Page 83 of Captivated

“I know. Take me home, Cash. Make love to me all night.”

“I’m gonna make love to you forever,” he promises, giving me one more kiss before he pulls us from the ground and we race through the cold night towards his truck, towards our future, and towards a love we found in each other.

Epilogue

Cash

Two and a Half Years Later

“Babe, we’ve got to go!” I shout down the hall, knowing that Piper is taking forever in the bathroom getting ready, but this is normal.

“Just a second!” She calls back, and even though the woman takes her sweet ass time putting herself together, I know the end result will be worth it.

We’re headed to a wedding today for my good friend, Luke. Yes, that same Luke that I used to work with as a deputy. Except he’s not a deputy anymore, but a professor at the community college, and he finally found someone to build a life with after losing his wife years ago.

“Okay, I’m ready,” my wife’s voice calls as I turn and take in the vision of her walking towards me, dressed in a sky blue dress that makes her eyes pop, her long blonde hair draped around her face in soft curls, her lips coated in a shimmery pink gloss that makes me want to devour her. She looks stunning, just like she always does—because some things never change.

But a lot has changed in the last two years. For starters, I’m a married man. That’s right, ladies. Cash Williams is off the market and proud as fuck about it. After my impromptu proposal in the park on New Year’s Eve, Piper and I wasted no time tying the knot. We bought a ring that she loved, elegant and classy, just like her, and married each other in the park by the lock fence on a beautiful spring day that April. The image of her walking towards me in white is one I will savor until my very last breath, the vision of my angel that saved me from a life without love. Birdie beamed with pride as she watched me surrender to love, a thing I never thought I would let overtake me. But boy, am I glad I did. Piper’s parents flew out here for the occasion of course, and her best friends Jess and Rachel stood by her side. Rachel actually lives here now, and is the bride in today’s wedding.

That’s right folks. One of my best friends is marrying Piper’s best friend on a gorgeous Saturday in June, and the love stories just keep on coming.

“You look stunning, sweetheart,” I walk to meet her, running my fingers down her hair and then over her hip, yanking her to me. “Do you mind being a little late? I can’t get over how fucking gorgeous you look in that dress and I just want to rip it right off of you,” I grit through my teeth, running my nose along the column of her neck, watching the goosebumps appear on her skin.

“You were the one that was just rushing me, sir. Now you want to get me naked after all of this work?” She gestures down her body with one hand. “I don’t think so. Besides, we have a pit stop to make before we arrive.”

“We do?” I ask as she turns to walk around me, leaving me in the hallway with a raging hard-on. “Well, fuck.”

I follow her outside, making sure to grab the present and my wallet before I shut and lock the door. “Who says you’re driving?” I inquire as she opens the driver’s side door and hoists herself into the truck.

“Do you know where the pit stop is?” She questions, giving me that snark that just turns me on more than anything nowadays.

“Well, no. But couldn’t you just tell me?”

“Well, then it wouldn’t be a surprise,” she smiles, cranking the engine and then pulling out onto the street.

While she drives, I take the time to study my wife. Her smile is wide today, which means she must be having a good day. After we got married, we decided to actively try to have a baby, knowing it could take us longer to conceive than normal. After about six months with no luck, we saw a fertility specialist who recommended hormones first to help Piper ovulate regularly. Still, a year later, we had not one positive pregnancy test. Then we decided that in vitro fertilization was the next option before we considered surrogacy. Piper has dreamt of carrying a child her entire life, so she wanted to go through every option before we landed on surrogacy. And I promised to do whatever she wanted.

It’s been months of tests and preparation and thousands of dollars, but we’re closing in on the date to try for implantation. Nothing could have prepared me for the roller coaster of emotions we would go through in this process, though. I promised her I would stand by her. But holding her while she cried, knowing there was nothing I could do to change the circumstances made me feel like less of a man at times. So I focused on what I knew I could do with certainty—love her. I show her every day what she means to me—surprising her with coffee from Skye’s Creations, taking her on trips when we cash in our vacation time, cooking for her, always having ketchup stocked in the fridge, and playing dirty Scrabble every chance we get.

I remind her of what brought us together. Because even if we never have a child, my life with her in it is all I ever wanted. And besides, all of our friends have plenty of babies to love on now, which is both amazing and heartbreaking to witness, knowing our struggle to conceive our own.

When Piper pulls into the parking lot of the town hall, I’m baffled by what we’re doing here. The wedding is at the college where Luke and Rachel met, under the gazebo overlooking the lake on the property. It’s a good thirty-minute drive at least, so I know we need to get a move on if we’re going to make it in time and perform our duties as part of the wedding party.

“Piper… what the hell are we doing here?”

“Just follow me please,” she says, reaching for something from her purse and then stepping out of the truck, swaying her hips as she walks away from me, hypnotizing me to follow her.

When she walks through the clearing in the trees, I know exactly where she’s going.

“The lock fence? What is this about babe?” I finally catch up to her, purposely staying behind her so I could ogle her ass while she walked in front of me.

“Well, today is a very special day, Cash,” she starts as she turns to face me and her eyes well with moisture.

“Babe, don’t cry. You’re going to ruin your make-up.”

“I packed some in my purse so I can fix it.”

“Did you know you would be crying?” She nods. “Baby, what’s wrong?”

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