CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

Carly

The second I open the door, all the air goes out of my lungs in a giant whoosh. I’ve seen casual James, date-night James, gym James, working-at-Balance James, but this is the first time I’ve ever seen dressed-up James.

The solid black suit looks like it was possibly made just for him, and the bright white shirt underneath makes his naturally tan skin look even darker. The thin shiny black tie looks perfectly knotted.

I realize my mouth is hanging open, so I close my mouth and swallow what little moisture I have.

“Holy shit.” I breathe out.

“I was about to say the same thing,” he tells me, his voice rough, his eyes roaming over every inch of me.

I’m more than happy Tess offered to help me pick out a dress for the wedding. James didn’t tell me how we needed to dress, but obviously, she knew.

After what felt like hours of dress shopping, we finally stumbled along this fitted bright red lace, floor-length dress. The long sleeves graze my wrists, shoulders are set wide, and the front dips just low enough, showing off a good amount of skin. The back is my favorite, though. It dips into a deep V, and as I spin around to give James a 360-degree look, he sucks in a breath and curses under his breath.

“Jack gone?” His voice is husky and deep.

“Yeah. He picked up Maggie, still not sure how she got the approval for that.”

I gasp when in one swift move I’m in his arms, his fingertips grazing over my lower back, dipping just under the material. Without any warning, his lips are on mine, and we stumble back until we hit the door of the closet by my front entryway.

His large body presses into mine, his hands running up and down my sides before sliding along my neck and into my hair. He puts pressure on my jaw before his hand trails down the front of my neck, over my breasts and down, until he’s cupping my butt.

I try to wrap my leg around him, but with the tight fit of the dress, I can’t lift it enough, so I settle for running my hands down his back and grabbing his butt, just like he’s doing to mine.

Our heavy breaths, moans, and sounds of our kissing fills the room, building a fire inside me. When we finally pull away, he rests his forehead against mine, obviously trying to catch his breath.

“You may need to change,” he says. “You’re gonna show up the bride.”

I giggle, feeling happier and lighter than I’ve ever felt, knowing what I do to him is a heady feeling, because he does the same to me.

“Alright. I’ll be right back,” I tease and start to move toward my room. He grabs me by the wrist and pulls me back to him.

“Not a chance, beautiful,” he growls. “But you’re mine, yeah? No dancing with anyone else tonight.”

“What if Jack wants to dance with me?”

“Tough shit.”

I laugh loudly, and he grins.

“Damn, Carly. You look beautiful every day, but now?” He takes his left finger, spinning it in a circle.

I slowly spin in a circle, showing him the back once again. He moans and pulls me back, pressing himself against me. I can feel his hardness pushing on my ass. I reach behind me and grab his thigh as he buries his face into my neck.

“You’re gonna kill me all night long, gorgeous. You look radiant.”

“James,” I whisper, turning my head so he has more access to my neck.

“Carly, we gotta get the hell outta here, or I’m gonna miss my niece’s wedding, and I’m here to tell you, my sister-in-law is sweet as punch, but she’d cut my nuts off and shove ‘em up my ass if I missed Em’s wedding.”

I shimmy against him just slightly, and he grabs my hips, holding me still until he lets me go. As I start to walk away, he takes a swat at my butt, catching me by surprise.

“Behave,” he growls, his eyes darker blue than I’ve ever seen them.

“Did you… did you just spank me?”

“That’s what you get,” he says, his voice so deep and husky. “Come on, beautiful. Time to show you off.”

As soon as we pull up to the church, a young gentleman steps up to James’s vehicle and offers to park his car for him. When we were at Tess and Barrett’s the other night for supper, the night that will forever live in lip-tint infamy, they told me the wedding was a little more formal. Apparently, Emily’s fiancé comes from a very well-off family and had some specific requests for the wedding and reception. Valet service must be one of them.

After handing him the keys, James comes around and helps me out of the vehicle, tucking my arm in his. As soon as we get inside, a young lady takes our jackets. James removes his phone from his jacket pocket, flips it around, and aims the screen in our direction.

“I need a picture with my girl before everyone else tries to steal you.”

