With a smile, she pushed him again. “Come on, I mean it. Time to get up.”
With a sigh, he rubbed his eyes and sat up. “Are you coming in to work after you drop Alisdair off with Cassie?”
She bit her lip. “I thought it might be best if I stayed with him, at least for a little while. Everything is so new to him; I don’t want him to feel frightened.”
He grinned at her. “Honey, you’re going to coddle him to death. He’s a tough little guy, and I’m sure he’ll have a blast playing with Cassie’s kids.”
“I know, but…” She grinned. “I guess I am being a little over-protective, but I haven’t been a mother before.”
Connor pulled her close and kissed her neck. “If I have any say in the matter, you’ll be a mother before too long.”
She frowned. “I already am. Connor, you have to think of Alisdair as part of the family. Once the adoption is complete, he’ll be your son just as much as he’s mine.”
He nodded. “You’re right. It just takes some getting used to, but I’ll make sure I refer to him appropriately.”
“Come on, you need to get ready for work and I need to wake up Alisdair and get him fed.”
“Hey! Don’t I get fed too?”
She giggled. “Yes, you do. Now, go take a shower and get dressed for work. Alisdair and I will leave shortly after you do. I don’t want to show up at Cassie’s at the crack of dawn. I figured eight o’clock was early enough.”
Connor kissed her cheek and rolled out of bed, going to take a shower as she had suggested. He smiled as he realized she was settling into her new life fairly well. She already treated Alisdair as a son, and treated him as if they were already married. A well placed call to the pack wives and to Cassie would get the ball rolling.
With a frown, he thought of Marin and wondered why she hadn’t stopped by yet. He knew she had to be in a lot of pain, and from Aislinn said the sooner they tried to help her, the better. Maybe he’d call Cole before calling the ladies.
Connor arrived at work with a frown on his face. According to his cousin, Marin had been healed by the sorcerer, and yet the man had said nothing to Aislinn. Why had he kept it secret, and why was he still training her in the art of healing?
When he entered his office, his frown deepened. “What are you doing here?”
Cameron smiled slyly and sat on the edge of his desk, displaying a lot of thigh in the process. “Waiting for you.”
“Cameron, you have no business being on this job site, especially in that short skirt.”
“I came to offer my services as your secretary again. I see she’s missing today.”
“She’ll be in later.”
Cameron made a tsking sound. “Already coming in late?”
“She had to drop her son off at a play date. I gave her permission to come in late, but I don’t see what business it is of yours.”
She pouted. “But Connor, I only want to help.”
He glared at her and didn’t comment. The only thing the infernal woman wanted to help with was getting him out of his clothes. And that wasn’t going to happen!
“I don’t have time for your games, Cameron. I have work to do and a wedding to plan.”
Her smile froze and her eyes became cold. “You’re still going through with it? You’re still going to marry that frumpy little nobody? When you could have this?” she asked as she waived toward her exposed legs.
Connor grinned. “Aislinn isn’t frumpy and she isn’t a nobody. She’s a beautiful, amazing woman, a woman I’m going to marry.”
Something shifted in her eyes and she pushed away from the desk. Sauntering over to him, she draped her arms around his neck and wrapped a leg around him, pressing her body close. “You know you want me, Connor.”
Before he could respond, the office door opened and Aislinn walked in. Her face remained calm as she took in the scene, but Connor knew she was less than pleased.
“Actually, I’m pretty sure that he doesn’t, so kindly unhand my fiancé,” Aislinn demanded in an even tone.
Cameron stepped back and eyed Aislinn with barely disguised anger. “Why would he want you when he could have me?”
Aislinn stepped forward and hooked her arm through his and gave him an adoring smile before facing the loathsome woman again. “Because we’re meant to be together, and no one, not even you, can change that.”
Cameron was seething as she grabbed her purse and walked out the door, stopping to look over her shoulder one last time. “You’re making a big mistake.”
