Abby

The reception was a blast. There was a live band playing all the hits from any decade requested. Colin spun me around the dance floor and dipped me during all the songs. Good food was plentiful, drinks flowing, and not a single person was sitting in their seats. The dance floor was packed with people talking, laughing, and trying to balance their drinks in their hands.

People came up and hugged our necks. Maggie pulled her date over to meet me and I couldn’t get over how much he looked like Ted. Colin’s eyes grew wide beside me as Maggie threw herself at the poor man, and I giggled as they danced away. The afternoon was magical, and it bled into an evening that was filled with talking and future plans.

We told people not to get us any wedding presents. We didn’t need anything nor did we want for anything. All we wanted was for people to gather, enjoy themselves and have a good time. Colin’s mother pulled me away long enough to get me to do a shot of tequila with her, then she slipped an envelope into my hand.

“From me to you guys,” she said.

“El, now we told everyone not to get us gifts,” I said.

“I know. I don’t take direction well. Anyway, if the two of you don’t want to use it, then save it. If you guys decide to have kids or something, you can use it for them,” she said.

“What is it?” I asked.

“Rude. Why don’t you just open it?”

“Can I wait to open it with Colin?” I asked.

“What the hell are you asking me for? Now, take one last shot with me before you go back to dancing.”

I threw another shot of tequila back with his mother before she hugged my neck. I really enjoyed her. She had spunk. She had this fiery attitude and reeked of dominance. I could tell she was a woman that had endured a lot in her life, and she was stronger because of it. I was in awe of women like that. Who could walk through the mire of life and come out on the other end stronger than before they went in.

I hoped to be like that someday. Stronger because of the bad in my life.

Folding the envelope in half, I tucked it away in the bosom of my dress. My father stole my hand, and twirled me onto the dance floor just as a slow number settled in. Colin was dancing with his mother and I was dancing with my dad, and I saw Ted out of the corner of my eye ask my mother to dance. I wrapped my arms around my father and leaned into him, taking in the comforting smell of his mint chewing gum.

“Always chewing that gum, Daddy.”

“Keeps my jaw busy,” he said.

“I still feel bad that you guys weren’t at the ceremony on the island,” I said.

“Now hush that nonsense. This reception is beautiful. I got to see the light in your eyes as you and Colin took your vows for a second time. That is special and it means you really can’t go back on them.”

“Thanks for walking me down the aisle,” I said, as I looked up into his eyes.

“That’s what fathers do. They work their asses off, love without strings, and give their daughters away to good men. Anything less is considered a crime, in my book anyway.”

“Will you and Mom come visit us?” I asked.

“As often as you want,” he said. “So long as you guys make it back for the holidays. His mother is welcome to come, too. She’s a spunky woman. Reminds me of someone else I know.”

I watched my father wink at me as a blush crept across my cheeks.

“I’m not like his mother, you weirdo. I’m not nearly as strong as she is,” I said.

“Funny. Only strong people say that.”

I turned around at the sound of Colin’s voice. He was smiling at me as he handed my mother off to my father.

“Mind if I cut in?” Colin asked.

He wrapped his arms around me as mine ventured around his neck. We swayed on the dance floor, losing ourselves in one another. I stared up into his soft blue eyes. They seemed to emanate a warmth I hadn’t experienced before. He seemed settled. Relaxed. Content with where things were. He wasn’t rushing around trying to make things better, or frantically placing calls trying to get me the best there was. His attention was on nothing but me, and I laid my head against his chest and took it all in.

“Your mother gave us a wedding gift,” I said.

“Doesn’t shock me. Your mother said they had something for us, too.”

“Ugh. When will parents ever learn?” I asked.

“I have no idea, but I suppose we shouldn’t have expected any less. What did my mother get us?”

“It’s an envelope with something inside. I told her I would open it later with you. What did my parents get us?” I asked.

“No clue. They said they wanted to talk with us before we left for the hotel.”

“Which brings me to my next question. When are we heading to the hotel?”

I looked into his eyes and he smiled at me. He took my hand within his before he reached over and tapped my father on the shoulder. Colin nodded his head towards the exit before he led me towards the door, and I could hear my mother and father following in our footsteps.

“You two already turning in for the evening?” my father asked.

“I’m ready to enjoy some time alone with Abby, yes. But, I know the two of you wanted to talk with us before we left,” Colin said.

“Oh, we just wanted to give you your wedding gift,” my mother said.

“Mom, you know we told everyone not to get us gifts.”

“But we’re not everyone,” my mother said. “Now, take it. Open it up before you leave.”

My mother handed me a manila envelope. I looked at it curiously before I handed it over to Colin. He worked it open and slid the papers out, his eyes scanning the documents before he shook his head.