My smile is so wide it probably looks borderline creepy, but I can’t tame it. After several pictures, because apparently he needed to make sure he’s got a good one, he bends down and takes one of him kissing my cheek.

Lily comes out of a side room dressed in a short, strapless, fitted satin dress. A wide champagne-colored sash is wrapped around her waist, secured with a large rose the same color. Her hair is done up in a low chignon, full of curls. Her eyes are smoky, cheeks a slight blush to them, and her lips a shiny light pink. She has on tall black stilettos, and I cringe, wondering how her feet are going to survive the night.

“Carly! Oh my gosh! You look absolutely gorgeous!” she gushes, leaning in before giving me a hug.

“Sweetheart, have you seen yourself? You are beautiful!”

“Thank you, but I fear my feet will hate me in just a few hours.” We both look down at the offending shoes and I wince.

“More than likely, yes. Did you bring something to change into?”

“Yeah, Emily gave us some ballet flats for the reception.”

“Oh I’m glad. I think you’ll need them.”

“Jack looks so good. He’s been hanging out, watching us take pictures.”

“If Maggie looks even half as amazing as you do, I doubt he’ll let her out of his sight all night.”

A loud voice clears next to us, gaining our attention.

“Hey, Lily Bug. Remember me?” James says.

“Hey, Dad. You look nice.”

He guffaws. “Nice? That’s all I get?” he asks her, gesturing to himself.

“Oh, whatever, Dad. You know you look better than nice.”

“Still, it’d be nice to hear.” He fake-pouts, and she punches him in the shoulder before hugging him.

One of the things that has made me fall so hard for James is his playful attitude but also how much he loves his daughter. I love watching them interact and listening to the stories they tell.

“You look really handsome, Dad.”

He lays a hand on the side of her neck. “And you, my Lily, look beautiful. Save a dance for me tonight?”

She blushes lightly. “Thanks, Dad. And of course. We gotta show Carly how it’s done, you know?”

I furrow my brows in confusion but don’t ask what they mean. Knowing James, he has some choreographed dance he plans to do.

The wedding is stunning, and even not knowing the bride or groom brings tears to my eyes. James’s arm wraps around me tightly through the entire ceremony, his other hand reaching across the front of us to hold my own.

As Emily and Lucas are lighting their unity candle, James leans over to me and whispers, “One day.”

Goose bumps erupt through my body, and I have to suck in a breath and clench my thighs together. I look over at him, his eyes hooded as he looks down at me. I bite my lip, and he reaches up and releases it with his thumb.

“Mine,” he murmurs.

After the wedding, we walk across the street to the reception hall. Hors d’oeuvres are passed around on trays as people mingle.

James makes the rounds, his hand never leaving mine, introducing me to so many family members I feel like my head could explode.

For so long, it was just Jack and I. Even when I was with Vince, we didn’t have family around. He wasn’t close with his parents and he, too, was an only child. To say the onslaught of so many people around is overwhelming is an understatement.

James, being James, sees it before I have the chance to even try to hide my freak-out. He sits us down at a table with his parents, placing a glass of wine in front of me and kissing me on the cheek.

His parents are two of the kindest people I’ve ever met. They welcome me into the fold so seamlessly it feels as if I’ve been a part of their family for years. I see James take out his phone and send off a quick text, and a minute later Jack is sitting down on the other side of me.

“Hey, Mom. You look really pretty,” he tells me.

“Jack, meet my parents, Deb and George Cole. Mom, Dad, this is Jack, Carly’s son.”

George stands up and shakes Jack’s hand over the table, but Deb has other intentions.

“Get over here, my boy,” she says.

He sheepishly stands up and walks over to her then bends down close.

She takes him by the face. “It’s good to meet you, Jack. James has told us so much about you. And so has Maggie. Welcome to the family, kiddo.”

He nods his head, not saying anything in return, then before he can do anything about it, she pulls him in for a hug only worthy of a grandmother.

He steps away and starts to returns to his seat, but not before Tess comes over with her camera ready, Lily in tow.

“Picture time, y’all!”

She takes several shots: some of the four of us, some of just James and me, Jack and me, James and Lily, and also some with her parents.

I’ve never felt like part of a family.

Until now.