabitha's face. "That pedestal you have me on seems to be getting alarmingly higher," he murmured with sardonic humor. "I have a feeling it's going to be hell when I inevitably fall from it."
Being the loyal creature she was, his wife simply laughed. "That's never going to happen."
'Because you're perfect' were the silently implied words to end the argument, and a wry expression crossed Nicholas' handsome face as he swirled and whirled her around.
So damn sweet, he thought.
But at the same time, she was also so damn naïve, he just knew it was going to be the death of him one day.
"Are you happy?"
Her sudden question quickly drew his attention back to her, and Nicholas frowned at the wistful note in her voice. "Of course I'm happy. Why would you even ask?"
"I just think it would be better if Danny were here with us," Bee confessed.
Nicholas managed to keep his face expressionless at the mention of his son's name. "When was the last time you spoke to him?"
"Yesterday. He knew about today's surprise, and I've tried my best to convince him that we really want him home with us, but---" She gave him an apologetic look. "He's so annoyingly pigheaded. He really thinks he's going to be a third wheel between us."