Blended (Redemption #1) (55 page)

“Drinks!” Adriana shouts and a waitress that I hadn’t noticed before makes herself known, asking what she can bring for each of us. All three of the girls decide on a redheaded slut shot. She leaves us, and I watch Liam take a drink of a tall glass of water, which allows me to relax and pour myself another two fingers of amber liquid. Instead of sipping on the grand liquid in my glass, I throw it back when Hadley shifts her impeccable body off of me.

I haven’t had much to drink since before my accident, and I’m not entirely sure how my body will handle this, but I’m grateful that the other men have decided not to drink. It gives me pause knowing that they have both Hadley’s and my backs.

The shots are brought back to us, and Hadley has a sparkle in her eye as she takes the shot with the two other women.

“Come dance with us,” they whine, and she looks at me.

“You know my rules.”

She nods and gets up, straightening her dress as she follows the two of them down the stairs, leaving Liam and me alone.

“I can’t believe that you’re getting fucking married in a few days.”

“You and I both, but I wouldn’t change this; it’s how it’s supposed to be. It’s what I never considered wanting or having, but here it is, and I have never been so content in life before.”

“That’s one hell of a way to put it.”

“It is. Now tell me, what is going on with your triangle.”

“Ah,” he says and pauses to take a drink from his water bottle. “Both of them know how to fuck me. They both have a fucking dirty side and are able to suck me off until I can’t fucking stand.”

“You cannot keep leading the both of them on.”

“They are well aware of what I do with each of them. Neither of them has given me an ultimatum, so I don’t see the reason to decide. I’m not getting married or settling down. I’m fucking them each until they cannot stand the feeling of my dick inside them any longer.”

“Fuck.” I adjust myself, thinking about giving it to Hadley tonight and pour myself another glass.

“Take it easy on the heavy shit, dude. When was the last time you actually got drunk?”

“Don’t concern yourself with that shit. Just remain sober.”

“I’ve already given you my word.”

I nod and throw the drink back before looking out onto the dance floor. It takes me a moment to find them, but when I do, their bodies move seductively in sync, pressing together in places that my fucking hands should be touching on my bride.

I slam my glass down and stand, but when I do, I can feel the warmth of the alcohol slide down into my extremities. Liam gets up and follows me down to the dance floor to the women.

I ring my arms around Hadley’s waist, and she starts to push them off of her body until she looks down at my hands and glances over her shoulder. “It’s you.”

“Always, Rye. I’ve got you.”

“I love you,” she shouts and turns in my arms, starting to move against me once again.

“As I do you,” I tell her against her ear before taking her lobe between my teeth and biting down.

“Waylon Brass,” Isla yells out, “are you drunk?”

I swing my head in her direction and Liam is wearing a shit-eating grin. Fucker. “I’m well on my way.”

The pair laugh together before she hugs me. “I’ll get us shots.”

Before I’m able to protest she walks away from the four of us as Lola and Owen join us. We’re all lost in our partners when Isla announces her return. I glance over in her direction, hating that I have to remove my eyes from Hadley’s body. She’s followed by our waitress with a tray filled with shots, two each if my vision is correct.

“Cheers, bitches,” she says as she starts handing out the drinks.

“What is this?” Lola asks but doesn’t wait for an answer to down the entire shot.

“Redheaded sluts,” she yells as she hands out the second round. We each down the shots before returning the glasses to the tray.

I can tell that Hadley is under the spell of alcohol by the way her body is moving against mine, and how she’s unable to keep her hands to herself. “Wade,” she says against my neck, but somehow I hear her.

“What is it?”

“I’m needy.” Her teeth sink into my shoulder through my shirt that is now slightly damp with sweat, and I fucking swear, I might be able to see through the sheer white material that covers Hadley’s breasts, but I’m unsure.

“You need to be fucked.”

“More than you know.”

“You’ll have to wait. I’m too drunk to fuck you in the right place right now.”

She purses her lips and leans up on her toes. “Maybe I’ll like it.”

I pull back to look at her. “We’ll have to wait to find out the answer to that.”

“Deal.”

The alcohol may be swimming through me, but I’ve found solace in knowing that I’ll have her tied to me for life in a few short days. A rumble rips through my chest as I pull her closer against my body and we start to move against each other again, feeling more alive than I ever have before.

