The Mr. Wrong Series

by Madden, A. M.

  “I think, yes, especially since I was prepared to accept the original terms. When do we leave? Can we look to see if there’s a seat on my flight tomorrow?”

  The vibration of his deep chuckle against my body was a reminder of what I’d deprived myself of. If I could, I’d mold myself around him like a monkey on a tree—and never let go. “We have some time, and I have plans for us.”

  “I’m sure you do.” I positioned myself on my knees to straddle his hips.

  “That’s next, but first…” His body shifted, allowing his hand to reach into his coat pocket. Feeling momentarily rebuffed at the sight of the black velvet box, my ass fell to his thighs with a thump. An intensity I had never seen before revealed itself in his mocha eyes. “Marry me, Cassandra.”

  “What?”

  That devilish smirk I adored spread over his edible lips. He opened the box, exposing a brilliant round diamond resting on top of two platinum, diamond-encrusted infinity bands. It was the most gorgeous ring I’d ever seen, even more so because he offered it to me.

  “Cassandra, I know we’ve only known each other a few months, and we started out with lust, but being without you for these past few weeks solidified the fact I need you. While I stood beside my brother as he recited his vows to Sabrina…”

  “Wait… what?”

  “Oh, right. You don’t know, but Luca and Sabrina got married on Christmas Eve in Milan.”

  “I can’t believe he did that without telling me! I’m going to kill him. He…”

  Dante gripped my face and waited until he had my attention again. “Sweetheart, please focus.”

  Instantly, my scowl morphed into a radiant smile. “Sorry.”

  “It’s okay.” He then adorably cleared his throat and began again. “I love you, and I know you love me. Why prolong the inevitable? Be my wife. Share this life with me. This might seem irrational to some, but this is us. We’ve never been rational. We now both know desire always trumps logic. What do you say, beautiful? Will you be my wife?”

  “Yes,” I said with a hard nod. I’ll marry you today, tomorrow, or as soon as we can get a license. Just say when.”

  He slid the ring onto my finger. “You don’t want a big wedding or the white dress?”

  “No, I just want you. I don’t care where it is or what I’ll wear. I’d marry you naked.”

  “Be careful what you offer, Cassandra.” One brow lifted in challenge before he added, “And your parents? Your friends? They’ll be very upset with us.”

  “I don’t care.” I kissed him long and hard, and declared again, “I’ll marry you anytime, anywhere, but preferably soon.”

  “Well, I do have the perfect place in mind.”

  “Yeah? Where?”

  “You’ll see… and you’ll need clothes. But for now…” His nimble fingers flicked open the buttons on my cardigan. “Naked is fine with me.”

  Dante

  Kneeling between my knees, Cassie dragged her thumb across her lips, collecting remnants of my orgasm before popping her thumb into her mouth. “You’re right,” I admitted with a nod. “That move is an instant aphrodisiac… one that makes me want to do filthy things to you.”

  “Told you so.” A wicked smile lifted the corners of her full lips as she crawled up my body, framing my thighs with hers. The new position nestled her warm pussy over my cock, slowly bringing it back to life after the draining blowjob she’d given me. “But be specific,” she said, seductively rocking her hips from side to side. “Tell me what kind of filthy things.”

  I placed my hands on her waist, and her squeal as I flipped us turned into a giggle. “I’d rather show you,” I said, taking a long swipe over her hardened nipple with my tongue. The sexiest purr rumbled through her bare chest, egging me on to suck her nipple into my mouth.

  She arched her back, force-feeding more of her breast for my tongue to lavish. Her legs fell open, bringing my abs to rest against her pussy, spurring my mouth to travel down her body. I mapped her skin, marking her along the way, reminding her she was mine. With each bite, she mewled while raking her nails over my back. After each assault, I soothed her tender flesh with a kiss. Repeating the pattern—bite, kiss, bite, kiss—I ended the last sequence on her clit.

  “Dante…” she pleaded, her voice hoarse with desire. “Please, I need you.”

  My eyes met hers as I slowly moved up her body. “I’m not going to fuck you, Cassandra.”

