Chapter 7 #3
But there was no comparison. Not really.
Her relationship with Ritchie had felt easy, like she’d been settling.
This morning aside, she would have called him dependable, predictable, and even boring at times.
And she’d needed that. It was a good relationship, and yeah, he could be a bit of an ass at times, but everyone had their bad days.
With Ghost, though, Becks felt seen. They weren’t even dating, and he’d shown her just a glimpse of how he would cherish her.
Bossy, absolutely, but she had just enough of a brat in her to enjoy teasing that side of him.
The way he made her body sing without ever having kissed her…
Becks didn’t want boring. She didn’t want to settle.
She wanted fun and excitement and to know that her man would tear down the world for her.
“Stay out of this, Ranger. This is between me and your sister.” The authority in Ghost’s voice soaked her panties. Jesus Christ, what would it be like if he turned that voice on her?
“Oh yeah?” her brother threw back at him. He wasn’t even attempting to keep his voice down. “How about the prostitute you paid a thousand dollars to last night? Were you planning on bringing her into this too?”
Becks’ heart sank. What? He’d left last night, and what? Made a detour at some truck stop to sleep with a lot lizard? She wasn’t so sheltered that she didn’t know such things existed, but it still grossed her out. Had he at least used protection?
Ghost’s hold on her tightened. She hadn’t even realized she’d started to pull away from him until she felt his resistance. “Fucking Keys,” Ghost snapped. “Is that what all those calls overnight were about?”
“He was fucking worried about you!” Liam shot back at him. “And he called me this morning to know if I knew where you were and what you were doing—or should I say who you were doing—or if it was a fraud charge.”
“Fuck.” Ghost lifted his hand from Becks’ waist to rub the back of his neck, but when he spoke, he looked at her rather than her brother. “Trust me, it’s not what it looks like.”
Becks wasn’t sure what else it could be, but she also was logical enough to realize that she was standing in a church where she’d intended to marry another man.
Did she really have a leg to stand on? It wasn’t like they were committed to each other or made any promises.
She’d sent him away. But damn, it hurt knowing he’d been with another woman last night.
She swallowed hard. “No, it’s fine. I mean, it’s not fine, but it’s not like we were together then.
I mean, not that we’re together now, because I still haven’t actually answered you, but we definitely weren’t together then.
” Dropping her face into her free hand, Becks felt her cheeks flush at her babble. “I’m not drunk, I swear.”
Ghost shifted slightly, wrapping his fingers gently around her wrist to draw her hand away from her face. He lifted her chin with the crook of his pointer finger. “It’s not what it looks like,” he repeated, his voice low and earnest. “We just talked. I didn’t even get hard for her.”
Becks felt her eyebrows raise up at his bluntness. “Um, I…” She shook her head. “I’m not sure how to respond to that.”
He ran his hand over her shoulder and then down her arm. Stepping closer, he urged, “Look down, Rebel. There’s nothing wrong with my dick. She just wasn’t you.”
Her eyes fell down to his crotch, where a very distinct bulge was formed beneath his zipper. “Oh!” she exclaimed. Then added more saucily, “Well, hello there…”
Ghost’s lips twitched as he shook his head, and she felt quite confident that he was holding back a dirty response.
“Are you fucking serious right now?” Shit. Becks had forgotten about her brother. She turned again to face him, and also to block Ghost’s pants from his view with her skirts.
“I told you to stay out of this,” Ghost reminded her brother. “I’m claiming your sister. Whether she marries me today or not, she’s mine.”
Becks spun back around. “I am?”
He nodded down at her. There was no hesitation, no doubt in his expression, and that confidence made her lady parts swoon. Christ, she was going to get pregnant by this man without them ever having sex if he kept that up.
She must have made a sound or shifted somehow, because Ghost lifted an eyebrow as his eyes raked down her body. “You are going to get pregnant by me,” he assured her. “As soon as you’re ready, so am I.”
Becks’ eyes widened into saucers. “Oh shit. I said that out loud, didn’t I?”
He nodded. He lifted both hands to cup the sides of her face. “We don’t have to get married today, Becks. But I’m making my intentions known so there’s no doubt or worry in your mind. You’re mine.”
Oh, there went her ovaries again. Fuck… There was also a possibility she just orgasmed at his declaration. Her knees wobbled, and she likely would have fallen if not for his hold on her. “Let’s do it,” she said, seizing the moment. “Let’s get married.”
