28. SET ME FREE
28
SET ME FREE
PENNY
T wo hours later, her parents’ cars rolled into the driveway side by side like a synchronized performance. Penny had texted them each and told them they had a special guest at the house, so they wouldn’t be surprised. When they walked in, she and Jack were waiting for them in the living room.
“My man,” Russell said with the biggest grin. He came over to shake Jack’s hand and give him a hard pat on the back. “Great to finally meet you, Jack. I’m Russell.” He wouldn’t let go of Jack’s hand, staring at him with that grin that was starting to border on fan worship.
“Dad,” Penny said softly, lifting her eyebrows.
“It’s great to meet you in person, too, sir. And Mrs. May —”
“Call her Erica,” Russell interjected, still grinning big. Jack’s hand was still clutched in his. Oh God, he looked starstruck.
“Russell, let the man have his hand back before you break it,” Erica said with an exasperated sigh. Then, smoothing her hair from out of her eyes, she offered her own hand to Jack and said in a cool tone, “It’s about time you came. Call me Erica. Or Mom. Whichever you prefer. I assume you’re staying for dinner.”
Jack’s eyes widened. He’d mentioned more than once he didn’t think her mother liked him very much, so to hear the words “call me Mom” tossed out there so casually was probably shocking.
He responded, “I wouldn’t want to put you through the trouble. I was thinking of taking you all out for dinner, if you’d like. Anywhere you’d like.”
One of their favorites was the restaurant of choice, an Italian place on Main with the good silverware. They chatted about Jack’s gym and his parents. Jack didn’t have to ask many questions about them since Erica took control of the conversation for the most part. He let her, grinning when she told him anecdotes about her daughter, the “will o’ the wisp,” and her wild youth. Penny groaned but laughed; she’d already told Jack a fair number of embarrassing incidents that had happened in her tweens and teens.
Then, after paying the bill despite Russell’s argument that he should take it, Jack reached over and held her hand on the tablecloth. His serious expression caused her parents to exchange glances.
“So…” Erica began, folding her hands together. “Did Penelope tell you she’s decided to buy her great-grandmother’s house? Are you amenable to living in New York, Jack?”
“We’ve discussed it. Penny is fine with living most of the year in Dublin, so I can keep training students at my gym. We’ll spend summers and holidays here. But first things first. We’re getting married before we go back.” His tone was measured and firm, making it clear their plans weren’t up for debate.
It shouldn’t have come as a surprise that her father didn’t look surprised, although he pretended to be by putting his hand over his mouth with comically wide eyes. They’d gotten the license from the county clerk, who just happened to be the guy who golfed with Russell on the local course.
Erica’s shock, on the other hand, seemed genuine. “Well, when are you going back? How much time do I have to plan the wedding?” she asked, her hand literally flying up to clutch at her pearl necklace.
“In two days. The marriage is happening tomorrow afternoon. Courthouse,” Jack responded.
At her mother’s look of disappointment, Penny quickly supplied the rest of the information. “We want a wedding, just not right now. Let’s plan for next spring to give us all the time we need to coordinate. We’ll do it here.”
That only marginally helped. “Well, I appreciate that you want to get married before the baby arrives,” Erica said with a sigh.
This time it was Penny and Jack who exchanged silent glances. “Making an honest woman of her” wasn’t really the reason. Should anything happen to Jack during the fight, she would legally be his next of kin. Jack had already contacted his solicitor to let him know this was happening and get Penny’s name on everything as quickly as possible.
“I’ll do it. I am authorized, you know,” Russell said with a wink.
It was settled. Jack dropped them off at the house that night. He left Penny with a “Good night” and the sweetest, most tender kiss, only to appear in the morning bright and ready with a shave and a haircut, looking like he had the day they’d met. They took off for the boutiques in town, fortunately finding a couple that had already opened. He bought a good suit, albeit off the rack with no time for tailoring, and she found a simple pink cocktail dress.
Erica was slightly aggravated that Penny had opted for untraditional pink rather than off-white or cream “befitting a mature bride,” but Jack grinned when she came downstairs and twirled for him in the formal living room. The pearls he’d given her at the ball were once again around her neck.
