Divine Grace (62 page)

* * * *

Jack inhaled softly at his first sight of Grace. He dimly heard similar, barely perceptible reactions from Ethan and Adam. He knew it must be hard for them not to react more the way a bridegroom would, but the crowd in the church sanctuary was mixed.

They were surrounded by people who loved them and cared about them, regardless of whether they knew about or understood her attachment to all three. Justin and Charity and their two preteens, Justine and Beau, were Grace’s only close family. It was not a huge gathering but filled the small chapel nicely.

All the ranch hands were there, as well as everyone from the club.

Wesley and Evan were there and between them sat Rosemary Piper. Rachel Lopez and their good friend Hank was also there. All of Jack, Ethan, and Adam’s families were there, and that filled the chapel to capacity.

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Grace moved with fluid motion down the aisle on his future brother-in-law’s arm, looking like a lovely Greek goddess in her wedding gown. Ethan and Adam had been right. It was perfect for her. The fabric swayed and fluttered with each graceful movement, accentuating her curvaceous hips and tiny waist. Her lush breasts swelled so sweetly from the dress and were tantalizing to behold. Her golden hair was swept up on top of her head with stray curls falling down around her soft shoulders, and her veil fluttered behind her from its clip in her hair. He was glad she’d decided to wear the veil back in her hair rather than over her face because then he could enjoy the triumphant joy that was etched across her features as she made her way slowly down the aisle.

The music continued to play as Justin made his way to the designated spot and stopped with her. The pastor approached, smiling broadly. “Who gives this woman to be married?” he asked.

“Her sister and I do,” Justin replied clearly, smiling at Grace, then up at Charity near the altar.

Jack came forward as the pastor backed away slightly, and Justin laid Grace’s hand in his waiting one. Justin then backed away from her before turning to go sit with his son and daughter. Grace held on to Jack as he helped her up the stairs to the altar, where Ethan and Adam also waited.

They looked positively enthralled by her beauty.

“This is the happiest day of my life, Grace,” he whispered softly to her as he helped her.

She looked up at him adoringly and said, “The day’s not over yet, darlin’.”

* * * *

She looked over Jack’s shoulder to Ethan and Adam lined up behind him. They carefully positioned themselves beside Jack so that when they turned to her and she repeated her wedding vows she’d be able to see all three of them, but no one would be able to tell from the pews.

The music ended, and the ceremony was performed. Rings were exchanged with vows as their friends and family looked on. As she repeated the standard wedding vows, she gazed in turn at each of them, loving them with her eyes. After the ceremony, everyone was invited to the Victorian

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mansion on the other side of little Divine. A brief round of traditional wedding pictures was taken, and then Jack, Ethan, and Adam escorted her from the church to the waiting, already cooled SUV.

Jack pulled around to the old servant entrance on the side of the Victorian mansion. Using this entry point, they avoided being delayed by all the guests who waited for their arrival. They helped Grace up the steep old-fashioned stairs, wary of her tripping on her skirts. They stopped at the top of the stairs so she could catch her breath. Inside the largest suite in the mansion, a small party of guests waited for them.

She looked at the three of them standing there, so solicitous of her, and couldn’t help but beam with joy.

Jack caressed her upper arm with his knuckles. “You doin’ okay, darlin?”

“Oh, so much better than okay. I can’t believe my good fortune. I’m just blown away.”

“We’re so happy you’re ours now, baby,” Adam replied softly then leaned down to kiss her.

“Ready to do this, Gracie?” Ethan lifted her hand and pressed his lips to her knuckles.

“Yes, I’m ready.”

The group in the suite consisted of all their immediate family members and Angel and Teresa. Many others downstairs were aware of the binding ceremony going on upstairs but were not in attendance because of space limitations.

The man who would perform the binding ceremony was a friend of Ethan’s. In the ceremony, they spoke of their commitments to one another and a desire to share their lives and love in harmony. Each man in his turn got on one knee and kissed her hand, vowing his love, protection, and provision for her as their female family members blotted tears. Repeating the vows the officiate spoke, she took each one by the hand, kissed his palm and placed his ring on his left ring finger, then kissed each in turn on the lips. Erin took pictures for each part of the ceremony at Grace’s request, and Angel shot a video for them with Jack’s camera.

In the dining room downstairs, Grace knew all the guests were waiting for the happy couple to arrive. She struggled for a moment with having to assume the façade which excluded two of the men she loved. Their close
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family members silently went down the front stairs and formed two rows for the officially wedded couple to enter the dining room through.

