CHAPTER FORTY-TWO
Paige snuggled under the covers as Nate joined her in the bedroom, tossing both sets of keys on top of the dresser along with his phone. He tugged his hoodie over his head and went to work on his belt buckle.
It was like the best strip show ever.
Of course he noticed her avid gaze.
“See anything you like?”
Propping herself up on an elbow, she inspected the man she’d just informally married from head to toe. Damn, she was a lucky woman.
“Everything. Every single thing.” She waved at him to get on with it. “You know I didn’t get a bachelorette party or a stripper.”
That brow quirked slightly and a smile played on his lips. “Really? That’s strange because I had a wild stag party with dozens of strippers and booze.”
She sat up and gave him her best mean look. “You better be kidding.”
“I’m kidding.” He unbuckled his belt and placed it next to the keys on the dresser. “Max and I had a few drinks and looked online for possible homes for you and I to buy.”
“You looked at real estate the night before your wedding?”
The white t-shirt, at least two sizes too small, was tossed to the floor revealing every yummy inch of his muscled torso.
“I did and I think I have two or three possibilities for us to look at when we get back to London. We’ll have a day before we leave for L.A.”
She laid back against the pillows. “You want to buy me a house but all I want tonight is a stripper. I’m a bride, it’s tradition.”
Smiling indulgently, Nate took a step back to the middle of the room. “A tradition? Far be it for me to get in the way of that. Sadly, though this is the best I can do.”
It was a good thing she was young and healthy because if she hadn’t been, there was a real possibility she might have a stroke then and there. Nate was rotating his hips in a circular motion, every once in awhile giving them a thrust into the air, while he watched her reaction closely.
The Brit bastard knew what he was doing.
Flushed and flustered, Paige took a few deep breaths to calm her racing heart, not to mention what was going on in parts farther south. Holy hell.
She smirked at the tent in his jeans. “Looks like someone is happy to see me.”
“I’m always happy to see you, love, but you have to admit it’s been a long week. We’re married now, yes? It’s our wedding night.”
For a moment she was going to say no, but then that would be a lie. They’d said their personal vows to one another. Whatever they said in front of their family and friends would simply be the icing on the cake. She was committed and so was he.
“It is,” she confirmed, still mesmerized by his gyrating body. “What do you intend to do about that?”
He stopped and seemed to ponder her question before ripping at the zipper of his jeans, stripping them off his legs. “Having my wicked way with my wife, of course.”
Dive bombing into the bed, he’d somehow landed right between her legs. She didn’t have time to wonder if that was by design as he pawed at the covers, yanking them down to her ankles and baring her naked flesh.
Okay, I had an idea or two while I was waiting here.
“Love,” he purred, a smile gracing his movie star visage as his gaze caressed every curve of her body. “This is certainly a pleasant surprise. Promise me you’ll sleep nude from now on.”
For the life of her, she couldn’t think of one reason why she hadn’t been doing this all along. He was a genius.
“I promise, but you have to promise to keep me warm. I’m a little cold here, husband.”
“We can’t have that.”
The promise in his smooth as honey voice sent electricity through her veins and down to her already curled toes. His large frame covered hers and she reached up to run her fingers down his chest and over his ridged abdomen, delighting in every dip and plane she discovered. That this man was all hers was mind-boggling and she winged a silent prayer up to the heavens that they lived a long, happy life together. She’d do everything in her power to make that come true.
His lips caressed hers before gliding across her jaw and down her neck to that sensitive spot where her pulse beat. He left behind a trail of fire that sent white-hot heat straight to her core even as her nipples puckered in anticipation. They too were rewarded with his talented mouth as he lapped at the tight buds, swirling his tongue, his breath warm on the damp tips. He scraped his teeth on the sides and she arched her back, pressing herself against his steel-like shaft. Groaning at the friction, his hands went to her hips as he pushed her thighs wider.
“Yes,” she hissed as the tip of his cock rubbed up and down her slit, just teasing her entrance. A coil of arousal began to tighten in her abdomen and flames licked over her skin. “I love you.”
His head dipped down and his lips grazed her ear, making her quiver with need and want.
“I love you, my beautiful wife. In all this world, never doubt that truth.”
At this moment she would have believed anything but then he was pressing slowly and inexorably inside of her, stretching her, and it never ceased to take her breath away nor send her close to the precipice. Velvet over steel, he rubbed that sweet spot deep inside of her, the one no other man had ever seemed to bother to find, and his name escaped from her lips.
