by Jessa James
I finally broke, scared of what could happen if I disobeyed my father, and told him a half-lie, half-truth. I told him I was staying with my boyfriend, and now, Jake and I were on the way to meet my father for lunch.
“It’s going to be okay, I’m here,” he said, trying to reassure me. He reached out to rest a hand on my shoulder, squeezed, and pulled back his arm.
The gesture calmed me down a little, but my inner self was telling me it was a futile move. We were twenty-eight days into our agreement; two more days then I’d have to walk out. At that thought, I immediately felt a stabbing pain in my chest. There was no denying it. By spending every waking and sleeping moment with him for the past weeks, there was no way I wouldn’t fall for him.
But I was just a diversion.
He’d popped the virgin’s cherry. He was done with what he wanted to do, succeeded in making his fetish a reality, and after a couple of days, he’d be back on the market, dating and fucking supermodels and more mature women who looked like goddesses and had the sexual experience I could only dream of.
“What are you thinking about?” Jake then asked, breaking my train of thought. I watched as he pulled my car up into the driveway of the five-star hotel. Our doors were opened by the valet attendants waiting, and Jake handed one the keys before we stepped into the hotel.
I felt Jake take my hand as we were greeted by a grand double staircase and gold-rimmed and marble columns. When I turned to look at him, there was a hint of unease with the way his lips were tight and shut. He didn’t feel like he fit in; I knew what he felt, but I’d told him repeatedly he didn’t need to care. He walked away from this life; it didn’t deem him unsuitable. No one could, not even his self-entitled, snobby family.
Or so I thought.
“Fuck,” I heard him breathe as we walked into the restaurant at the topmost floor where my father booked us a reservation.
I turned my head and followed his line of vision and let out a string of my own expletives. I should have expected this. Why didn’t I see this coming? Of course, my father and Jake’s would have lunch together regularly. They were doing business together.
“So, this is your new boyfriend?” The look on both businessmen’s faces were unmistakable.
“What are you talking about, Connor?” The elder Huntington said, sitting up straighter on his seat and tapping his ring on the table. The knocking sound it made was slightly annoying.
“My daughter has been gone for almost a month, not sleeping or eating or showering in the house. She said she had a boyfriend. Apparently, it’s your son.”
Before I could speak my mind, my dad started off. He began raising his voice, not caring if a few heads were starting to turn to look at us. My dad expected everyone to bow down to him, even strangers. This situation was no exception; he didn’t care if he was causing a scene because he expected the world to accept what he wanted, no questions asked.
“Haven’t I warned you enough times about Harry’s delinquent son?” I stiffened when he said ‘delinquent’. Now my father was just exaggerating. Jake was anything but. He was passionate, hardworking, and empathetic. “Didn’t I tell you he was an ungrateful brat who ran away from the family who’d given him everything? Why don’t you ever listen to me, Becca? Why can’t you see I just want what’s best for you? Why are you always looking for trouble?”
“By the best you mean, the richest, most successful man you can hook me up with?” I said, trying to control my anger. There was no changing my dad’s mind. We’d had this kind of argument countless times before. He’d always try to drag me to his high-society events and force me to talk to his friends’ children in the hopes I’d get into a relationship with any one of them and secure a future of success and wealth most of the world’s population could only dream of. “I don’t need that. Jake is-”
“Sorry, dear,” my father cut me off. “The world runs on currency. You just have to accept it.”
“Do you just have to go around and ruin someone else’s life? Aren’t you satisfied with ruining your own future?” That was Harry Huntington speaking, his voice booming and authoritative, and the lawyer in him surfacing. I turned my head to the side to gauge Jake’s reaction, and I couldn’t be any prouder. He stood tall, unwavering, and held his own ground despite the toxic words coming out of his father’s mouth. No wonder our fathers were such good colleagues and friends. They were just two peas in a pod. “Don’t ruin her future like you ruined your own. You don’t deserve her. What can you give to her that her father hasn’t already have? Last time I heard, your tattoo place is barely surviving. Do you know that?” He then turned to address me. “He only has enough money to keep himself afloat.”
That was it. I couldn’t handle the shit they were throwing at him anymore. My father spouting out words of discouragement by himself was bad enough but having him and Jake’s dad doing it together? Any person could only take so much before they’d crumble.
