I call Max first. “Are you hungry? Cash and I are going to get some brunch at the restaurant we were at yesterday. We need to discuss something crucial.”
“Is that all you’re going to say?”
“For now yes. Can you meet us in a half an hour?”
“Yes, I can, squirt. Do you want me to tell Marshall and Sarah?”
“Are you with them now?”
“Yeah, we decided to do some exploring while we’re here. Marshall and Patty called me last night to see about meeting up for lunch.”
We agree to meet at the restaurant in thirty minutes. I disconnect the call and go on the hunt for my clothes. Each time I move my hand, I get a flash of my ring; distracting me. It’s so beautiful; it’s like a dream come true. I wonder vaguely if he would agree to get married here on the beach before we leave. I find the white and pink dress that I bought and matching the bra and panty set. I’m dressed when Cash comes out of the bathroom. I hug and kiss him, delighting in his warm smile. “Well, what’s that for?”
“You look like you’re having a bad day and could use a kiss and a hug.”
“I think I’m going to like having you to come home to every night.” He smiles and kisses me back.
“I need to brush my teeth then we can go.” I wiggle out of his arms and head back to the bathroom. “Ready to go, love?” I ask a few minutes later.
“Ready when you are.”
CASH
We walk hand-in-hand as she points out different places that she loves and wants to take me to. I know one thing that I would love to get married on the beach where she proposed to me. We get to the restaurant and notice a For Sale sign in the window and her eyes light up. Does she want to run her restaurant? What about her teaching degree? She keeps walking, and I stop her.
“Do you want to buy this place?” I ask. My question comes out harsher than I intend and she steps back.
“Well, I…” She bites her lip and looks at me full of uncertainty.
“Do you want to move here and buy this place?”
“Well I mean this is the exactly the kind of restaurant that I had in mind when I thought about what I wanted to do when I grew up. My Dad…he never approved, so I just gave up on it and went to teacher’s college. I’d never ask you to move here; I’ll just keep looking for my dream somewhere else.”
“Wait. I’m not going to be the reason you put your dream on hold. You already dismissed this without even talking to me. I thought you understood I’m willing to move anywhere for you, for us. If we’re going to be married, shouldn’t I have a say in things before you just assume something?” I’m not necessarily mad at her, but her thinking has me annoyed. “You need to start trusting me, trusting us.”
“Hey, Cash, cool it. She’s crying. You don’t need to be such an asshole.” Marshall gets in my face. I don’t even know where he came from. I’m focused on the building, considering the options. I can’t believe she thinks I’d put her dreams aside like her dad forced her to.
“No, I’m not going to cool it. Abby, I saw the way your eyes lit up when you saw the For Sale sign. I ask you if you want to buy this place, and you lump me in with your father and assume I will keep you from having what you want. That’s bullshit. So no, I won’t cool it.”
“That’s not what I meant, and you know it,” she says in between sobs.
“Do I know it? There seems to be a lot about you that I don’t know.” I’m pissed, and I hate that she’s crying, but this is so childish. “You could have said anything to me but comparing me to your dad and putting your dreams aside is not okay. I don’t deserve that shit.”
“I’m sorry I said it that way. I don’t know what you want from me. I’m trying.”
“You’re trying? What are you trying to do?”
“To be the perfect person for you.” I’m shocked at her reply.
“So you think I want the girl who is going to do what I say, when I say it, and not have an opinion at all?” She stares down at her feet, acting like she’s done with this conversation. Well, I’m not, and she needs to know that. “Abby, all I have ever wanted is for you to be yourself. You’re perfect to me in every way. Don’t be someone you’re not because you think that’s what I want.” She doesn’t reply, and I can’t take it. “You know what, enjoy your brunch. I need to take a walk.”
“Cash, no please don’t go,” she begs.
“Abby, let him go, he needs a break. He’ll be back. Cash, we’ll be here waiting for you.” Sarah tells me as she comes up from behind me and goes to stand next to Abby. I walk down the street, determined to put some distance between us before I say something I’ll regret. I need to calm down before we talk about what happened. When did I give her the impression that my dreams are more important than hers? I let out a frustrated breath and punch the wall a few times.
“That better not be your wedding ring hand or I’m going to be pissed. How am I going to slide that ring on your hand if it’s broken?” Abby demands from behind me. She’s standing there with her hands on her hips and looking pissed off.
“Go away, Abby. I don’t want to talk to you right now.” I say wearily. I flex my bleeding hand, relieved when I can move my fingers. Abby removes the scarf from her hair and wipes the blood away from my dripping knuckles. I hiss in pain, and she ignores me, wrapping the scarf around my whole hand. “Why did you follow me?”
“You told me that we need to start talking and you walking away isn’t talking.”
“I need time away from you because you’re pissing me off. I don’t want to say something that I’ll regret. I can’t believe that you compared me to your dad.” I tug my hand free and slide down the wall of the building. I sit on the pavement and study her, trying to understand why she would think such a thing. “Why didn’t you just tell me about your dream? What about teaching? I’m not one to take a dream away from someone especially the woman I plan to marry. I want your dreams to become mine and vice versa. I’m not your parents. I don’t want you to be someone you’re not. You’re my girl, Abby. I’m in love with you. Have you thought about opening a diner in Florida?”