Aislinn’s smile grew. “The only mistake would be accepting your offer. Thankfully, he has too much taste and class to sink to your level.”
Connor choked back a laugh and stared at his fiancé in amazement. Where had this little fireball come from? Apparently her lessons with Eric were giving her a lot of confidence and self-worth, both things that had been much needed when she’d first appeared. He was happy to see her standing up for herself.
After Cameron slammed the door shut, Aislinn faced him and crossed her arms. “Am I going to have to get to a restraining order against that woman? I swear, every time I’m not around she glues herself to you like a leech.”
Connor chuckled and pulled her into his arms. “At least you were here to come to my rescue. I’m getting tired of fending the woman off.”
“Makes me wish I could turn her into a toad,” Aislinn grumbled under her breath.
“I thought you were going to take longer this morning,” Connor commented.
“Alisdair took right to Cassie’s kids and informed me he was a big boy and I didn’t have to stay with him. So I got back in the car and came to work.”
“Well, I have some other good news for you.”
“What?”
He sat on the edge of his desk. “I called Cole this morning since Marin hadn’t stopped by the house yet. It seems that your sorcerer stopped by a few days ago and healed her. Know anything about that?”
Her brow furrowed. “No, he said he was training me to heal people. Maybe he thought it was too much for me right now?”
Connor nodded. “Maybe. Your powers are still new and probably a bit unpredictable at the moment. He might have thought it was dangerous for you to try healing something as big as ovarian cancer.”
Aislinn bit her lip.
“What is it?” Connor asked.
“I haven’t seen Eric, have you?”
He shook his head. “He only appears to you, sweetheart.”
“Eric!” Aislinn called.
The sorcerer moved into the room from a dark corner. “You bellowed, my dear?”
One look and Aislinn knew he was drained. His skin had a gray tinge to it and his eyes were bloodshot.
“You healed her. Why didn’t you let me help?”
He gestured to himself. “Because I may look like death warmed over, but you would have died if you had tried to cure her.”
“But you’ve interfered again. Won’t that get you into trouble?”
Eric laughed. “Darling, the fates have their hands busy enough without worrying about an immortal like me. Besides, I’ve seen the future and Marin wasn’t meant to die. Which meant that I was allowed to heal her.”
“But at what expense?” Aislinn demanded.
“I’ll be fine in another few days. We’ll have to put our lessons on hold until then.”
She sighed and nodded, knowing it was pointless to argue with him. He was every bit as stubborn as Connor was.
“Call if you need me,” Eric said as he vanished from the room.
“I hate when he does that,” Connor grumbled. “Hasn’t the man heard of a door?”
Aislinn smiled. “It wouldn’t be nearly as dramatic, and I think he loves doing dramatic things.”
“You mean like curing a dying woman? Or rather, two dying women?”
She nodded. “He saved me, and for that I’ll always be grateful. But now he’s saved Marin as well. Don’t you think it’s time we considered him a f
riend of the pack?”
Connor nodded. “Maybe you’re right. He’s done a lot of good for the pack, even if he is irritating.”
“Come on, you have work to do and I have files to organize. The sooner we get started, the sooner we can go home.”
“And plan our wedding?” he asked with a raised brow.
She smiled. “Yes, and plan our wedding.”
Chapter Twenty
Somehow, Aislinn and the other women had managed to plan and arrange a wedding within days. Less than a week had gone by, and now Connor found himself standing at the front of a church. He pulled on the bow tie once more, feeling as if someone were strangling him.
“Leave it alone,” Gabriel muttered behind him.
He gave the joint-alpha a baleful glare before looking out over the church once more. Aislinn hadn’t had many friends to invite so Matt and Cassie were sitting on her site, along with the sorcerer and Alisdair. All of Connor’s family, with the exception of Marin and Gabriel, were seated on the groom’s side.
“She deserves a bigger wedding than this.”
