I knew she had issues. God knows I knew that. I put my faith in her anyway. She’d waited for me. She’d made commitments all on her own to my daughter, something she didn’t have to do.
She could commit to adopting Tatum, but marrying me was something she couldn’t seem to commit to. What was wrong with me? Was I some kind of an idiot and didn’t realize it?
I was a catch! A motherfucking catch!
Blyss had me feeling like chopped liver and right at the time I was supposed to be feeling like the king of the motherfucking world!
What the fuck!
Blyss
“It was the stupid orange juice,” I whined, then wretched again as I hung my head over the toilet. “I shouldn’t have drunk it. I know how citrus affects the baby. Even apple juice comes right back up.”
“Oh my goodness, Blyss. This is just awful. Should I go tell them to call this thing off? You can get married in the morning when you feel better,” Troy’s mom tried to comfort me.
“I don’t want to …” I had to stop and blow some more chunks. I didn’t know where all the food was coming from, I hadn’t even eaten that much.
She patted my back. “It’s nerves too, I bet.”
She handed me another damp paper towel as the spewing ended. “I’m not nervous at all about marrying Troy. Well, I am a little. But not because of him, because of me. Even then, I’m not about to not to go through with the marriage. I want it. I want it more than anything I’ve ever wanted.” I burped and waved away the stench that came along with that. “I need to brush my teeth. I can’t give my new husband a kiss with trench mouth.”
“I’ll run and get you something. I’m sure the front desk has something up there. I’ll be right back.” She left me alone, and I looked in the mirror. My eyes were bloodshot, my hair had strands that had fallen out of the perfectly-shaped updo the nice lady in the beauty shop did for me. It matched Tatum’s perfectly.
We were supposed to have all these gorgeous pictures of the night we finally wed, and I looked like a drunken cliché of a bride. A real typical Vegas wedding picture, only I wasn’t drunk at all!
“Baby? Blyss? You back here?”
It was Troy. He’d come looking for me. And he’d see me in the dress!
“Troy, what are you doing back here?” I opened the door only a crack, making sure he couldn’t see me. “Cover your eyes!”
He did as I said and covered his eyes. “What’s wrong? You’re not chickening out on me, are you? I wouldn’t advise it, or Tatum will be very mad at you. She told me to tell you that.”
“I’m not chickening out. I shouldn’t have had the orange juice. Your son hates it. And he’s making everything else I’ve eaten in the past week come out of me. He’s kind of shitty like that.”
“Oh, baby. I’m sorry about that. Should we do this tomorrow?”
Him asking me that sent shivers down my spine. “Why? You don’t want to do this now? I mean, we don’t have to if you don’t want to.”
“I don’t want you to do it while you’re sick. That’s all. Of course I want to do it. But I don’t want you to have to use a barf bag as you come down the aisle to me.” He chuckled and it made me mad.
“Well, I might just have to do it that way. If you want a perfect wife, I guess you should’ve thought about it some more. I’m far from perfect, Troy.”
His fingers reached through the door, looking for mine. “Hey, take my hand.”
I did and felt the Earth move, like it always did whenever we touched. “How do you know me so well, Troy Masterson?”
“I don’t have a clue. I’m just glad that I do. So, you haven’t puked since I’ve been here. Wanna give this thing a shot?”
“Your mom’s bringing me a toothbrush kit. I’ve got a case of the stinky breath, thanks to our son.” I leaned on the wall, still holding his hand. “Can you believe this is finally happening? You and I went from me selling myself to you for the summer, to pregnant and soon to me married in less than one year. That has to be some kind of record. Don’t you think?”
“Probably. When you add in what you went through, what I went through, and adding Tatum in there, too, then it sounds like it should’ve been a few years, doesn’t it?”
I nodded. “I wonder how things would’ve been if we’d never met. I wonder if that man would’ve done those terrible things to me. I wonder if Mr. Sandoval would’ve made the decision to call you about Tatum. I wonder if you’d have been captured when you went on your mission. Do you wonder about any of that, Troy?”