“Reminds me of what you wore the first time we got married,” he said in her ear. His voice was lower, setting her pulse to throb with fresh desire. “Ready for Wedding Number 2, Briar Rose?”
“I’m ready, Prince Philip,” she said with a soft laugh.
Penny heard the front door open but didn’t see who had arrived until Jade bounced into the room. “Hey, hey. Who’s getting married up in here today?”
“You made it! Yay!” Penny ran to give Jade a huge hug. “I thought you said your manager was gonna have a fit if you took another day off.”
“Nobody was gonna stop me from being here for your wedding day. I mean, I am the one responsible for all this, after all. Hi, Jack!” Jade went to give Jack a hug, which he accepted, turning red. She took off her coat, and underneath, she wore a bridesmaid’s dress, the same one she’d worn at her friend’s wedding in December. “That’s right, I’m your Maid of Honor, you already know.” She did a little spin to show off the swirly skirt, then leaning in close to Penny, she said, “Can I say it?”
Sighing hard, Penny said, “Go ahead.”
Jade took a deep breath and then exclaimed to the heavens, clapping with each word for emphasis, “ I. Told. You. So . You and The Mountain, I told you. People really should start paying me for my services. In fact, if my manager fires me, I’m going to open up my own matchmaking business and rake in that money. Oh, hi Auntie, hi Uncle.” Jade got busy hugging and greeting Penny’s parents.
“What’s this about a mountain?” Jack asked, giving Penny a look.
“Never mind,” Penny said. “Too bad your cousin Matt couldn’t make it.”
Sheepishly, Jack shrugged and said, “He’s, um, avoiding certain people in town.”
Russell scowled and shook his head. “Yes, Penny told me you happen to be cousins with the notorious Matt Rourke. If there’s anybody he should be avoiding in this town, it’s me. That boy was in and out of my courtroom every six months like they were dental checkups.”
“I know. You’re the main person he was referring to, sir,” Jack said with a sigh.
It was both surreal and beautifully perfect to exchange vows with Jack in her family’s home. She choked up when it was her turn. And Russell teased Jack when his eyes were wet. Afterward, her parents took them out to dinner, this time to the best restaurant in the county. There was cake and a little dancing at a nearby bar and lounge, and that was that.
Penny kissed everyone before she, Jack, and Jade drove down to Manhattan. Jade went home to pack. She was coming to the fight for moral support. In the meantime, she and Jack headed a bit further uptown to the Equinox on the West Side. Jade had come through with a last-minute one-night booking at the upscale modern hotel with views of the Hudson River.
“I love this. I haven’t stayed at a hotel in Manhattan since my parents brought me down for my first year at Julliard. That hotel wasn’t nearly as gorgeous as this,” she whispered as they walked into the spacious welcoming area.
“Today is a day for firsts,” Jack said. “My first and only time getting legally married. Our first night legally married.” He kissed the back of her hand with his soft lips, and she shivered.
Upstairs, Jack grinned when he unlocked the door for her and stood aside to let her enter first.
“Oh my God. How pretty,” she said after she gasped.
“I called ahead and got them to do this.”
There were bouquets of roses scattered around the room. Not just one or two, but at least twenty, on nearly every surface. Not just red either, but all colors, pinks, yellows, even blues and purples. All of them gave off a heavenly scent that perfumed the air. There were candles, too, not yet lit. The accommodations were understated but the quality was luxe. Penny passed the king-sized bed to look out the window at the lights along the river.
“This is beautiful. Thank you,” she murmured.
Jack shrugged. “Best I could do on short notice. I promise you when we go on a real honeymoon, we’ll get a better room. Maybe a swim-up shack on one of those islands.”
“Are you kidding? I love this room. Not bad for a lad from the North Side of Dublin and a girl from Owenville, New York. We could be anywhere, and I’d love it because I’m with you.”
Jack flushed red and smiled. “Same for me. We’ve had a big two days, and we’ve got miles to go before we sleep. Care to take a shower together before bed?”
“I could use a nice, hot one,” Penny drawled suggestively. “And I liked that little Robert Frost reference you threw in there. Did you give up on the military spy killer thrillers while I was away?”