“Shut up.” I winced at my own words; I knew I was digging my own grave, but I was too infuriated to care. “You don’t know anything about him. You’ve been out of his life for years. You haven’t seen how he’s touched people’s lives, how he uses his art to connect with the world around him because all you two care about is the bottom line.” My hands were balled into fists at my sides; I felt like I had so much emotions running through me, so many feelings I wanted to let out. “He started his own business to follow his own passion, not to rob the world, so you two can just become richer and richer. I’ve never met more selfish people than you two.”
“Y-you-”
“I’m not finished,” I said, glaring at my dad. I didn’t know where this newfound courage came from, but it was allowing me to let out feelings I’d bottled up inside for years. “Don’t tell me who to date and cannot date. Too late. I love Jake…he’s been there for me when you were absent…he’s been there to listen to me and take care of me. I love him…as much as I do mom,” I carried on, my fingers on the waistband of my shorts. “I got a tattoo…” I pulled the denim slightly down to give them a view of the butterfly. “It’s what mom used to call me. There’s not better art than bringing the two people I care most about in this world together. Thank you for nothing, dad. You’ve been telling me you just want what’s best for me, but I know the truth; you want to carve my life just so you can pad your own pocket.” Then, my eyes swerved to meet Jake’s father’s. “The both of you can go to hell.”
And with that, I grabbed Jake’s hand and led the way out of the restaurant. There was no turning back.
9
Jake
She loves me.
She really loves me.
All throughout my life, I was told that showing emotions was a sign of weakness. I built a wall so high that nothing scared me. People could threaten me, and I wouldn’t give a damn. When my father told me that he’d leave me out of the will if I didn’t go to law school, I gathered the strength to turn my back on him and walk away. When I experienced my first heartbreak in high school, it only made me stronger and mysterious that I learned to play the cool, unaffected façade so well it attracted so many girls and women. When I’d gotten into some fistfights, I can come out would bruises and wounds but never a bruised ego. I could handle a lot, almost nothing perturbed me.
Except for her.
With her holding my hand tightly, I could feel myself shaking a bit. I was so overwhelmed with so much emotions that I just wanted to take her in my arms, kiss the living daylights out of her, and do things to her that would get us kicked out of and banned from the hotel.
She loves me.
The thought kept replaying in my head. She stood up to both our dads and basically told them to fuck off. No one would ever dare do that to them. I’d done it to my father once, but he already expected that kind of attitude from me. But Becca…sweet, innocent, and compassionate Becca…all along I thought that she needed me to be the stronger one, the one to protect her from the harshness of life. I was so, so naï
ve.
She didn’t need any protecting. She was stronger than I gave her credit for, and the strength she’d been hiding came out today. I was the one that needed protecting today.
She rocked me to my core. No one had ever told those two men to fuck off, not even their wives could say such a profanity outright. Becca had no idea how impressed I was…how much I appreciated just what she did. And I wanted to let her know. I wanted to show her just how much I loved her and appreciated her for standing up for me. Usually, I showed it by ravishing her until she came while screaming my name. With her, pleasuring her never felt like a chore. I could tease and lick her full breasts all day and finger and eat her out until she finished and grew sore. I loved making her happy. I loved pleasuring and servicing her. I’d never felt this before. It was everything about her that was making me feel so overwhelmed right now.
I wanted to show her how much I loved her and cared. But of course, I just couldn’t fuck her in such a public place.
She loves me. And I love her too. But how will I show it?
Then, it came to me. It was so automatic and felt so natural that I didn’t even think about it. I just found myself dropping to one knee and meeting her hazel eyes. She looked shocked, her mouth opening into a small ‘o’ and her arm stiffening as she looked down on me on one knee. For a quick second, I glanced to the side and saw both our fathers watching us. The whole floor of the hotel had their eyes on us. They heard the argument between us and our fathers. Now, everyone wanted in on the aftermath.
“I’ve known you for over eight years, but I’d only really gotten to know you for close to one month…” Becca looked like she was about to cry, but the smile on her face gave me the strength to continue. “But in that month, I found out how much of an amazing person you were…you are. You could’ve judged me straight away. If you told anyone about our month-long agreement, everyone would’ve warned you to stay away from me.” I took a pause and continued. This feeling inside me – the fucking butterflies and knots in my stomach – I was feeling more overwhelmed than what I felt just a few minutes ago. “But you stayed, and for the first time in a very, very long time, I felt like someone actually really cared about me. You make me feel love and cared for, and that’s irreplaceable with the life I’m trying to live – trying to succeed on my own when my own family doesn’t believe in me.” I swallowed my own breath, pushing the fear away, and parted my lips to ask, “I need someone to hold my hand, to be my strength when I am weak, and that someone’s you. I’ve never been surer of anything…” And then, finally, “Becca Madison, will you marry me?”
