Total pages in book: 153
Estimated words: 140965 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 705(@200wpm)___ 564(@250wpm)___ 470(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 140965 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 705(@200wpm)___ 564(@250wpm)___ 470(@300wpm)
They were pronounced man and wife, and then he was kissing her, vaguely hearing the cheers in the background. She had given herself to him as fully as he’d given himself to her.
15
After talking with all their friends via computer, Draden gathered his woman into his arms and kissed her thoroughly again before dancing to the music playing in the background. Holding her in his arms, close to him, gave him a sense of peace, or rightness, and brought every cell in his body alive.
“It’s a damn good thing I’m wearing this jacket,” he declared, pulling her even closer as he whirled her around the room. “I wouldn’t want to put all the soldiers on alert.”
She laughed, the sound more like music than the song playing. She had removed the headdress for the dance and her hair was tangling in the stubble already growing on his jaw, although he’d shaved that morning. He loved that, the way those gleaming strands wove them together. He’d never believed in soul mates until he’d found her. She was it for him. She always would be.
“I rather like the idea that you want me.”
He heard the little note that didn’t ever belong in her voice. The one that said she wasn’t as confident as she let on. He looked down at her. “Look at me, sweetheart.”
She kept her head pressed against his chest for a moment, clearly gathering courage, and then her eyes met his. Shyness was there for certain. Where before she’d been a bold seductress, now she was unsure of herself. Had he done that?
“I’ve wanted you every minute of every day. Sometimes, baby, it was pure hell keeping my hands off you. I held out hope you didn’t have the virus. You weren’t exhibiting a single symptom while I was. I know we kissed and that should have cemented the fact that you were infected, but I couldn’t be sure. If I’d acted on the way I felt, and I was the cause of your death, that would have been the worst possible thing I could imagine. Loving you and causing you to die. I wasn’t getting worse, and I knew they pumped me full of that shit. There was a chance I was fighting it off.”
“So, you decided you had to protect me.” Her long lashes fanned her cheek, drawing his attention to her delicate bone structure and the smattering of freckles that he wanted to kiss one by one.
“Absolutely I did.” He couldn’t help himself—it was sheer indulgence, but he did kiss every freckle of gold that matched the gleaming metal at her throat.
“You’re so crazy, and you missed a few big opportunities.”
The teasing note slid down his spine like fingers. His cock reacted, growing harder. The ache was becoming a distinct pain. “We’ve got to go. Get out of here. I need you alone.”
“I’m not protesting.” Her eyes took on a mischievous glint and that quirky mouth of hers gave him a million ideas. “I’m the one who practiced all sorts of things and I believe you’re going to benefit from my studies.”
“We’re out of here,” he said to the camera.
A cheer went up, and he made a point of waving at them to let them know he’d been waiting long enough to be alone with her. It was all he could think about. Shylah teasing him only made him need her that much more. He shut down the cameras and music and held out his hand. Shylah placed hers in his without hesitation.
Night had fallen while they were inside, and the sounds were soothing after all the noise of conversations and well-wishers. Neither of them had been around other people for a few days, and he hadn’t realized how they lived with just the sounds of the forest. He was used to the swamp sounds, which meant he spent more time in it than out of it.
“I want the chance to show you my home. The swamp is beautiful in its own way, Shylah. I like being away from everyone, all the noise that drowns out the sounds, that brings peace. I go out at night and run so I’m part of what’s out there, instead of being locked indoors.”
He took his time, enjoying walking with her close to him. The moon spilled down on them, making the gold in her dress shimmer and gleam. Every now and then a beam caught on the rubies at her throat and ears, turning the gems into fiery blazes. Even that caused a reaction in his body. He forced himself to walk slowly, to take in everything, to memorize each moment with her. He never wanted to forget even the smallest detail about their day.
“Thank you for this, Draden. I have no idea how you pulled this off, but it was the most beautiful, amazing day any woman could possibly wish for.”