“I read other things,” he retorted indignantly. “Let me get these candles lit.”
While he was busy with the candles, Penny checked out the bathroom. She was pleased she wouldn’t have to pull out the washcloths this time. Then she laid out her nightclothes and toiletries while Jack went about the room, lighting the votives in their crystal holders.
There hadn’t been time to buy many new things, but she had bought some lingerie from the boutique in town. It was a teddy with strategic straps across the bust and a flouncy little skirt, plus matching thong. This delicate, sexy creation, a hotter pink than her soft carnation dress, didn’t look like it was going to win the battle to keep her large, heavy breasts high and proud, but she doubted she’d be wearing it very long anyway.
It was strange. After a month apart, after nights of dreaming of his mouth on her, his hands, his body, Penny was suddenly shy when Jack was finished with the candle lighting, and they stood looking at each other. If Jack was feeling it, he gave no indication while he removed his suit, then his shirt, and everything else he wore.
“You looked so handsome today. I can’t believe you’re my husband. Like for real , for real, my husband.”
He was fully naked. Jack smiled softly as he removed her dress, her bra, and panties until she was nude too. He pressed his hand on her tummy to feel the hardening flesh. Kneeled down on the carpet to press kisses on it and rest his head against her skin. When he looked up at her, his face was reddened with emotion.
“Same, angel. It’s fucking my head up to think you’re my wife, officially. I’m afraid I’m gonna wake up tomorrow and find out none of this happened, and you were just this beautiful dream. Are you real, Penny?” His breath was hot against her stomach, his eyes searching hers.
She touched his cheek, and he turned to kiss her palm. “I’m real, Jack.”
“Show me,” he said huskily.
Jack stood and kissed her, walking her to the bathroom with his arms around her waist, as if he couldn’t let another second go by without touching her. The shower was in a glass cubicle. Penny leaned in to turn on the water and test the temperature with her fingers. She was absolutely not going to be wearing a damned shower cap for this.
“Okay. Just keep my head out of the water, and we’ll be all good.”
Laughing, he let her get in first, farthest away from the spray. They lathered each other up with the dispenser soap, running their hands up and down. When Penny picked up the washcloth to make sure every bit of her nether parts were well washed, he shook his head.
“These things,” Jack said with a soft smile. “I’ve actually been using them since you left. Now I’m in the habit.”
“You see! It’s a necessity,” she responded and laughed.
“I suppose. Let me get your back.”
Jack took the cloth and turned her around, washing her back in long swoops. Then he hung it on the railing and rubbed her with his hand instead.
“That feels good.” She reveled in his hot hands moving over her skin and the scent of the soap.
Jack pulled her back near the water enough to rinse her off without wetting her hair, his dick brushing against the rise of her ass. His hand strayed between her nipples, toying with them. Fuck, that felt good. After being touch-starved for him, after so many weeks apart, it was better than good. His touch was as necessary to her as air.
“Thought you’d be showing more by now,” he noted, his hand back on her belly.
“I’ve heard that’s normal for a first-timer. But I feel it.”
“I can’t wait to see you rounder. You’re already sexy as fuck, but I think I’m going to have a hard time keeping my hands off you.” He kissed her shoulder, and his mouth was hot on her skin. With wet, skillful fingers, he teased her lower lips apart and then slipped his finger up and around her clit. Jack bit gently at her throat and dipped that finger inside her, letting his thumb take over the gentle circles on her bud. It was Heaven feeling all this again, his tenderness, the rising lust, and exquisite pleasure. “I finished the books. They said it’s good to keep having sex right up till the end. Are you up for that?”
“I am if you are,” she breathed, then gasped when he suddenly turned her around, lifted her leg, and drove his cock inside her as if he couldn’t wait another second.
And thank every spirit in the universe for that; she moaned and melted and creamed on him, gushing on his thickness. He drove deep, pounding and hitting her clit as he did. She was fucking done right then and there.
“I’m coming,” she hitched. Her walls were still pulsing on him, and his grin was breathless.
