Love Heals All (Once Broken Book 2)

by Alison Mello

  Remy looks at Kenzie, shocked. “What do you mean out of these clothes?”

  “We were smart enough to plan a change.” She wiggles her brows at him. “I warned you.”

  He laughs. “Okay, let’s see what you have in mind.” We all hurry up from the table and run into the house. Once we close my bedroom door, we all start stripping out of our dresses and into our shorts, olive green sneakers, and camouflage shirts. “Kenzie, catch.” I toss her the shirt that says ‘Army Bride’ on it with dog tags. All of ours say ‘The Bride’s Crew’ with dog tags on them. We can’t help but giggle at our appearance. We all still have formal makeup on with our hair all done up, but we’re now wearing kick ass t-shirts with sneakers. Kenzie is still in her boots and she has her garters on for Remy to toss shortly. After a quick selfie, we make our way back out to the party. When we do, we find the guys in total shock. Even Kayla, who is very prim and proper, is wearing shredded jean shorts and sneakers. Dawson’s jaw drops when he sees her, and I can’t help but wonder if baby number three will be conceived tonight.

  Everyone starts clapping when they notice us on the back porch. The photographer runs over and snaps some more pictures, asking the Honor Guard to jump in for a few. It’s going to make for some great memories. The guys burst into laughter. “You ladies look great! I’m glad we’ll match.” Remy turns to his guys and says, “Shall we?” They all nod their agreement and head inside as well. This wedding is getting interesting. It went from formal to casual really quick. I’m glad my mom told everyone to dress comfortable for a summer backyard wedding because I would feel bad that we were so dressed down.

  Mom and Aunt Kenderly come out a few minutes later, getting their first glimpse of us. “You ladies look awesome.”

  “Hey, Kayla, did you see the look on Dawson’s face when he saw you?”

  “Yeah, I thought he was going to fall over. He hasn’t seen me dressed like this in years. I have to admit it feels good to let my hair down, so to speak.”

  Suddenly the music changes and the guys come walking out wearing khakis and white t-shirts that say ‘Groom’ and ‘Groom’s Crew’ in camouflage. We all burst into laughter because we really do match and we didn’t even try.

  “I think it’s time for some fun!” I shout. Vaughn takes my hand and leads me to the dance floor. We start dancing, and next thing we know people are joining us. We’re having a great time, Kayla and Dawson are dancing next to us, and even Lilly and Keaton are dancing. They were once a couple, and although I don’t see them getting back together, it’s nice to see them getting along. One Dance by Drake starts and the younger crowd erupts into cheers. Vaughn is behind me holding my hips as we sway to the beat. I’m so thankful my man can dance.

  It’s starting to get dark, but there are lights kicking on around the yard lighting up the dance floor. He leans down and whispers in my ear, “You look so sexy like this.” I turn to face him, but before I can say anything, he plants a soft, sweet kiss on my lips.

  “I love you,” I remind him. I don’t want him to ever doubt my feelings for him.

  He smiles. “I love you too.” The song comes to an end and the DJ switches it up to something a little slower. If he only knew how perfect the song he chose was. Charlie Puth’s One Call Away, starts to play, and I start singing to my man, changing superman to superwoman, and he bursts into laughter, but I don’t stop because every word of this song is fitting and oh so true. Once I’ve sung the entire song to him, he wraps me in a hug and doesn’t let me go until the DJ announces that it’s time to toss the garter and bouquet. I look up at him with a grin. “You’re tall, make sure you catch that garter.”

  “It’s mine.” He wiggles his brows.

  Kenzie sits while Remy kneels before her and slips the garter off her leg. As soon as he does, he stands, pulling Kenzie up off the chair. He holds her hand and has the garter in the other. “Gentlemen, are you ready?” the DJ shouts. When the men all begin clapping their hands, he begins to count. “One, two, three.” Remy throws it, and sure enough, Vaughn jumps up and catches it.

  He walks over with it in his hand. “It’s all you, darlin’.” He kisses me and I run out onto the dance floor. Lilly stands next to me and there are a bunch of girls behind me.

