Chapter 21 ~ Carter ~
"I now pronounce you husband and wife!" Loud applause erupted as these words echoed through the speakers across the wide lawn where chairs for the wedding guests were arranged. I shook my head. How could someone arrange a wedding so that the guests had to listen to the ceremony through tinny speakers? For the music, it might still be okay, but wouldn't you rather hear the bride and groom directly? And see them? We had watched the exchange of rings on large video screens set up in the garden.
And if it had to be this way, wouldn't you choose the best equipment available on the market? In my opinion, my brother could have invested a bit more money in the audio equipment. We belong to one of the richest families in America, but the sound quality at the wedding of one of the heirs was more reminiscent of an ancient cinema in a godforsaken town in the Midwest than an event of New York's upper-class society.
I shrugged. Not my problem. This was my brother's wedding, so it had to please him, not me. Isabella and I had only come to secure my share of the inheritance. Somehow, this goal had faded more and more into the background over the last week. Not that I didn't want the money anymore - God forbid, Cameron shouldn't get everything - but somehow it wasn't as important as before.
How did that happen?
I shook my head. It had just happened, without any particular reason. I had spent a lot of time with Isabella, and that had fully occupied me. I hadn't originally planned that. But I had gotten my money's worth during exactly this time. Grandma Ruth had immediately taken Isabella to her heart, and my "fiancée" had even saved the wedding earlier by rearranging the bridal bouquet.
In short: My family was thrilled with Isabella.
And I had almost achieved my goal. Grandma Ruth wouldn't exclude me from her inheritance.
For the next visit here, I would have to come up with a good excuse. After all, I would be coming alone. My family would ask where Isabella was. Luckily, I didn't see my family too often, so I could easily pretend to my grandmother that Isabella had no time or would be spending some time abroad for her job. Yes, that was a good idea.
I still caught myself thinking that I would have liked to bring Isabella here again.
Carter! Don't think about such things. That's not part of your plan.
Today was today, and this day was to be enjoyed, even if some clouds were now appearing in the previously flawless blue spring sky, slowly gathering and turning slightly gray. It would probably rain later.
"Are you hungry?" Isabella asked beside me. "I could use something to eat."
The question brought me back to the present.
"Come on, fiancée, let's get something to eat at the buffet." I put my arm around Isabella's shoulders. She snuggled close to me. It felt exactly right. Maybe even a little too right.
"I'm really hungry. The thing with the bridal bouquet stressed me out." Isabella giggled. "Actually, I don't have a green thumb at all. My former boss even r...", Isabella paused briefly. "Reprimanded me for it," she finished the sentence. I glanced at her from the side. Had she wanted to say something else?
Did the beautiful Isabella possibly have secrets from me?
I didn't like the thought.
I scrutinized her, but her brown eyes shone just as always. I couldn't tell if she was hiding something from me or not.
"And at my home, all the plants are dead too," Isabella now grinned and seemed completely normal again. "Having a gardener must be a dream." I looked at her thoughtfully. Maybe I had been mistaken, and she didn't have any secrets at all.
Meanwhile, we had arrived at the buffet, where a long line had formed.
"Oh, it's going to take a while before we get something to eat," Isabella murmured. "How many guests did your brother invite?"
"No idea," I grumbled. "Many. Everyone who is important or could be. Probably half of New York is here. At least it looks that way." I grimly eyed the line. Isabella was right. It would take forever until it was our turn.
"Carter!" A slap on the back interrupted my thoughts. "How great to see you again." A burly man pushed himself next to me.
"Ian," I greeted my old schoolmate happily. "You look good." That was only half a lie. Ian didn't have a single worry line on his face. The reason for this might have been that he was carrying a few extra pounds.
"And this is...?" Ian looked curiously at Isabella.
"My fiancée Isabella," I introduced her, probably for the hundredth, but certainly not the last time that day.
"Nice to meet you," said Isabella.
I turned to her. "Honey, why don't you sit down already and I'll get us something to eat? Then you don't have to stand here for so long."
