Page 41 of Glass Omega

Not only that, he was also breathing heavily, his lips red and swollen under the sheen of the shimmery lip gloss the makeup artist had put on me this morning.

No, Edison wasn’t just playing a part, and for some reason, that made butterflies erupt in my belly as I reached up to gently brush the gloss from his lips with my thumb.

“Thank you,” he rumbled, his fingers dimpling the flesh of my back as we turned to face the crowd who were also playing their part as Edison’s family, happily cheering on our nuptials.

“For what?” I asked as we descended the platform, hand-in-hand, and started to make our way back up the aisle, grinning for everyone to see.

Edison shook his head as he waved smugly to some of the older members of the Keane family as we passed. Their smiles didn’t quite reach their eyes as they watched us go, clearly unhappy with the wedding they’d just witnessed.

“For going through with it—the wedding I mean.”

I slanted a glance in his direction. “Well, Edison, it isn’t like you gave me much of a choice. You did have Rhodes carry me like a sack of potatoes out of my last wedding.”

The words were meant to be a joke—he’d let me negotiate far more than I ever would have been able to with the Italians, after all—but I watched as his expression fell a bit. Once we stepped through the archway and away from the crowd, Edison turned to face me completely. “I am sorry for that, Perrie, but I needed you to make all of this work.”

His use of my first name instead of the silly nickname he’d given me made me straighten and look at him more closely. He seemed almost remorseful now that the ring was on my finger.

Truthfully, I wasn’t sure what value a previously sickly omega with a traitorous rat for a father could hold for him. The Keane family was powerful, even when it came to the other four families that ruled the dark underbelly of the city. But he’d chosen me for a reason. Whether it be for political power, or a way to control the older members of the Keane clan, I didn’t know, but somehow I was suddenly feeling grateful for it.

Absentmindedly reaching up, I straightened his bow tie the same way I’d done for Rhodes’ earlier.

“I’ve made my peace with it, Edison, I figured you knew that by now. If I hadn’t I would have tied a bunch of bedsheets together and climbed out of my ivory tower already.” This time my words brought a half-smile to Edison’s face, and much to my surprise, his lips dropped down to mine and we were kissing again.

This one wasn’t as over the top as the one we shared before, but it still filled me with warmth, like all of the butterflies from earlier were catching on fire and filling my veins with heat.

Edison’s tongue also made an appearance for the first time, slipping along my lower lip in a silent ask for entry.

If the kiss earlier had been the triumphant finale of a romantic drama—this was a scene cut out because it was too risqué for general audiences.

My back bowed as I tried to catch a breath of air, but Edison’s mouth chased mine, his fingers almost bruisingly tight on my waists as a muffled growl leaked from in between our joined lips.

Dazedly, it reminded me of all of the spicy romance novels that I’d had to put down whenever a nurse walked into the room and it especially reminded me of my guilty pleasure of reading mafia romance.

I’d always written them off as unrealistic. That there was no way that romance or attraction could flourish in a system that had ruled my home city for as long as anyone could remember.

But now I was the wife of a mobster, and despite my best efforts, I actuallylikedmy new husband.

And I’d probably end up liking him even more if he kept kissing me the way he was. It was like he wanted to consume me entirely and I was practically melting under his touch, our scents intermingling like the most mouthwatering of desserts.

“One of these days,” I whispered when he finally set me free, “You’ll have to tell me about all of those mastermind plans that are rattling around inside of your head.”

The golden irises of Edison’s eyes were slowly returning as he pulled back and the carefully crafted mask that he usually wore returned again. “Maybe one day I will.”

It wasn’t quite a promise, but I would take what I could get.

Someone cleared their throat and we both turned to find Rhodes approaching us. I wasn’t sure where he was during the wedding itself, but his clothing was now all askew like he’d been in a fight.

Edison noticed it quickly too because he pulled me in Rhodes’ direction, with a worried frown. “What the hell happened to you?”

Rhodes’ dark eyes moved from our swollen lips to our joined hands and there was a shift in his expression so fast that I almost missed it.

“The Italians tried to kick up a fuss. Those Ricci assholes are downstairs in holding right now because they tried to pull an us and crash the wedding. Dumbasses thought that just because the Amantes fucked up security that we would too.”

I blinked, surprised that Elio and his pack would go that far. I figured they would be happy that I was no longer going to be forced to be their omega.

Edison’s grip on my hand tightened as he heaved a sigh. “Apparently, pet, when it comes to your wedding luck you’re now two-for-two.”

Leaning down he pressed a quick kiss to my forehead that, despite the two kisses we’d already shared, seemed far more intimate. “Go with Oona and change into your reception dress. Rhodes, you’re with me.”

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