Blood of the White Witch (2 page)

“Do you, Portia Mullins, take Vance Mangum
as your legal and lawful husband?” the minister continued. “Do you
promise to love, honor, and care for him from this day
forward?”

“Yes,” I replied, my eyes beginning to water
as I stared up into Vance’s loving gaze.

He turned to Vance.

“Do you, Vance Mangum, take Portia Mullins
as your legal and lawful wife? Do you promise to love, honor, and
care for her from this day forward?”

“Yes,” he answered, and I saw the emotion in
his eyes equaled mine as small bits of moisture gathered there
before me.

“Do you have the rings?” the minister
asked.

Brad and Shelly both stepped forward to hand
us our rings. I handed my bouquet off to Shelly and turned back
toward Vance.

“Portia, place the ring on Vance’s left ring
finger and repeat after me,” the minister said.

I took the white gold band and slid it
gently over his long, masculine finger still unable to control the
slight tremors in my hand.

“With this ring, I thee wed, if front of God
and these witnesses,” I repeated after him.

Vance then took the matching ring he held
and slid it tenderly up over my finger.

“With this ring, I thee wed, in front of God
and these witnesses,” he said as he lifted his gaze from our hands
and back to my eyes.

“Let it be known that these two are now
joined together in the eyes of God, the eyes of the church, and in
the eyes of man. What God has joined together, let no man put
asunder. I now pronounce you husband and wife for all intents and
purposes.”

Vance didn’t wait for the minister to tell
him to kiss his bride, instead grabbing me up in a giant bear hug
and kissing me passionately in front of everyone as they burst into
cheers and applauding.

I wrapped my arms tightly around his neck,
not wanting to let go. The kiss went on a lot longer than decorum
dictated it should have, but I didn’t mind. Finally, he stepped
back from me, leaving both of us breathless, but his eyes didn’t
leave me nor did the smile that was spread widely across his
face.

“I present to you Mr. and Mrs. Vance
Mangum,” the minister said to the crowd as they cheered again when
we turned to face them.

Vance took me by the hand in an iron grip
and led me back down the aisle, through the chapel and out into the
hallway. He didn’t stop there though, and I was surprised when he
pulled me quickly into the first room we came to, shutting the door
behind us.

He grabbed me then, pulling me flush up
against his body and really kissed me, like I knew he had wanted to
do out there, letting all of his passion move into that moment. His
mouth slanted hard over my mouth, demanding all of mine yet giving
all of his in return as he ran his hands up and down over my
back.

I closed my eyes and savored the feel of him
as he pressed me as close as he could get me, not leaving a
millimeter of space between our bodies, loving every breathless
second of his heated assault against me. Little sparks of lightning
flashed through me and over my skin as his hot breath mingled
together with mine, and I felt the goose bumps that popped out on
my skin as a result.

I dropped my bouquet on the floor without a
care and wound my arms tightly around his neck, standing on my
tiptoes to reach him better, as I became all consumed by his
kiss.

For several long heated moments our mouths
danced together in an ancient rhythm of love, speaking intimacies
to one another that couldn’t be shared with mere words.

“Wow! You look amazing!” he said when we
finally stepped back, gasping for some air and his eyes flitted
over the entire length of my body. “I’ve never seen anything in my
life that looked so good.”

“I was just thinking the same thing about
you,” I replied with a grin while I looked at his lips which had
swollen a bit from his impassioned kissing of me.

“I love you,” he said, and he stepped back
against me, this time cradling my face gently in both of his hands,
running one of his thumbs tenderly over my lips as he stared at
me.

“I love you, too.” I smiled looking into his
beautiful blue eyes, unable to tear my gaze away from him.

“Dang reception!” he muttered under his
breath while he watched my face, and I understood exactly what he
meant.

I laughed at his disgruntled expression.

“Patience, love,” I spoke. I placed my hand
lightly against his cheek, caressing the hard masculine planes
there. “The time will come soon enough, as I am sure you know, but
right now we have guests.”