Isabella smiled at me. "Oh, that's so sweet of you." She gave me a kiss on the cheek worthy of a fiancée.
And it went right through me.
The gentle touch of Isabella's lips made my cock throb.
Again.
"Lovely fiancée," said Ian. "Suits you much better than old Abigail."
"I should think so," I said. Pretty much any woman would have been a better match for me than Abigail, but none was as perfect as Isabella. She looked simply perfect in her purple dress. And the purple bridal bouquet had matched it perfectly...
Carter! This is just... just fake. You're paying Isabella to play your fiancée for a week. You don't even know what she really thinks of you.
And at that very moment, this suddenly bothered me immensely.
How could I find out what Isabella wanted?
What she thought?
What she thought of me?
"I wonder if she'll show up? Or if she's already here?" Ian looked around searchingly.
"Who?" I asked distractedly.
"Abigail, of course. But I don't see her." Ian turned his attention back to the buffet.
"Come on, Ian. My brother wouldn't invite his ex to his wedding. He wants a nice day without any arguments." I thought about my encounter with Abigail a few days ago when she had visited me in my office.
"I thought he had invited her. As the daughter of a business partner." Ian shrugged.
"Hanny certainly wouldn't agree to that." I shook my head and imagined if I were marrying Isabella and invited not just Abigail, but a whole host of other women to the wedding. That would ruin our beautiful day.
Carter! What are you thinking???
I called myself to order.
Time to end the conversation with Ian. Somehow you're only getting stupid ideas from it. You're not going to marry Isabella, Carter.
"Ian, please excuse me, I urgently need to check on Isabella and my grandmother." With this excuse, I patted my old schoolmate on the shoulder and left him standing in the buffet line. I would look for Marylou. Our old cook loved to spoil me rotten and would surely find a way to organize two well-filled plates for me and Isabella without having to stand in line at the buffet forever and make small talk about unpleasant topics.
As inconspicuously as possible, I walked across the lawn towards my parents' house. Between me and the back entrance lay our swimming pool, where I used to like to do my laps and regularly beat Cameron in our competitions. Next to it, three children were playing tag.
Would Isabella prefer chicken or fish?
Or did she prefer vegetarian food?
Again, I realized how little I knew her.
And suddenly I thought that I would like to change that.
"Help!" one of the children screamed at that moment.
I grinned. That's how Cameron always used to scream when I chased him as a child and he realized he would probably lose at tag.
"HELP! HELP!" The child screamed louder and louder. I looked up. A little girl was running across the lawn towards me, screaming fearfully: "HELP!" My gaze followed her outstretched finger.
The pool.
And in it... a small body was flailing.
A boy, desperately fighting to stay above the water's surface.
The moment I quickened my pace and ran towards the pool, the boy's face disappeared under the water. I reached the pool within seconds and jumped in without hesitation. Clothes and shoes and all. As fast as I could, I dove down. In front of me floated the boy's body.
Could a child drown so quickly?
Hastily, I grabbed the little one and swam with him to the edge of the pool. I heaved him out of the water and pulled myself up on the pool's edge. It was more difficult than expected because my suit had soaked up water.
At that moment, the boy moved at the pool's edge. A fit of coughing shook his small body and he spat out a good portion of water. I exhaled in relief. I hadn't even been aware that I had been holding my breath from all the tension.
The little one was okay. That was the most important thing. Gently, I first turned his head to the side. As the coughing slowly subsided, I sat the child up and patted him on the back.
"Johnnie!" A distraught woman came running across the lawn towards the swimming pool, as fast as possible in high heels. That was... Tabitha, wasn't it? But she didn't seem to notice me at all at that moment, having eyes only for her son.
"Mommy," the little boy croaked.
"I think he's alright." I smiled at Tabitha. "He should just change into something else quickly and get something to drink."
"Carter! Is everything okay?" Suddenly Isabella appeared behind Tabitha and looked at me. In her warm brown eyes was... concern? Isabella was worried about me?
Or was she just playing a role? The role I had hired her for?