The entrance was hard for her as the guests stood and clapped. Adam and Ethan took it in stride and kissed her cheek as she passed them, then blended in with the other guests. Shortly thereafter, they were all seated together again at the head table. Charity orchestrated that by sitting down with Justin and their children, Angel, and Teresa all at one end of the table, leaving the rest of the seats available in a group for Grace and her men to occupy.

Ethan and Adam received plates for the four of them, and Grace amused the guests by sitting in Jack’s lap and allowing him to feed her by his own hand. She traded hot caresses with Ethan and Adam under the table cloth, wishing they were back at Tessa’s place. Tessa was in attendance with her partner, Yolanda. Grace happened to look up and catch Tessa’s eye across the room, and they raised their wine glasses in toast to each other. Tessa winked as Yolanda looked on smiling, raising her glass as well.

Later, Adam and Ethan were able to feed her a bite of the wedding cake, which was already cut and served, according to her plan. Grace eliminated many wedding reception traditions that required excluding Ethan and Adam.

Erin promised to take a picture of the four of them cutting the top tier of the cake later.

After the caterers finished serving the evening meal, the DJ began to play music in the ballroom and Grace and Jack followed everyone else in.

The moment the DJ saw the bride and groom enter the room, he played their song. It was the vocal version of their wedding march song, “I Know How the River Feels,” sung by Ty Herndon. Nobody else danced while Grace and Jack had their first dance, moving gracefully around the dance floor alone, lost in their own little world with each other. It was difficult to maintain the illusion because she also wanted to dance with Ethan and Adam now. Next, Joe came and took her away from Jack and had a dance with her while Jack danced with Charity. Justin danced with Grace after Joe and then the next dances were claimed by Richard and Paul, Adam and Ethan’s fathers.

“You look lovely this evening, Grace,” Richard said sweetly as he held her hand and twirled her to the music, “and you sure can dance, little lady!

Adam told me that about you, and he was right.”

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“Why thank you, Richard, I really appreciate that,” she replied, blushing.

“You’re welcome.” He smiled down at her with the same pale green eyes Adam had. “When it’s permissible, if you’d like, you can call me Dad.”

“Thanks, Dad,” she whispered, her lip trembling. Joe had told her the same thing earlier, and it had brought tears to her eyes, surprising her. She hadn’t had anyone to call Dad in years.

“You’re welcome, sweetheart. Now don’t cry. You’ll get me in trouble with Sue and Adam.” He smiled down at her as she grinned back through her tears.

“Y’all are so sweet to me. I’m so happy to be a part of your family.” She hugged him around his waist because he was so tall, just like Adam.

She had a similar conversation with Ethan’s father, Paul. She fell in love with their families as well for making her feel so welcome.

The next two songs the DJ played were the songs Grace had requested to dance with the three of her men. Her prayers were answered when no one cut in during those songs. The first was “It’s Your Love” by Tim McGraw and Faith Hill. The second was “Must Be Doin’ Somethin’ Right” by Billy Currington. She was positive one song would not be enough and had picked those two especially for her men. The first was danced with Jack so that it would appear that Ethan cut in on them, and then Adam would follow Ethan during the second song. Jack kissed her as he released her to Ethan.

“I have never wanted to press my lips to you more than I do right now,”

Ethan murmured passionately as he smiled down at her congenially. His expression, carefully neutral, was belied by the desire woven into the velvety texture of his husky voice in her ears.

She smiled demurely up at him and whispered, “My lips wish yours were pressed up against them, too. Either set would be happy to return your kiss.”

“You don’t make it easy for me, do you?” He groaned, his fingers twitching at her waist. “My fingers ache to draw you closer.”

“How much longer, sweetheart?” she whispered huskily, stroking him imperceptibly with her fingertips.

“At least another hour. It didn’t seem like that long, but this is torture.

Jack will let you know when it’s okay.”

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“I love you like crazy, Ethan,” she whispered, unable to keep herself from looking into his eyes, knowing that they radiated love for him.

“I’m your slave, Gracie,” he whispered back. “I’m going to make up for this vanilla dance a little later, I promise.”

“I wanted this dance, even if it is a little more restrained than we’re used to. I can’t wait to cut loose with you later, honey.”

Adam cut in a moment later, and Ethan kissed her cheek and released her to him. She smiled up into his gleaming green eyes and squeezed the hand that held hers gently.

“How are you doing, baby?” she asked.

