47. Chapter 46
Chapter 46
Finnley
When the guy in the cheap polyester western shirt and bedazzled pants cornered me at the pool table, I knew what was coming. I knew he’d run his mouth, talk a big game, and be a regular jackass, if those pants were any indication. But I also knew I wasn’t in any danger. I mean, Hales was there, along with the twins, and we were in a full bar. Nothing was going to happen. Other than that jerk running his mouth.
What I hadn’t expected was Hudson swooping in like a man possessed. Raw anger rolled off him like a physical presence. I’ve known Hudson a long time, and I have never seen him like that. Seeing him all growly and protective as he stalked toward the pool table had my stomach and my pussy tightening simultaneously.
His loud declaration— she’s my fucking wife —spoken with such heat and passion, and the way the word “wife” rolled off his tongue nearly dropped me to my knees. Who knew I’d love that word so much, snarled in my defense. Hot. As. Fuck . I’d stood there, shocked at how one little word could both stop me in my tracks and make me want to launch myself at him. His family had been stunned into silence, minus Hutch, who looked positively smug as he glared down at my would-be pursuer.
My pulse is fast and erratic when I slip into the office at the end of the hall. I leave the door cracked and flip the light on, pacing farther into the room. I know he’ll come after me. In fact, I’m counting on it.
Anticipation crackles in my veins when I hear his footsteps hurriedly following in this direction. The sound of muffled voices and the music in the main room have faded due to the distance of the office. I hear the creak of the ladies' room door open, the sound of it hitting the wall, then the bang of it closing again when he doesn’t find me in there. His footsteps continue, my pulse skyrocketing the closer he gets.
My skin lights up like a live wire. Goosebumps break out across my body, tightening my nipples under the thin fabric of my top. And then, he’s there, standing in the doorway, with eyes searching and hair disheveled like he’s been running his hands through it.
His broad shoulders deflate a bit when he sees me, either in relief to finally find me or in preparation for whatever he thinks I’m about to say. The ramifications of him calling me his wife in a crowded bar in front of the entire town and his family are clear. Everyone knows now, and there’s no undoing what is done. We agreed to keep this a secret, but the cat is most definitely out of the bag.
He clicks the door shut behind him and turns back to me. “Finnley, I’m—”
I shake my head once, cutting him off, and my fists clench at my sides. My heart wars with my mind: one side sets off alarm bells that this will only end with me brokenhearted and alone, but the other side has its own ideas—better ones, reckless ones that have me feeling invincible.
I launch myself at him as his eyes go wide. He stumbles back into the door, catching me against his chest. I slam my lips against his and fist the hem of his t-shirt, yanking it up. It only takes a couple of seconds before he reaches behind his neck and helps me pull it off. He’s caught off guard, but if there was a question in his mind about how I feel about his family knowing I’m his wife, he doesn’t voice it.
“That was so fucking hot,” I pant out, running my hands all over his chest, arms, his abs, lips plucking at his. He’s fucking beautiful.
His tongue meets mine, swipe for swipe, and a long moan rips from his chest when I tug open the button of his jeans and rip down his zipper. Frantically, I shove at his open pants, nails scraping his skin. As he kisses me deeply, I tug his hand and pull him over to the desk, our tongues never breaking contact.
“Yeah?” he rasps out against my mouth, going where I pull him. “You’re not mad?”
I shake my head, hating any space talking puts between our mouths. And knowing that, the more we talk, the longer it’ll take to have him buried inside me.
“No,” I say, biting and tugging his bottom lip with my teeth. “I love being yours and I love everyone knowing that I am.”
“God, me too,” he groans, plunging his tongue back into my mouth.
Feeling blindingly behind me, the backs of my thighs hit the desk. I shove everything off the surface with one hand, while jerking open the button and zipper on my jeans with the other.
He tears my crop top off over my head, then pushes me down onto the desk with one hand on my shoulder. His other hand pushes down one side of my jeans while I work on the other side. He rips them off and tosses them over his shoulder, then grabs my panties, working those over my hips, too. He leaves them dangling off my ankle—filthy evidence that he can’t bear to wait—and pulls out his cock, fisting it at my entrance.
“I love you, baby. I love you so fucking much,” he murmurs against my mouth. His tongue is doing delicious things to my insides, turning me to molten lava .
“I love you too,” I say between kisses. “But right now, I need you to fuck me like you don’t. I need it hard and messy and I want it now,” I plead. “I want to feel you inside me for days. Fuck me, Hudson. Ruin me for anyone else. Make me yours.”
His breathing is ragged and his eyes dance back and forth between mine as he pants, every muscle coiled tight. “Jesus Christ, you’re fucking perfect.”
And when he slams himself home, I know every single person in that bar knows… I’m his .
We make a beeline for the bathroom when we retreat from the office twenty minutes later. Hudson stands outside the door to give me a second to clean up without interruption. When I emerge, he pins me against the wall and kisses me breathless one more time. My hands find his ass and slip into the back pockets of his jeans. I cannot get enough of this man, and apparently, the feeling is mutual.
When we finally come up for air, he grabs my hand and leads me back into the bar. His siblings are still sitting in a booth talking and laughing.
Wren sees us first, face concerned, until her eyes catch on our linked fingers. A smile spreads across her face, and she not so gently digs her nails into Hank’s arm where it rests on the tabletop, his fingers around a glass of whiskey. He looks up, then follows her gaze to Hudson and me, before clearing his throat to stop the chatter at the table. Six sets of eyes watch us expectantly.
Hudson gives my hand a squeeze. “So, I guess you all heard that,” he starts.
“The whole fucking town heard it, brother,” Hutch says with a smirk .
Hudson ducks his head and chuckles, before pulling me against him by the waist.
“So, is it true?” Hayley pipes up, eyes glittering. “Are you two finally getting your shit together?”
Hudson glances down at me, and I give him a smile and a nod. I love this man, and I want everyone to know.
“It’s true,” he says, keeping his eyes on mine. A grin spreads across his handsome face and it lights me up inside.
“I knew it!” Wren exclaims. She awkwardly shuffles out of the booth and launches herself at us, throwing her arms around both of us the best she can with her pregnant belly. “Just friends, my ass!” she scolds through a laugh.
Hank follows and claps Hudson on the back. “It’s about fuckin’ time, man.”
Then, we’re being pulled into hugs by each of Hudson’s siblings, congratulations going all around, and my heart is full to bursting. Tears of happiness mix with our laughter. This is what I’ve dreamed of my whole life—a loud, raucous bunch to heal the broken pieces of me.
Hutch, of course, is more than willing to fill everyone in on the ceremony. No one bats an eye when we explain how we actually came to be husband and wife, and that Hutch was the one to make it official.
Hudson is quick to ask his siblings to let us be the ones to tell his parents. We’ll go over tomorrow to pick up Paige and tell them then. I have no doubt they’ll be over the moon. I’ve never once doubted my acceptance into their family; their love for me has always been clear. But it still all feels so surreal. I’m not just an honorary Hayes anymore. I’m one of them.