"Is everything okay?" Isabella repeated, leaning down to me and wrapping her arms around me. "I was worried about you," she whispered in my ear and gently kissed me on the cheek. Once. Twice.
I had never felt so warmly embraced. So secure. I could have stayed in this position forever.
"Thank you," Johnnie's mother Tabitha said then, with tears in her eyes. "Without the jump... Johnnie..." She didn't continue.
"Everything turned out fine in the end. I think Johnnie needs some ice cream. Then he'll soon be back to his old self." I didn't want an effusive thank-you speech. Not in this case.
"Ice cream," Johnnie called out when he heard the magic word and tried to free himself from his mother's arms. He seemed to have almost forgotten the scare from earlier. Tabitha thanked me once again before leaving with Johnnie.
"You need dry clothes too, Carter." Isabella still held me in her arms.
"So do you," I replied. "My suit isn't any drier, and now your dress is wet after hugging me so carelessly." Reluctantly, I moved away from Isabella a bit so she wouldn't get even wetter.
"I had to make sure you were okay." Isabella's eyes shimmered strangely. I'd never seen her like this before.
"Come on." I finally broke free from her embrace, stood up, and pulled her towards the house. "I'll show you my old room. We'll find something to wear there. We might look a bit out of place, but who cares."
"Then everyone will know you're a hero." Isabella looked up at me admiringly.
A short while later, I opened the door to my old room. The walls were covered with posters of quad bikes, boxers, and basketball players, along with photos of myself on a quad bike. These sports were still my passion today.
"I'm cold," Isabella murmured.
"Take off your clothes and use the blanket from the bed." As I said this, I opened the large antique wardrobe. A few old sports clothes were all that remained of my wardrobe here. Better than nothing.
I made a mental note to leave a tailored suit at my parents' house for the future. Just in case. You never knew what might happen.
Isabella came to my side, took a hanger from the wardrobe, and hung up her dress. "There. Now it'll dry quickly. Luckily it's a light fabric. I can wear it again this evening. Or maybe in half an hour."
I looked at her.
She was naked.
Completely naked.
She had even taken off her underwear.
Instantly, my cock stiffened.
And I reached for Isabella.
Gently, I stroked her cheek with one finger, caressed her ear and trailed down her neck, along her collarbone, and circled her breasts. First the left, then the right. Then I took her breasts in my hands. Kneaded them. Squeezed. First gently, then a bit harder. Then I brushed my thumbs over her nipples. They immediately stiffened under my touch. Isabella tilted her head back and moaned.
I loved how quickly and easily this woman could be aroused.
This body inspired me to ever new fantasies.
"Lie down," I whispered and slowly moved with Isabella towards the bed. "On your back." Isabella obeyed and spread her legs expectantly. I pulled her forward a bit, leaned down, and gently stroked her pearl with my tongue. I wanted to return the gift Isabella had given me recently, so I began to gently caress her pearl. I teased her with my tongue and my breath, and Isabella rewarded me with passionate moans. She spread her legs even wider and closed her eyes to fully give in to her arousal. My tongue explored Isabella's most intimate places and found ever more ways to heighten her pleasure. Until finally Isabella placed her hands on my shoulders, pressed her body deep into the mattress, and her moans escalated into passionate cries.
"Yes. Yes. Yes."
She came.
Isabella's skin began to glow from the orgasm.
Hastily, I shed my clothes. My cock was even stiffer than before, and so I quickly entered Isabella.
Finally.
We found our shared rhythm, which already felt familiar but was also excitingly new each time. Isabella wrapped her legs around me and arched her body towards me. With the next thrust, I penetrated even deeper into her. Isabella opened her eyes again and looked at me. I looked back. Lust sparkled in Isabella's brown eyes, which in turn aroused me even more. I thrust deeper. Isabella pressed against me.
"Oh Carter," she moaned.
And at that moment, she began to quiver beneath me again. I could clearly feel the contractions of her vagina around my cock. Isabella's moans echoed off the bedroom walls. Her second orgasm seemed even more powerful than the first.
With the next thrust, I also found my release in her.