“They can wait,” he said, and he pulled me
hard against him once more, kissing me again, trapping me
effectively in his iron grasp.

I willingly wound my arms back around his
neck and wished we could just run off together right now. Leaning
into the kiss, I felt his tongue trace the contours of my lips and
I opened my mouth at his request, following him in his sensual
movements until I felt his very emotions would consume me as they
raced forcefully through my body, setting me on flame as if he had
lit a torch of fire to my skin. I never wanted him to stop, but
reality stepped forward, intruding once again, and I pulled back
from him instead, though he did not let me go willingly.

“Come on, Vance. We’ve been in here kissing
for several minutes now. Let’s go to our reception before something
starts that you won’t want to stop.” I smiled knowingly at him as I
placed my hand against his finely tailored chest.

“Too late,” he said with a grin, and I could
see the extreme disappointment in his eyes as he allowed me to take
his hand and drag him back out the door.

The wedding coordinator was standing outside
with a knowing look on her face, and I briefly wondered if anyone
would be at all surprised by our kiss-reddened faces and my obvious
lack of makeup around my mouth. To my surprise she led me back to
the bride’s room so I could retouch my makeup, while she kept Vance
occupied in conversation just outside the door. Then she directed
us down the hall to the reception room where all our guests had
been shuttled.

A man at the door stood at our approach and
opened it for us, calling out to the crowd.

“Please welcome Mr. and Mrs. Mangum!” his
thunderous voice boomed into the room before us as we entered.

We stepped into the lavishly decorated
space, with its fragrant red roses in large crystal vases,
silk-draped tables, and sheer-fabric-lined walls with soft
lighting, to greet our guests. Immediately we were wrapped up in a
throng of well wishers, shaking hands, hugging and giving
kisses.

Slowly we weaved our way across the room
toward the head table, which was bedecked in fine china, crystal,
and silverware, stopping to visit many times along the way. When we
were finally seated, we enjoyed a lovely meal of roasted meats,
fruits, salads, and many other concoctions, which a truly
delightful chef had prepared for us and our company.

Afterwards, when the dinner portion was
complete, Vance and I headed out to the dance floor for our first
dance as a wedded couple. He pulled me into his arms and began to
move against me, and I was surprised at how well we danced in
unison together. We had never really had the opportunity to dance
with one another before this time in our relationship.

He held me tightly in his arms as we swayed,
his eyes never leaving mine, and though we didn’t speak any words
to each other, many thoughts and feelings were conveyed in those
precious moments between us. The rest of the room slowly melted
away from my vision, and he was, at that moment, the only other
being in my universe. It was as if the rest of time had come to a
complete standstill around us as we held each other in a loving
embrace. It was a magical moment, a true union of our two souls.
Guiltily, I wondered if our guest were beginning to feel neglected
since the two of us were so completely absorbed within each other.
I didn’t mean to be rude, but he was all I was interested in right
now.

“They understand,” he said as he moved
across the dance floor with me, never breaking his gaze from
me.

“Mmm?” I asked, continuing to look up at him
with starry eyes, his words not really registering with me.

“Our guests, they won’t be offended that we
can’t stop looking at each other. That’s what you were thinking,
right?” A slight grin tipped up the corner of his mouth, barely
revealing one of his beloved dimples to me.

I nodded my head with a dreamy smile,
suddenly wishing I could kiss that charming little spot on his
face.

“I love you,” I said again, enjoying the
feel of his strong muscular body moving against me.

He bent forward and kissed my lips then. I
responded instantly, moving my arms up over his broad shoulders and
slipping my fingers up into the back of his hair. I registered,
only briefly, somewhere in the back of my mind that we had quit
moving to the music, but the thought was quickly brushed aside as
the heat of his tender touch suddenly intensified.

