Temporary Groom: Left At The Altar

by J. S. Scott

  He groaned. “It sucks to have the woman I love not see me as her stud.”

  “I don’t need a stud,” I argued. “I just need to see you healthy.”

  “We could play some naughty nurse thing.”

  I laughed at the hopeful look on his face. Even when he was this sick, Zeke was still trying to be upbeat.

  “Maybe I’ll find a costume when you’re recovered,” I answered happily.

  I started to rise so I could call Zeke’s assistant, but he grabbed my hand. “Lia,” he said, his voice sounding like his throat had been scraped with sandpaper. “I really do love you. I didn’t mean to blurt it out like that, but you have to already know how I feel.”

  His expression was so earnest that I felt like a vise was tightening around my heart. God, he was beautiful, even when he was sick as a dog. I leaned forward and kissed him on his heated forehead. “I really do love you, too. Now get some rest while I get some other groceries. I was going to make chicken parmesan, but that’s not going to work right now.”

  I had a million questions I wanted to ask him, but I was more concerned about his health.

  “If you get sick, I’m going to be really pissed off,” he muttered as his eyes closed.

  I smiled as I got to my feet, straightened up the bed, and shot him one last worried look as I left the bedroom.

  Zeke had always been there for me. Now it was my turn. And I planned to do everything I could to make sure he got back on his feet again.

  CHAPTER 14

  Lia

  Zeke was miserable through the first couple of days of his illness, and he was a terrible patient.

  I’d had to stomp my foot down pretty hard to keep him in bed after the initial severity of his infection started to subside.

  “I can’t just lie here anymore, Lia. It’s driving me crazy,” he said on the fifth day. “At least let me go get a shower. You’ve been waiting on me for days now.”

  He was recovering, but judging by his occasionally unsteady gait when he was moving to the bathroom, I could tell he was still weak.

  I put my hands on my hips. There was probably no reason he couldn’t get up. His fever was gone, and I knew he was getting restless and frustrated. “I’m going in with you,” I insisted.

  He grinned up at me. “Do you really think I’m going to object?”

  “No funny stuff, stud,” I said adamantly. “I just want to make sure you aren’t going to fall down while you’re in there.”

  “I feel fine, sweetheart,” he answered as he threw the covers back. “I have since yesterday.”

  I shooed him into the bathroom, and when he started to brush his teeth, I dashed back to strip the bed and put on clean sheets.

  I hurried back into the bathroom and turned on the water of the rain shower, and then stripped off my clothes as I anticipated the warm water on my skin.

  Exhaustion was taking over my body since I’d had little sleep. Not because Zeke had been demanding, but due to the fact that I’d been worried about him anyway.

  Zeke had quickly become my world, and seeing him down and out had shaken me up enough to realize that I was going to have to spill everything to him. I owed him that. I had to tell him that I was pretty sure I’d always loved him, and ask him why he hadn’t taken me up on my offer to be more than friends years ago.

  But not right now.

  I stepped into the water that fell like a gentle rain, and sighed as I watched him finish shaving.

  He was the hottest man I’d ever seen, even if he was recovering from an illness. Dressed only in another pair of pajama bottoms that clung to his hips like a lover, I’d never seen a more gorgeous sight than Zeke.

  I reached for the shampoo and body wash, making quick work of getting clean as Zeke entered the large space with me.

  I’d dashed into the shower a couple of times, but it had been so quick that I hadn’t really relaxed.

  “You look tired,” Zeke said unhappily as he got his entire body wet.

  “I’m fine,” I assured him. “It feels good to be able to relax. I was worried about you.”

  Done cleaning myself up, I opened my eyes and reached for the soap that Zeke used.

  “I know when I have it good. I’m not planning on dying anytime soon,” he answered gruffly.

  My heart sped up as I filled my hands with his soap.

  Was that what I’d been afraid of all along? Was I manifesting the fear that Zeke would somehow be taken away from me?