  Kenzie waves a bouquet similar to hers but smaller. “Ladies, are you ready? There’s a fine military man up for grabs tonight.” The hell he is, I think. Kenzie turns around with a smile on her face and again the DJ counts to three and she tosses it. I jump, and thanks to my sneakers, I’m quick enough to snatch the bouquet just as another girl is about to.

  I look at her with a smile. “Sorry, but he’s mine.” I walk over with the bouquet in hand and take a seat in the chair Kenzie was originally sitting in. Vaughn is about to slip the garter on my leg when we hear someone clear their throat. We look up and over his shoulder to see my father standing there with his arms crossed. I giggle and Vaughn drops his head with laughter. He stands up, hugs my father, and whispers something in his ear. My father laughs and they shake hands. Vaughn goes back down on one knee and slips the garter into place on my leg. He takes my hand, pulling me from the chair. I take a quick curtsy and we walk off the dance floor. I note it’s almost time for the fireworks, and I know he’s been watching the time as well.

  When we’re back at the table, he pulls me close. “Listen, I’m going to get going, but I don’t want to pull you away from the fun. When you’re ready, why don’t you head over?”

  “I’m ready. Let’s just say bye to my brother and Kenzie. I’ll run in and gather a quick bag and we’ll get out of here.”

  “Are you sure?”

  “I’m positive.” I squeeze his hand and we walk off to find my brother. Once we’ve said goodbye, I head toward the house.

  On the way, I find my mother. “Hey Mama. Vaughn and I are going to leave, but I’ll be home sometime tomorrow.”

  “Okay, dear. You two have a nice night.” I kiss my mom on the cheek and Vaughn does the same. I have to hurry if we’re going to be out of here before the fireworks start.

  “I’m going to tell the valet to pull my car up.” He kisses me and runs out of my room, but I’m not far behind him. I’m actually panicking, hoping it doesn’t take them long to bring his car over so we can get out of here. We only have about ten minutes before they start. When I get down to the front lawn, I can see he’s nervous. He’s pacing, waiting for the car. “It’s okay. I’ll drive if you need me to.” He shakes his head no, but doesn’t say anything. “Take a few deep breaths, the car will be here any second now.”

  “I cut it closer than I wanted to.” He tries to breathe deeply. The car finally shows up and the valet jumps out. Vaughn hands the guy a tip and we both hurry into the car. We start pulling away, and when we get up the street from my parents’ house, the first round of fireworks burst into the air, causing Vaughn to flinch.

  “Are you okay?”

  “Yeah, sorry. I’m okay.” I can see he’s totally focused and I don’t want to break his concentration, so I sit quietly. About halfway there, I see him start to visibly relax.

  Chapter 16

  Vaughn

  I’m exhausted after the rough night I’ve had. I was afraid to sleep, I didn’t want to have a nightmare and wake Brooke. Brody typically wakes me but I couldn’t take any chances. Now she’s lying here beside me looking so beautiful. I want to wake her, but when I turn, Brody comes to check on me. I whisper, “Come on, boy.” He follows me out of the room. It’s still early, but he’s used to going out at this time and I hate to break his routine. I grab his leash and take him to the yard, hoping after he does his business, I can get some alone time with Brooke. When he’s done and we get back inside, I tell him to lay down. He listens, and like a good boy he gets cozy out here. I go back to my room, strip my clothes, and gently slip back into bed.

  Brooke has a small smile on her face, it makes me wonder what exactly she’s dreaming about. I slip my hand into her sleep shorts to find she’s not wear
ing any panties, and her pussy is wet. I stifle a groan. I smear her juices all over her clit as I lean in and lick up the vein in her neck to that sensitive spot just below her ear. Her hips start to move. I’m trying to figure out if she’s still dreaming or if she’s awake. I’m pretty sure she’s still sleeping when I gently lift her ass off the bed to slip her shorts down. I fear I’ll wake her, but I don’t care, I’m not stopping now. I’m starving for her. Crawling under the covers, I plant myself between her legs, lapping up her juices. If she wasn’t awake before, she is now. Using my fingers, I spread her beautiful pink lips wide and devour her clit. She whimpers when I scrape my teeth over her throbbing nub. “Damn, Vaughn,” she pants.