We forgot we had an audience, and he ran his
hand up my back, sliding underneath my veil, over my neck, and up
toward my hair. I felt a soft moan escape my lips as he pressed my
head harder against his, feeling completely wrapped up in the pure
bliss of the moment.

Suddenly I was yanked unceremoniously from
Vance’s grasp, and we both stumbled slightly at the intrusion as I
found myself wrapped in my dad’s arms.

“Save it for the honeymoon, son,” he
whispered with a laugh, and he reached out to pat Vance on the
shoulder before he spun me out onto the dance floor.

I blushed deeply at the comment, glancing
back apologetically toward Vance who was standing stock still where
we had left him, with a slightly amused and somewhat bewildered
expression on his face.

We spent the rest of the evening visiting
and dancing with family and friends until it was time to cut our
wedding cake.

Our cake was a simple but elegant
three-tiered masterpiece that was frosted in white, with red roses
draped down it in a spiral. Artfully styled frosting gave the
appearance of a basket weave around the sides with little edible
pearls delicately placed throughout the design.

It almost seemed a shame to cut into
something so beautiful, but we picked up the knife together,
slicing gently into the red velvet concoction before removing a
small section and placing it on a small china plate. I broke off a
small piece of it and fed it with my fingers demurely to Vance, who
made a purposeful point to lick the ends of my frosting-covered
appendages as I did it, causing little shivers to course
involuntarily up and down my arm at the contact.

He was equally kind when it came to feeding
me mine, carefully placing the dessert in my mouth, trying not to
damage any of my makeup, though a small amount of frosting made its
way onto the corner of my mouth. Vance, of course, took complete
advantage of the situation as he swooped in to kiss me, licking it
away with his tongue in the process.

Everyone cheered loudly as the photographer
moved in, snapping away with her camera, forever preserving the
moment for us on film.

“Can we get out of here now … please?” Vance
pleaded under his breath with a smile, pulling back away from my
face.

I nodded my head in agreement.

“Absolutely,” I purred back at him before
extending my hand out to him. “Lead the way.”

I was surprised when he turned instead to
address our guests.

“I’d like to thank all of you for making the
trip here on such short notice to support us in our nuptials this
evening,” his strong voice boomed out to the crowd around us. “But
the time has arrived for us to bid you goodnight. Feel free to stay
and enjoy yourselves for as long as you would like.”

He grabbed my hand in his, interlocking our
fingers together, and we waved at our guests as we ran through the
throng, toward the door that led to the hall.

Many happy well wishers followed us, and we
made our way out of the building and to the waiting limousine which
graced the entrance.

We waved once again while we climbed in, the
chauffeur closing the door behind us before we drove away.

As soon as we were out of site of the venue,
Vance leaned over to wrap his arms around me once again, sliding me
right up against him and began truly kissing me in earnest.

I laughed as I placed my hand against his
chest and attempted to push him back a little, feeling my blush
creep over my face.

“Calm down!” I said. “We don’t want to scare
the driver with our public display of affection.”

“We have privacy glass,” he mumbled, and he
hardly broke stride in his pursuit of me, leaning in to place a
lingering kiss against the curve of my neck.

“That may be, but we’ve waited this long;
you can wait a few minutes longer.” I shoved him away even harder.
“I want it to be just right. You know … special.”

He smiled at me then, sighing before he
released me.

“Fine,” he said drawing out the word in
exasperation as he reached out to take me by the hand. “I should’ve
known you’d make me work for it.”

“Hey!” I replied, slapping him lightly on
the shoulder with my rose bouquet. “What is that supposed to
mean?”

“It means you’re a tease,” he responded
laughing, before giving me a wink, enjoying toying with me.

“Whatever!” I said and turned away from him
slightly, pretending to be annoyed with his behavior.

He let go of my hand then and reached over
to hook his finger under my chin, turning me back to face him.

“I love you.” He smiled, looking deep into
my eyes, and my heart began beating faster.

“I know.” I smiled back with a small nod,
unable to break my gaze away from him. “And I love you, too.”