She’d already used all the credit on her card. When Mark rang and said she could meet him in Vegas, she’d gotten excited; well, of course she did, she thought she was getting married. Who wouldn’t have wanted to look nice? So she did the only thing possible. She increased her limit and then went shopping. The dress, the shoes, the bus ticket, and then the hotel room. Two days and she was maxed out again. Quitting her job when they wouldn’t give her the time off was starting to look like not the smartest idea she’d ever had. Now she’d offered to pay back the money from this morning. She had no idea where she was going to pluck the money from to keep her promise.
“Whitney?” Tyler called from the other room. “I’m hungry!”
“I’m almost done.” She zipped up her jeans, brushed her hair, and put on some lip gloss before opening the door. “Ready.”
“Ok, let’s go.” Tyler took her hand without thinking and towed her to the door.
* * *
Tyler chuckled. “You can really put it away for such a little thing.”
“I’ve barely eaten anything since I’ve been here.” She dipped the spoon into her soft-serve ice cream with sprinkles and popped it into her mouth, closing her eyes to savor the cold sweet treat.
“That’s not good,” Tyler said. “Why ever not?”
“Well, I don’t know, Tyler, let me see. Caught the bus, got to the hotel room which was…seedy, to say the least. If I had had the opportunity, I wouldn’t have touched food from there with a barge pole. I had a shower and then a nap because it was a really long bus trip where I sat on a hard seat next to a man that ate LOTS of garlic the night before and obviously wasn’t very fond of soap and water. Then of course there was the small problem of not having much money left.”
Tyler frowned, but there was a twinkle in his eye. “It hasn’t been the best few days, has it?”
“Not at first,” she said, her face coloring slightly.
“Meeting you has been the best part of my trip so far.”
Whitney scooped some ice cream from her bowl onto her spoon and then paused before popping it into her mouth. She looked like she was going to say something, but then she stopped and continued eating.
“You look like you were going to say something.”
She grinned. He knew her so well. “I was just going to say that I missed you.”
“I missed you too,” Tyler said. “So much.”
“I didn’t understand why you had to leave.”
“I wanted more than to work in the auto shop forever. I liked learning and I wanted to experience somewhere other than home.”
“I guess I drove you crazy, huh?”
“No. I wasn’t running from you,” he said. “I always hoped…”
“Hoped what?”
“Hoped that one day you might see me as something other than a bossy friend.”
She giggled. “You were bossy.”
He shrugged. “Dragged you kicking and screaming through high school, didn’t I?”
“Yes, you did. Remember that last big fight we had?”
“How could I forget? I played it over and over in my head that first six months.”
“Me too.” Whitney looked at him nervously from underneath her lashes. “What you said to me. I wondered what it’d be like if you just done it rather than threatened. Maybe I wouldn’t be such a fuck-up now.”
Tyler watched her enjoy her ice cream and it took him back to when they were younger. She always liked ice cream. She used to dip her fries into it, which he found totally revolting but kind of cute. It was just so her. “There were a lot of things I would have done differently if I could go back. Turning you over my knee and trying to paddle some sense into you would have been up there, believe me.”
Whitney smirked and her face burned with embarrassment; she felt sure he could see the flame of arousal that his words had lit. “What else would be up there?”
“I would have grown a pair and asked you out the very first time the thought crossed my mind. It would have saved me from having to watch you be with one loser after another.” He took a deep breath. “I wanted you to be with me. You were always the only one that I wanted to be with.”
“I didn’t know. After you left, I kept thinking you’d change your mind and come back.”
“I almost did.”
“I wanted to go after you, but we’d argued so badly. You were so angry with me.”
“That was warranted.”
“I know. I mean, I know that now. I didn’t know that then. Then I thought it didn’t matter because no one got hurt.”
“Luckily.”
“Yeah, I know. I know that now. I never should have gotten into the car with Jock when he’d been drinking.”
“No, you shouldn’t.”
Whitney didn’t know what to say to that, so she did the only thing she could think of—she changed the subject. “What are we going to do about this annulment?” she asked.
Tyler shrugged. “To be honest, I don’t know where to start.”
“Me either.”
“You know, Whit, I’m not sorry.”
“Really?”
“Really. What about you?”
“No, I’m not sorry at all. Even though this isn’t real, it’s the happiest I’ve felt in forever.”
“Me too,” he said. “And who said this isn’t real? I think we have a marriage certificate to prove that it is.”
“I guess we do,” she said, a smile creeping onto her face as she allowed the hope to slip in.
“So would you come back home with me, as my wife?”
“I don’t know. You never really asked me. I got foisted onto you.” Whitney wasn’t sure about this. She wanted it, but they hadn’t seen each other for years. Had they changed too much to be together now?
