by Celia Aaron
Daisy crowed with laughter. “Wasn’t that the best thing ever?”
Clearly, she’d never had sex with Michael Williams. Otherwise, she’d know nothing was ever better than that. As it was, I shrugged and sat.
The girls thoroughly enjoyed the rest of the show. Thankfully, Big Stick seemed to realize I didn’t enjoy the spotlight, so he used Daisy as my proxy, flipping her upside down and doing any number of sexual things to her for the crowd. I laughed and had a great time, throwing bills right along with the rest of my bridesmaids.
By the time the show was over, my head was cloudy and I wanted nothing more than to go to bed.
On our way out, Big Stick stopped me at the door and gave me a hug. “I meant what I said. Congratulations. Thanks for playing along. Give me a call if the wedding goes south.”
He pressed into my hip with his palm and then pulled away. I smiled and waved bye as Daisy helped me down the stairs. And then we were on our way out into the night. The limo dropped me off at my aunt’s house.
Daisy walked me to the stoop and helped me ring the doorbell. I was having trouble getting it to stay in one place long enough for me to press it.
She helped me stand up straight, running her fingers along the sash with one hand and steadying me with the other. “I hope you had a good time. That was all I wanted, you know?”
I smiled and hugged her. “It was fabulous. And one thing’s for certain, I’ll never forget it.”
Aunt Carrie opened the door and took one look at me before turning the evil eye on Daisy. “I thought I told you to go easy on her!”
“I did.” Daisy stepped away from the door, retreating from Aunt Carrie’s wrath. “Give her the cocktail I told you about and she’ll be fine.”
“Another cocktail?” I asked as Aunt Carrie pulled me inside.
She had rollers in her hair. She reminded me of Medusa with pink snakes on her head.
“Did you just call me Medusa?”
“Did I say that out loud?” I asked.
She wrung her hands. “Oh, Lord. You look like crazy hell. Come on in the kitchen. She slammed the door, cutting off Daisy’s laughing apology.
I giggled and followed her to the kitchen. She pulled a glass from the fridge that had some sort of greenish concoction in it.
“Drink it. We can’t have you hungover for your wedding.” She proffered the glass.
“What’s in it?”
“Doesn’t matter. Drink it.”
I shrugged. I’d already downed plenty of mystery drinks that night. What was one more? I took the glass and drank as much of it as I could stand before dropping the rest of it down the sink. “Yick!”
“Okay, off to bed with you.” She helped me to her guest room and got me under the covers. After that, it all went black.
CHAPTER SEVEN
Michael
I couldn’t sit still.
“Everything’s perfect, man. Everything.” Craig, my best man sat and watched me come apart.
“It’s going to be a beautiful ceremony.” Paul, Craig’s husband, added to the chorus of “calm the fuck down” that all of my groomsmen had been singing to me.
We were crowded in a room off the main church sanctuary. It was far too hot and I wanted to rip the tie off my neck.
My groomsmen stared as I first stood, then sat, then paced. They were a mix of models, photographers, and some friends from my darker days before I met Jess. But they were all good men, to the last one.
“I have to see her.” My heart was beating out of my chest. If I could just see her, just touch her, I could calm down.
“That’s against tradition.” Paul shook his head.
“I don’t give a fuck about tradition.” I went to run my hand through my hair but Paul stood and held out his hand.
“Stop! The stylist worked too hard on that perfect fauxhawk for you to fuck it up.”
I dropped my hand. He was right.
“Okay, I have an idea.” Paul smiled.
“Famous last words.” Craig crossed his arms over his chest.
“No, babe, it’ll work. Hang on. I’ll be right back.” Paul hurried out.
I paced even more, peeking out the clear sections in the stained glass to see the neverending procession of guests arriving. I need you Jess.
After far too many minutes, Paul returned and waved me out the door. “Come on.”
My heart thumped against my ribs with the hope he’d thought of some way for me to see her. I followed him through the back church hallway and down a side aisle to the church lobby.
