Page 42 of Promised Vows

“I can be stupid.”

She snorted. “That’s a given.”

I chuckled and quickly wrapped my arm around my middle. “You don’t have to be so quick to agree.”

“I know.” Her face lit up as she laughed.

That sassy mouth. It was getting harder and harder not to kiss her. Me and my dumb pledge to wait for her to beg. No, I quickly reversed course on that line of thought. I wanted this marriage to have the best start possible. It needed to begin on a doubtless foundation.

“What do you need to talk to me about?” I asked.

The humor left her eyes as she studied my face. She chewed her bottom lip. “I…” She muttered something under her breath. “I’m not…” Her cheeks turned a vibrant pink.

I wrapped one arm around her and pulled her closer. “Not what?”

She dropped her forehead against my chest and then looked up at me. “As I was trying on dresses today, I realized that after the wedding comes the wedding night.”

A smile stretched on my lips, and I caught myself before I said what I was thinking. Yes, it sure does.

Rolling her eyes, she muttered under her breath, “I don’t have much experience.” She made a face. “I mean, I’ve had some, but as far as bases go, I’m maybe between one and two. I thought you should know that.”

If she thought that was going to bother me, she was way off. “I think that’s about the sexiest thing a woman has ever said to me. If you want to have sex?—”

“I swear, Ari, if you tell me I have to be?—”

I pressed three fingers to her lips. “As I was saying, if you want to have sex, we’ll take it slow, but only if you want to. Not that I wouldn’t want to because you are a magnificent woman, but it needs to happen when you’re ready. If you aren’t, I’ll hold you and I’ll be happy to do only that.”

“Really?”

“Yeah, why? Did you expect me to be upset?” That thought hit me a little hard. I’d had five guys play kick the tire with my midsection and the idea that she thought I might make her do anything of the sort, hurt ten times worse. I knew I hadn’t hidden it well when she palmed my cheek.

“I didn’t mean it like that. You would never force me to do anything physical. I’m absolutely confident of that, but it’s your wedding and it’ll be your wedding night too. You must have some expectations.”

“The only expectation I have is some cake, great dancing, and tossing that garter.” I grinned.

Her fingers slid across my cheek and into my hair, slowly combing through it. Her eyebrows knitted together. “I’ve never met a man like you before. You have the strength to bend me to your will and take anything you want, and you haven’t.”

I couldn’t even entertain behaving like that with her. And break her spirit? That was her best quality.

When she finally spoke again, it was barely a whisper. “You said I’d need to beg twice for you to kiss me. That I’d need to demand it.” It was as if she was reminding herself rather than me.

“And you said you’d never do it.”

She gave a slight nod while her free hand came to my face and her fingers began tracing my lips. A hiss rushed in my ears as the air was ripped from the room. “I shouldn’t. Your ribs are still healing, and it’s selfish to even think about this.”

Her tongue darted out, leaving a glossy trail along her bottom lip. “I want your mouth on mine. Your lips teasing me to the point I want to scream. I want you to kiss me so long and so hard that I can taste you days later.”

I sucked in a breath and held it as I stared at her. Desire laced the words. It was the first time she’d looked at me with pure desire, and it was beautiful.

“Kiss me, Ari. Please, please, please kiss me. Kiss me. Brand your name on my lips to the point I can’t imagine being kissed by another man.”

Blood drained into the lower half of my body and rational thought was gone. I took her face in my hands and crushed my lips to hers.

Her arms wrapped around my neck while one of her hands was buried in my hair. It was like we were both fighting to hold on to each other. Her mouth opened and our tongues met in an unbridled dance of desire and need. While I was branding her, she was marking me for eternity. This woman owned me.

She was breathing hard when I pulled my lips from her and softly nipped at her skin all the way to her ear. I pulled her lobe into my mouth and smiled against her skin as she moaned.

“My timing is horrible. I want to hold you so badly, but I don’t want to hurt you.” It sounded more like a breathy plea.

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