“Patiently waiting for the go ahead from Jack so I can lay a kiss on you that is so hot they have to crank down the thermostat. How about you, gorgeous?” His fingers caressed her softly through the back of her dress.

Grace giggled deliciously at the thought and softly replied, “You let me know the moment you get the okay, and I will enthusiastically assist you in that endeavor. Your fingers are so warm through my dress and my corset.”

“Oh, Lord, don’t remind me about the corset.” He groaned, rolling his eyes. “You are so beautiful in your wedding dress, baby. Now thoughts of what you look like in that corset will be on my mind the rest of the evening.”

Grace drifted closer in the dance and whispered, “I utterly adore you, my handsome husband.”

“You’re the queen of my heart, baby,” he whispered back, his voice a deep, husky drawl, full of emotion.

As the dance ended, she allowed herself a soft, gentle hug around his waist and then released him chastely, reluctantly.

“Soon, baby,” he whispered.

* * * *

Valerie brought her several small bouquets, and the DJ called for all the single women to come to the center of the ball room. She handed each one of them a bouquet made of silk flowers that matched the live ones in her bouquet, which she planned to keep and have dried and preserved.

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Surreptitiously, she handed Teresa a slightly larger bouquet made from real live flowers. When Teresa noticed the difference, her cheeks blushed, and her eyes widened, as she sniffed the fragrant roses.

“Honey, you just won the bouquet toss. You’d never have fought for the bouquet, but you were the one that deserved it. I love you.” Grace kissed Teresa’s cheek. She turned Teresa so she faced the direction where Angel was standing nearby, talking to Ethan. She whispered, “Seize the day, baby!” Teresa blushed and laughed, then took the hint.

Grace watched as Teresa moved through the crowd. Angel’s eyes lit up as she made a beeline straight for him. He asked her for the next dance, and she accepted. He spoke softly in her ear as he escorted her to a corner of the dance floor. She blushed again, looking over at Grace, smiling in gratitude as Angel taught her how to dance.

Jack mingled with Grace, introducing her to their family members, his as well as Ethan and Adam’s. She did as Jack had suggested and assumed that they knew about the four of them and were not in a place where they would discuss it openly. Later in the evening, they could converse more openly with her, after the last of the wedding guests who were not aware of the true nature of the marriage had gone home.

Grace felt large warm hands slide around her waist from behind. She placed her hands over them and knew instantly it was Jack.

“Dance with me, wife?”

“Always, husband.”

“You are stunning tonight, darlin’. You hold my heart in your hands, you know that?”

“The same goes for you, my handsome husband,” she replied and kissed him slow and deep.

He returned her kiss. Gentle tenderness was replaced with desire and need as his warm tongue stroked hers. The lights on the dance floor dimmed considerably, giving them a little breathing room from watchful eyes. As

“Steam,” also by Ty Herndon, played, they flowed over the dance floor, kissing and never missing a beat. They ended the song in the middle of the dance floor to thunderous applause. Grace blushed, and Jack bowed, grinning. By the end of the kiss, Grace’s entire body was simmering with arousal, ready to be taken.

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Once the dance floor filled again, everybody dancing to “Getting You Home” by Chris Young, Adam came and claimed her from Jack. As they settled into the dance, Adam said softly, “Look around. Lots of people have gone home now. It’s just family and close friends left.
Oh, hell yes!
I just got the go ahead from Jack and his dad if you want to act like you’re
really
married now.”

She looked around excitedly, watching for Jack and finding him standing with his father. They both grinned at her, and Jack nodded, blowing her a kiss. She blew one back and threw herself into Adam’s arms, giving him a wedding kiss hot enough to steam the chandeliers. He squeezed her tight and spun her around. She heard soft laughter from around the ballroom, but didn’t mind. They finished their dance with a long, searing kiss before Ethan claimed her from Adam.

“I’ve been watching you, my wife,” he said softly, seductively, pulling her into his arms and onto the dance floor as the DJ played Faith Hill’s

“Let’s Make Love.” He held her to him snugly, and his very hard, insistent erection pressed against her abdomen.

“And I’ve been
wanting
you, my husband.” She kissed him deeply, turning into his kiss, getting as close as she could to him, rubbing her pelvis against his erection. She heard him groan as he released her lips.

“The temptress has been unleashed I see.” He chuckled as she nodded and looked into his eyes with all the adoration she’d had to hide for the last three hours. He whispered love words in her ear as they danced, setting her body on fire, stoking the flames as only Ethan could.