Craig was on my heels. “Is this a good idea?”
Paul whirled. “Remember how nervous I was before we got hitched?”
“Yes.” Craig nodded. “You only tried to call it off a half a dozen times.”
“What did it take to get me down that aisle?”
Craig grinned. “If I remember correctly, a kiss and a little something else.”
“Exactly. Now, I love you, but shut the fuck up.” Paul turned and kept hurrying through the church.
I was just glad that I seemed to be moving in Jess’ direction. We entered the church lobby and I could almost feel Jess nearby.
“This way.” Paul pressed past a couple of guests and into a side hallway. He ran right into Daisy, who’d blockaded a door that was marked “bride’s quarters” on a cutesy chalkboard.
The maid of honor narrowed her eyes at me and stood up straighter, staring me down.
What the fuck is her problem?
“I just want to see her, okay?” I said. Daisy and I weren’t fast friends, but I didn’t know why she was looking at me like I was the enemy.
“Really?” She pulled a crumpled piece of paper from behind her back and shoved it into my hand. “You sure you don’t want to see her instead?”
I opened the paper. I could feel the blood drain from my face as I saw the photograph. It was the one the paparazzo took of Sadie and me after the shoot at the beach. It looked even worse than I thought—her pressed against me in what looked like an intimate embrace as she kissed me. From the angle, it looked as if she were kissing me on the lips. Motherfucker.
I balled the paper in my fist, squeezing my fingers until it was nothing but a tiny wad of bullshit. “Has she seen this?”
“Yes,” Daisy hissed and leaned toward me. It would have been menacing if she weren’t built like a ballerina.
“Daisy, move.” I would do whatever it took to explain the photo to Jess.
“No.” Daisy put her hands on her hips.
I could have easily manhandled her out of the way, but I was in enough trouble as it was. Still, I took a step toward her, hoping to intimidate her. Nope, she just kicked her chin up and dared me to do shit about it. No wonder Jess loved her.
“Daisy, please.” Craig said from over my shoulder. “You and I both know that Michael’s head over heels in love with Jess. That photo doesn’t mean shit. Let him by.”
She pointed her finger in my face, so close it almost touched my nose. “You better have a good goddamn explanation, because if you don’t, I will have your goddamn balls in a jar on my mantle. If I can find a small enough jar. Wait here.” Daisy turned and disappeared behind the door. I couldn’t catch a glimpse of what was inside, though the space looked roomier than the groom’s quarters.
After a few moments, the bridesmaids filed out, their eyes downcast.
“Come in,” Daisy called.
I darted in, desperate to find Jess, to explain.
“Whoa.” Daisy blocked my path and held up a swatch of cloth. “Turn around. You can’t see her before the wedding. I’ve already blindfolded her. I don’t know if her seeing you is bad or not, but I’m not risking it. Once your eyes are covered, you can talk to her.”
If she’d said “I’m going to drive bamboo shoots under your fingernails and then you can talk,” I wouldn’t have cared. I would have held my hands out and waited impatiently for her to get it done. I had to get to Jess.
I
bent down and let her tie the sash.
“Okay, follow me.” She led me a few steps and then directed me to sit.
A sniffle caught my ear and a piece of my heart froze and shattered. Jess was crying.
“She’s sitting right next to you. I’m going to stand outside. Jess, yell if you need me.”
“O-Okay.” Another sniffle.
I reached my hand out next to me and patted around until I found hers. She didn’t pull away at least.
“Let me explain.”
“Okay. Explain why you were kissing a model.”
I winced, but I wasn’t going to pass up this chance. “I was doing the swimsuit edition shoot. Sadie wanted to know if she made the cover. She hugged me and kissed me on the cheek. That was it. I told her that you’re my girl. She knows I love you. She just wanted to know if she made the cover. I swear, baby. Please don’t cry. I can have my assistant get her number if you want. You can call her. I promise you’re the only one for me. I love you. I would never do that to you. I swear on my life.” I ended my plea on a desperate note.
