by Cynthia Dane
“Oh, I don’t know,” Ethan mused. “If we have to have drama at our wedding, I’d rather it be this.”
“Of course you would. You practically invite it into your office, last I heard.”
Adrienne peered out from Ethan’s left side. “What’s going on?” she asked. “Oh. Them.”
Nadia gripped her wineglass, eyes boring into Eva’s fragile visage. Jasmine smacked Selena’s shoulder and gestured to the cat fight about to break out. “Do something!”
Selena jumped up and slammed a hand onto Nadia’s shoulder. “Hey! Let’s go have a dance! We’ve got these pretty purple dresses on and it would be the perfect opportunity to attract some bigshots…” Selena had only danced with her brother so far. Not exactly the image she wanted to project to the eligible bachelors in the room.
Nadia was more than happy to bail on the banquet table if it meant getting away from the woman bothering her. Before Jasmine could automatically judge the young Warren woman, however, Eva grunted in sheer frustration and marched off in the other direction. Perhaps she went to take her negative energy out on the fist fight. (Was that still going on? Jasmine thought she heard Judith yelling at someone now…)
“Amber,” Ethan said, flagging down his personal assistant as she walked by in a flirty green dress. “When you get the chance, can you find me the number of the magazine photographer’s boss? I need to know who I have to pay to keep the drama out of the press.”
Somehow they managed to avoid much more drama while the wedding gradually began to wind down. It was half past five when Jasmine noticed more and more guests coming by to bid them early adieus, whether because they needed to travel early or work emergencies called. These may not have been people Jasmine readily recognized, but she extended her grateful candor to every one of them, and dreaded the moment Jenny came up behind her and said, “It’s almost six, lovebirds. We’re supposed to start clearing people out by seven, so you know what that means.”
Ethan had a smile of relief when he said, “You mean I finally get some alone time with my bride? What a terrible tragedy.”
Jasmine, on the other hand, longed to let this dreamy affair continue. Don’t tell me my wedding is over already. Seemed as if it had blown by without any warning. Even so, she managed to keep her bearings as she turned to her husband and said, “I suppose I should go change, then.”
“Change? Why change?”
“I brought a more practical outfit for this evening. Unless you want to take me back to the penthouse in this huge gown.”
Ethan’s hand pushed across her knee. Somehow, he had found it beneath all that fabric. “There’s plenty of time to take it off later, my flower.” His hand rubbed the spot where her garter was. Like the damn pro he was, Ethan managed to coax it down to her knee, all without breaking eye contact with Jasmine.
She blushed. Jenny heard this all, but the only thing she cared about was the acknowledgement that the final part of the wedding was to commence.
Word spread. Both Jasmine and Ethan rose from the banquet table to rendezvous with Jenny at the front of the manor. Ethan’s limo pulled up in the driveway, bedecked in the usual “Just Married” flare.
Selena brought Jasmine her bouquet. Purple and red flowers looked back up at her, and the knowledge that this would be the last time she looked at them before going away to her honeymoon was almost too hard to bear.
For so long, Jasmine had dreamed of this day. Now she gazed upon the gathering crowd, fully aware that her name, in their eyes, was Mrs. Ethan Cole. Jasmine had gone from nobody girlfriend to first – Excuse me, only – wife of a billionaire so quickly that some of them probably had whiplash. It didn’t help that her parents, as proud as they now were, stood out like sore thumbs as they eagerly waved and then went off to the side. The crowd segregated into unmarried men on one side and unmarried women on the other. Bets were called. Women giggled, and men swore they weren’t going to participate. While Jasmine was seated on a stool and Luna removed her daughter’s garter in Ethan’s place, the newly married billionaire pulled five hundred-dollar bills from his wallet and fanned them to the tune of whistles and cheers in the background. Jasmine took the garter from her mother and handed the thin blue thing to her husband.
Although it was customary to toss the bouquet first, it was clear that things were going to happen out of order. Ethan already wound the garter around the wad of money and looked at the bachelors with a cool look. “I don’t care what you bastards think,” he said. “You all know you want to be as lucky as me one day.”
