The Fighter

by E. L. Todd

  Besides, this was my second wedding. It didn’t matter what anyone else thought.

  Colton came into the bedroom and looked me up and down. “Sometimes I wonder if I’m still straight…”

  “Oh, shut up.” I walked past him, practicing in my heels.

  “I’m serious. You look great.”

  “You really do,” Stella said. “The man is gonna eat his heart out.”

  “Then eat you out later,” Tatum added.

  “Wow…is this my wedding day or a bachelorette party?” I said with a laugh.

  “Maybe both?” Colton was in slacks and a collared shirt with a tie, looking dressed up but not overly formal.

  “What’s Finn wearing?” He and I had never talked about it.

  Colton shrugged. “You’ll have to wait and see.”

  “If he could, he would be naked,” I said. “That’s the kind of man he is.”

  “And I don’t think anyone would mind if he showed up naked…” Stella smiled at Tatum.

  I would have to live with women checking out my husband all the time, so I might as well get used to it.

  Husband.

  It was the first time I’d called him that…and I really liked it.

  Colton looked at his watch. “We should get going. Are you ready?”

  I didn’t need to give it a second thought. I was going to marry the love of my life, the man who would move mountains to make me happy. We would be family in just a few hours… We would be soul mates.

  29

  Finn

  I waited at the courthouse with my parents.

  The courthouse wasn’t the most exciting place in the world, but it was still the most exciting day of my life. Any moment now, my future bride would walk up the stairs and enter the building, looking gorgeous in whatever she decided to wear. If she showed up in a paper bag, I would still marry her because she would rock it.

  That was how hot my baby was.

  “You look so handsome, sweetheart.” Mom kept smoothing out my jacket and keeping every little wrinkle out of my clothing. She’d even pinned a flower to the front of my suit to make it official.

  Since she was so excited about today, I let her do whatever she wanted. “Thanks, Mom.”

  Dad clapped me on the shoulder. “You got yourself a good one. Don’t fuck it up again.”

  “Trust me, I won’t.” I’d lived a terrible existence without her, so I wouldn’t make the same mistake twice. The second I returned to Seattle, I was committed to her. I was her husband even though she wouldn’t take me.

  Soldier sat beside me and whined when he wanted attention.

  “She’ll be here soon.” I patted him on the head. He had a black collar around his neck and a matching flower pinned to it.

  “I was always afraid you would end up with someone who wasn’t good enough for you,” Mom said. “But she’s really lovely. Honest, classy, and she loves you so much…”

  “I know, Mom.” I would have loved her the same even if my parents didn’t like her, but it meant a lot to me that they did, that she would be part of our family forever.

  Finally, Colton opened the door and escorted her inside, his arm extended so she could hold on to it. He got her in the door first, and the girls followed behind.

  It was a special moment because she didn’t notice me right away. Her eyes were on the ground because she was getting used to her heels with the change of foundation. She wore a short dress that flared out around her waist—and her tits looked amazing. A sea of hair fell around her shoulders, the curls loose and easy to fist. The second I looked at her, I pictured myself between her legs, consummating our marriage before I could even get that dress off her. We would make love by the roaring fire as I made my wife come over and over again, starting off our lives in the best way possible.

  Sex was the first thing that popped into my head anytime I looked at Pepper.

  Come on, how could I not?

  But as she came closer to me, I thought of the other reasons why I was marrying her. But only one reason actually mattered.

  I loved her.

  It was real. It was true. My heart beat for hers in a way I couldn’t explain. I wanted to spend my life by her side every single day, protecting her, loving her, and giving her a reason to stay with me.

  My time overseas and in the rural places in foreign countries taught me how to be alone, how to thrive in solitude. I became so good at it that I preferred it over companionship. Women were good for one thing—sex. When I first met Pepper, it wasn’t like that. The more I got to know her, the more I wanted from her. I didn’t just want to fuck her—I actually wanted to kiss her.

  I wanted to be with her.

  Now the idea of returning to that solitude terrified me.

  Because it would mean she wasn’t there.

  I couldn’t be without her ever again. I learned how much better my life was with her. I realized my bachelor days were over the second I stepped inside that apartment that one afternoon.

  Even then, I knew she was the one.

  Even when I left, I knew she was the one.

  And now, I knew it now even more.

  When she looked up, her eyes focused on my face, taking in my appearance like she thought I was the hottest man she’d ever seen. She eyed my shoulders in my suit, noticed the way I’d done my hair just for her, and when her gaze settled on my face, there was a special twinkle in her eyes.

  I hoped she looked at me like that every day for the rest of our lives.

  When she reached me, Colton let her go.

  “You look… Jesus Christ.”

  Everyone laughed at my crass remark, even my parents.