I was foolish for not telling her sooner. I’d gone to her office that night to tell her, but then put it off because of what happened with Mr. Avery. And after that, I’d forgotten about it.
She took a deep, shaking breath. “I believe you.”
I could breathe again. My heart beating, but only for her.
“I want to see you so bad, baby.” I clutched her hand and kissed the back of it. “To look in your eyes and tell you how much I love you.”
“I know. I missed you.” Her voice still crackled with tears, but it was clearing up. “I knew you wouldn’t. I just knew it. But I wanted to be sure.”
“It’s okay. I should have told you about it when it happened. I intended to, but that was the day at your office…” I didn’t want to bring up that bad memory on our wedding day.
“I understand.” She squeezed my hand. “And I have something to confess, too.”
I tensed and tried to keep my voice calm, any number of dark ideas trying to crowd my frontal lobe. “What’s that?”
“Daisy took me to an all-male review last night. Strippers.” She sounded horrified.
I couldn’t subdue my chuckle. “It’s okay, babe. It was your bachelorette party and with Daisy, I expected nothing less.”
She sighed, a relieved sound that soothed me right along with her. “Thank god. I was so embarrassed.” She paused. “Wait, did you go to a strip club, too?”
I laughed again. “No. The boys offered but we stayed in and had a video game fest instead. Is that all right?”
“That’s… That’s actually perfect.” She giggled. “Dorks.”
I laced my fingers through hers. “You’re the only one for me, Jess. Forever. I need you to know that.”
“I do. I can’t wait to be your wife.”
I ran my hand up her arm, goose bumps breaking out along her bare skin. “So, now that we’ve made up, perhaps we can do something to seal the deal?”
“We can’t see each other before the wedding.” Her voice was chiding.
I grinned and dropped to my knees. “I don’t need to see you to eat your pussy.”
CHAPTER EIGHT
Jess
“Michael, you can’t,” I said, but he was already lifting up my skirt.
He ran his hands along my garters. “Oh, I like these. A lot.”
Pushing my thighs apart, he exhaled along my thighs.
I squirmed and tried to close my legs. The blindfold just made the sensations stronger, every touch amplified a thousand times.
He pushed harder. “Oh no, wildcat. I need a taste. Just a quick one. The real feast comes later tonight.”
His fingers inched up my thighs and then he fingered the edge of my white lace panties. “I bet these look amazing.” He pushed them aside.
“Michael,” I reached down to his hair.
“No.” He swatted my hand away. “Do you have any idea how much trouble I’d be in if you messed up my ‘do?”
I laughed but then his mouth was hot and wet against me and I gripped the sofa, digging my nails into the fabric.
“Oh my god.”
He made an mmm sound against me and licked from my entrance to my clit.
“Michael, please,” I gasped. “We’re in a church!”
My plea fell on deaf ears. He pressed harder against my thighs and fastened his mouth around my nub, lashing it with his tongue, the piercing touching me just right. My hips moved against him despite my efforts to resist. When he sank two fingers inside me, I was gone. I rubbed my pussy against his face, ignoring where I was, what I was wearing, the fact that I was getting married in under an hour. All I could think was how good his mouth felt on me, how amazing his fingers worked inside me.
I was fucking his face in the house of the Lord and nothing short of a lightning bolt or being dowsed with holy water would make me stop.
The pressure built inside me. He was holding nothing back, going after my clit and moving his fingers on my spot. My hips were wild against him, rubbing his face, his tongue. He groaned as I seized and made a strangled sound. I came in a rush, shattering and calling his name as he continued to tongue me beneath my wedding dress. When my body finally relaxed, he withdrew his fingers, kissed my pussy, then straightened my panties.
I could feel him standing and pushing down the stack of tulle that was my skirt.
“I don’t know if this looks right, and not just because I can’t see it.” He kept patting the dress.
