“There is a room I’ve been hoping we could play in,” I say, gently biting on her ear.
“The studio?” She grins, turning around to wrap her arms around my neck.
“Guess again,” I say, pulling her closer and bringing my mouth to hers, and kissing her passionately while Perry barks at the chickens again.
“Is it our special play room?” she asks as I drag my teeth over her bottom lip.
“Uh-huh. I have a hard on for you the size of Mount Everest and I’m dying to make you scream.”
The benefits of having your own private stretch of land is that when your wife decides to reach down and pull her dress over her head, no one else can see it.
She grins at me, drops the dress on the ground and walks into the house in nothing but a pair of barely there white panties.
“Are you coming with me?” she calls back.
“Fuck yes,” I growl as I race up behind her, causing her to laugh in delight as I pick her up and throw her over my shoulder.
It’s moments like these when I realise how much happier I am now. Millions of fans are nothing compared to the love of one perfect woman. Everything about Lisa improves my life. I want her. I need her. I love her. And like her song says, together we are one.
Keep reading for an extra burst of beautiful with Devotion, Naomi and Theo’s wedding.
Or you can jump to the next Beautiful Series Novel, Star featuring Sandra and her new life in the spotlight.
Next in the Beautiful Series - Star
And then there was a wedding…
Naomi and Theo - Devotion
One
“Hey Naomi, when are you and Theo planning on getting married?” Stephanie asks, as she fills up my glass of wine and offers a top up to both Paige and Katrina, who are sitting on the wicker chairs surrounding Stephanie’s patio table.
We’ve all come together for one of Stephanie and Gary’s famous weekend barbeques. Above us, the summer sun shines brightly, and below us, a hose attached to a spinning sprinkler keeps four children entertained, while their fathers grill the meat and keep a watch over the children.
“You’ve been engaged for three bloody years now, right?” Paige adds, as she glances down from the patio at her two children from her marriage to Elliot - Grace, who is five and a half, and Adam, who is three. They are dancing around under the spray of water with Katrina and David’s two-and-a-half-year-old son, Zachary, and Stephanie and Gary’s little girl (and also my god daughter) Amanda, who is also five.
Everyone here is married with children. Except for Theo and I. We’re engaged and we live together. But that’s about as far as we’ve gone.
A sigh escapes my lips as I look over my shoulder at one of the kids as they squeal delightedly. I catch Theo’s eye from across the lawn where he stands talking to the men with a bottle of beer in hand. I smile at him, loving the way he seems to pause mid-sentence to smile back at me. He still makes my heart flutter.
Even though we work and live together, we haven’t lost that spark that’s between us. We don’t get on each other’s nerves—we’re cohesive. We get each other. It’s a rare thing in this world to feel that close to someone, I’m sure.
“Soon,” I reply when I turn back. “We’re just waiting for our schedule to calm down a little.”
Katrina places her glass on the table and takes a breath to speak. “I’m not trying to tell you what to do or anything. But you know that it will never calm down. There’ll always be something going on that seems more important than planning your wedding. It’s what happened with me and David. He wanted me to set a date, and I was always finding a reason not to do it. I wanted to marry him, but I was scared to have the wedding. I dreamed about what I wanted for years. But dreaming and doing are two very different things. I was afraid that my reality wouldn’t be as good as the dream.”
“Well, how was your wedding in the end?” I ask her, knowing that she obviously got over her fears because she and David have been married for most of the time I’ve known them.
“Her wedding was amazing,” Paige interjects. “David did this whole surprise fairy tale thing for her. She thought she was going on a New Years Eve cruise, but it was her wedding. It was so beautiful.”
I glance back at Katrina as her smile widens at the memory, and her cheeks colour a pretty shade of pink. She turns to me. “It was. It’s a bit of a long story, but in the end, David planned everything. I knew it was coming, but I didn’t know when. I think I waited for almost a whole year, wondering when the hell it was going to happen, and just when I’d stopped expecting it, it happened. All of our friends and family were in on it. But they all kept it a secret. It was such a beautiful surprise.”
I can’t help but smile in return. “That does sound really wonderful. Theo and I have plans. We know what we want, but we just haven’t had the time to sit down and set a date. Work and family keeps getting in the way. We wanted to get married when he reconciled with his brother, but then Marcus went off and eloped, and Theo’s parents were devastated. So, we thought we should wait until everyone had settled down, and now that they have, we have a tour coming up. So, I don’t know. Maybe we can get married in about twelve months’ time? As long as nothing else gets in the way in the meantime.” I glance back over at him where he stands, ready to reach out and take a tray of cooked meat from the side of the barbeque where Gary has been cooking with Elliot. “Looks like lunch is almost ready,” I say, purposefully changing the subject.
“I guess we’d better get these kids dry and fed,” Paige says, uncrossing her legs before she stands and places her glass on the low table top.
I stand with everyone else, even though I don’t have a child to corral, and follow them down the steps to the grass. Elliot is already turning off the hose, and the kids are complaining that they just want five more minutes.