“I did. When I had nothing to do but think, I thought about it all.”
“What if we bring each other bad luck, Troy? What if our lives will be one disaster after another because we’re not meant to be together?”
“It’s too late,” he said. “You’re already in my heart. And I think I might be in yours too.”
A smile curled my lips. “Yeah, you are.”
“If life’s going to throw curveballs at us forever, I can handle anything as long as I have you in my corner.”
“Me too.” I played with his fingers. “We’re gonna have a baby, Troy.”
“We’re going to have more than one, Blyss. I want a houseful.”
“Your house is way too big to make that a goal.” I laughed, then heard his mother’s voice coming down the hallway.
“Your toiletries are here and I’m heading back to wait for my blushing bride to come to me. Promise you won’t make me wait too long, Blyss?”
“I promise. Give me five more minutes. Sorry if I made you think I didn’t want to meet you up there. I do.”
“Great job, baby. You just keep on saying ‘I do’ and I will too. We’ll be hitched before you know it. Then we can go up to our hotel …”
“For God’s sakes, Troy!” his mother grumbled at him. “I’m right here, son! Now, go back to where you were and I’ll have her there ASAP.”
He let my hand go and mumbled as he walked away, “I wasn’t going to say anything nasty, Mom.”
She opened the bathroom door with the little kit in her hand. “Sure, he wasn’t.”
I nodded. “Yeah, I’m sure he was about to get graphic.”
After I had done a quick brush and done what I could with my face and hair, I shooed her out and gave myself a pep talk. “Okay, Blyss Danner, you’re about to change your life forever. Say goodbye to that young woman who preferred to be alone. Those days are long gone. Prepare to be in a crowd at nearly all times and to love those people who make up that crowd. And prepare to be loved by them too. The lonely times are over for you. You, lucky girl, you have a family, a home, and a man who would walk through fire for you. You have it all, in spades. And you know what, Blyss Danner? You deserve it!”
I stepped out that door. I picked up my bouquet off the little round table that was just outside the door and I smiled. I was doing something I never thought I’d do. I was marrying a man. And not just any man. I was marrying a man who was better than any I’d ever dreamed about.
As I moved into place, the wedding march began and I saw my man standing at the end of the aisle. His smile was every bit as wide as mine was. We were happy, he and I. We would make it work. We had a daughter and a son on the way. We were already a family. The marriage was the icing on top of a fantastic cake.
Every step I took brought me closer to the man I’d prayed would come back to me. And there he was, fifty pounds lighter after going through hell. But he was there and he wanted me. More than he wanted to rest and recuperate, he wanted to make me his wife.
No one was luckier than I was.
As I walked past Tatum, she whispered, “You look beautiful, Mommy.”
I looked at her and blew her a kiss. “Thank you. So do you.”
“I know.”
We all had to laugh at her darling ways. Our little princess was well aware of how adorable she was, and I always wanted her to know that.
I’d grown up trying to be invisible. I’d had no idea that I was eve
n remotely pretty. Not until Troy showed me I was. He made me feel beautiful. I wanted Tatum and all of our children to know they were special and beautiful on the outside as well as the inside.
I gave the bouquet of flowers to Tatum to hold for me, and she beamed at me. “I’ll take good care of them as the best flower girl ever.”
“I trust you, Tatum.”
Then I went to Troy, who was waiting so patiently for me. “Hey, you.” He took my hand. “You ready to become Mrs. Masterson?”
All I could do was nod. A lump had decided to move into my throat as tears began to sting my eyes.
A day ago, the man who was holding my hand, saying things a strange man told him to, was near death. He was living in a prison, being fed insects, and given filthy water. It’s safe to say that most men who’d gone through that wouldn’t be standing at an altar in Las Vegas at almost midnight, getting married. But my man was.
