She poked him in the ribs. “I let you get your way,” she said.
“And why’s that?”
“Because you’re even more wonderful when you’re happy.”
“I am definitely happy.”
“And I’m dedicated to keeping you that way.”
“I want to do the same for you. So about your mother…”
Jessica released a heavy sigh and rubbed at her forehead with her hand. A hand, he noted, missing the ring that she’d been wearing for months—the one he’d carried in his pocket for two years after she’d flung it at him in anger. Had she finally decided she could be done with the cheap piece of shit once and for all?
“I’ll try to get along with her,” Jessica said wearily.
“And if you can’t?”
“I’ll ask her to leave,” she said.
“I don’t mind stepping in and—”
She covered his lips with a finger and shook her head. “No sense in increasing the tension between the two of you. I can handle it.”
He nodded, knowing she liked to handle her problems on her own. He’d just be there to support her if and when she needed him. Sometimes he wished that she’d let him rule her life, fix anything that needed fixing, but then she’d be a lot less interesting and he’d probably have never fallen so hard for her. It was the challenge of Jessica Chase—Lionheart—that kept him coming back for more. Their compatibility in the sack didn’t hurt either.
“Where’s your ring?” he asked, lifting her left hand in his.
“Are you blind? It’s right there where you put it.”
“Your other ring,” he clarified.
“Oh.” She showed him her right hand. “You’re supposed to wear the wedding ring closer to your heart, so I switched it to my other hand for the ceremony and forgot to switch it back.”
He took her hand in his and grasped her engagement ring with his fingertips.
“Allow me,” he said.
He removed the ring from her right ring finger and slowly slid it onto her left to rest against her wedding band.
She shuddered beside him, and he glanced up to find her smoldering gaze on him.
“Why was that so erotic?” she murmured.
“Slowly sliding things into holes is always erotic,” he said with a grin.
“It is when you do it.”
The limo pulled to a halt. Sed tugged Jessica into his arms and kissed her deeply, knowing the next few hours would be chaos and they’d have no opportunity to be alone. And when they finally were alone together that evening, he had some romantic dinner plans in store for her and some rather lame words he planned to sing while there. He couldn’t wait to see her face when they reached their rendezvous point. He was a bit less sure about the song. It wasn’t like anything he’d ever written before. She might hate it.
The door was opened from outside, and Sed reluctantly pulled away from Jess’s soft, warm lips. He stared into her eyes and said, “I love you.”
“I love you too.”
“You can count on me, you know. For anything you need or want. You can always count on me.”
She cupped his face between her hands and pecked him on the lips. “I know that. You can count on me as well.”
Sed slid from the limo and extended a hand inside to help Jessica out of the car. All their friends and family were standing in a huge crowd outside the reception hall waiting for them. Their cheers of excitement died as soon as Jessica exited the vehicle. Their slack jaws and wide eyes were probably due to Jessica looking like she’d been rolling around on the mud in her wedding dress. And that was pretty close to the truth.
“Oh, sweetheart.” Sed’s mom separated from the crowd and rushed over to them. “What a terrible time for it to rain.”
Jessica offered Sed a naughty smile before turning her attention to her new mother-in-law. “I actually thought it was good timing,” she said. “I know I look a mess, but I couldn’t be happier.”
Mom wrapped both arms around Jessica and squeezed, swaying slightly with girly giddiness. “I’m so glad you’re not upset. I was worried that you’d be devastated.”
“You can’t stop the rain,” she said.
But nothing had forced them to make love on the beach in it. Except their insatiable lust for each other.
“It’s a good thing you’re level-headed,” his mom said. “You’re going to need a lot of patience to put up with my bullheaded son for the next sixty years.”
“Level-headed? Jessica?” Sed sputtered. “I think you have her confused with someone else.”
His mom gave him a loving smile over Jessica’s shoulder. “Compared to you, doll? Yeah, she’s the level-headed one. I can’t wait to see how your kids turn out. I predict they’ll be a bit challenging to raise.”
Sed’s stomach did a back flip. He wanted eight of them, but if they were all as stubborn as himself and their mother—combined—perhaps he should pare that number down by a few.
His mom tugged away and searched Jessica’s face. Scowling, she pulled the strand of seaweed from Jessica’s hair. “How did you end up with seaweed in your hair?”
Jessica’s eyes widened, and she glared at Sed. He shrugged and shook his head as if he hadn’t noticed it.
“That was some wind,” Jessica said, her cheeks pink.
The photographer sidled over to join their little group. “Do you still want me to take pictures?” he whispered.