Gabriel placed a reassuring hand on Connor’s shoulder. “I promise she doesn’t care how many people show up, just as long as you’re here and the preacher is here, that’s all that matters.”
Connor grinned. “I know. I just want it to be perfect for her.”
A moment later, the music started and Connor faced the back of the chapel. Aislinn walked down the aisle with Marin on her heels. His bride looked radiant in an off the shoulder ivory gown with roses embroidered on the shoulders and hem. A long veil was held in place with a rhinestone tiara.
His throat felt tight with emotion as she placed her hand in his. He responded to her tremulous smile with a reassuring one of his own. It had only been a few weeks, but it felt like he had waited forever for this moment, the moment he was able to truly claim her as his wife.
As the preacher began to speak, they faced forward, but looked at one another covertly, silly grins plastered on their faces. They recited their vows perfectly and swapped rings. When the preacher said, “You may kiss the bride,” Connor gently pulled her into his arms and tipped her head back. Claiming her lips in a gentle kiss, he felt as if he were complete.
Their family and friends cheered from the pews and Aislinn looked up at him with laughter in her eyes. It was the most beautiful he had ever seen her and his heart constricted when he realized how very much he loved her.
Escorted to Connor’s truck by their boisterous friends and family, the bride and groom set off on their honeymoon. Not wanting to be away from Alisdair for too long, they had decided to stay at a hotel in nearby White Pines, Tennessee for the weekend. It was only a few hours away in case there was an emergency.
“I already put our suitcase in the backseat, but I thought you might want to go home and change out of your wedding dress before we hit the road,” Connor told her with a smile.
“While I love my dress, it will be heavenly to get out of it. It definitely wasn’t designed with comfort in mind,” she replied with a smile.
Connor grinned and hurried home, anxious to get on the road. They still hadn’t managed to make love, which made their honeymoon pretty much perfect. It was going to be a true marital celebration.
At the house, Connor changed from him tux into jeans and a sweater while Aislinn changed into something similar. Grabbing some drinks and snacks from the kitchen, they climbed back into the truck and started the drove to White Pines.
Late in the afternoon, after they were checked into the hotel and had eaten a late lunch, Aislinn and Connor collapsed on the hotel bed.
“Well, it was certainly an eventful day,” Aislinn mused.
“Yeah, but one that I’ll remember for the rest of my life.”
She smiled and rolled toward him, draping an arm over his waist.
“So, how does it feel to be Mrs. Tierney?”
Her smile grew even bigger. “Like a dream come true.”
Rolling her to her back, Connor kissed her. “I’m glad. I can’t think of anyone I’d rather have by my side.”
Her eyes grew misty and she returned his kiss. Burying her fingers in his hair, she tugged him closer. After wanting to be intimate with him for weeks, she felt like a nervous ball of energy. She knew being with Connor would be different than being with Hugh, but she wasn’t sure what to expect. By all rights, she was still something of a virgin since Hugh only liked doing it the regular way. Aislinn knew there were many positions from some of the books she had read, but she’d never had a chance to try any of them.
Her heart fluttered in her chest and she reached for Connor’s belt buckle. Unfastening it, she unsnapped his jeans and reached inside.
He groaned into her mouth and bucked against her, his cock hard and throbbing against her fingers. Aislinn’s fingers curled around him as she gently stroked him.
Connor sucked in a shuddering breath and threw his head back. “You’re going to kill me,” he muttered.
Aislinn gave him a wicked grin and stroked harder. “That’s kind of the idea.”
Pulling away, Connor quickly stripped off his sweater and jeans. Standing before her in only his underwear, he reached for her, helping her out of her clothes. As he exposed her skin one layer of clothing at the time, his eyes devoured her. He unfastened her bra and slid the straps down her arms, watching as her nipples puckered in the cool air. Next, he reached for her panties and slipped them down her legs.
Completely exposed to him, Aislinn thought she would have felt vulnerable. Instead, she felt like her skin was on fire. She loved the hungry look in his eyes as he gazed at her.