Nobody refuted that. In fact, it riled the men up, each one jokingly climbing over the other in an effort to get the best spot for catching the garter.
Ethan turned around, facing his wife. With a wink, he tossed the garter high above, completely missing the second fist fight that almost erupted.
“Ah, yes, gentlemen.” Jasmine couldn’t bring herself to be surprised when she saw Ian Mathers come out on top, twirling the garter on one hand and pocketing the money with the other. “I believe this is a sign that we should all get piss-roaring drunk at the nearest bar. Er… where’s the nearest bar?”
What a fantastic segue to the bouquet toss! Jasmine gazed at the women amassing on the other side and… well, she would be no Monica Warren that day.
I’ve thought long and hard about this. Four months ago, Monica decided that Jasmine needed this bouquet more than any other. It was a sign that it was time for her and Ethan to at least get engaged, not that anyone could have foreseen a wedding happening so quickly. Unfortunately for Jasmine, the only woman she could possibly see paying it forward to was not present in the group. She should not have been surprised that Kathryn Alison had high-tailed it out of there – especially after the stunt her boyfriend pulled – and was back at the bar getting a shot of tequila, but it put a damper on Jasmine’s plan nonetheless.
Her backup plan? The one where she was going to shove the bouquet in Adrienne’s hands and hope for the best? That wasn’t going to work either, because the best woman was nowhere to be found.
“Fuck it,” she mumbled, and tossed the damn bouquet into the hormonal crowd.
Shrieks went up. Hands were in the air. Hair let loose from casements, and more than one bracelet snapped off a wrist until the ground glittered in diamonds and other beautiful gems. Yet it was not a woman struggling to catch the bouquet who won. In fact, Nadia had only been standing there out of politeness. It was one of the nasty socialites who knocked the bouquet out of the air and into Nadia’s idle hands.
“Oh… shit…” she uttered, staring in disbelief at the colorful flowers in her hands. “Hey, Mathers, time to put the garter on that young lady there.”
Nadia dropped the bouquet. The room fell silent, with Ian looking between the woman at the bar and her best friend looming in the corner shadows. Eva liked that idea about as much as Kathryn did.
“Think we’re good over here!”
Nadia gave Jasmine a look of how could you as the bride took her husband’s hand and was led away from the reception.
The limo was ready to go. All that remained was getting in and driving away from one of the biggest weddings of the year. Jasmine stood on the brick walkway leading to the private road, holding Ethan back from making a break for it. I know you want to be alone, but there’s one thing I have to do…
“Thank you for coming to my wedding!” Jasmine cried, to the polite applause of those who had followed her out. The photographers were still going, clicking this, flashing that, catching every moment of her wedding in a blip of time. This is still so crazy… “It means a lot to me that you would do this for Ethan and me. I hope to see a lot of your friendly faces when I return from our honeymoon! And if you’re not so friendly to me, whether because you think I stole your bachelor, I’m too stupid, I’m too ill-bred, I’m too embarrassing… well, I don’t give a fuck! I’m going to have an awesome marriage whether it’s with your approval or not!”
Most of the guests were too
dumbfounded to respond. The only one to cheer was Lana Andrews, who then knocked back a glass of champagne before climbing on her husband.
Ethan let out a low whistle as he opened the limo door and gestured for Jasmine to get in. High from her declaration, Jasmine picked up her skirt and stepped into the limo. I win today, assholes.
They were both barely in the limo before it pulled away. The manor quickly disappeared, the limo making its descent down a long, winding driveway as it prepared for the long drive to the city. The newlyweds would be spending the night in their penthouse before jetting off to Hawaii the next day.
“Phew,” Jasmine said, slapping her hands against her skirt. The limo came to a stop at an intersection. “What a wild day!”
Ethan glanced out his window, eyes widening in shock. “It’s staying wild.”
Jasmine climbed across his lap to look out the window. There, pressed against a wall, was Adrienne and Amber, doing something that coat closets were created for. Jasmine barely caught sight of Amber’s ass before the limo pulled onto another road.