  I meant the words when I said them, but they didn’t complement all the thoughts I’d just been thinking. It didn’t match all the true feelings I harbored for her, the unstoppable force that existed inside my chest. Maybe she fell in love with me because of my qualities.

  But I fell in love with her because she was my soul mate. “You still want to marry me?” Maybe that was a stupid idea, to let her think she had the option. If she changed her mind, I would just make her change it back.

  “Yes.” She slid her hand into mine and looked up into my face. “I do.”

  Courthouse weddings were quick. They ran through the lines, told us what to say, and then they moved on to the next couple.

  But when I locked my eyes on to hers and listened to her say I do, time seemed to stand still. It seemed like it was just the two of us, two people so madly in love that no one else existed. She was so beautiful, so happy, that I didn’t even focus on what the guy marrying us was saying.

  “Finn,” he repeated. “Do you take this woman to be your lawfully wedded wife?”

  I kept my eyes on her. “Sorry…all I can think about is kissing you.”

  My parents and everyone else laughed.

  She smiled, tears in her eyes. “You can kiss me after you marry me.”

  “Then I do.”

  “By the powers vested in me, I now pronounce you husband and wife. Kiss your girl.”

  I grinned as I pulled her close, my hands shaking because she was finally mine. All of the torment was officially over because she was my wife—my other half. She promised to love me for the rest of our lives, to stand by my side through thick and thin.

  How did I get so lucky?

  I bent my neck down and kissed her, pulling her tight into my chest so I could remember this moment as long as I lived. Her mouth crushed against mine, and I felt so good inside, like all my suffering had disappeared.

  It was all a bad dream.

  Everyone clapped as they witnessed our first kiss as husband and wife.

  Pepper was officially my wife.

  Mrs. Finn Burke.

  When I ended the kiss, I scooped her up into my arms and held her against my chest. “Bye.” I walked through our friends and family and carried her away, stealing my bride so we could run off to the cabin and start our new lives together.


  They all laughed and cheered as I took her away, to make love to my wife for the first time. Soldier barked then caught up with us, knowing he was coming along for the ride too.

  With her arms wrapped around my neck, she looked happier than I’d ever seen her, the love shining in her eyes and the emotion in the slight trembling of her lips. “We’re family now…all three of us.”

  “Yes…and we’ll always be family.”

  It started to rain after we arrived.

  I got a fire going in the large hearth to keep the place warm. The heater hadn’t been on in so long that it was chilly.

  Pepper sat on the edge of the bed, still in her little white dress.

  I stripped off my tie and then my jacket, dropping everything onto the floor because I had no intention of ever wearing it again.

  She watched the pile of clothes grow bigger. “I’ve never seen you wear a suit before.”

  “And you won’t see me wear one again until our kids get married.”

  Her eyes glowed as she watched me strip down to my bare skin. She stared at my hard cock when it was visible, licking her lips because she knew she owned my junk forever.

  Watching her want me only made this night more incredible.

  I kneeled in front of her, naked and on my knees. My fingers slipped off her white heels, and then I laid her back as I reached under her dress and I pulled down the sexy white thong. I took my time as I peeled it away, as I pulled it down her sexy legs until she was bare. I’d just had her the night before, but when she looked so perfect like this, with the glow of the fire bringing a rosiness to her cheeks, it felt like the first time.

  I lifted her up the bed then raised her dress to her waist.

  “You don’t want me to take it off?”

  My thighs separated hers as I positioned myself between her legs, my cock so anxious to be inside her that it could find her entrance all on his own. “No.” I fantasized about the way I wanted to take her the moment I looked at her in that dress. I wanted to enjoy the sight of her in that dress a little longer—and really take my time getting it off.

  I held myself on top of her and slowly sank inside, slowly slid through the moisture that had been building on the hour ride here. My dick landed like a plane on a runway, and I sank into her so perfectly, making her gasp as she felt me stretch her apart.

  She widened her legs and gave me ample room to take her, to make her my wife all night long. “Finn…” Her hands moved up my chest, and her mouth gaped open as she moaned, so turned on that she was already writhing for me.

  “Mrs. Finn Burke.” I thrust inside her, seeing the light of the flames highlight her face as I made love to her in the middle of nowhere, the sound of the fire accompanying the light rain falling outside. It was a beautiful setting to fall deeper in love, to strengthen our relationship until it was unbreakable.

  She rocked with me, gasping and scratching.

  “You look so fucking beautiful.” It was an image I could beat off to for the rest of my life. The way her eyes filled with emotion, the way her lips parted so she could breathe. Her perfect tits shook with my thrusts. The best part of all was that diamond ring on her finger, the ring she’d agreed to wear for the rest of her life.