“It’s fine. I’ll fix it. It’s—”
“Glad you lovebirds made up.” Daisy’s voice. How long had she been in here?
“I just walked in. Calm down. Though everyone in the church heard you moaning ‘Michael’ you dirty hussy.” Daisy laughed.
I wanted to melt into the couch.
“Come on, Michael. Don’t you have a woman to mar— Jesus, you are the most beautiful bride I’ve ever seen.” Craig’s voice.
I smiled in what I thought was his direction.
“Ok, all boys out. Go. Now.” Daisy barked orders.
“I love you,” I said.
Michael patted around until he found my hand again and dropped another reverent kiss on the back of it. “I love you, too, Jess. See you at the altar.”
CHAPTER NINE
Jess
I turned over, letting the warm sun play along my back.
“All right, all right, all right.” Michael did his best Matthew McConaughey impression and grabbed the bottle of sun screen. “Do you have any idea how much I love it when it’s time to re-apply?”
“I think I have a pretty good idea, yes. Especially given that I haven’t gotten so much as a single tan line the entire time we’ve been here.” I laughed as he undid the clasp at the back of my bikini top and started slathering me with lotion.
“You’re fair. I like your skin just like it is. Well, I like to add bite marks from time to time.” He moved his hands lower, going much further than necessary into my bottoms with the sunscreen.
He’d given me plenty of bite marks during the three days we’d been in this paradise. We were honeymooning on a small island off the coast of Thailand. The sun was warm every day, the water lapping gently at the shore. It was the most beautiful place I’d ever seen.
But the nights were by far the best part. Michael and I seemed to be on a non-step sex binge ever since the preacher pronounced us husband and wife. He’d taken me into one of the antechambers right after the ceremony and made it official before the reception. Then again after the reception. Then again once we reached our hotel that night.
I sighed as he continued rubbing the lotion down my legs. I should have felt self conscious, I supposed, given that I was curvier than the models he used to date. I wasn’t. He always made me feel beautiful, no matter what I was wearing or how I thought I looked. I smiled as he lotioned each toe and giggled when he put his fingers in-between them.
“Stop! You know I
can’t handle that. It’s tickle torture.”
“Have to cover all my bases, wildcat. Any red on this gorgeous body will be coming from my hands, not the sun.” Once he was satisfied that even the strongest rays weren’t going to touch me, he lay back on his divan. Adjusting his sunglasses, he said, “I can’t wait for you to flip over again.”
Given that the last time I flipped to my back, he’d pulled down my bottoms and fucked me hard until I came screaming his name, I couldn’t wait, either.
We had the entire swath of beach to ourselves. He’d planned our honeymoon to perfection. The villa where we were staying was far too large for just the two of us, but he’d wanted the best – best house, best beach, best food. I was stuffed in more ways than one every night.
I eventually dozed off to the sound of the gentle waves and woke to him standing over me.
“Let’s go up, Mrs. Williams. Your snoring is cute, but your stomach growling means it’s time to eat.”
I sat up and stretched. “I don’t snore.”
“Sure you don’t.” He pulled me to my feet and we climbed the steps to the house.
Ms. Pim was already cooking when we walked through the kitchen.
“Smells great,” I said as she smiled. She was small and maybe sixty years old or so. She lived in the villa year-round and took care of all the guests. I’d grown so fond of her that I kind of wanted to kidnap her and bring her back with us to San Diego.
“Let’s change and then eat and then I’d like to eat again in private.” Michael scooped me up and threw me over his shoulder.
I beat at his back, but he just laughed and carried me to our bedroom on the second floor. He put me down and I scurried into the bathroom, still not quickly enough to avoid his swat on my ass.
“What do you want to wear out of the black suitcase?”
“Umm.” I swiped my hair up into a high ponytail and removed my bathing suit, hanging it on the glass door to the shower. “The pink cover up, I guess.” I rinsed my face with cool water.
“I have no idea what that even…” He trailed off.