Chapter 20
They caused more than a stir when they departed the limo downtown. Jasmine’s dress alone created a blast of sparkles echoing from one end of the street to another, attracting the attention of every passerby, whether they cared about wedding dresses or not. Those who didn’t care would take one cursory look before going on their way, perhaps think, “Well, that’s a princess dress if I ever saw one,” while those obsessed with wedding dresses not so covertly came closer with their cell phones in front of their faces. Jasmine’s dress would be spread across Facebook, Instagram, Tumblr, and Pinterest before the magazine photographer had the chance to go through his shots.
Now I know why he didn’t want me to change… Ethan was reveling in the attention they received as they walked the short distance between limo and high-rise entrance. In that short amount of time, however, Jasmine felt the eyes of half the bustling city on her. The doorman, a stout fellow who was always prompt and polite without fault, gaped in absolute awe as Ethan approached with his bride one step behind him, skirt bobbing with her every step.
“As you can see, we got married,” Ethan said to the doorman. “Don’t suppose we could go home?”
Getting Jasmine and her dress in the elevator was more than a trial. It took both Ethan and the doorman to stuff the skirt inside, and until then, Jasmine had considered that elevator fairly big. Ethan had to gingerly step around the outer rim of her skirt and push himself into a corner as they ascended the several stories to their penthouse.
“You look ridiculous,” Jasmine said. Her husband slumped in the corner, near the buttons, hands in trouser pockets and five-o-clock shadow doing its best to spread across his jaw. What made the image, however, was her ivory and gold skirt swooshing against his legs until it looked like he waded through an ocean of silk clouds.
“I’d say the same to you, but I know better than to say a bride looks ridiculous.”
The elevator dinged. The moment the doors opened, Jasmine surged forward, dragging half her skirt behind her while Ethan held the “open” button. She had to wait for him to catch up to her, however, since he had the keys to the penthouse, and the idea of a wedding dress having pockets was more ridiculous than how either one of them looked in the elevator.
Ethan swung the door open, and before Jasmine could check for dirt beneath her fingernails, her husband picked up her skirt – and her with it.
“Whoa!” Jasmine went from over his shoulder to in his arms in fewer than five seconds. When she finally had her bearings again, Ethan was carrying her over the threshold. Seemed rather moot, considering Jasmine had been here since Day 1 and any evil spirits lurking about would have snatched her by now… Don’t care. This is hot. Jasmine looped her arm around his neck and shrieked in excitement as Ethan hauled her into the living room, kicking the front door shut behind them.
“Welcome home, Mrs. Cole,” Ethan said, easing Jasmine to her feet. “Out of all the honeymoon suites in this damned city, you chose to spend our first married night in this tiny place.”
True, there were honeymoon suites bigger than this penthouse, but Jasmine hadn’t been interested in any of them when Amber asked what should be booked for the wedding night. I want to be “home,” and at least we can be alone here. Plus, already halfway to the airport! There was plenty of time to honeymoon in beautiful hotel suites across the world.
“This place is special,” Jasmine said. The doorbell sounded, and Ethan went, picking up the champagne and bottle of wine he had ordered to be brought up. After generously tipping the deliveryman, he returned in time to hear Jasmine continue, “This is where it all began.”
He put the drinks on the coffee table before approaching. “You think about that a lot?”
Jasmine caught a glimpse of him out of the corner of her eye. Otherwise, her attention was wholly focused on the cityscape outside the window. I gazed at this when he first brought me here, and then when he proposed to me. Now they were married. Why didn’t Jasmine see anything new in the sunset blooming across the horizon?
“Don’t you?” She wasn’t sure she wanted to hear the answer.
Her husband came closer, pulling his hands out of his pockets and touching the tip of her elbow. Tingles murmured in Jasmine’s stomach. What’s it going to be like tonight? Nice and slow? The greatest domination I’ve ever taken? The diamond choker did its job too well around her throat.