  “Why?” The pain my teasing caused was evident in her expression. “Stop taunting me.”

  Confusion now marred her brow as I slid my head from side to side. “I’m not taunting you, baby. I’m making love to you.” On my announcement, I buried my cock deep inside her. An instant tidal wave of delirium surged through me, no different than the first time we did this. Actually, the difference was I loved her, and she was about to be my wife. In just two days, this gorgeous woman would truly be mine.

  “I plan to do this every day for the rest of my life, Cassandra.”

  “You won’t get a complaint from me.” She lifted her hips to meet mine, mimicking my favorite dance, but better.

  With each thrust, her channel constricted tighter around my cock. Our mouths fused, abetting our rapture. “Get there,” I demanded.

  “You first.” Like the kinky girl I craved, she stared me in the eye as her teeth scored my bottom lip. And fuck if that didn’t have me coming like a porn star.

  I squeezed a hand between us, pinching her swollen clit as my retaliation. Before I was even done, her pussy contracted around me and milked every drop I had to give. “Jesus Christ.”

  “I know.” She pushed my hair away from my forehead with a contented smile. “And we get to do this every day, forever… maybe twice a day.”

  “Is that a challenge?”

  “Up for it?” With our bodies still connected, she clenched her Kegel muscle, eliciting my growl. “Can we install a swing in your bedroom?”

  “I’m always up for it. And it’s our bedroom now. I’ll have one installed as soon as we get back to New York.”

  “Until then, we’ll need to rely on toys and blindfolds while traveling, though. Oh, and Dante… next it’s my turn to use the handcuffs.”

  “Goddamn, I created a monster,” I teased, kissing the tip of her nose.

  “You created a woman who is madly in love with you.” Her lips pressed against mine, and just as another wave of carnal desire shot through me, she broke our kiss. A sly expression narrowed her eyes, a look I knew well. “Now tell me where we’re getting married,” she said, batting her lashes.

  “Nice try… but no.”

  Chapter 27

  Cassie

  This is bullshit. I’m coming up there.

  No, you’re not.

  This man drove me nuts. Yet I couldn’t help but chuckle with every text Dante had sent since I had sequestered him in Luca’s apartment last night.

  Yesterday was filled with wedding preparations—license, witnesses who weren’t our friends, a dress, and wedding-night lingerie. During my mini shopping trip, he secretly disappeared, claiming he had a few tasks to take care of on his own.

  He couldn’t wait to get back to his apartment and fuck me… his words, not mine. That was when I told him to get lost, and he subsequently lost his mind.

  You’re breaking our daily sex resolution, he argued.

  No, I’m not.

  Are we having sex right now?

  No, but we will later, and we did yesterday morning. So, technically, no rules have been broken.

  Three dancing dots appeared, disappeared, and then reappeared.

  This is bullshit.

  My laugh was instant.

  I waited a full minute for that? My fiancé is so eloquent.

  I’ll show you eloquent.

  More dots, and then an image of his dick appeared.

  Eloquent enough?

  You’re ridiculous. I’ll be seeing you in an hour. Let me get dressed and as instructed, I’ll be waiting for yo
u.

  I love you, Cassandra.

  I love you too. See you soon. Xoxo

  I had no idea what he planned for today, except that our ceremony would be before the crack of dawn. Most people would pick sunset as a backdrop, but not Dante. For some reason, we wouldn’t see the sunrise before we said I do. When I asked why, all he said was, “You’ll see.”

  So there I was at five in the morning, showered and putting on the little white dress I bought over new lingerie that would make him lose his mind. Exactly one hour later—not a minute before or after—Dante was in the living room calling out for me.

  He strolled toward me, his eyes perusing every inch of my body. “You look beautiful,” he exclaimed with intense pleasure.

  “Thank you. So do you.” And that wasn’t a lie. He looked jaw-dropping in his dark suit, his crisp white shirt open at the collar to reveal that sexy patch of toned skin. But it was his seductive smirk, hot scruff, and just-fucked hair that he knew I loved. Instantly, I wanted to be late to my own wedding.