Abby sighs. “Teaching became my passion once I got into college, and thought about what I wanted to do outside of the diner. I had a college professor who had so much passion for teaching us that I wanted to inspire other kids the way he inspired me.” The silence stretches between us for a few minutes before she speaks again. “You need to feed me so get up and take me to that restaurant.” She holds out her hand to help me up. Once I’m on my feet, she takes my face in her hands. “No more running,” she orders.
“Pot. Kettle. Black.” I tell her, and she punches my shoulder.
“Ha ha. Cash, how are we going to make this work?”
“I don’t know, baby. We’ll have to take it one day at a time. Do you want to get married or stay engaged for a while?”
“I would marry you today if I could, Cash. I don’t want to waste another minute not being your wife.”
We walk towards the restaurant. “I would like to get married here on the beach. Do you think we could arrange to have the ceremony before we go back to reality?”
“I would love that, I want to be your wife as soon as possible,” Abby is sincere in her reply, her love for me shining out from her eyes.
“Why don’t we look into things? We can plan something for the weekend. We’re on vacation, and I’m sure I can take a few more days off, but the question is, are you going to move to Florida now or are we going to wait until June for that?”
“I want to move now. I love you, Cash Hawthorne with all of my heart. I hope you never doubt that.” She presses her lips to mine softly.
When we walk into the restaurant, we spot our group of friends right away. I scan the place, taking in the décor and noting that it fit Abby’s style. We sit down and Max glances at my hand. “You should see the other wall. It’s messed up.” I joke.
“I thought we discussed this, you don’t hit walls unless they atta
ck first,” he says thoughtfully. I roll my eyes at him and turn my attention to the menu.
The table grows quiet, and I realize that everyone is staring at Abby’s ring. “We want to get married here at the beach. We’re going to go to the courthouse to see what we need to get married this weekend.” Everyone cheers and congratulates us, their happiness evident in their actions.
We eat our meals as the girls talk wedding plans.
ABBY
“So what’s the plans now?” I ask everyone.
“I have to head back to work, or Patty will have my head.” Marshall replies, standing up.
“I need to do some shopping since there’s a wedding coming up,” Sarah answers. She’s engrossed in whatever’s on her phone; my guess is she’s searching for dress shops in the area.
“First we need to see if it’s possible, and then I’d love to go with you,” I tell her as we all leave the restaurant.
“Why don’t the four of us go to the courthouse then we can go shopping?” Cash suggests, and Sarah agrees as Max groans.
Sarah and I are walking ahead of the guys, and we spot these two women talking in front of a bicycle shop. I head over to them and ask for directions. We’re on the right street but needed to go four more blocks. My phone rings and glancing down I see it’s my dad calling. I frown in displeasure. I don’t want to deal with him, but when the ringing doesn’t stop, I answer, putting him on speakerphone so Cash can listen in. “Hello.”
“Where are you? I went to your place, and no one answered.”
“Well, you have me on the phone so talk.”
“I can’t believe you would treat your dad this badly. I’ve given you a good life. I let you go to college, live with Max, and gave you everything. If your grandmother could see how you’re treating family all for some boy, she’d be ashamed of you.”
“She’d be ashamed of you for treating your daughter this way. The things you did to me, trying to bribe Cash into leaving me; she’d never stand for any of it,” I fire back.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about. I was right, you’re not ready to be on your own. Get your ass back here and I’ll help you move home.”
I hit the end button. I can’t believe the nerve of him. Max wraps me in his arms, offering comfort.
“I’m sorry that he called, but let’s not let him ruin our day okay?” He squeezes me tighter and we follow the directions to the courthouse. After getting lost a couple of times, we finally head inside. It’s a beautiful old Victorian house like the B and B. I take in my surroundings, noting the pictures of the politicians, the light blue walls and several people coming and going.
Cash walks up to the service window. “Good afternoon. My name is Cash, and that beautiful woman over there has agreed to be my wife,” he says, pouring on the charm.
“Hello, Cash. My name is Agnes. What can I do to make this happen for you?”
“We would like to get married on the beach this weekend,” Cash replies.
“Congratulations to both of you. It’s wonderful to start a new chapter in your life and to do it together. My little advice for you that my mother gave me and her mother gave her. ‘Don’t ever go too long without saying I love you to each other. You never know what may happen.’ Are you looking for a big or a small wedding?” she asks.
“It will be a small wedding, less than ten people,” She explains the details to Cash, outlining what we’d need and would have to do.
“Now it will take two days after you get the license for you to be able to get married. I won’t be here on Friday so try to come in before then.” Agnes writes something on a piece of paper and hands it to me.
“We’re hoping to be here tomorrow morning when you open,” Cash tells her, and we take what we need and leave. My mind is on overload, trying to process all of the information.
“So what do you want to do now?” The glint in his eye tells me that the only thing on his mind is fucking my brains out.