  That terror was irrational, and I knew it. He was young and healthy. But my parents hadn’t been very old, and they’d been gone so suddenly that it was scary.

  My grandmother had been older, but not really old enough to have left me so suddenly. Unfortunately, cancer was a greedy beast. And it had swept my grandma away in a matter of months.

  “I don’t want to lose you,” I told Zeke bluntly as I started to soap up his body. “I’m not sure I’d survive if I did.”

  “I know you’ve lost everybody you ever loved,” he said in a patient baritone. “But you’re not getting rid of me that easily, Lia. I can’t stand to think about anything happening to you, either. But life is kind of a crapshoot. And I’m a gambling kind of guy. I’d rather be with you and deal with whatever happens than to be without you my entire life.”

  I looked up at him steadily as I said, “Me, too.”

  Love was always a risk, but Zeke was worth taking a chance. I’d rather love him for as long as we both had, with no regrets.

  He closed his eyes and leaned back against the tiled shower wall with a groan. “You’re going to kill me now if you don’t stop.”

  I’d finished his back, and was running my hands freely over his muscular chest and gloriously toned abs.

  One glance lower, and I knew why he was complaining.

  His cock was rock hard, and doing a full salute.

  I didn’t hesitate to move my hand down to wrap it around the enormous, steely shaft. “I can take care of this,” I told him in a sultry voice that I couldn’t control. “Relax.”

  “Not happening if you’re touching me, baby,” he rasped loudly.

  I stroked his massive cock, my anticipation building as I watched his face.

  He looked hungry.

  He looked frustrated.

  And he looked like he was mine to pleasure.

  Everything with him always happened so fast that I’d never gotten the chance to just touch him, taste him, and I relished the opportunity.

  “I love you,” I said as I dropped to my knees.

  “Fuck! I love you, too, sweetheart,” he said in a desperate tone.

  His words rushed through my body like adrenaline, but there was also a gentle peace that was right there beside the excitement.

  I rinsed the soap from the hard shaft before I took him into my mouth.

  I started off lazily, my mouth and tongue savoring him before I finally started to apply some suction.

  His body jerked as my movements got rougher and rougher, my hands grasping his tight ass to move at a steady pace.

  A feral sound left his mouth as he tangled his hand in my hair and guided me. “Touch yourself, Lia. I’m not going to last long.”

  I looked up and caught the carnal expression on his face. It spoke of lust, longing, and so much crazy love that my sex spasmed violently.

  His eyes were pleading, so I took a hand from his tight butt cheek, and slid it boldly between my thighs.

  There was no hesitance from me. I wasn’t shy about giving us both what we wanted.

  My fingers slid through the wet heat, and I shuddered as I rubbed over my clit.

  I was primed and ready, my body as tight as a bow as I found a rhythm that felt good, and stayed with it while I continued to swallow Zeke’s cock.

  I felt his hand tighten in my hair, and when I looked up again, he was watching me, his gorgeous blue eyes molten and burning with an incendiary heat that consumed me.

  We connected without words, and Zeke didn
’t take his eyes away until his head fell back and an animalistic growl was wrenched from his mouth.

  The sexy sound sent shockwaves through my body, and I sped up my fingers, rubbing harder at the bundle of nerves as I felt my impending climax.

  I moaned around Zeke’s cock, and the vibrations set him off.

  “I’m done for, Lia,” he groaned. “Move back.”

  Was he crazy? I worked too hard to coax him to orgasm. I wasn’t going to give up the chance to taste it.

  I swallowed hungrily as Zeke exploded, reveling in his essence as it flowed powerfully down my throat before I finally let go and found my own release.

  “Zeke,” I said with a moan as pleasure flooded my body and my soul.

  I relished the hot water flowing over my body as I panted on the tile, one hand gently stroking Zeke’s cock and the other still between my legs.

  He pulled me to my feet and wrapped his powerful arms around me as he said huskily, “Do you know how damn crazy you make me feel?”