  “You do realize, I’m seeing you on our wedding day. So your reason to confine me to my brother’s apartment was futile.” He wrapped his arms around my waist, tugging my body to his. “I have something for you.”

  “Does it involve us getting naked?”

  “Such a dirty mind. I should bend you over the couch and take what you denied us last night. But we’ll save that for later. For now, I have this for you.”

  He moved one hand off my ass and into his jacket pocket. Handing me a rectangular wrapped box, he said, “Happy Wedding Day.”

  “Wait, I have something for you too.” Before taking his gift, I scurried into the bedroom and retrieved the one I bought for him.

  We swapped boxes, and like two kids on Christmas morning tore open the wrapping. When I flipped the velvet hinged top, I couldn’t contain my gasp. “Dante.” With trembling fingers, I gently touched it, completely tongue-tied at what to say.

  “Do you like it?” he asked, searching my face.

  “It’s beautiful.” Beautiful seemed too ordinary a word to describe the diamond-encrusted watch.

  “Turn it over.” I did as he asked and read the inscription on the back out loud. “Our love is timeless.” Below those poignant words was today’s date. His hand was instantly on my cheek to catch the first tear, his other taking the watch out of the box. The contentment in his deep-brown eyes was palpable as he fastened it to my wrist. Turning it over, he then placed a kiss where the watch met my skin. “I picked it up in Milan when I got your ring but got it engraved yesterday.”

  “I love it.” I couldn’t stop staring at it, until I remembered my pathetic present still in his hand. On instinct, I attempted to snatch the gift from his grasp, but he raised his arm well above my reach.

  “What are you doing?”

  “Mine sucks.” My bottom lip jutted out. “I thought it was a good idea when I saw it yesterday. Normally, when I give a gift, I try to make it personal, but I couldn’t because I ran out of time. And this, it’s really not even complete, since I need to wait until after today…”

  “Cassandra, breathe for God’s sake.” Ignoring my rambling, he lifted the cardboard lid off the box, revealing a silver frame complete with a photo of the models that it came with.

  “That’s for our wedding picture. I wanted to have it engraved but didn’t have time. And since you don’t have any pictures of yourself, I thought this would be perfect. We can take it with us wherever we go. Those people…” I pointed to the couple under the glass. “I have no idea who they are. But even though they have gray hair, that could be us one day.”

  A wide grin grew across his face, and he shook his head. “God, I love you.” He chastely kissed my lips. “This is perfect. I can’t wait to fill it with our first wedding portrait. In fact, technically it is our wedding day. Come…” Dante laced our fingers and led me to his studio. Adjusting the camera on the tripod so it faced the chair, he pushed a button and swiftly sat while pulling me on to his lap.

  “Smile, beautiful.”

  A bright flash made me blink, and I prayed my eyes were open. When we stood, he clicked a few buttons on his laptop, a printer came to life in the corner, and before I knew it, in his hand was our first wedding picture. He immediately replaced the one in the frame with ours. “Done. Now can we go?”

  “Where are we going again?” Not knowing where we would be exchanging our vows drove me nuts.

  “Nice try. Do you have everything you need?”

  I snagged my purse off the couch. “Yes.”

  He reached into his suit-jacket pocket and pulled out a white satin scarf. “Sorry, but when we get downstairs, you’ll need to wear this over your eyes.”

  “Why?”

  “Is our entire marriage going to be like this? Please, indulge me.”

  “Fine.”

  I was absolutely clueless. Yes, I knew we were in a luxury sedan, I knew our driver’s name was Harry, and I knew we were running a bit late when I heard Dante ask him to step on it. During the ride, my husband-to-be tortured me with all the things he would have done if I had allowed him to sleep with me last night. The bastard.

  It felt like an hour later when the car finally stopped and Dante said, “Ready to see where we are?”

  At my nod, he untied the white silk scarf and removed it from around my head. It took a few seconds for me to get my bearings, but once I did, I realized we were in the parking lot where we met.