Isla leans over to yell, “I like seeing you drunk. You’re a fucking mess and goofy as hell. I’m glad that you found your. . . .”

I couldn’t hear the rest of her sentence. “My what?” I yell back at her, trying to decipher each word that she’s said.

“Your . . . nope, never mind. I’ll get us all some more shots.”

“Yes!” Hadley yells and throws her hands up before cupping my jaw in her hands and pulling my mouth down to hers.

Fuck, she’s captivating, and she knows exactly how to hold onto who I am. If I could undress her on the dance floor without any consequences, then I would, but she’ll have to wait.

Isla returns with shots of whiskey with soda, but the only chaser I need is Hadley’s lips.

I do not remember much after another four rounds of shots. Nor do I recall how we got back to the penthouse, but when we wake the next morning, we’re both half dressed, and sorely hung over. I look at the still-drunk woman beside me. Her makeup is not as it was the night before, and her once-straight hair has turned back into curls, but I love her all the more for it.

I chuckle to myself when she groans and grips my bicep. If I wake up to her every morning for the rest of my life, I will be more than content.

The mere thought of another man waking up and seeing her like this tears me apart. It’s this morning that I realize exactly what I could have lost if she had not decided to come back to me. She would be wrapped around another man today instead of me. None of the other options are tolerable.

I do not understand what brought me to her, or how life has handed me this deck of cards, but I refuse to argue with the queen of hearts. Apparently, my love is enough, and I’ll settle for that. For my cup of whiskey.

Holy shit.
Today
is the day that will start the remainder of my life. It will take me to places and make me feel what I’ve been putting off for my entire life. Today’s meaning marks more than a signature on a simple sheet of paper or an additional ring on my left hand. It’s going to be something that I’ll experience and savor.

Today, January twenty-ninth, marks the unity of two hearts and souls that have been in search of each other for as long as I have been alive and breathing. I’ve never thought of binding my soul to another’s before, but as Lillian and Lola secure my veil into place, I’ve never been more anxious to make this final, for this fairy tale to be more than fiction.

I glance at myself in the full-length mirror in the embroidered gown that was specifically designed for me by Lola. I turn to the side to get a better view of it, running my hands down my thighs and over the pattern crossing my skin. After one more glance at the dress, I stare out the windows of the room onto the Scottish countryside beyond, half of which is covered in snow. This country house is quaint and undeniably extraordinary. I choose my steps carefully as Lola and Lillian watch me.

“I can’t believe that this is happening,” I murmur.

“Hads, you are stunning. He’s going to pass out when he sees you, and I bet that he would even vow to grab your ass when you’re old and wrinkly.”

Lillian laughs and comes up to me, hugging me gently so as not to mess up my makeup and hair. “I’m thrilled that you will be part of the Brass family within the next hour.” She wipes at an unshed tear and fixes a strand of hair that has fallen out of my updo.

“I already consider you my mother, Lilly. Thank you for raising such an incredible man. You have my word that I will be what he needs.”

She sniffles and hugs me again, unable to find one of a hundred words that she has on the tip of her tongue to tell me how she feels about today, about my relationship with her son.

There’s a light knock on the door, letting us know that it’s time to head down. I nod to Lola and Lillian, and they each kiss me once on the cheek before walking out and leaving me on my own for the next minute.

I inhale deeply before releasing. I’ve already decided what I want my future to be, and now I simply have to go out there and get it. I’ve chosen to invest in more than just a one-night stand and instead venture into something that will last forever. He’s treated me differently than any man has before, taking my heart from me to shield and protect it from all elements that the world throws at it. I’m precious to him, and he makes me feel it each and every day.

Love won’t give up on me and neither will I on it. He won’t give up on me either; it’s a feeling that sits securely within me and I refuse to fight it for one second. There’s a second knock on the door, letting me know that it’s my turn to exit. I take one more look at myself wrapped in this gorgeous pearl-white dress before walking to the door and pulling it open. Owen smiles down at me and offers me his hand. I take it willingly, and he silently leads me down the hallway to the staircase, both of us unsure of what to say in this emotional moment.

When it’s time, he too places a kiss on my cheek before walking down the stairs and taking his seat among those whom Wade flew out to be a part of our experience. Our unity. Our love.

The song
Bloom
by the Paper Kites fills the room, cueing me in. I take the first step down the staircase and then another. With each step I take, I’m leaving my past behind me and walking into my future with an extraordinary man.