American Queen

“Why do you think I had you pull the garter from my knee instead of my thigh? I was trying to make sure the essentials stayed covered.”

His fingers probe the soft skin of my lower lips. “Did it bother you that I had your panties in my tuxedo pocket?”

I lean my head back against the window, parting my legs to give him better access, though he stays away from the flesh that wants him the most, opting instead for the soft creases between my vulva and my thighs. “I thought it was unbearably hot.”

“Me too.”

“Did you and Embry…” I look for the right words and can’t find them. English has more words than any other Western language and yet I can’t find the ones that convey curiosity and arousal and permission and jealousy all at the same time.

All the same, Ash seems to know what I’m asking. “We kissed. In the groom’s dressing room at the church. He walked in and I took one look at him, and then I had him up against the wall.” Ash leans his head back against the headrest of the seat. “We kissed for a very long time, until I made sure that I had tasted every trace of your cunt on his mouth, and then I marked his neck. Did you see? I wanted you to see. I can’t decide if that was cruel of me or kind.”

“I can’t decide either,” I whisper.

Ash’s fingertip lightly runs up my seam, exposing how very, very wet I am. “Maybe it doesn’t matter.”

“Or it does matter, but I don’t care.”

But we’re interrupted by our arrival at the hotel, a Gilded Age skyscraper with a gorgeously ornate lobby. As we climb out and I grab my clutch, my phone buzzes inside the small purse and I pull it out.

Abilene: tell me when u get to ur hotel safely so I don’t worry about u

Me: just got here! It’s so pretty!

Abilene: which hotel did u end up at?

Just like in Geneva, the security team vetted a few hotels before picking a final one only hours before we left the venue. It’s an inconvenience and a lot of extra work and not part of the normal protocol, but Merlin with all his mysterious sources of information advised Ash and his security team to go to the effort since it was such a high-profile event.

I don’t think twice about it as I text back, we’re at the Sorella.

Abilene: sounds amazing, I’m so jealous! Enjoy ur wedding nite!

“Who are you talking to?” Ash asks. We’re in the elevator now, riding up to the Presidential Suite.

“Abilene.” I notice he’s sliding his own phone into his tuxedo pants. “Who were you talking to?”

“Embry. I invited him up to our room to talk.”

“Ash…”

I step into him, tilting my head back so I can peer up into those stunning green eyes. “No matter what happens tonight, I want you to know that I will never regret marrying you. If I had to choose, it would be you. Every time.”

“You don’t know how much I wanted to hear those words,” he says roughly, sliding his hands through my hair. “Oh Greer. What have I dragged you into?”

His lips on mine are hungry and searching, and I let him take my mouth like I’ve let him take everything of mine, the simple surrender of the act clearing my mind and stirring my blood. We’re still kissing as the elevator doors open, and Ash kisses me all the way down the hallway to our room. Luc opens the door for us, Ash kicks it closed behind us, and then we’re alone.

“Do we wait for Embry?” I ask as soon as Ash lets me up for air.

“I’m not waiting to do what I’ve wanted to do all day, which is this,” and then he lowers his mouth to my neck. The scooped neck of my dress—modest enough to pass Merlin and Trieste’s “America’s Sweetheart” test—still dips low enough to give Ash access to my collarbone and the tops of my breasts, which he bites and sucks with pleasure. And then he’s back to my neck, kissing and nibbling and sucking until my knees are weak and he’s supporting all of my weight in his arms.

“This dress,” he murmurs. “I’ve been staring at this perfect neck all day. It’s been driving me crazy.”

My hands fist his lapels as he continues taking his pleasure, appreciative noises coming from the back of his throat as he tastes my skin. He’s coming back up to my lips for a proper kiss when we hear a soft, tentative rap at the door.

We look at each other, and then I let go of Ash’s jacket and go to the door, not even bothering to check through the peephole before I open it.

It’s Embry.

He gives a quick look over his shoulder at the Secret Service agent standing nearby. “May I come in?”

“Please do,” Ash says from behind me, and Embry steps inside. He’s lost the tuxedo jacket and vest, although his bow tie still hangs loose around his neck. His sleeves are rolled up to his elbows, exposing strong, sinewed forearms that flex and harden as he closes the door behind himself and then shoves his hands in his pockets.

“You wanted to see me?” he asks. There’s something almost defensive in his posture, in the way his shoulders are ever so slightly hunched, in the way he squares off to face Ash.

“Yes,” Ash says. “We did.”

And then he walks right over and kisses his friend, cupping a hand around the back of Embry’s neck to hold him there.

Embry’s eyelashes flutter and a small breath leaves him, but he doesn’t pull his hands out of his pockets, he doesn’t relax. “What are you doing?” he asks as Ash pulls away. “I thought today was to get it out of our systems before the wedding ceremony. Not…more.”