  Since it was hours before Kyle’s lab opened, it dawned on me why we were there so early. “Oh my God, I love this. It’s perfect!”

  “Really? I came up with it on a whim, and I know you deserve a long, rose-petal-covered aisle with your friends and family watching us exchange our vows, but…”

  “Dante.” I held his face in both my hands and waited until he focused on me. “I don’t care where I become your wife. I only care that I’ll be yours. I don’t want to wait. I don’t need any of the pomp and circumstance. And since we planned this whole thing in a matter of two days, you couldn’t have picked a more perfect place.”

  The relief he felt came in the form of a huge exhalation of pent-up breath. I pressed my lips to his just before he led me out of the car.

  “Ready to marry me?” I looked around, wondering who would be performing the ceremony. Dante pointed over my shoulder, and when I turned, there stood an older gentleman holding a book and smiling at us. Beside him was the cutie pie whom Kyle had parking cars the night of Vanessa’s birthday party.

  “Hi,” I said with a friendly wave. His returning smile mimicked the one he gave me the night Dante and I met.

  “Congratulations, Cassie,” he said, handing me a nosegay of white lilies. “I’m Tyler, your witness today… kind of like I was the night you hit his car.”

  “Wait a minute… whose side are you on, Tyler?”

  My witness never had a chance to respond because Dante said, “Okay, stop flirting.” He leaned closer and kissed my cheek. “Let’s get married.”

  Hand in hand, we walked toward the officiant, and our witnesses, Tyler and Harry, stood behind us. The opening words I’d heard so many times were recited as Dante and I stared into each other’s eyes. Today, those words were for me, for us, and it seemed surreal. Yet, at the same time, it felt like my whole life had prepared me for this moment.

  Unlike my present to him, when we reached the point when vows needed to be exchanged, I was prepared. Dante and I faced each other, my hand still tightly held by his. “Dante, all my life I’ve been a rule-follower. I’ve done things in the right order, and took my time making life-altering decisions. Every one made was methodical, thought through, and carefully planned. And then you crashed into my world… literally. That night…” Tears welled in my eyes as I thought back to how my life was before meeting him. “You changed everything. Opposite of all I knew, and although you were infuriating, I think what was most frustrating was the attraction that came out of nowhere. As you know, I didn’t
handle it well.”

  “I keep telling you, I’m irresistible.” His nonchalant shrug forced me to glare, which caused a chuckle to rumble through him.

  “Anyway… no matter how hard I tried to fight it, you wore me down and I thank God every day that you did… that you saw something in me that I never saw in myself. You, Dante, gave me a gift only you could give. Thank you for giving me your heart. I promise to cherish you, support you, and be with you through whatever life brings us. I promise when we have children, I will not allow them to have teddy bears.” I couldn’t help but laugh at the shudder that ran through him. “You’re the love of my life, and I’m so lucky that you want to share yours with me.”

  Dante methodically ran his thumb across both of my cheeks, wiping away my tears. And my heart swelled when he repeated the process on his face using the back of his hand.

  “Cassandra, the first time I saw you, I knew it wouldn’t be the last. The passion in your eyes, in spite of your vibrator dress, lit my insides on fire.”

  Gasping, I whispered, “They were pencils.”

  “Yes, dear,” he said with a wink. “Not only are you the most beautiful woman I’ve ever had the privilege to lay my eyes on, but you’re smart, talented, and one of the kindest people I know. You astound me every time we’re together. Whether you’re grading papers, reading a trashy romance novel, or fighting seaweed, you manage to carve out another niche in my heart. I’ve never known a love like ours, nor did I think it would be possible. But you, Cassandra… you make everything possible. I promise our lives will never be boring. I promise to protect you from jellyfish and anything else that scares you. I promise to never break our having-sex-every-day resolution.” The officiant cleared his throat while Harry and Tyler laughed. Little did they know Dante wasn’t kidding. “I promise no matter where we are, where we go, or who we are with, you will always be the most important thing in my life. I will never take you for granted, and I will cherish you forever. Never will a day pass when I won’t tell you how much you mean to me. I love you, Cassandra… always.”