“Fuck, that was quick. Your pussy missed me, I guess.” Jack’s face was tense with building pleasure. His silky hair dripped shower water all over his features; the water spray on her chest made them both slippery. He pressed her against the wall and pumped fast, hard, breathlessly. Moaning together, they fucked right up until Jack groaned harshly, “Not yet.”
But he looked pained when he withdrew, his girthy dick bobbing against her stomach, sticky with her cream. He kissed her greedily, then made himself take a step back. Already she longed to have him back inside her. She was the greedy one now; she really didn’t know how she’d gone without him, without this, for as long as she had.
Jack turned off the water. He stepped outside the cubicle and helped her out to stand on the towel he’d thrown on the floor. Toweling her off, just barely, he finished quickly, eyes raking up and down her body. Hungry, like he was going to devour her. That same look that had frightened her when she’d seen his picture.
But she wasn’t scared anymore. She wanted everything he had to offer and welcomed anything he wanted to do to her.
“I want you so bad, it fucking hurts. Not just this.” He cupped her pussy. “All of you. Everything you’re thinking. Everything you’re feeling. No holding back from me anymore.”
He stood and picked her up at the waist, walking her to the bed as she wrapped her arms around his neck and offered up her mouth for a long, slow, drugging kiss. Jack kept kissing her, his mouth alternating between soft and hard as they sank onto the cover.
“I missed you so much,” he said gruffly. “Did you miss me?”
“Of course, I missed you,” she responded, her heart fluttering.
“Tell me you’ll never leave me again.” His urgent demand seared her skin as he kissed her cheeks, her forehead, and her eyelids. “Tell me you’re mine, forever, angel.”
“I thought I just did,” Penny responded with a shiver. “I made my vows in front of the State of New York and Jade. That’s pretty solid, right?”
“Vow to me . Swear to me . Say it, Penny.” The command in his voice, the exquisite need in his eyes made her weak. This wasn’t the time for teasing, not anymore.
“I swear. I’ll never leave you again.” There was no shame in the quiver of her voice. No shame at all in telling him, “I’m yours. All yours.”
Huffing a short laugh, finally satisfied, Jack nodded. “Good. Because I’m yours. And I’m never letting you go again.”
From anyone else, that would be a scary statement to hear. But not coming from him. Despite whatever lived inside him that had the desire and the ability to hurt a man, she knew he’d never be that way with her. Her trust in him was absolute. And she felt free now. Free to love him in a way she never had before, to give herself to him completely, willingly.
Then he began to make love to her a second time. Sweet, achingly thorough love. Head-to-toe, soul-to-soul love. Jack kissed and stroked every inch of her body, from her forehead to her chin, down her shoulders, and the soft skin of her breasts. He poured adoration on her nipples, the swell of her middle, and the ticklish places on her hips. Lavished attention on her ample, trembling thighs and her kneecaps and literally kissed the sensitive curve of her instep and the pad of each toe.
The room was warm, but wherever Jack’s lips touched her, it left a wet spot that cooled when the air hit it. Her legs moved on the gold-tone duvet, growing restless as he continued on his path. Rolling her so that she was on her side rather than face down on her tummy, he kissed his way back up her legs, reaching the place where her upper thigh met her ass. His breath was warm on her flesh, and he murmured his appreciation for that part of her, licking the lumps and bumps that rose from under her skin.
Teasing her, he coaxed shaky sighs from her lips when he gently kissed her cheeks, rubbing his rough, scratchy jaw against them. Surprising her, he slapped them suddenly.
“Mm!” Her moan was sharper at the stinging sensation.
He scraped his jaw against the warmed flesh again. It tickled, tormented. She was lost in the swirl of his tongue when he pushed her top knee up to get better access to her pussy from behind. Then he licked a stripe up the center to her clit with a flattened tongue.
“Missed how you taste. If I could fucking bottle it, I would,” he rasped. She laughed, moaned, and opened wider so he could taste more of her. He lapped delicately at her clit, this lighter touch somehow more tortuous than a full-on assault. But his voice was anything but soft when he groaned and told her, “Can’t wait anymore. I need to be inside you.”
Pulling her up, he made her straddle him, slide down on his dick so they faced each other in the center of the big bed. He stretched her, filled her, and came home. And then time passed; it could have been minutes or hours or an eternity as he held on tight, staring into her face as if she held the answer to all his mysteries as she moved on him. Like she had enchanted him, spelled him, the way he’d captured her.