  “As crazy as you make me?” I asked in a mumbling voice.

  I still hadn’t completely recovered, so I laid my head on his shoulder.

  “Crazier,” he rumbled as his hands stroked over my soaked body, as though he was afraid I’d suddenly disappear. “Let’s get out of here.”

  I didn’t protest as he turned off the water and we stepped out. He toweled us both off before we collapsed together on the bed.

  He pulled the covers up, and I cuddled up to his side when he protectively wrapped his arm around me like a vise.

  “Are you okay?” I asked.

  “Never been better,” he teased. “Sleep, Lia. I’m not going anywhere.”

  I let out a sigh of contentment as my eyes drifted closed, and I did exactly what he told me.

  I slept a very long, dreamless sleep that left me feeling normal again by morning.

  CHAPTER 15

  Zeke

  The next morning, I sat in my home office, feeling pretty much normal. Maybe I still didn’t have the stamina I usually had—which isn’t an easy thing for a guy to admit—but I knew I’d get it back after a day or two out of bed.

  I’d been awake since dawn, and I’d finally left Lia fast asleep in our bed, hoping the dark circles under her eyes and the anxious look on her face would both disappear.

  Shit! I really hated the fact that she was so damn afraid of losing somebody she loved, but then, I couldn’t blame her, either. Pretty much every important person in her life had died before their time, and I’d probably be just as terrified as she was if all of my family was suddenly gone before I’d turned thirty.

  The only thing I could do was be there—and hopefully not get sick in the near future. Eventually, her fear would lessen. I knew that. She just needed some peace, and some time off from people dying on her.

  The phone rang, and I snatched it from the charger before it rang enough times to wake Lia up.

  A quick glance at the clock left me wondering who in the hell would be calling at nine a.m. “Conner,” I said, assuming it was somebody from work.

  “I’d like to speak to Lia Conner please,” the male voice asked in a businesslike tone.

  “This is her husband. She’s not available.” Okay, I was just a little bit edgy over the fact that any male was calling for my wife.

  “Marvin Becker from Becker and Associates. I’m calling regarding Esther Harper’s estate.”

  I relaxed. It was the attorney for Esther’s estate. “Zeke Conner. How can I help you? I guess you could say I’m Lia’s attorney.”

  I heard a bark of laughter coming through the handset. “I know you by reputation, Mr. Conner,” the gentleman said with humor in his tone. “But I’m pretty sure your wife doesn’t need a defense attorney. My business is pretty benign. Can you let her know that the estate is settled, and that I’m sending a check by courier? A package should arrive shortly with the monies owed and I think she needs to read the codicil and a personal letter that I was instructed to give her after everything was finalized.”

  “Esther left a codicil?” I balked a little at the thought.

  “It’s all in the package,” he answered cagily.

  “Is this going to upset my wife?” I said with a protective growl. “Because the last thing she needs is any more emotional turmoil.”

  “I don’t think it will,” he said hesitantly. “In fact, it might help. That’s about all I can say.”

  While I appreciated attorney-client privileged information, it still irritated the hell out of me that he wouldn’t say anything more.

  I hung up, and tried to figure out what Esther had changed.

  “Good morning.”

  I looked toward the sleepy, female voice, grinning as I saw her smiling from the entrance to the office.

  I stood up. “Coffee? I already made some.”

  She nodded and retreated toward the kitchen.

  Because I was hopeless at doing anything else, I followed her.

  Unfortunately, she was no longer nude, and had pulled on a pair of pajamas very similar to the ones she’d worn in Playa—a pair of stretchy shorts and a tank top.

  “Sit,” she demanded, pointing at the barstool at the kitchen counter. “I can get my own coffee.”

  “I’m feeling good, Lia. I’m going back to work on Monday.” It was Friday, so that gave me a few more days to work from home and make sure that I was no longer going to infect anybody else at the firm.