Emotions overwhelmed me, but I was thankful the lump in my throat allowed me to say those all-important words, ‘I do,’ whenever I was asked about devoting myself to the man whose blue-green eyes looked at me like I was a goddess. Would I ever be able to live up to being the wife Troy Masterson deserved? Maybe not. But God knew I’d try my best to be the woman who’d make him the best man he could be.
He brought things out of me. I didn’t know from where they came. I didn’t know I had the capacity to love someone else’s child like she was my own. I didn’t know I had the courage to stay strong when I had no idea if the man I loved was alive or dead. That was something I’d certainly never want to find out about myself again. Never again!
But I had done it, and it was Troy Masterson who had showed me I could. He took me to the brink of pain so bad, some would think it couldn’t be withstood. But I took it. I made pain work to heal me. My poor broken soul was getting better all the time. I was no longer the little girl who no one wanted. I was a woman, and a very special man wanted me.
The one thing I remembered, the thing I’d never forget, was when the preacher asked me, “Blyss, do you take this man to be your lawfully-wedded husband, until death do you part?”
I smiled as I looked at Troy. He seemed to be holding his breath, waiting to see if I’d welch on him right at the finish line. “Breathe, Troy. I do take you to be my lawfully-wedded husband, until death do us part.”
He let the air expel from his lungs. “I wasn’t scared.”
We both laughed, then he finished his vows, slid the wedding rings we’d used for our fake marriage back onto our fingers, and we kissed.
When our mouths met for the first time as a real married couple, fireworks went off in my head, our baby kicked, and Tatum came up, hugging us with happy tears in her little eyes that looked just like her daddy’s.
It was official. We were a family. The Mastersons!
Troy
Her body felt like silk as I moved over her. The wedding was behind us; the wedding night was in front of us. She shivered as I eased to lie beside her, stroking her stomach that was plumping up with our son. “Hey there, Junior. Daddy’s going to be poking around in there the next couple of days a whole lot. Try not to make your Mommy sick while I show her how much I love her, please.”
“Good thinking, baby. Give him a little heads up about what you’re about to do to me.” Blyss smiled, and I leaned over to kiss her tummy.
“Daddy loves you, my little boy. I can’t wait to see you.”
Blyss ran her hand over my head. “You’re too sweet. Are you always going to be this sweet?”
“I will try.” I kissed my way up her body until my lips rested on hers. Her juicy, red lips that tasted like sin and cherries. I pulled back as I licked my lips. “Did you put cherry lip balm on your lips?”
She nodded. “I saw it in the bridal shop and couldn’t resist. You do remember our safe word, right?”
“I do recall it.” I chuckled at her silliness and kissed her again. “You have no idea how the things we did on our little camping trip kept me alive, baby. I’d replay them in my mind, relive them. All that was missing was the real you there with me.”
“I have to admit, I did that too. Do you know how hot I thought you were when I first saw you? I was like, oh hell, he’s too hot for me!”
“I thought you were perfect. Like the most perfect creature I’d ever seen.” I ran my tongue down to the base of her throat. “My collar looked exquisite on you.”
She laughed a little as she took my face in her hands. “And how I loved wearing it and letting everyone know I belonged to you, the most handsome man in the entire place.”
“We’re never going back there,” I said. “Not ever again. You know that, right?”
“You sure about that?” she asked, then shook her head. “Not that I care. I’ve got you every night in my bed. I can ask you to do anything I want right from the comfort of our own bed. Plus, I have no idea if the club even opened back up.”
“It doesn’t matter to me if it did or not. No man will ever lay his eyes on my wife’s goods. Not ever again.” I ran my hands all over her, making her quiver. “All this Grade A real estate belongs to me now. I’m going to keep it to myself.”
“Good. That’s how I want it anyway.” She pulled me up and kissed me.
I was done talking. She was working her body, arching up, and grazing my cock with her soft skin. I couldn’t take any more banter. I had to have her. But first, I wanted to taste that tender, juicy morsel that was between her legs. Kissing her all the way down with tantalizingly slow movements, I reached the promised land and placed my mouth on her mound. A purr came from her as she picked her knees up and I grabbed her ass.