  “Good morning, love. Are you ready to come?”

  I can tell from her moan that she’s biting her lip when I dive back in. Her hips roll but I hold her still. I’ve missed her and I know she wants to come, but I want to savor this. I press two fingers inside of her, gently curling them to ensure I hit that special spot. “Fuck, Vaughn. I’m going to come.” She bucks her hips as my fingers pound her tight, wet pussy. “Yes,” she screams and her legs tighten around my body. She continues to shake while I suck on her clit, setting her up for yet another orgasm. Pulling my fingers from her pussy, I flip her over and pull her ass into the air. I spread her beautiful cheeks and continue eating her like she’s my final meal. I know she loves the feeling of my fingers poking at her ass because she pressing back into me, wanting more. I lick from her clit to her ass, spreading her juices and lubing her up as my pinky continues poking at her. “Fuck, yes, Vaughn,” she screams again, sucking in a breath. My thumb strums her clit as my tongue sinks into her and it’s exactly what she needs to fall over. I grip her hips to stop her from collapsing as I suck up every last drop of her release.

  “My lord, woman, you taste fucking amazing.” She giggles and the sound is music to my ears. She rolls onto her back as I climb up the bed to get a condom from the nightstand. She takes it from me, pulls my boxers down, and rolls the condom over my extremely hard cock. She lines me up with her entrance and I gently thrust my hips forward until I’m balls deep inside of her. I gently begin rolling my hips, gradually picking up the pace, but she wants more. She plants her feet on the bed, thrusting her hips forward to meet me. The rhythm we’ve created is amazing. “Brooke, I’m sorry, darlin’, but I’m not going to last.”

  “Oh God, that feels so good.”

  “Come on, Brooke, squeeze my cock.” I slam into her a few more times and she does as I ask. Her pussy tightens around me, squeezing me and sending me over the edge as we both ride out our orgasms together. I lay on top of her with my cock still buried inside her pussy while we both try to calm our breathing. I rub my nose on hers. “How did you sleep?”

  “Good, but shouldn’t I be asking you that?” Gripping the condom, I slip out of her and walk to the bathroom to dispose of it, totally ignoring her question. When I get back she’s lying there waiting for my answer.

  “What?” I question.

  “You completely ignored me. I thought we agreed you were going to let me help you. Don’t shut me out the first question I ask.” She sits up in my bed, her perky little nipples poking through her sleep shirt.

  I sit on the edge of the bed, resting my head in my hands. “Give me a break, Brooke. I’m not used to this.” I exhale a deep breath. “I didn’t sleep well. I was afraid I would have a nightmare and wake you.”

  I feel the bed dip behind me as she sits and presses her cheek to my back. “Thank you.” She kisses my spine and crawls back into the bed. “Come here.” I turn to see her patting my side of the bed. I climb back in, wanting nothing more than to please her. We’ve had such a nice morning so far. “Let’s catch up. I feel like it’s been a while since we really talked about everyday life.”

  I rest my head on her chest. “Okay, what have you been up to?”

  “Did you know I went to look at a house for rent?”

  “I didn’t. Tell me about it.” I feel my eyes getting heavy, but I really want to hear about her house.

  She’s rubbing her hands through my hair. “Well, it wasn’t my dream house. Actually nowhere near close to my dream house. The location was perfect, and the size wasn’t bad, but it’s not what I want. I told the landlord I would get back to him by tomorrow.”

  “What did it look like?” I question, but my voice is almost a mumble. She’s making me tired playing with my hair.

  “It was two bedrooms, two baths on one floor. The living room and kitchen were very open to one another, which I liked, but everything was very outdated. Keaton and Remy went with me to look at it. Keaton said there was nothing major to stress over, but all three of us agreed since I’m not on a deadline to move out, I would keep looking.” My eyes are closed and my breathing is picking up when I tell her I would love to help her look. “After you rest.” She kisses me on the head and continues stroking my hair until I’m asleep.

