TWENTY-ONE
THE ROOM ERUPTED in a blast of cheers and hilarity as each man complied. A kiss. So simple; something she took for granted. Zairn was already her husband, he’d kissed her as her spouse many, many times—done a helluvalot more than kiss her.
Technically, they’d had their wedding night, been on honeymoon… Right then, that didn’t matter. The moment was profound. This wasn’t only for them, it was for everyone. The world knew. No more secrets. No more hiding.
Clarity awakened her to Zairn’s urgency that they be joined, whether the masses knew it or not. The link of marriage was different. It wasn’t easy to explain the wholesomeness of it, the unity, the depth of commitment it required. Now she understood why it was so important to Jane too.
So much time and energy had been focused on making the event happen.
Not just the details, but the talk of it, the conversation, the questions.
For so long it had been wedding, wedding, wedding.
She’d lost count of how many times it came up online and in real life.
The media, her streaming viewers, everyone wanted to talk about it.
With all the talk, it had become almost unreal.
Now, as the music rose, that was it. Deed done. This life event would never happen again.
Yeah, they still had a reception ahead, a meal, a party, but… What would they do with their time now? What would they talk about? Was that just it?
Zairn released her as someone touched her back. Jane. She immediately turned into her friend’s embrace. Being up there together, doing this together… They’d have to renew their vows when Toria got hitched, just to be up there as a trio.
The men shook hands, there was back slapping and laughter as she got kisses and hugs from everyone up there, even Ballard, maybe he was drunk already. You’d think Knox might be the hold out, but he was a goddamn Collier, they learned presentation and appearances before they left the womb.
“The register is just here,” the officiant said.
Off Knox and Cam went with Jane ensconced between them. She wasn’t so quick off the mark.
“Uh, how does this work?” she whispered to the men on either side of her, watching her friend’s progress. “We’ve already signed one of these.”
“And we’re smart enough to have a dummy one,” Ballard said. “Make like it’s real.”
Huh, the Colliers weren’t the only ones privy to the necessity of presentation and appearances.
Jane laughed with the officiant, still with that aura of pure joy. Her hand rose until her knuckles landed on Zairn’s abs.
“Let’s give them a minute.”
Every detail was important to her friend. Jane would remember every second of this day forever. Letting her have those moments with her groom meant so much.
“They can take their time,” Zairn said, scooping a hand around her opposite cheek to steal her focus.
Mmm, and her mouth.
Kissing they were good at. Making out too. Really any activity that involved any kind of bodily contact.
What was getting to him right then? The dress? The hair? Had she ever understood what about her turned him on? Not particularly. Perhaps the pheromones. He sure drugged her with a dose of his every once in a while. Did hers react to his and cause… this?
At Crimson, in the nights, sometimes they’d talk, sometimes they’d flirt, other times they’d use their mouths for a much better purpose.
Most of the time, she was the initiator. Zairn never shied with his hands, they often ended up under her skirt or anywhere else they pleased.
And she loved it.
How he touched her and owned her and demanded her compliance while surrendering his in return. The gentle ebb of his kiss returned in a slow, teasing retreat that sparked her desperation to take things up a gear.
When he finally took them for good, his fingertips trailed down her bare arms.
“Want to do this here or move it upstairs?”
Grr, her guy was ready to—why were her fingers on the buttons of his shirt? His jacket and vest were undone, open, granting access to her wandering hands. Had she…? Wow, brazen. Go her.
Instincts were right on the ball. A whisper of a chance at skin-on-skin contact and primal reflex did its thing. Stripping him naked was apparently so second nature that it happened subconsciously.
“I’ve missed touching you.”
Though she maybe should’ve considered that her parents were watching from a few feet away. What the hell, they were probably chatting it up. They wouldn’t care. Where did they think their grandchildren would come from?
“Upstairs it is,” her guy said, grabbing her fingers between his.
“Not a chance, you two,” Ballard said, blocking their way. “You’ve got a captive audience ready for more.”
“We’re ready for more too,” Zairn said and tried to sidestep him. “And we’re happy to be captive.”
For each other. His eagerness was flattering, though Ballard had a point.
“Gonna do this to Jane?” Ballard asked, eyes on hers.
Ouch, low blow, but the man made his point.
She exhaled. “He’s right.”
“We haven’t seen each other for two weeks,” Zairn said to his best man.
Guy wasn’t buying it. “‘Cept last night.”
“We didn’t see each other last night.”
That was no lie.