Swirling my tongue all over her, I dipped it into her valleys before I gave her one long lick that made her moan, “Yes!”
Blowing on her clit, I pecked it with the tip of my tongue, then licked her over and over until she was completely wet for me. Stabbing my tongue into her, I tongue fucked her, then made a long lick up to suck on her inflamed clit. Her legs ran around me as she fell apart, clenching me tightly, not about to let me go. I gave her all she could handle, until she was shrieking for me to put my cock in her.
“On your knees,” I ordered her. “I’ve dreamt of gazing at your pearly ass while I pound you.”
She moved around, getting into position, then I ran my hands over her round ass before I shoved my erection into her pulsing depths. Giving her a nice hard smack, I left a palm print there, then kissed it as she arched back to me. “Again, Troy! I’ve craved it.”
Months without her touch was torture to me, and it seemed it had been for her too. I spanked her again and again until she was crying out and her body had climaxed again. My cock wanted to give in, but I wouldn’t let it. I wasn’t going to let it go by so quickly. It was our first time as man and wife after all.
So I focused on her and only her, instead of how great she made my dick feel as it moved in and out of her convulsing pussy. I was going to wear her out and make up for some of that lost time. I turned her over and pulled her arms over her head to pin them down, kissing her hard as I thrust back into her. She bit my lip, tugging it as I ran my tongue over hers.
Slapping of flesh filled the room, moans of ecstasy combining with them. It had been so long since I’d heard those sounds. I wanted them to go on and on. If I could manage to keep it up, I would keep going all night long. I held my body up as I thrust into her and she kept arching up to feel my skin rub against hers. “My God, how I missed you!”
Our bodies converged, taking and giving as we gave into what our flesh demanded. She curled her hands around mine as she moaned and came again. Letting her hands go, I took her firmly, gripping her jaw and kissing her as her walls squeezed my cock for a third time. She hung onto my arms as she used her body to manipulate mine. “I want it, Troy. Give it to me.”
She moved up and down, making my cock move faster and harder. I held her down. “What a naughty little nymph you are. Trying to force me to cum for you. I’l
l cum when I want. I want to feel your body explode over and over a few times. It’s what makes me happy.”
Her eyes glistened as she looked up at me. “You like to bring me pleasure more than you like to receive it?”
I nodded as I kept up a steady pace. “You say it like it’s a crazy thing to want. Making you happy is what I live for.”
She held onto my arms as we looked at each other, and I moved in and out of her. My whole world was in her eyes. My life was in the palm of her hand. My heart beat only for her. And she was finally mine in name. I rolled over, putting her on top of me. She sat up as I lifted her up and down at the speed I wanted until she got it and could do it on her own. She ran the tips of her fingers over my chest, and I wet my index finger, then rubbed her clit. Her eyes closed, her head fell back, and she made the best groan. I had her coming again in no time. She was panting so hard; I was beginning to get worried I was taxing her pregnant body too much.
I rolled over with her again, plunging into her quivering walls, and letting them stimulate me, causing a release that had me shouting her name over and over as we both shook with the power of the orgasms. Huffing and puffing, I fell beside her, leaving my leg over hers. She turned and put her arm over my chest as we tried to catch our breath. We’d done it. We’d consummated our marriage. It was completely legitimate now. No one could break our bond. No one could pry us apart. She was my wife and I was her husband.
“I am tapped out,” I had to admit.
She smiled at me as she leaned up to look at me with damp strands of hair clinging to her face. “Tapped out? That’s all you have to say after that bit of magnificent passion—tapped out?”
“What would you like me to say?”
“That you love me and are so glad we’re married. That you and I will be happy forever and ever. That you will never look at another woman as long as you live, and that I’m the best thing that’s ever happened to you.”
“That’s quite a long list for a man who’s yet to catch his breath to say, baby. And can I safely assume you mean all those things too?”
The Naughty One: A Doctor’s Christmas Romance (Season of Desire Book 2) Page 109