With increasingly ragged breaths, he pulled out slowly before slamming back in, bottoming out and sending arrows of pleasure straight to her extremities. She wrapped her legs around his lean waist and her braced her hands on his shoulders as his hips snapped, pressing his groin against her swollen clit.
“Open your eyes, my love. Look at me.”
His whispered words were warm against her neck, sending goosebumps skittering across her skin. Forcing her lids open, she found him regarding her, his blue eyes dark with arousal, his pupils blown wide. But what she saw in his expression was more than she’d ever believed existed. He radiated love, passion, devotion, and deep promise. It took her breath away and she had to blink rapidly to keep a tear from escaping down her cheek.
Their gazes locked, he pistoned in and out of her, moving them both closer to heaven on earth. When her climax washed over her, she clung to him like a life raft in a turbulent sea. Solid and real, he was the lighthouse to her ship, the oasis in her desert. He was everything and she’d never get enough of this beautiful, kind, talented, and flawed man.
Collapsing, their damp bodies pressed together, she ran her fingers down his spine and then back up over his muscled shoulders until their fingers tangled together. His own hands were exploring as well, tickling her ribs and stroking her hip until she sighed with contentment.
“I’m sorry you didn’t get your bachelorette party, love.”
She giggled, burrowing her face against his chest. “I’m not really all that upset about it anymore. This was much better. Feel free to strip for me as often as you’d like.”
“Every night.”
Her fingertips traced his jaw and then his lips as she felt his steady heart beat under her cheek. “All I need is you.”
“You have me.”
She did and she wouldn’t take it for granted.
* * *
The day of Nate’s wedding was as sunny and warm as promised. He and Paige had a leisurely breakfast with Jason, Carrie, and Max, chatting about Nate’s upcoming film and Max’s upcoming play. The day seemed to fly by as the caterers, then the florist, and then the photographer showed up.
The rest of the day was a whirlwind and before he knew it he was standing under an arch of fragrant flowers watching the most beautiful woman he’d ever seen in his life walking toward him. Dressed in white lace, her green eyes sparkled with happiness as she smiled just for him. They didn’t take their eyes off one another, as if they were the only two people in the world. This moment was just for them and no one else.
He repeated the vows and Paige dutifully did the same but he could tell she was thinking the same thing he was. They’d already said their promises last night. It was their little secret, something only between the two of them.
When it was time to kiss the bride, Nate bent her over his arm dramatically and she laughed even as their lips met. The guests clapped and cheered at his antics, their joy truly genuine. Nate the lonely womanizer had finally settled down and Paige the workaholic widow had found a second chance at love. It would have been the perfect story for one of her romance novels but this was the real thing.
There was music, delicious food, flowing champagne, hugs and kisses, and much happiness. His mum kept breaking into tears and wrapping her arms around him as if she was sending him off to war instead of a honeymoon. Max kept clapping him on the back and calling him a “lucky bloke”, which he was.
Even across the room Paige would catch his gaze at random moments. He couldn’t seem to tear his eyes from her, loving the graceful way she moved and how when she smiled it was heartfelt and lit up her whole face.
He’d almost blown this. All of it. If she hadn’t had such a warm, generous heart, he’d be out in the cold. No wife. No love. Just the gnawing feeling in his gut that he wasn’t enough. It would have eventually eaten him alive, leaving him a shell of a man. Empty and bitter.
Paige had brought the sun into his life and she’d dragged him kicking and screaming out of that dark place he’d grown accustomed to. She’d saved him in her own way.
Striding across the lawn, he grabbed her around the waist and twirled her in his arms until they were in the middle of the dance floor. This gorgeous bundle of woman in his arms was smiling up at him as if he was the greatest thing ever created.
“Thank you.”
Her brows went up and her smile grew wider. “You’re welcome. What am I being thanked for, might I ask?”
“For being you. For loving me. For forgiving me. For not giving up.”
“I’ll never give up.”
Resting his forehead against hers, they swayed to the soft music. “You didn’t have to.”
“That’s where you’re wrong, handsome. Believe me when I say this was a done deal the day I met you. I have the strangest feeling we were meant to be. Some force kept pushing us together and wouldn’t let go.”
Nate chuckled and brushed his lips against hers. “That was love. The forever kind.”
“Forever, that sounds nice.”
He wouldn’t accept one day less.
I hope you enjoyed Nate and Paige’s story! Click here to get Max and Carrie in Swinging On A Star releasing May 9, 2017!