“It’s safe to say that this place had little meaning to me until you officially moved in.” Ethan didn’t have to say more. Before Jasmine, this was the only resident Ethan brought his girlfriends, if they could be called that. Jasmine would’ve been another notch in the nearby bedpost if it weren’t for something drawing them closer together. I knew he thought I was special when he took me to the manor for the first time. No other girlfriend of his had ever set foot there. Not since Monica, anyway. Her leftover clothing attested to that. “Now look at you,” Ethan continued, “in the most stunning wedding dress I’ve ever seen.”
Jasmine blushed. “I had to go all the way to Italy to get this thing.”
“Oh, I know. That designer was bleating all over our reception. You two must’ve made a deal with the devil.”
“Worse. Adrienne.”
“That’s not what I hear…” Ethan cleared his throat. “Or see.”
Jasmine rolled her eyes. It was better than having to bleach them after seeing Amber’s ass. What a wild world these billionaires live in. If Jasmine weren’t careful, she’d be running off with Ethan’s next personal assistant because of whatever was in the local water.
“Anyway…” Ethan was right beside her, his voice low and growling into her ear. “I think I’m going to hire a painter to create a portrait of you in this dress. Assuming you don’t mind wearing it again when we get back from the honeymoon. The sooner the better. I want to capture how you looked today as accurately as possible.”
She laughed. “I hate to break it to you, sir, but women don’t age quite that quickly.”
“Thank goodness for that.” His fingers grazed her arm. “I like to think we have a lot of youth ahead of us. Before we grow old together, anyway.”
Did he know those were the types of things Jasmine wanted to hear most? He could say she was beautiful until he was blue enough in the face to be called the depths of the ocean, but referencing their future together was much more heart fluttering. Ethan was the only man in the world who could make her feel so confident in not only her body, but her worth as a woman, as a human being. Hence she did not flinch when he snatched her by the waist and hit her with a kiss.
They had kissed in front of their guests. They had kissed on the dance floor. They had stolen multiple pecks and full-blown kisses at their banquet table, in between dinner courses and cake. Yet this? This was what Jasmine wanted to feel. Hot, tempered passion that could only manifest when they were alone. A private reverie, for them.
“Promise me,” Jasmine sa
id, fingers dancing upon his chest, wrestling with his tie, and daring to feel him beneath his shirt. “You’ll love me forever.”
She must’ve looked so scared, so suddenly unsure of what they had done, for Ethan frowned and squeezed her tighter. “You’re the only woman I could love for the rest of my life.”
“That doesn’t mean you will, though.”
“What brings this on? What do you think we went through? You think I signed that paper and took a vow in front of those people for fun? I’ve always been a man of my word who does nothing lightly.”
That got Jasmine to smile again. “Except sleep with indiscriminate women you find hot.”
“I don’t regret doing that, but it was a long while ago. Another life. By the time I met you, I was more than ready to leave that behind me. I’m in my thirties. Maybe being a long-lived bachelor who isn’t beholden to anything but business and money works well for other men, but not me. I’ve always wanted this.”
“Really?”
“Really. I merely thought it could never happen.”
“Really?” He was Mr. Billionaire! Mr. Hot Billionaire Who Was A Rockstar In The Bedroom! He could have any woman as his wife! There were millions who would divorce their husbands if they had the chance to be Mrs. Cole!
“I’m surrounded by fake people every day. I knew I would be a long time ago, but it’s still exhausting. I love coming home and finding such a down-to-earth woman like you ready to hang out with me.” He grinned. “You being gorgeous is a bonus, though, I won’t deny that.”
Jasmine didn’t say anything as he poured them both glasses of champagne in crystal flutes. They sparkled more than Jasmine’s dress when he handed one to her. I’m sensing a theme tonight. Smiling, Jasmine held her flute up for a toast.
“To us,” Ethan simply said, clinking his flute against hers.
“To us,” Jasmine repeated. She sipped the champagne before holding the flute at her waist, her gaze meandering from Ethan’s masculine form to the view outside.
