And when the music starts up, my heart stutters in my chest, my stomach going tight until I get my first look at Ava as she enters the room. She’s so beautiful in her lace-covered wedding dress that I let out a slow exhale, my heart now thundering excitedly because this wondrous goddess is about to be mine for all eternity. My eyes burn with pure happiness.
“You look gorgeous,” I whisper, taking her hand in mine when she reaches the top of the aisle and smiles at me from underneath her veil.
“So do you,” she whispers back, passing her bouquet to Dottie before she runs a hand down my soft pink tie and the lapel of my gray suit. “I feel like a fairytale princess.”
“You look it,” I say, feeling like the luckiest man alive.
As the pastor begins to preside over the ceremony, I can’t wipe the smile off my face, knowing that come tomorrow, the life I’ve always felt like I was failing at would finally be complete. I’ve found my other half, and for the rest of our days we’ll move through life as a solid unit. I’ll do anything for this woman.
So I don’t even hesitate when it’s time to say ‘I do’, and neither does she.
“I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss.”
I’m crying like a baby as I lift her veil then slide my hand around the back of her head, pressing my lips to hers, soft at first, then a hell of a lot harder than I should in polite company. But I can’t seem to help myself. There’s just something about Ava that has me wanting everything all at once. She completes me.
“We’re married,” she gasps, grinning up at me as she holds out her hand and admires her gold and diamond ring.
“You’re mine and I’m yours. It’s the real deal, kitten,” I say, placing my left hand next to hers. “Still think you made the right decision?”
“I’ve never had a second where I questioned this. Every bone in my body screams yes, Duke Fox belongs to you.”
“Marmaduke, actually,” I say, lacing my fingers with hers and kissing the back of her hand. “But that’s a secret only family and the government know.”
“I won’t tell a soul,”she promises me. “But since you’re named after a cartoon dog, and I’m kitten, maybe I’ll start calling you puppy.” She grins and I smile back down at her and press a kiss to the end of her nose.
“You can call me anything you like, kitten. I’ll always come runnin’.”
“I love you, Duke.”
“I love you too,” I say, kissing her again before we turn to our guests and do the obligatory walk back down the aisle as a married couple.
After that, it’s free-flowing food, drinks and music with lots of dancing. We get the chance to celebrate the start of our new life with family and friends, new and old. It’s genuinely a blast. But when the clock strikes twelve, it’s time for us to have our Cinderella moment and head home. Well, to the little bungalow that Dylan Valentine and his brothers helped me fix up in time for our honeymoon stay. It’s nowhere near perfect, but it’s quaint and rustic, and it has everything we need to spend a couple of weeks alone and away from the world.
“This isadorable!” Ava squeals as I carry her across the threshold then place her down in the center of a round rug that sits at the foot of a massive bed surrounded by sheer curtains cascading from the roof like we’re camping out in some fancy tent. “I can’t believe how much you got done before the wedding, Duke. It’s truly amazing.”
I slide my hands around her waist. “I couldn’t have done a fraction of it without all those Valentines jumpin’ in. They’re like a small army of magicians, and I’m eternally grateful to them.”
“They’ve been so welcoming, haven’t they?”
“They sure have. And since they helped to put this smile on my wife’s face, they’ll be in my good books for many years to come.”
She grins and leans back slightly, tilting her head up like she’s basking in the sun. “I’m yourwife,” she sighs before adding a giggle. “Are we crazy?”
“Crazy in love,” I say, leaning in and cupping her face with both hands before I bring my mouth to hers, devouring her with deep, languid strokes of my tongue.
“I want you, Duke,” she murmurs, pulling back slightly then nipping her teeth against my chin before she giggles then steps away from me toward the bed. “Do you want me?”
“Since the moment I saw you,” I say, approaching her as she reaches up to unpin the little crown that’s been holding her veil in place all night. “Leave it on. I want to take my bride while she’s still wearin’ her crown.”
“What about my dress?” she asks, lifting the lacey material up until I can see where her stockings end in a band of floral lace and suspenders. My dick goes rock hard.
“Lose the dress and the shoes. Keep the stockings.”
She laughs, but her face is flushed, a playful, seductive light dancing in her eyes as her chest heaves. “Care to help a girl out?” she asks, turning and pulling her hair and veil to the side so I can unzip her dress.
My cock aches from wanting her as I take my time dragging the zipper down her back, pushing the dress of her shoulders then kissing her soft skin as the weight of the dress pools around her feet like a white cloud. “I can’t tell you how many times I’ve jacked off thinking of you just like this,” I murmur, my voice overcome with lust and desire. “A precious gift for me to unwrap and keep all to myself. I want to treat you gentle, kitten. But I don’t know if I have that in me. I need you to promise you’ll let me know if I’m too rough, OK? I want your first time to be perfect.”
“I promise,” she whispers, turning her head until our mouths connect, and I kiss her as I turn her back around to face me, her hands moving up my torso to pull my tie free before working on the buttons of my shirt, my jacket long since dumped at the reception. “But I don’t think you could possibly hurt me, Duke. We were made for each other.”