  She nodded. “I’m going back to the shop on Monday, too. But I plan on making sure you take it easy over the weekend.”

  Her eyes no longer looked haunted, but she had a tenacious look on her face that was almost scary.

  I grinned as I watched her stand on her toes to grab a mug that I could have easily reached, and then fill it with coffee.

  I knew her routine by heart, and I no longer cringed when she added a ton of creamer to her coffee, and several spoons of sugar.

  “Do you want some M&M’s with that?” I joked.

  She appeared to contemplate the possibility before she answered, “Maybe later.”

  “I’m pretty well stocked,” I informed her.

  I bought the candy in bulk, and I had several boxes in the cupboard. It had become my habit over the years. I never ran out of them.

  She leaned over the counter, her face so close to mine that I had to stop myself from putting my hand behind her head and yanking her closer so I could kiss her.

  “Do you know how incredibly sweet that is? The fact that you stock up on my favorite candy?” she asked quietly.

  “It’s not exactly a big deal,” I answered.

  “It’s a big deal to me,” she argued. “Sometimes it’s the little things that go unnoticed, but they really are important.”

  “Like you staying home from your store to take care of me?” I questioned.

  “You’d do it for me,” she pointed out.

  And hell, of course I would.

  I was saved from answering by the sound of the buzzer from the lobby.

  It was the courier, and I told the receptionist to let them come up.

  After signing for the delivery, I took the package into the kitchen.

  “Who was it?” Lia asked curiously from her chair at the table. She was finishing her coffee, the mug nearly empty already.

  I sat across from her. “Courier. It’s from the estate attorney.”

  “Open it,” she requested. “You know more about all that legal mumbo jumbo than I do.”

  I pulled out the paperwork, handed her the check, and then scanned the documents.

  “This is for you.” I gave her the sealed envelope that I already knew contained a personal letter from Esther.

  I quickly read the simple codicil. “Holy shit,” I cursed.

  “What?” Lia said anxiously. “Is something wrong?”

  “No. But I never knew that Esther was quite this crafty. Lia, she was always going to give you everything she had. She added a codicil that st
ates as much. For some reason, she didn’t want you to know until you had passed your twenty-eighth birthday.”

  She frowned. “Why? Why would she do that?”

  I nodded toward the envelope. “Read the letter. It will probably explain.”

  I was tense as she opened the missive and pulled out a single sheet of paper. I watched her face as she read.

  The kitchen was silent as her eyes scanned the page, and then a giant tear plopped on top of the paper she was holding. And then another.

  Finally, she dropped the letter and looked at me. “She knew, Zeke. She knew that you and I would end up together. This whole will was a charade to force us to figure out that we loved each other.”

  I whistled as I got up and moved around the table. “Pretty dangerous game she was playing. What if we hadn’t ended up together?”

  “She said she knew that we would, but she was afraid we’d never want to rock the boat on our friendship,” she said in a tearful voice.

  I lifted her up, and then sat back down with Lia’s warmth cradled against me.

  “She might be right,” I confessed. “I never wanted to lose you, but I should have told you a long time ago that my feelings had changed. But then Stuart came along, and you weren’t available anymore. I stayed away as much as I could. But I had to know that you were going to be okay.”

  “I almost wasn’t,” she murmured against my neck.

  “Your marriage was never going to happen,” I said harshly.

  “Why?”

  “Because I finally realized what an ass I was, and I was coming to find you when I found you in the hallway after you’d talked to Stuart’s brother. I was going to do every single thing I could to talk you into canceling the wedding.”

  CHAPTER 16

  Lia

  It took me a moment to really understand what Zeke was saying. “So you were looking for me so we could talk?”

  He nodded. “I couldn’t let you marry him, Lia. Not if I could possibly stop it. And I wasn’t averse to bodily carrying you out of the chapel if I had to. It wasn’t all about me, even though I knew at the chapel that I was in love with you. I wanted to keep you from making a mistake that might hurt you for a very long time.”