  I wake to the smell of bacon cooking and it smells damn good. I must have fallen asleep on Brooke while she was telling me about the house. I look over to see it’s now almost ten. Holy shit, I’ve been sleeping for a good five hours. I climb out of bed, step into some lounge pants, and head to the kitchen where Brooke gives Brody some peanut butter. “I’m sorry, Brooke.”

  “Don’t be. It was my plan. I was hoping if you fell asleep holding me, you would stay asleep for a bit and get some rest. Brunch is almost done. Why don’t you grab yourself some coffee?”

  I pet Brody on the head. “Why does he get peanut butter?” I nod my head toward the dog with a smile on my face.

  “Because while you were sleeping, we did some work in the yard, and he was such a good boy.” Her voice changes to a baby voice for the second half of her sentence.

  I sip my coffee. “He is a good boy. I’m so lucky to have him. He wakes me from most nightmares before I even realize I’m having them.”

  “Are you hungry?” She changes the subject.

  I lean in close to her ear. “Why yes, I am.” I kiss the spot just below her ear, sending a shiver through her body.

  She smacks me playfully. “I mean for food.”

  “Yeah, well, there’s that too,” I joke. She pulls bacon from the oven and uncovers two pans, one has scrambled egg whites and the other has potatoes in it. “Wow, you went all out, thank you.”

  “You’re welcome.” She grabs the two plates she’s pulled from the cabinets and begins loading one up with food. She hands me the plate and starts making hers. I put the plate on the table and fill our coffee cups, that way we can sit and eat together. I take my seat and wait for her to finish taking the bacon off the pan. She turns to me. “What are you doing? Eat.”

  “I’m not eating until you sit down. My mom taught me better than that.”

  She grins and takes her seat. “Fine, I’ll clean up more after we eat. Your mama sounds sweet. I wish she lived closer. Maybe we can get her to come down here for a visit.”

  “I’ll talk to her and see what I can work out.” I dig into my breakfast as does she. “Now, what should we do today?”

  “Well, I thought we could do one thing to help each of us.”

  My brows furrow. “How do you mean?”

  “Well, I need to look for a place. I thought maybe we could spend a little time looking for places online, and then after we do that, we can do some research on programs to help you with your PTSD.”

  Shit. She’s really going to push me through this, and I’m not sure if I should be happy or frustrated. It’s hard to even discuss it, but maybe we can find something without me having to actually share with her what I went through. “Okay,” I squeeze out in between bites of food. I feel bad because I can’t even manage to look at her when I say it.

  “Hey. Look at me, Vaughn.” She can read me like a damn open book. “I’m just asking that we look, not saying you have to necessarily sign up for anything.” I nod my head finishing my breakfast. When she’s done she clears the table
and I begin putting the leftover food in containers. She’s a clean cook, we’re done cleaning up in a matter of minutes. She sits back down with a fresh cup of coffee. “Do you have a laptop?” I could easily lie and tell her no, but that would be wrong on so many levels, so I go into the other room to grab the laptop I hardly ever use and I boot it up. She slides her seat closer to mine, and as soon as the computer is up and running, she starts searching for houses to rent. There are two new ones listed and she’s excited about both of them. She requests a view on them, pointing out that they are only about fifteen minutes from my house.

  “You know what that means?” A grin spreads across my face.

  “What’s that?”

  “You’re close enough that Brody and I can come spend the night at your house and I’ll still be close enough for work.”

  She giggles. “That was the plan, love.” I love how good it makes me feel to think she was purposely looking for something close to me.

  Next she opens Google, and after typing in a few searches she finds some self-help tools that actually could help me. There’s even an app I can download on my phone to keep with me as a coaching tool. It covers everything from sleep, to anxiety, and even my flashbacks. I jump up to grab my phone and I quickly download the app. While I’m looking through it, she continues doing her research on the computer. “Hey, have you tried doing stuff like this with your guys?” She points out a bowl and dine that’s happening on the base. “Or maybe doing some other sports with them?”

  I shrug my shoulders. “Not really, never thought to.”

  “From what I’ve read, it could be good for you. There’s a program that actually organizes sports for veterans with PTSD, but it’s like four hours away. I’m thinking maybe if you got into something like that here, it may serve the purpose without it being directly linked.”