He stepped closer and gently nudged her legs apart. Aislinn felt the cool air as her pussy was exposed to him and she sucked in a breath. Her lids drooped and her breathing deepened.
Connor reached out and stroked her with his finger, drawing a gasp from her. His finger felt warm against her cool skin, and it left her feeling even more aroused.
He quickly stripped off his underwear and climbed onto the bed, lying down beside her. Leaning over, he took her nipple into his mouth and suckled, while his fingers delved between her legs, stroking her swollen clit.
Aislinn arched off the bed, wanting more of the exquisite torture, wanting more of Connor. She’d never felt pleasure in the bedroom before and she was anxious to see what else Connor would do. He continued stroking her with his fingers, long, slow strokes intent on driving her mad. When he slipped a finger inside, she groaned from the pleasure.
“So wet, and so sweet,” he murmured against her breast.
He trailed kisses down her stomach until he was kneeling between her legs. Pushing them open further, he held her open with his fingers and tasted her. His warm, wet tongue took a long swipe of her, grazing over her clit.
“Connor, I… I…”
“You what, sweetheart?”
“I never knew…”
His eyes narrowed and with a growl, he pulled her hips closer and sucked her clit into his mouth. Nipping, sucking, and licking, he pushed her to the edge. Just when she was about to topple over, he stopped.
“Why? Why did you stop?” she panted.
Rising above her, he placed his cock at her entrance. “Because I want to be inside of you the first time you come.”
Her eyes widened as he thrust inside of her. He made her feel wondrously full. As he thrust into her again, she lifted her hips to meet him.
He ground his teeth together, trying to hold it together, but Aislinn was so tight and wet that he didn’t think he’d last another moment. “I can’t hold on, honey. I wanted to make this last for you, but I can’t.”
“I don’t care, Connor. I just want you.”
With a grin, he thrust into her hard and deep. “Then you’ll have me.”
Aislinn met him thrust for thrust until she finally tumbled into her first orgasm. Crying out his name, she grabbed at his shoulders as he continued to slide in and out of her. As the spasms slowed,
Connor thrust into her one last time, burying his face in her neck he gently bit her, marking her as his own.
She felt a warmth spread through her and smiled, knowing they could very well have already created a new life. She knew it wasn’t likely, but the idea pleased her.
Chapter Twenty-One
Connor opened his eyes and smiled as he saw Aislinn sleeping soundly beside him, their naked bodies intertwined. Closing his eyes, he pulled her close to his side, reveling in the feel of her next to him, skin against skin.
Burrowing his nose into her hair, he inhaled her scent, letting it surround him. He stroked her breasts, smiling when her nipples peaked against his palms. She murmured something in her sleep, but didn’t waken. Reaching between her legs, he felt that she was already wet and ready for him.
Connor rolled Aislinn to her stomach and covered her body with his, entering her with one long, deep thrust. She gasped and her eyes fluttered open, already dilated with desire. Reaching under her body, he teased her breasts with one hand while bracing himself with the other. As he thrust into her, he closed his eyes, the scent of her arousal spurring him on. She whimpered in pleasure and he grinned, feeling his chest swell with pride, knowing he was the reason behind the small noises.
“Oh,” she breathed. “Connor, I’m … I’m…”
“That’s it, come for me, sweetheart.”
With a cry, she shattered, convulsing around his cock as he thrust into her again and again, until he found his release and buried himself deep inside of her sweet warmth.
Slumping over her, he gathered her close and rolled them to their sides. He kissed her damp neck and nuzzled her ear.
“I love you.”
Aislinn’s indrawn breath was a good indication of her shock; Connor only hoped he hadn’t said the words too soon.
“I love you, too,” she answered after a moment.
“I don’t want you to feel like you have to say the words,” he told her.
She shook her head. “I’ve loved you since that first week. I was just too scared to tell you.”
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