“This is gonna require another road trip, you know,” he said.

“What? What do you mean? Let me see.” I took the documents from his hand and began to scan them. I saw gift certificates for two luxury hotels, both dotted between here and Colorado. I continued flipping through the paperwork and saw all sorts of things. Tickets to certain events and a coupon book for the greater Colorado area. Courtesy of my father, who was getting cheaper as he got older.

“What is all this?” I asked.

“Flip to the last page,” my father said.

I flipped everything over and gasped at the sight. It was a week-long stay at a beautiful cabin in Colorado. It had a hot tub on the porch as well as a beautiful view that poured over the Colorado landscape. It was a retreat that boasted of room service and a fireplace and all of the add-ons that any newly-married couple could have wanted.

“Mom. Dad. This must’ve cost a fortune. We can’t take this. I won’t,” I said.

“Everything’s already been paid for. You just have to get it on your calendars and book your hotel rooms. We didn’t get to pay for anything for this wedding, so the least we could do was give you your honeymoon.”

“This is too much,” I said breathlessly.

“Then wait until you open my present.”

I whipped my head around and saw Elvira coming around the corner.

“You still got it in that dress of yours?” she asked, grinning.

I reached into my bosom as Colin’s eyes widened. My mother shook her head as my father chuckled, and Elvira waited with a glimmer in her eye. I pulled out the folded envelope and began to open it, my hands shaking as I took deep breaths. I pulled out the small card in the envelope, but a check that tumbled to the floor caught my eye.

Colin bent over to pick it up and came back up with his eyes bulging.

“No,” he said. “We are not taking this.”

“You are and you will,” El said.

“What is it?” I asked.

“It doesn’t matter. We’re not taking it,” Colin said.

“If you can take their gift, you can take mine,” El said.

“No, mother.”

“Colin, give me the damn check,” I said.

I took it from between his fingers before I swallowed my tongue. I was holding a check made out to the both of us for sixty thousand dollars. Just—a plain old check. Written out by hand and signed by no one other than Colin’s mother.

“Like I said, if the two of you don’t want it, then you can use it for your kids or whatever,” El said.

“We won’t cash it,” Colin said.

“Then I’ll continue sending you checks until you do.”

“We still won’t cash them,” Colin said.

“Then I’ll open an account and put it in Abby’s name so you don’t have a say in it. Either way, it’s your money to do with as you please.”

“Thank you,” I said breathlessly. “All of you. All three of you. Thank you so much.”

I wrapped my arms around their necks as I held them close. I was so overwhelmed with their generosity. I was excited about where my life was headed and I was excited with the man I was spending my life with. I tried to hold back my tears as I gathered up the check and the paperwork, then I slid everything into the envelope and handed it to Colin.

“We’re taking it,” I said.

I held his gaze before he nodded in defeat.

“Thank you guys so much,” Colin said.

“Now, the two of you go to wherever it is you’re headed next. I’ll let everyone know the party’s gonna go until everyone leaves,” El said.

“Midnight. We’ve got the place until midnight. And the keys for the rented rooms at the hotel are at the front desk. Just tell everyone to go up there and announce that they’re with the Murphy Wedding Party. They have a guest list of everyone here,” Colin said.

“Sounds good. I’ll go make the announcement,” El said.

“And we’ll make sure everyone gets there safely,” my father said.

“Thanks, you guys,” I said, smiling. “Thank you so much. For everything.”

Colin and I made our way back to the hotel. We walked hand in hand down the street as people whipped out their phones to take pictures. I was becoming more and more comfortable with the attention, but it was still a work-in-progress. We made our way to the front desk and grabbed the key cards for the room, then we took the elevator all the way up to the top floor.

“Why does it not shock me that the honeymoon suite is up here?” I asked.

“I just like being on top, I guess,” Colin said.

“Mmmm—I like the sound of that.”

Our hands were all over one another even before we got to the room. Our bodies poured through the door as I stripped him of his suit. I kicked my heels off as he removed my veil, my hands pushing his jacket down his arms. We were undoing buttons and zipping down zippers, trying our best not to tip over as we made our way through the hotel room.

We collapsed onto the softest bed I’d ever been in. My body was surrounded by rose petals as my legs crept up the back of Colin’s thighs. I could feel him growing against me, his naked body covering mine. I ran my hands along the strength of his back, digging into his muscles as his lips traveled down my neck. I was eager to have him, and had been ever since I came down the aisle and saw him in that suit. It had been perfectly tailored to his body, showing of all the parts of him that I loved the most.

Like his long legs and his broad chest, not to mention his tight little ass.