Still keeping a tight grip on his hand, Becks turned to walk back towards the room she’d come out of.
Ghost hadn’t frequented a lot of churches, but based on the other supply closets and storage rooms, he assumed it to be an office of some sort that she was using to get dressed in.
He happily let himself get pulled along behind her.
Ranger’s tight hand on his bicep stopped him mid-step. “Becks, give us a minute,” her brother demanded in a not-so-nice tone.
“Watch yourself,” Ghost warned him, not liking Becks’ worried expression. Becks might be his sister, but Ghost was still his president. More gently to her, Ghost urged, “Go on, Rebel. I’ll be right there.”
Becks’ eyes flicked between the two of them before she nodded. “No throwing punches on my wedding day,” she said, pointing a threatening finger between them.
“Yes, ma’am,” they chorused.
Ghost did not like it when Becks let go of his hand and stepped away from him.
He suddenly understood Scar’s eccentric way of just walking into a room and tossing Tally over his shoulder, regardless of who was around to witness.
Ghost’s possessive need to constantly touch Becks only seemed to grow with each passing second.
Ranger’s grip tightening drew Ghost’s attention back to his pissed-off best friend. “What the fuck are you doing? Claiming her? She’s vulnerable right now! She was just left at the altar and you’re taking advantage of her!”
Ghost just barely stayed his fist out of respect to Becks.
However, her demand did not cover getting right up in Ranger’s face.
“Don’t you fucking dare! I left! I walked away from the only woman I’ve ever had feelings for because she asked me to.
Don’t you fucking dare say I’m taking advantage of her. ”
“She’s my sister. It’s my job to protect her—”
“Not anymore,” Ghost informed him. “Now it’s mine. Get it through your thick skull, Ranger, and don’t you fucking dare ruin this for her. And just remember,” he added, backing away, “her edict about throwing punches expires at midnight.”
Ghost stepped into the room Becks had gone inside of to find her having a similar argument with Libby and her mother. Another woman Ghost didn’t know was also present, though she was keeping out of the argument.
Libby’s eyes snapped to Ghost the moment he stepped into the room. “What the fuck is wrong with you?” she demanded, rushing towards him. “Why would you toy with her like this?”
Ghost caught her wrist when she made to slap him. “Easy,” he coaxed. “I am not the enemy here.”
“I don’t know who the fuck you are or what the fuck you’re after, but you’re not getting it from her!” Libby shouted in his face, unperturbed that he outweighed her by at least sixty pounds of muscle and still had hold of her wrist.
Ghost stared into Becks’ best friend’s eyes and said with deepest sincerity, “You don’t understand the dynamic of what is happening here, Libby, so let me explain it to you.
I’ve claimed Becks. That means she is not only under my protection.
It means that she’s my life. She’s my reason for being.
I will protect her, cherish her, ensure she wants for nothing, and if she gets so much as a paper cut, I will burn the world down for her.
” Libby’s expression changed as she blinked in surprise.
“She’s mine,” he repeated, emphasizing the word, “but I am also hers. And that means she is the one in charge and I am nothing more than her humble servant. I am not forcing her to do anything, Libby. This is her choice. It will always be her choice.”
Libby slowly lowered her arm, and Ghost let go of her wrist as she did. “Oh,” was her response, blinking heavily. Then she turned to Becks, “Holy fuck, girl, if you don’t marry him and have his ginger babies, I will.”
Becks laughed, and fucking hell, how Ghost loved that sound.
He truly had no idea if what he was feeling for her was actual love yet, but he knew that it was well on its way to being so.
This might not be natural or up to societal standards.
But fuck if he cared! Society could suck his dick. He was marrying this woman.
After explaining what was happening to Valerie, Becks and Ghost headed out into the chapel hand-in-hand.
Becks’ heart was racing a million miles per hour, but in a good way.
Gone was the feeling of resignation that she realized now she’d been feeling for a while, masking it behind the celebration and excitement of her upcoming milestone.
They headed down the aisle together. Her bridesmaids and Ritchie’s groomsmen were talking to various people within the pews, trying to assure them that the wedding was still happening, it was just delayed by unforeseen circumstances. Pastor Anthony was at the altar talking with Beth, the organist.
“Marry us,” she gasped out, short of breath.
Pastor Anthony stepped away from the organ. “Pardon me?” His confusion was completely understandable. He’d met Ritchie after all.