Tears spilled out of her eyes as she cupped my cheeks in her soft, feminine hands. She pulled me to stand up, and she pressed her lips softly against mine. I couldn’t help but smile instantly when I felt the emotions in her kiss and the tears on her flesh. After what felt like forever, I pulled away. If we didn’t stop kissing, things would’ve have become more intense and required parental guidance.
“Of course…” she began, still sobbing. “Of course, I’ll marry you.”
Then, I followed the movement of her eyes. She moved her head down and looked at her hands, and instantly, I knew what to say. “The ring…I want it be another tattoo. I can draw little butterflies and our initials around your finger…I want it in ink instead of metal because that way, you can never remove it. I plan on having you all to myself for a very, very long time…”
She parted her lips, smile growing wider, as she reached for my hand. All around, people were snapping photographs and taking videos of us. Some were still applauding and cooing at my proposal. I could also feel our fathers trying to burn a hole through the back of our heads, but with so much love and support surrounding us, I couldn’t give a damn.
“Then let’s go home…I want the both of us to design the ring.”
And I’d never heard a plan more perfect.
Epilogue
Becca
I’d always loved the ‘Winter Wonderland’ theme ever since I started going to school parties and dances, and it was only now that I truly understood why. I looked around the church, and from behind the windows, I could see snow falling, cooling the church and making me feel relaxed and completely at peace.
I was attending my own wedding, but I was thinking of so many things that I wasn’t listening to the priest anymore.
I knew I should listen to the ceremony. I didn’t become a bridezilla for the past six months for nothing. But the truth was, there were so many wonderful things I could set my sights on right here, right now. The entire church was adorned in Christmas lights in a white–and–blue color palette. Humongous ornaments of ribbons and snow balls adorned the marble walls and columns. Warm yellow lighting illuminated the entire vicinity to give off a very intimate ambiance. The choir we’d hired sang with such expertise that just listening could ignite a variety of emotions from within.
Most importantly was the man right beside me, and our family and friends watching and supporting us in this momentous occasion.
The past six months had been a roller coaster of ups and downs. It took a while for our families to finally accept we were getting married. Over the course of those months, they gradually started to see that our love for one another was unbreakable and authentic. With my social network in the city, I helped Jake drive his business forward, and from his business’ earnings, he supported me as I started college. I’d been living with him, and he’d been covering our living expenses. I’d also taken a part-time job as a receptionist in the local hospital. I wanted to prove to myself and to my family that I could succeed with the path I carved out on my own. Looking back at what I’d experienced the past months, I would do everything all over again. My father admired my strength; my half-sisters told me they felt a little jealous of how I was able to stand up to our dad.
And today, here at Jake’s and my wedding, we had our friends and family bearing witness to our love and commitment to one another.
“You’re the best gift I’ve been given…more than what I could ever hope for and deserve…I love you so, so much, Becca Huntington. I can’t wait to call you my wife.”
“I love you, Jake…more than life itself…you have no idea. I can’t wait to spend the rest of my life with you.”
With a single nod, the priest smiled at the simplicity of our words and finally said, “Becca and Jake, you have expressed your love and commitment to one another with the vows you’ve just made. You’re no longer simply girlfriend and boyfriend, no longer just partners and best friends. Now, you have become husband and wife.” And with a larger smile, he continued, “Jake, you may now kiss your bride.”
Looking back at the past six months in my head, I smiled at thought of looking forward to forever with the man right in front of me, my husband.
The End.
Books by Jessa James
Bad Boy Billionaire Series
Lip Service
Rock Me
Lumber Jacked
Baby Daddy
The Virgin Pact Series
The Teacher and the Virgin
His Virgin Nanny
His Dirty Virgin
Bad Boys with Big Sticks Series
Fake Fiancé
About the Author
Jessa James grew up on the East Coast but always suffered a severe case of wanderlust. She’s lived in six states, had a variety of jobs and always comes back to her first true love – writing. Jessa works full time as a writer, eats too much dark chocolate, has an iced-coffee and Cheetos addiction, and can’t get enough of sexy alpha males who know exactly what they want – and aren’t afraid to say it. Dominant, alpha-male insta-luv is her favorite to read (and write).
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