Moving over to Theo, I wait for a moment while he places the tray of meat in the middle of the large outdoor dining table. Then I slide my arms around his waist for a quick hug. He kisses me on the top of my head. “Having a good time?” he asks me quietly.
I glance over at the happy families as they try to contain their children’s excitement. Despite the chaos, not one of them looks even slightly unhappy.
I give him a slight shrug. “I am. I just feel like we’re behind the eight ball when we come here sometimes. They’re always asking when we’re getting married. But once we are, they’ll all be asking when we’re having kids I suppose.”
He slides his arm around my shoulders. “We can’t live our lives to other people’s timetables, gorgeous. But, in saying that, we can get married whenever you want, you know?”
“It takes time to plan, Theo. Time we don’t really have right now.”
He moves to hook his finger under my chin to tilt my head up so I meet his eyes. “I love you. I want to marry you, and I am happy to wait until we can have the kind of wedding you’ve dreamed about. I’m also happy running off and marrying you tomorrow if that’s what you want. I just want you to feel happy. That’s my goal. Happy wife, happy life. That’s what my father’s always said.” He winks, dipping his head as he presses a soft kiss to the end of my nose.
My mouth curves into a smile as I tighten my grip around his waist. “You wouldn’t be happy running off and eloping, Theo. If we do that, what was the point of waiting for you to work things out with Marcus?”
He presses his lips together. “That was before he ran off and got married without thinking about any of us. I love my brother. But he’s not the best at considering anyone else’s feelings. I’ve got to stop worrying about people who aren’t you. You’re the one who’s most important to me. You’re the one who will always be my family.”
I rise up on my toes and press my lips to his, just as Elliot and Paige walk over with their two kids in tow. “Whoa, get a room you two,” Elliot jokes, picking up his son and swinging him easily up onto a chair.
I glance at Elliot and smile, then turn back to Theo
and whisper, “We’ll talk about this later.”
He nods, pressing a kiss to my forehead before we break apart and help the others to unwrap all the salad bowls before we sit down to enjoy lunch with our friends, while thoughts of our wedding still plague my mind.
Originally, Theo and I put our wedding plans off because he and his younger brother, Marcus, weren’t talking to each other after a bit of a love triangle ensued between the three of us.
When I chose Theo over him, Marcus lost his shit on stage, left the band and embarrassed the lot of us. Our band, Matiari, survived with Theo as our new lead singer, but Marcus became a mega star when his outburst went viral.
After a couple of years travelling the globe, Marcus finally returned home and met a girl who managed to break him of his man-whore ways. He ended up marrying her in secret on an island somewhere.
The news really upset Theo. He acted like it wasn’t that big of a deal toward Marcus. But privately, it really hurt his feelings. We’d waited all that time for our own wedding just so Marcus could be there, and then Marcus finally comes back to the family, and the first thing he does is run off and get married without us. It was a bit of a kick in the guts to Theo. Once again, he was the only brother who gave a shit, even though he constantly questioned why he did.
So, in the end, the brother who never wanted to settle down is married, leaving Theo and I, who wanted to get married all along, still waiting. I suppose if we suddenly felt a desperate need to marry, we’d set a date and everyone else could go to hell. Besides work, touring, and limited funds, there really isn’t anything in our way. I guess we’ve just been happy the way we are. We’re together and that’s what’s most important right now.
The wedding will happen when the time is right. I just don’t know when that time will be.
Two
When we get home from Gary and Stephanie’s, it’s only four in the afternoon. Most of the time, we don’t have free weekends like this. But leading up to our tour, most of our weekends are free, instead of being booked out with local gigs. Theo takes the time to head into the studio to work on a song he’s been trying to piece together lately.
Like a lot of artists, when a song hits him, he struggles to stop working until he’s finished it. So it was a big thing for me to get him out of the house, and to the barbeque today.
I know he wants to get some work done, but he’s been working tirelessly of late. And since we have the night to ourselves, I think tonight is the perfect night for him to relax. We can work on the song together tomorrow. Tonight should be about us.
Giving him a good half hour to himself, I enter the bedroom to prepare for my distraction. Then I quietly enter the studio.
“Theo,” I coo, standing in front of him as he pauses his guitar playing to scribble something down.
“Huh?” he asks distractedly, with his brow creased as his uses his pencil to scratch out some notes.
“Theo,” I repeat, keeping my voice soft as I wait for him to look up.
He finishes scribbling out his thought then looks up at me with only half his attention.
“Oh, wow,” he says, doing a double take as the pencil falls from between his fingers. Quickly, he sets his guitar to the side, his eyes travelling up the length of my body as I stand before him in nothing but my matching purple lace bra and panties and a pair of black stilettos. I’ve got his whole attention now.
“It’s time to take a break, my love,” I tell him seductively, stepping toward him before I kneel between his legs. Reaching out, I run my fingers over the firm peaks and valleys of his chest until I reach the waist of his jeans. “You need a night off. Sit back and relax.”
He grins, meeting my eyes as I reach out to undo the buckle of his belt, slowly popping the button fly of his jeans, one at a time. Reaching in, I return his grin as I feel his cock, hard and ready for me. I free it from his boxers and run my hand down his smooth shaft as he inhales deeply.