Tyler chuckled. “You’re right. That’s easily fixed. Whitney, we both realize that we had regrets back then. I don’t know about you, but I don’t want to look back in ten years and wonder why I hadn’t at least given it a try.”
“I don’t want to have regrets again either,” she agreed carefully. “I guess we could always get it annulled sometime down the track if it doesn’t work out.”
“Of course,” he said. “We were pretty drunk.”
“How romantic,” she laughed.
“Hmm. You want romance? I can do romance.” He took her hand, slipped off the wedding ring that he was pleased to see she hadn’t taken off, and dropped down onto one knee. He did his best to ignore the few onlookers who tittered or smiled and the man who filmed it on his phone; this was Vegas, after all, and he was making it part of the experience. HIS focus was on his bride.
“Whitney Green, would you do me the honor of being my wife?”
“Yes.” Her eyes filled with tears as she allowed him to take her hand and slip the ring back on her finger.
“I guess I pronounce us man and wife.” He beamed and a few people clapped.
“Can we go up to our room now?”
“Good idea,” he said, standing and taking her hand.
* * *
Standing in the elevator, her small hand engulfed in Tyler’s larger one, Whitney felt like this was all too good to be true. They hadn’t even kissed yet. Not properly. Here they were about to start life as a married couple. She was amazed that she was actually nervous. Could they be happy together when there was still so much unfinished stuff from their past? She’d never been with Tyler. It did feel right though, against the odds. She smiled at the older couple next to them; they were holding hands too. Could that be them at that age? God, she hoped so. That’s what she’d always wanted—a husband who still wanted to hold her hand when she was old and grey.
“Is there something wrong?” Tyler asked when they were finally alone in the hallway.
“Nah. Not really. Just thinking.”
“About?” Tyler asked as he opened the door to their room.
“The past AND about the future.”
“Ok, that’s a coup
le of big thoughts to fit into one sentence. Let’s get inside and we can talk properly.”
The heavy door swung shut behind them. “Well. Here we are,” Tyler said with a smile. “What would you like to do?”
“What would you like to do?”
He pulled her into his arms and lowered his lips to hers. What started as a chaste seal very quickly heated. Tyler savored the feel of the soft lips that parted eagerly, also relishing this sweet moment. His hands slid down to cup and knead her soft cheeks as his kiss deepened. Finally, he pulled back a little. “Sorry. We were going to talk. You were going to tell me what you were thinking about.”
Arousal still buzzed through Whitney and her mind felt muddled. “I don’t remember,” she said in a husky voice.
He chuckled. “Yeah, feeling a bit that way myself. Let’s just lie on the bed for a while and cuddle. We could see if there’s a movie on or something.”
“That sounds nice.”
* * *
When the movie credits started to roll, Whitney opened her eyes, glad that Tyler’s arm was still around her. “Did I miss it?” she asked sleepily.
“We both did. I don’t think I saw more than twenty minutes. You saw even less,” he chuckled.
“Hmm.” She snuggled in to Tyler, savoring the closeness as he wrapped his arm around her. “Guess last night must have taken it out of us.”
“Yeah. Whit, when we got out of the elevator, you said that you were thinking about the past and the future. Care to share?”
“It was nothing.”
“You sure? You can still tell me anything, you know.”
Whitney hesitated and then decided it might be better to put it out there. “I was just thinking about when we were young and all the stuff I put you through. I know we touched on this when we were having lunch, but I was kind of embarrassed to press you.
“You don’t have to be embarrassed, Honey.”
“Ok, here goes. You know when you threatened to spank me? Did you mean it?”
“At the time I did.”
“Do you still think I deserve to be spanked? For that and for all the other dumb things I did back then?”
“Honey, as far as I’m concerned the past is the past. There’s been too much water under the bridge. Do you forgive me for not coming back for you and not telling you how I felt?”
“There’s nothing to forgive. I didn’t stop you and I didn’t come after you either.”
“Do you think it might have helped if I’d actually spanked you?”
“Maybe. Probably.”
“Good. Whit, I want this to work.”
“I do too, silly.”
“Whit, I’m not saying that everything that happened in the past was all your fault.”
“Um, ok,” she said carefully.
“What I AM saying is that you made a lot of not-so-great choices back then and by your own admission, you’re still making bad choices now.”
“I don’t think I like where this is going.”
“Hear me out. Please?” Tyler said, running his hand down her arm delicately, like his soft touch would somehow soften the blow of what he was about to say.
“Ok,” she agreed nervously.
“I want to help you to make better choices so that you can feel happier and more satisfied with your life.”
“Still ok,” she agreed.
“I meant it when I said the past is in the past and you didn’t deserve to be spanked for your mistakes back then.”
“I think we’ve been over this.”
“Not the next bit.”
“Ok. I think.”
“If I think you deserve a spanking from now on, I will spank you.”