“Well, Mr. Hawthorne, how about we go back to our room and see what happens?” My voice is low and husky. He swallows audibly and nods. “Tomorrow we can pick the perfect spot for our wedding, find our outfits. The reception will be at Marshall’s pizza place.” I rattle off things as we all walk back to the B and B, knowing that Cash isn’t paying attention to me. Emma is on the porch when we arrive, and I instinctively know she’s been waiting around for the details.
“Well, hello there, I’m seeing smiles and hand-holding, so I assume the talk went well.” I hold up my left hand and put it next to my face with the ring poking out. Emma grins. “I guess it went very well! Congratulations, my dear.”
She comes out from behind the desk to embrace me. She’s so motherly to me, and I love it. She pins Cash with a stare. “Be good to each other.”
“Emma, what are some places that will deliver food here? Cash and I have some work we need to do for the wedding.” Cash winks at me knowing that we won’t be working on the wedding. Emma rattles off some places and hand us some menus. She tells us to bring them back down when the food arrives. We thanked her and went upstairs. Once in the room, I open the window. “I just love the sound of the ocean. It’s so peaceful.” Turning to face him, I walk him to the bed and push him down I take a few slow steps backward.
I’m winging it, not sure what I’m doing at all. I’ve always been the shy and nerdy girl, but when I’m with Cash, I feel sexy. His face expresses his impatience. I put my hands behind my back and unzip my dress. I lower the straps one by one off my shoulder, letting it fall to the ground. I’m left standing in nothing but my white lace bra and panties. I bend over to pick up my dress, and he’s on his feet in seconds.
“If you get up before I tell you then you won’t get any of this tonight or tomorrow.” He stammers and pouts, but sits back down. I move to stand directly in front of him. “You can stand but can’t touch.”
“Now you’re just being mean, Abby.” I wink at him.
He leans in and whispers in my ear. “Remember, baby, payback.” His words send shivers down my spine. I take off his pants so I can free his cock. He hisses when I touch him through his pants. I pretend to be innocent and tell him sorry for my wandering hand. My eyes fixate on Cash’s demeanor. His lips are parted, eyes are glossy and full of desire. I unbutton his pants and drop them, happy to see he isn’t wearing any boxers.
“Looks like someone is eager and ready to play,” I order him to take off his shirt. He obeys and then he’s completely naked and mine; ready to do whatever I want. I get on my knees and lick my lips. “I can’t wait to taste you.”
I lick the tip of his cock softly, and he groans, his head falling back as he closes his eyes. I trail my tongue over every inch of his cock before taking him in my mouth. He’s big, and I can’t fit him all in; my hand wraps around the base of him, pumping up and down as I suck. Cash is starting to moan and pant as I attack his cock. I know he’s getting close; our eyes are locked together as I keep up the pace. I look up at him as I rotate my tongue on the tip of him, and that’s his undoing. He holds my head in place as he pulls out of me slightly, slamming into the mouth as he releases and I swallow every bit of his saltiness.
“Naughty girl,” Cash whispered in my ear as he picks me up to gently lay me on the bed. He slides my panties off, leaving me in only my bra. He kisses my neck as he pushes a finger into me and mumbles into my neck. “I knew you would be ready for me.” His cock is now at my entrance just teasing me as I tingle in anticipation for him to be inside me.
“Always ready for you.”
“I can never get enough of you.” Cash mutters as he thrusts into me. I scream out in pleasure. His lips trail over my neck and collarbone. He finds my nipples and nibbles. He bites and sucking my nipples bringing me pain but also the pleasure. I arch my back and moan. Cash speeds up his movements because he knows that I’m close. With one long, strong stride, I’m seeing stars and coming down from another powerful orgasm. Cash grunts out his release shortly after mine.
He puts his forehead on mine as we slow our breathing down. “I’ve waited so long to be with you and every time we’re together, it gets better. I’ve always imagined being with you, loving you, and having every inch of you. Thank you for being mine.” He stares deep into my eyes. We lay wrapped up in the sheets and each other, just quiet enjoying the sound of the ocean in the background. I smile against his chest.
“I just never thought that we would be together or that I would find someone to love me. I was always told by my dad that I was too fat to be loved or too ugly. I would have to pay someone to have sex with me. So when you say it to me, it makes me feel so alive.” I lean into his chest and snuggle into his neck. He’s quiet for a minute before he lifts my chin with his finger.
“Your dad is a bully and asshole.” He makes me laugh, and I know now what it means to be truly in love with someone and to feel that love reciprocated. I know that my brothers and sisters all love me, but this is different love. This love is what I read about. This love is what I see when I look at the older generation. This is what I needed all of my life, and I finally have it. But can I let go of the past?
I don’t know when we fell asleep, but I woke up first. I look at the clock, and its eight-thirty and I’m getting hungry. I roll over to see Cash sleeping on his back and with his one arm over his face. He tugs me back when I started to get out of bed. “Don’t you dare leave this bed.” I laugh at him because he sounds so tired.
“I’m hungry for food. I’m going to text Sarah to see what the plan is.”
“I can live with that answer but you know you can do that in bed right? You should never leave my bed looking that sexy.” I sit on the edge of the bed, put my hair in a messy bun and look back at him.
Love Me Like You Do (Love Me Book 1) Page 28