“Angel…” Jack cupped her cheek with that big palm. A smile hovered over his lips but his eyes spoke a devotion so complete it struck a chord in her that was almost painful. “I love you. Love you so much.”
Penny rocked on him, holding on for dear life, all of her pieces of armor finally cracking, turning to dust, and blowing away. She moved on him faster and faster, grinding down to satisfy her body’s needs while staring into Jack’s eyes. Body to body, soul to soul. When she came the second time, she was a falling star, exploding on impact, scattering pieces of herself everywhere. Jack caught all those pieces, grasped them to him even tighter, and fused her back together again.
And then it was his turn. “Oh, God, Penny…” His groan was deep, dark, guttural. Feral. He sounded torn apart. His cock thumped inside her, shooting his cum, his lust, his heart. She caught him, held him, absorbed him, with her pussy, her womb, into every cell.
Sated and exhausted, they collapsed into each other’s arms, and it was sweaty, shaky, and wonderful. They lay side by side.
“Penny,” Jack murmured, gazing into her eyes and stroking her arm. The thundering of his heart shook her, her own beating in time. “If there’s such a thing as soulmates, I’m pretty sure you’re mine.”
She was lost in his eyes, in his touch, his warmth. All her old resistance to this was but a fading memory.
“Soulmates are real,” she answered. “I know you’re mine.”
The next day, they had a good leisurely breakfast and did a little sightseeing and shopping. Jack reminded her suddenly as they were passing Tiffany’s that he hadn’t bought her an engagement ring.
“But I have a ring,” she said, holding up the band from the ball.
“You need another one.”
They went in arguing over every selection in her ring size. Jack was insistent on getting a big rock, which made her roll her eyes.
She tried one on that he pointed at and she held it up. “You can see this thing from outer space.”
“Exactly. It's perfect.”
The thing felt strange on her hand, but she had to admit she loved how it shone. It was an old-school style; the attendant said it was a Victorian-era setting, which Penny thought was fitting.
Jade was enthusiastic about the ring when they picked her up to head for the airport.
“Are you sure about coming to Dublin? You know this is strike fifty at your job,” Penny said.
“It’s coming one way or another,” Jade responded simply. “Maybe this is me getting unstuck.”
Arriving the next day in Dublin after their overnight flight, Penny was wrung out and grateful when they finally made it back to the house. Her home, again. Everything looked just as it had when she left, with the exception of Trixie, whose room seemed so empty.
After they got Jade settled in the guest room, Jack started prepping something to eat.
“I can’t believe your parents came back and dog-snatched Trixie like that,” she remarked softly.
Jack came behind her and wrapped his arms around her thickening waist at the island. “I know. It’s been weird without her. We should get one of our own. Think you’ll be able to handle a baby and a puppy?”
Sudden tears welled up in her throat. Penny grinned despite them, holding Jack’s hand against her belly. “Yeah. A baby and a puppy. That’s the dream right there.”
“In the meantime, I found this. Been holding on to it for when you came back.”
Jack pushed something soft in her hand. It was Toto, looking no worse for wear. That did it. Penny turned all the way around in the circle of his strong arms and clung to him, tears escaping from her eyes. In one more day, Jack would meet La Roque in the cage. The baby, the dog, and their whole future hung in the balance. The weight that she’d been able to ignore in the excitement of the reunion and the wedding loomed big and heavy. It threatened to press the very air from her lungs.
“I’m scared,” she whispered. Her tears left wet spots on his long-sleeved T-shirt, but he didn’t seem to care.
“I can still call it off if you want me to. I told you I’d do anything for you.” He held her as a shudder ran through her frame. “Just tell me, and I’ll call it off.”
This was her last chance. She knew he was serious. Knew he loved her so much he would do whatever she asked of him.
“I want you to do what you do. Be who you are,” she told him simply.
Jack shuddered this time at her acceptance. He held on, soothing her against his solid chest while his large, warm hand rubbed her back.
“Thank you. Don’t worry, angel. You’re not getting rid of me that easy.”