Running my tongue gently around his tip, I continue to move my hand around his length, loving the soft moan that rumbles from within his chest as I slowly take him into my mouth.
Working him with my hand, and my mouth and tongue, I hum gently as my own arousal zings between my legs. Reaching down, I slide my hand into my panties and find my hard nub, knowing that Theo is watching me. He loves to see me pleasure myself.
As I moan around his cock, touching him, touching myself, Theo’s hands thread into my hair, guiding my rhythm as we both move toward our climax.
“Dio mio!” a voice that doesn’t belong, calls out in shock.
I freeze, my eyes going wide as I realise there’s someone in the room. And not just anyone–an Italian-speaking someone. Theo’s mother. Fuck!
All at once, I remove my hands and pull my head back, releasing Theo’s cock as I turn toward the voice in horror.
“Fuck!” Theo calls out at the same time, his orgasm shooting out of him, hitting me in the face.
“Oh god!” I cry, stumbling backward as I try to wipe at my face and grab for something—anything—to cover myself up.
Frantically, I wipe my hands on an unused piece of paper before grabbing for the only thing in reach and holding it in front of me. That thing is Theo’s guitar.
I’m dying. I’m dying inside. What the hell is she doing here?
“Oh god!” Theo yells, quickly tucking himself back inside his jeans as he stands and gathers me behind him to hide my state of undress. “Mum! What the hell?” he yells at his mother who is madly crossing herself and mumbling something incomprehensible.
Still holding the guitar against my body, I bury my face into Theo’s back, wishing I could just melt into him and never return. I am so embarrassed that I don’t think I’ll ever be able to look at his mother again.
Three
They converse for a while in Italian, and I once again kick myself for never taking the time to learn more of it. I can’t understand a thing they’re saying. Normally, she speaks in heavily accented English, so it’s never been an issue unless she’s upset and slips into her native tongue. But from their tone, I can gather that neither of them is saying anything nice.
Suddenly, Theo pulls his shirt off and hands it to me, his voice rising to a booming yell as his mother’s rises to a shrill pitch. I set the guitar to the side and drop his soft white shirt over my head. It comes down to my thighs so at least I’m slightly decent.
Oh god, why won’t she just leave?
Their yelling escalates and Theo steps away from me. The absence of his reassuring warmth against me, leaving me bereft. Wrapping my arms around myself protectively, I watch them yell. I can see his mother, poking him in the chest and yelling in his face as she gestures dramatically. Theo is doing his best to stay calm, but he is just as emotional as she is.
Her head shakes and her aging neck wobbles. Each time she glances at me she says the word ‘puttana’ which seems to make Theo even angrier.
I can’t take it anymore. Their voices seem to rise and fill every bit of space in the garage studio until it feels as though my head is vibrating.
“Enough!” I scream, causing them both to stop mid rant and turn their attention to me. “Enough,” I repeat, my voice soft but stern this time. I look between them, shake my head and quickly leave the room before I bust into tears in front of them.
“Nomes!” Theo calls, as I race through the door that joins the studio to the house.
I don’t stop until I’m in the bathroom and have locked the door and turned the shower on to drown out the sound of the world.
Dropping my clothing and shoes on the floor, I step under the steady stream of water and let it blast over my head like some sort of shield against what just happened. Holy shit, I could just curl up and die.
Four
“Nomes,” Theo calls over the sound of the shower as he knocks on the bathroom door. “Come out, babe. She’s gone.”
Holding my hands in front of me, I look at my wrinkled fingertips and let out a deep
sigh before I shut off the water. I’ve been in here for at least twenty minutes and the water is on the verge of turning cold.
“Open the door, Naomi. Let me in,” Theo says softly through the door.
Reaching for a towel, I wrap it around myself for warmth and flick the lock on the back of the door, stepping back as Theo opens it and meets my eyes with his sympathetic gaze.
“Come here,” he murmurs, reaching out and gathering me into his arms. I curl into him, resting my head against his chest as I wish that we could go back in time at least one hour, so I could make sure the bloody front door was locked before I went and seduced my fiancé.
“How bad is it?” I ask, knowing his mother’s penchant for dramatic flair.
“She’ll get over it. She always does,” he assures me.
“I won’t get over it. I’m so embarrassed, Theo. I just want to crawl under a rock and stay there. How am I ever going to sit across a dinner table from her again?”
His chest starts bouncing as a chuckle erupts from within.
“It’s not funny, Theo!”
“Babe. My mother just saw me come in your face. It’s pretty fucking funny.”
I cover my face with my hands. “Oh god! Don’t remind me!” I moan.
His arms tighten around me. “Hey, it serves her right for walking into our house uninvited.”
“Note to self–always lock the front door…So, I guess she knows I’m living here now?”
“Yep,” he confirms gravely.
“Bloody hell,” I moan, running my hand over the top of my head in agitation. “What the hell was she doing here? She never drops in unannounced.”
“I have no idea. We were too busy yelling at each other to find out why she really was here. But don’t worry. It’ll all blow over.”
Rock (Beautiful Book 4) Page 22
