AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Jay’s face was blank. “Yeah, I’m not sure I could take her on,” he responded dryly.
I beamed at him, happiness spreading to my fingertips. “Later?”
His hand settled around my neck. “Later, my bride, I’ll be making sure to corrupt you so much that you’ll never wear white again,” he murmured.
His tone and his eyes almost made me brave enough to go head to head with Wren.
Almost.
Jay moved his hand from my neck down to my hand, holding it in a death grip, pulling me from the wall and across the room. We joined our guests, emerging during cocktail hour. A cocktail hour that almost exactly mimicked my twenty-ninth birthday party. The one Jay hadn’t attended. The large room looked like nothing other than a fairy meadow. There were mini oak trees with doors inside of them scattered around the exterior of the room. Waiters and waitresses wore the wings that Wren had had made for my birthday. Wildflowers were scattered across the floor. Another fucking harpist. It was so serene, so peaceful—for about a second.
“You!” Wren attacked me the second Jay and I entered the reception area. “Let her go,” Wren demanded, nodding to Jay’s hands which were intertwined with mine.
Jay gave her an even look that communicated ‘no fucking way’ and contained healthy amounts of his signature, scary, badass stare.
Wren did not even blink. “You want to take me on, buddy?” she challenged. “All the hormones coursing through my body, in addition to ... just being me, I’d fucking ruin you.” Hands on her hips, she leaned ever so slightly forward to communicate that she was not fucking around.
Jay let me go. But not before yanking me to his body and kissing the ever-loving shit out of me.
“We get it, you love her with a furious intensity,” Wren griped, snatching my hand and dragging me away.
I was in somewhat of a daze when I found myself standing at the edge of the balcony, looking across at the ocean with my three best friends. Zoe was even doing her best to look like she was happy for me.
“What’s this?” I asked, using every ounce of my willpower not to look back to see what my husband was doing.
I was a bad friend. A very, very bad friend. I adored these women more than anything.
“We’re toasting to the first of us to be married,” Wren raised her glass nodding to me. “He’s a great first husband,” she deadpanned.
I rolled my eyes.
“Joking!” she continued, holding up her glass. “But seriously. You did good, kid. I only did slightly,” she held her thumb and finger together, “better.” She winked. “To saucy sex arrangements turning in to love, a breakup then a beautiful reunion on the other side of the world.”
“To that,” I agreed, clinking my glass with each of them.
Wren had barely got the glass to her lips before a large hand snatched the crystal flute from her grasp.
“No fucking wine,” Karson snapped.
I gaped at him. I was sure the last time I’d seen him, he’d been across the room. Way across the room. I only knew that because he’d been standing beside Jay, both of them watching our little huddle.
Jay was now watching this little huddle with the slightest twitch to his lips.
Wren’s face changed so quickly, the three of us took a collective step back.
“Do you know what kind of bad luck it is to not drink after a toast?” Wren asked slowly, staring at Karson.
“Do you know how little I give a fuck?” Karson fired back in a clipped tone.
“How much of a fuck do you give about that pretty face of yours?” Wren smiled sweetly, tilting her head.
“Threaten me all you like,” Karson shot back.
“Who said anything about threats?” Wren stepped forward in a way a small woman in a ball gown shouldn’t have been able to. But she managed to make the motion as threatening as if a six-foot, muscular man had done it.
Karson, for his part, looked just as threatening.
The standoff was long and tense. None of us were able to look away.
Finally, Wren cursed under her breath and stormed off. Then she whirled halfway through her storm and crooked her finger at Karson. And fuck if that man didn’t go running.
After all of that happened, I went back, back to Jay.
Till death.
Chapter 13
“Are you going to tell me where we’re going?” I asked sleepily.
We were naked. In bed. On a jet.
I didn’t even know that people who weren’t presidents or Kardashians flew in jets that had bedrooms inside of them.
Jay spirited me off in the middle of the reception, forgoing the traditional goodbyes with the throwing of the rice and the crowds. I was happy for it. As much as I loved being around all of my closest friends, celebrating our marriage, I had been greedy for Jay the entire evening. He’d been by my side the entire time, always touching me, always watching, barely engaging in conversation with those around him. Only I existed.