I felt him inch into me, his body filling mine as our lips collided. Like comets crashing into one another, my heart shattered into a million pieces. They blended with his own, picking up pieces of him and adding it to me. Our bodies moved together as one, as his thrusts shoved me further up the silken sheets of the bed.

My body was filled with electricity. His lips traveled along my breasts, teasing them with his tongue as he rolled faster into my body. I craved him. Longed for him. Begged for the pleasure I knew he could give me. I felt my body arching into him, like an over-tuned violin ready to pop a string. My toes curled and my jaw unhinged. My clit began to swell and my legs began to shake.

My ecstasy poured over me as he swallowed my moans, his tongue raking over the roof of my mouth.

My body begged for more as I rolled him over and panted into the crook of his neck. My knees planted beside his body as I rolled into his hips. My hands settled onto his chest as our eyes connected, each breath syncing in perfect harmony as he grabbed my thighs. I could feel him pulsing within me, the heat of our bodies sending a flush up my neck. He glistened with sweat as my hair fell in my face, and I watched as he lost himself in his pleasure.

“Please, Abby. Just like that.”

He bit down on his lower lip and his eyes fluttered closed. He moaned and grunted, seeking his end just as I sought mine. I dug into his chest, pulling groans from his throat as his eyes flew open. The primal lust behind them told me I was in for a surprise as he sat up straight and held me close to him.

We bucked against one another, our bodies no longer in our control. Our kisses were sloppy and our hands were everywhere. Our arms were weak and our legs were trembling. I could feel a hot sticky wetness dripping down his thighs as his dick twitched deep within my body.

“Cum with me, Colin. Do it now.”

Throwing my arms around him, we collapsed onto the bed. His cock filled me, forever marking me as his one and only true love. My body was shaking around him, clinging to him as my warmth drew him deeper and deeper. I whimpered into his neck as he grunted in my ear, our bodies quaking and jolting as our desire hit us head-on.

Then I slid from his body and descended to the bed beside him.

“Come here,” Colin said, breathlessly.

“I think I can,” I giggled.

He held his arms out for me and I snuggled in close. I turned so I could face him, my lips still panting for air. His hand tucked a loose strand of hair behind my ear as my eyes danced between his, and the love I felt radiating from his body rendered me speechless.

“So,” Colin said.

“So—what?” I asked.

“You’re all moved in. We’ve rededicated our vows in front of everyone. I think it’s pretty much permanent,” he said.

“What—us you mean?” I asked.

“Our lives together, yes,” he said.

“Why did you feel the need to point that out?”

“How are you feeling?”

I could see a twinge of fear rising behind his eyes and it troubled me that I’d conditioned him to react that way. I brought my hand up to cup his cheek, my thumb running over a bead of sweat that had dripped down his brow.

“I feel like I’m right where I’m supposed to be,” I said.

“You’re not scared?” he asked.

“Of course I’m scared. I’ve got more to lose if I mess up now. But if I do mess up, I trust that you’ll be there. I trust that you’ve got me. I trust that you want me to succeed instead of wanting to set me up for failure.”

“I want nothing more than your happiness and success,” he said.

“Funny, I kind of feel the same way about this one guy,” I said with a smirk. “But on a serious note, I don’t think we should do Colorado right away.”

“Me, neither. We do sort of have this thing called work. I think my public relations representative is pissed that I haven’t been in the office lately. She’s had to field a lot of work by herself.”

“She, huh? I hope she’s not pretty. Otherwise I’d have to keep my eye on her,” I said.

“What about your boss?” he asked, grinning. “What would he think about all this?”

“I think—he would be happy for us,” I said. “But he’s probably pissed that I keep leaving work for stupid shit.”

“Our cruise wasn’t stupid shit,” Colin said.

“Made you break character though, ha!”

Colin wrapped his arms around me and turned me over onto my back. I giggled as he peppered my neck with kisses, his hands meandering down my sides. I could feel his hands parting my legs, seeking the heat he so desperately wanted. My giggles quickly turned to moans as he slid a finger within me, and soon I was pushing him down to where I wanted his mouth to be.

“Six months,” he said into my skin.

“Huh?” I asked.

“Six months at work, and then Colorado.”

“Sure, sure. Yeah. Whatever you say, boss,” I said.

“Oh, boss. I like that name. Say it again,” he said.

“That feels—so good, boss. Don’t stop,” I said.

“Don’t stop what?”

I raised my head to take in his stare as his devilish blue eyes fluttered up towards me.

“Don’t stop loving me,” I said.

He placed a small kiss on the tip of my clit as my body jumped for him.

“Never,” Colin said. “I will never stop loving you.”