What He Desires (8 page)

One sticks out most of all.

Does he know? Has he known all along?

A knock at my door distracts me.

But that thought clings to the back of my mind, waiting for the perfect moment to seek an answer.

CHAPTER TWELVE

Dexter and I wait, hidden from the rest of the party by trees, outside the door that led me into the garden my first morning here.

My life, I decide.

I’m definitely afraid for my life more than my heart.

If I am who I think, and he is who I think, then there isn’t any control over my heart.

Not where he is concerned.

It appears that loving him is inevitable; time, places, and circumstances irrelevant.

But my life?

Simply being around him appears to have deadly consequences.

And here I stand in a strapless ivory wedding dress about to hitch myself to what could possibly be a one way ticket to doom.

I start to tremble.

“You can always back out,” he murmurs, bending low so only I can hear him. “Turn around and go right back up those steps.”

“The door doesn’t open from the outside,” I retort, my voice cracking. “Besides, I have to marry him.”

He pulls me further away and uses a finger to tilt my chin up so he can look me in the face.

“You don’t have to do anything. Would it suck to lose your diner? Yes. But it wouldn’t be the end of the world.”

“It’s not about the diner.” I take a deep breath and let it out slowly. “I’m not sure you’d believe what is it about even if I told you.”

He looks at his watch. “You’ve got two minutes until that music cues the beginning of the next year of your life at the very least. Try me.”

Two minutes.

I can’t possibly sum up everything in that amount of time.

So I say something I know he will not interpret the way I mean it, for my comfort of knowing I voiced my thoughts when it all comes crashing around my head.

“What if loving him kills me?”

He laughs, leaning in to give me a kiss on the cheek under my veil, stating, “Oh hon, if you do end up loving him, I can assure you that it will not kill you. And if anyone has ever claimed such a thing as true, they were turning a blind eye to the reality around them.”

With that, the wedding march begins.

“Ready?” He holds his arm out and I take it. “Smile sweetheart. This is your day, no matter how it came about.”

I force myself to relax.

And think about the surprise I have planned for Tobias when we’re all alone.

The grin on my face is one-hundred percent real as I take the first step forward to what I now feel is my fate.

~*~

Moving down the aisle feels surreal.

I never dreamed of getting married. I never had a fantasy wedding I kept in mind. Not when I was young child, nor a young adult.

Yet, I think if I had, this would’ve been it.

Perfect weather, a beautiful dress, beaming faces on either side, and a completely fuckable groom standing at the altar.

Yep, definitely.

The only thing that could’ve made it better was if my father and I had made amends, and he’d lived to attend the wedding.

But a girl can’t have it all.

Nearing Tobias, I start to feel the excitement I should’ve been feeling all along.

Tobias is wearing the light grey suit with the red tie at my request. The simple sight of him in the suit where this all began sets my body on fire.

I can’t wait to be alone with him later.

The men wear the same, while the women wear red dresses.

To match, I wore a red sash around the waist, giving me the same pop of color as my groom.

Dexter ‘gives me’ to Tobias.

As he holds my hands, I try to focus on the ceremony.

I fail.

All I can think about is how naked we’ll be in a very short time from now. I can’t help but smile from behind the veil, which Tobias reciprocates along with a wink.

“Please repeat after me. I, Jocelyn Lunabella Bates, take thee, Tobias Alexander Giles-Blackburn…”

His eyes twinkle at the reminder of our first encounter, as if the suit wasn’t enough, while I promise to love and cherish him.

Then, it’s his turn.

“I, Tobias Alexander Giles-Blackburn, take thee, Jocelyn Lunabella Bates…”

Even though I expect the words, my heart still squeezes in my chest as his eyes burn with desire into mine.

Because out of all the men in the world, this one is mine, whether I like it or not.

And as he slips the ring on my finger, I can’t prevent a tear from escaping and sliding down my cheek.

Another one falls as we’re pronounced husband and wife, Tobias lifting my veil to finalize it with a kiss.

His smile softens as he uses the pad of his thumb to brush the tear away. His lips are gentle upon mine at first, almost admiring. When I wrap my arms around his neck, everyone starts to cheer and his mouth becomes firm, demanding.

He releases me and takes my hand to walk back down the aisle.

I keep a s
m
ile on my face even as the tears continue to stream, knowing everyone will assume they are tears of joy.

But I know we will end up loving each other.

And that the very act of doing so may be our ruin.

Perhaps even our deaths.

TO BE CONTINUED…

Look for “All Our Lives (Luna, #3)” on March 28
^th
, 2014!

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Violet Haze is a pseudonym of contemporary romance author C.S. Janey, who simply desired to keep her erotic romance stories separate.

She hopes you enjoy the glimpse into the naughtier parts of her mind.

Feel free to contact her as Violet Haze at any of the below links.

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Also, if you enjoy this, perhaps you’d enjoy my contemporary romances under C.S. Janey, titled
Surrender To You
and
Love Renewed
.

Thanks again for reading!

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

Thanks to all of you below for your encouragement, feedback, laughter, support and enthusiasm for my work. I love all of you!

Crystal Blue

Danielle Taylor

Christa Simpson

Jasmine Castaneda

Dasarae DiBella

Jennifer Luckett Mooney

Jennifer Howard

Felicia Tatum

Christina Turner

…And anyone else I missed because I typed this up in a hurry!

Hugs and Kisses!

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