“Not ok. So very not ok.” Whitney felt totally panicked. A fantasy was one thing, but this was feeling a bit scary. If the nervous quiver in her ass was anything to go by, then it agreed with her wholeheartedly.
“I know the idea might take some getting used to, but you will.”
“No WAY I’m agreeing to that.”
“I asked you.”
“No, you didn’t,” she said, wracking her brain for something she may have missed and coming up blank. “Nope.”
“I asked you if you thought a spanking back then would have helped you; you agreed that it would have.”
“Yes, but…”
“YOU asked me if I thought you deserved a spanking. I said I did at the time but not now. I said that because then was then and that time is not this time.”
“Oh, for fuck’s sake, you’re not making sense.”
“For the record? That language is going to stop.”
“Says you.”
“Yep, says me. I don’t want my wife to use that language. I want people to look up to you and see you for the wonderful lady you are. I want them to respect you.”
“That’s sweet.”
“I don’t want to be mean; I want to bring some order into your life. Into BOTH our lives.”
“I don’t see why you get to be the boss,” she grumbled. In her heart she knew she’d already lost the argument. She tried to turn over, but he made her face him.
“I’ve always been the one you came to, listened to, trusted. Have I done anything to make you think you can’t trust me now?”
She shook her head. “No.”
“Then this is what I think’s best.”
“Ok, I suppose.”
“Whit?”
“Yes?”
“This’ll be the last warning you get for cursing. Next time I’ll burn your bottom.”
A kaleidoscope of butterflies burst forth in Whitney’s belly at those words and for once, she was stuck for words.
* * *
“Dinner?” Tyler asked a while later.
“Nah, I’m not hungry.”
“How about I order you a sandwich and you can eat it later if you get hungry.”
“Can we go for a walk instead? We could get something while we’re out.”
“Good idea. It is our last day here.”
“The only real walk I had down the strip, I was so drunk I didn’t really pay attention.”
“Then a walk it is. Anything in particular you want to see?”
“I’d like to see that fountain that dances to the music.”
“The Bellagio?” He tugged her hand to get her up off the bed.
“Is that what’s it’s called?”
“Yeah.”
“Smarty pants, aren’t ya, with your big city education?” she teased.
“Nah, I gained some knowledge, but I didn’t really change. I’m still the same.”
“I know. I was just teasing,” she said.
“I got that. I just wanted you to know so you won’t be afraid that you’re going to change.”
“Why would I be scared of changing? What would make me change?”
“School. When we go home, we’re going to get you enrolled in some classes. You’re a smart girl; you’ve just never applied yourself.”
“Huh? No way!”
“Way.” He gave her a sharp smack on her bottom and she jumped. “Now go fix your hair so we can go and see your fountain.”
* * *
“It’s so pretty!”
“It sure is.”
“It almost looks like the water is dancing to the music.”
“It’d take a lot of devices to make the water look like that. Oarsman nozzles are set flush with the pavers and there are fiber optic lenses surrounding each one. Each nozzle is set to shoot the water at a different speed.”
“Oh, really?”
“Then a group of projectors sends light to the fountainhead lenses.”
“Oh,” she said, realizing it must be fascinating to someone who studied engineering. To her, though, it was just pretty. “Don’t you think having your head all full of information sometimes ruins the mystery?”
“I like knowing how things work.”
“I like to look at things sometimes just because they’re pretty,” she s
aid, poking out her tongue.
“Everybody does. You know what I feel like? A hot dog.”
“Ooh, or a hot dog on a stick.”
“Now that’s a definite possibility.”
“And fries.”
“I thought you weren’t hungry,” he said with a grin.
“That was then. All this culture has made me hungry.”
* * *
“That was so fun.”
“It was, wasn’t it? I’m glad we saw the figures at Madame Tussauds.”
“They were neat, but my fountain was the best.”
Tyler pulled his wife into his arms. “Tired?”
“Not really.”
“Good.” Without breaking eye contact, his fingers found the first button of her lacy button-front camisole and slipped it through the hole. Then the next and all the others until it was completely open.
Whitney stood on her tiptoes and brushed her lips against his. She longed for a slower, deeper kiss, but she was trying to slow the raging inferno that was already building with his gentle touch.
His hands snaked around her, unclasped her bra, and watched as it dropped to the floor at her feet.
“Oh, my.” She shivered with pleasure as his exploring fingers found her already peaked nipples and tweaked them. His teeth and stubble grazed her neck. She wanted to slow things down and savor the moment, but his erection pressed against her belly through his jeans and it was difficult to think of anything else. “Take your shirt off,” she said, trying to lift the T-shirt that seemed determined not to budge.
“Soon. I’m busy.”
“I want to see you. Touch your skin.”
He chuckled deep in his throat and pulled off his shirt with a dazzling smile. “Happy?”
His Firm Guidance Page 3