“Got yours though, didn’t you?” The bodyguard crooked a brow. “Think I’m that dumb? You two in the same building…” He did know them rather well, maybe too well. “With that out the way, what do you plan to do upstairs?”
“We’ll tell you how it goes when we come back down.”
“You leave this room now, we won’t see you again this week.”
“That’s a lot of cuddling,” Roxie said.
“And the rest,” Ballard replied. “All this pomp and money spent? You gonna walk out on it.”
They couldn’t exactly say a person only had one wedding when this was her and Zairn’s second.
“Suppose he’s right… I can’t leave until someone comments on my shoes.”
Ballard’s scowl was reassuring. “What’s wrong with your shoes, Little Rox?”
“Jane has diamonds on her dress,” Roxie said, gathering up her skirt just enough to poke her foot out the bottom. “She’s not the only one with bling.”
Zairn laughed.
Ballard shook his head. “Are those…”
“Ruby slippers, just like the Wicked Witch.” She rolled her ankle left and right, round and round. “Good for the brand, Casanova?”
“You’re a good girl.”
“Enough to earn another kiss?”
Dipping down, coming closer, the twist of the smile on her beautiful man’s face promised way more than a fleeting kiss. For now, for forever, for—
“Rox!” Jane called, still beaming. Ah, Ballard saved by the bride. One of them. “You have to come over here.” She gestured. “Come over here.”
Tightening her hold on Zairn’s hand, she forced him to follow her over to the paperwork. “Duty calls.”
“You have to witness this,” Jane said. “You and Zairn. We’ll do yours.”
“Symmetry,” Roxie said, refastening her guy’s buttons. Putting him back together without taking advantage was a real downer on the day. “Classy.”
This wouldn’t be the moment she revealed to Jane that her and Zairn’s certificate was a fake. Actually, this was the moment that guaranteed she’d never reveal to anyone that her and Zairn’s certificate was a fake.
She signed, he signed, everyone signed.
“Can you believe this?” Jane said when the four guys gathered for another back-smacking laugh session. “We’re married! It’s here, it’s—” Her inhale was a pant of disbelief. “Thank you. Thank you! I can’t—this is incredible, amazing, we’re… I can’t believe we’re married! I’m a wife! We’re wives!”
“Yes,” she said, doing her best to get close enough for the semblance of a hug.
Wasn’t so easy with Jane’s incredible skirt. She had layers, but Jane’s dress was something else. More like art than attire.
The noise rose with every second. No matter the size of the space, thirteen hundred people made themselves known. In there, much like at the club of an evening, a whisper didn’t exist.
“We’ll do the walk back down the aisle and the drinks reception will start while we’re getting pictures,” Jane said. “You’re getting pictures. Oh, uh, I don’t know if the photographers—”
“Bought and paid for, honey. You think we’d forget to guarantee your memories? What will you show your grandchildren if you don’t have pictures? Knox will be senile and useless by then, it will be all on you to animate the dream.”
Jane sort of quivered as her color rose. “Grandchildren?”
“Sure! You’re one step closer,” Roxie said. “You’ve got the guy. You live together. We’ve taken care of marriage…” She leaned in to whisper, “Next is babies.”
“Babies.”
Her friend’s conflict was clear. Jane would want to squee over the possibility but had only that morning thought her guy wanted to break up. Sure, he’d proved that wasn’t true… Would he be ready for the offspring conversation? One step at a time.
“Aisle walk, cheering, pictures, we can do this. Let’s get our guys.”
Jane caught her hand before she took a step. “Rox, after the pictures, we have to do a thing.”
“A thing?” Not one to hesitate, she’d be up for whatever. Her threshold for the shocking was way higher than Jane’s. “Okay. With the guys?”
“Just us. We talked about the—”
“Ah, our first costume change?”
“Costume and… a little extra.” Jane squealed and raised her shoulders before passing her by. “Knox, honey…”
In response to his bride, her friend’s new husband left his buddies just like that. Good, Knox was doing okay.
“Blossom…?”
“Can they leave it?” Jane asked.
“Leave what? You can have anything you want.”
“The blossom. I want it to stay on the floor.”
God, it would be everywhere, and probably a slip hazard. That didn’t matter more than the romance. Dutiful Knox was good to cover litigation costs.
Speaking of dutiful… Where was her husband?
There he was, with Ballard a few feet away, smiling at her. Creep. She didn’t have to call or go to him. Nope. She spun on the spot to sashay slowly toward the aisle. He’d catch up. Man never could resist her caboose.