  Because she wanted me for the rest of her life.

  I pressed my forehead to hers as I kept moving, kept making love to my wife for the first time. “Thank you for marrying me.” I hated to think of what would have happened if I hadn’t gotten her back. I would have ended up in the bar alone every night, drinking away all my regrets while someone else got to be exactly where I was now.

  She cupped my face and breathed with me. “Thank you for not giving up on me.”

  “I’ll never give up on my baby…not ever.”

  Epilogue

  Finn

  We’d been married five years.

  Five beautiful fucking years.

  They went by so fast.

  First, it was just the two of us and Soldier.

  Then Neil arrived.

  With the same dark hair and blue eyes I possessed, he was a miniature version of me. But he had Pepper’s fierce attitude, so he was the perfect little boy I wanted. He was sweet to his mother and disciplined when it came to me.

  I loved having a little boy. But I knew he wouldn’t be little forever…and I wanted him to be a man I was proud of.

  I took my eyes off him for one second, and he knocked his apple juice onto the floor and spilled his milk and cereal everywhere. In just an instant, he made a huge mess—after I’d just cleaned everything.

  I could lose my temper and scream.

  But I didn’t want to be like that.

  With apology on his face, he looked up at me, embarrassment in his eyes. “Sorry, Daddy…”

  Sometimes it was impossible to get mad at something so precious. He could do anything, and I would still love him so damn much. He had Pepper’s innocence and emotional intelligence. Yelling at him was like yelling at her, which was impossible to do. “It’s okay, champ. Accidents happen sometimes. But let me show you how to clean it up.” I grabbed a few paper towels and then a soapy dishrag, and together, we cleaned up the little explosion he’d made in the kitchen. “Everyone has accidents sometimes, but we’ve got to be aware of what we’re doing and try to prevent them. How did this happen?”

  “I knocked over my juice…” He pushed the soaked paper towel across the floor.

  “Alright. Be aware of your juice next time.”

  We threw away everything, and in minutes, the kitchen was clean again.

  I taught him a lesson without yelling at him—seemed effective to me.

  Pepper came down the stairs a moment later, her hand on her large stomach. “Why do I smell apple juice?”

  Neil bowed his head. “Because I spilled…”

  “And he also cleaned it up.” I raised my hand and gave him a high five.

  Pepper walked toward me, having that sexy pregnant glow. I loved it when she was pregnant. Sex was somehow better, knowing I was the reason she was so uncomfortable that she had to waddle everywhere. She looked down at our son and smiled. “Just pay attention, alright?”

  “Okay, Mommy…” He moved to her leg and hugged her.

  She chuckled as she ran her fingers through his hair dark hair. “So, you think your parents will watch him tonight so we can celebrate our anniversary? I can’t drink and I’m tired all the time, but we should do something.”

  “Well, I had a better idea.”

  Soldier came into the kitchen and started sniffing, probably smelling the apple juice that had been spilled moments ago.

  “Yeah?” Pepper asked. “Your mom will watch him, and we’ll just stay home…” She gave me a meaningful look in her eyes, telling me she was happy to stay home and just have sex for a couple of hours.

  “Actually, I invited Colton and Tom over. They’re bringing the boys.”

  “Yeah?” she asked, immediately perking up.

  “I thought we could have a barbecue and the kids could play together. Maybe we can play Monopoly, Colton’s favorite game.”

  “That doesn’t sound so bad. I feel like we haven’t seen them in weeks.”

  I nearly rolled my eyes. “We saw them last Saturday.”

  “Yeah…but that seems like a lifetime ago.” Even though she was married to me, she still needed Colton in her life as her best friend. They had lunch together and gossiped like any other pair of friends. I didn’t mind in the least. It only made our family closer.

  “So, that sounds good? I’ll make some chicken.”

  “Ugh, no poultry.” She rubbed her stomach. “I can tell she doesn’t like it.”

  “I can make something else. What do you want?”

  She smiled. “Maybe some mac and cheese…?”

  When she was pregnant, she had the appetite of a child. I wanted to roll my eyes or make a joke, but since she’d already pushed out one baby, I couldn’t complain about making her whatever she wanted. “Whatev
er my baby wants.”

  “Thank you.” She took Neil by the hand. “I’m gonna change his shirt. He’ll reek of apple juice if I wait too long.” With their hands held together, they left the kitchen and went upstairs, mother and son.

  I watched them go, unable to believe my own life. I never thought I would be here. I was a father to a great boy. Now I would be a father to a beautiful little girl. And my wife was fucking amazing.

  I looked down at Soldier. “I’m the luckiest man alive, huh?”

  He barked.

  I chuckled. “I’ll take that as a yes.”

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