The Promises We Keep (Made for Love Book 1) (126 page)

“
I
’
ll dance with my wife
anytime
she wants me to.
”

“
I
’
m going to hold you to that, Mr. Willis,
”
she says, grabbing hold of my suspenders as she backs her way onto the dance floor.

“
You do that, Mrs. Willis.
”

We did it. We
really
did it. There have been so many days that I was sure we would never get here; and yet, here we are. Mr. and Mrs. Beckham Michael Willis. When I stop to think about it
—
like
really
stop and forget about the guests and the seating chart and the DJ and the menu and the photographer and the cake and my dress and his tie and
all of it
—
I
’
m overwhelmed with peace and happiness. I
’
ve wanted this for so long
—
to be his wife. Now that I am, I feel as though our story and our journey are what make this day perfect.

We didn
’
t get here easily. We didn
’
t get here the way I wanted to or the way he wanted to
—
but we got here. The man I just married a couple hours ago, he
’
s not the man I fell in love with. He
’
s
better
. And the woman he married, she
’
s not the woman he feel in love with, either.
I
’
m
better. We
’
re ready
—
ready in a way that neither of us knew we could be. And as crazy as it may seem, I thank God all the time for the hard parts. Every tear, every argument, every jealous feeling, every lonely night, every hard season that we
’
ve ever faced, I thank God for it.

Why?

Because I
’
m thankful that He saw fit to make us like Him. We are not an easy people to love. God is capable of feeling
—
and
has felt
—
everything we feel, towards
us
; and
still,
His love is beyond measure. Not only have I grown to appreciate that more, but I
’
ve learned to bestow that upon Beckham. There is so much freedom in love. It
’
s hard, sometimes, and I won
’
t deny that he has the ability to drive me
crazy
. But
—
but
—
he also has the ability to bring me so much joy.

“
What are you thinking about, babe?
”
he asks as we sway back and forth to the DJs current song selection.

I inhale deeply and breathe out a wistful sigh as I look up into his blue eyes.
“
You make me happy.
”

“
Oh, yeah?
”
A grin spreads across my face as I respond with a nod.
“
You make me happy, too.
”

“
Does this day have to end? Can we just freeze time right now?
”

“
Absolutely, not.
”
My eyebrows shoot up in surprise at his adamant reply and I pout my lips in jest. He smirks at me before he presses a kiss against my temple and then lowers his mouth to my ear.
“
I have every intention of making love to you tonight,
”
he whispers, pulling my body closer to his.
“
For the past hour, I
’
ve been trying to figure out the fastest way to loosen the twenty-nine buttons that hold the back of this dress together.
Yes
, I
’
ve counted. Twice.
”

I giggle into his chest, giddy at the thought of
finally
being able to love on my husband without abandon. I thought I
’
d be more nervous about it, and maybe even a little embarrassed, but I
’
m not. I
’
m
just
as excited as he is. I feel like we
’
ve waited
so
long.

“
Well, we
’
ve already cut the cake. Our room is just an elevator ride up
…”
I tease, looking up at him from beneath my eyelashes.

“
Don
’
t tempt me,
”
he mutters, touching his nose to mine.
“
You know our parents would kill us if we skipped out early. Besides, currently, my solution to the button issue is a pair of scissors
—
I thought you might be opposed to that, so I could use a few more brainstorming minutes.
”

“
Scissors aren
’
t a
bad
idea. I mean, when else am I going to
—”
He cuts me off with a kiss and my laugh gets lost in his mouth. I know, when he flicks his tongue between my lips, that the next forty-five minutes we
’
re slated to stay in this ballroom will be the
longest
forty-five minutes of his life. He slides his hand around the back of my neck, supporting my head as he deepens the kiss. He smiles against my mouth when someone blows a wolf whistle and the room erupts in applause, cat-calls, and cheers. He resumes showering me with his affection for a moment longer and I relish every second.
We
’
re allowed to be flamboyantly adorable and affectionate today. It is our wedding day, after all.

“
I
love
you, husband,
”
I murmur when he pulls away.

“
Mmhmm,
”
he hums, resting his forehead against mine.
“
I love you too, wife
—
my little tease. More than you know.
”

He smiles at me as I come undone against the locked door; he then moves to cover my mouth with his, in his attempt to muffle my cry, which cannot be silenced. My fingers, tangled in his auburn waves that are
just
long enough for me to grab hold of, grip him unrelentingly as I ride this wave of immense physical ecstasy. Before my body goes limp from pleasure, he finds his release. He buries his face in my neck as he moans my name over and over until he is spent.

For a moment, the room is filled with nothing but the sound of our panting as we work to catch our breath. I
’
m afraid that my legs might give out if he sets me down, so I
’
m grateful that he doesn
’
t let me go right away. As he rubs his hands up and down my bare thighs, I make a mental note to thank Addie for choosing a dress that made this moment possible.

A year ago, if someone told me that Sonny and I would be sneaking off for a quicky at my sister
’
s wedding, I would have laughed in their face. It
’
s incredible how love and marriage can change you. The truth is, situations like these are not just about adding adventure to our relationship, they
’
re also about intensifying intimacy. When we got married, sex was new for me; but it wasn
’
t new for Grayson. I struggled with that a little bit and then his counselor helped us come up with this idea.

We call it our
“
To-Do
”
list. It
’
s essentially a list of various places or positions that
both
of us have never experienced before. I
’
ll admit that some of the things we
’
ve added to the list are quite ambitious; a few of our ideas are so bold that
neither
of us have managed to find the courage to try them. It doesn
’
t stop us from constantly contributing new challenges to the list, though. We figure we have the rest of our lives to check off every encounter we wish to experience.

Sex in a public bathroom
—
Grayson
’
s idea, which took a lot of sweet talking and naughty coaxing on his part
—
was accomplished a few months go.
Slutty wedding sex,
on the other hand, was something I came up with about twenty minutes ago. For the first time since we closed ourselves inside, I look around the single-stall family restroom from over Sonny
’
s shoulder. I giggle and inadvertently tighten my grip around him as I realize, I will never be able to look at a
family restroom
sign ever again without thinking about having sex with my husband.

“
What
’
s so funny?
”
he murmurs, bringing his brilliant green gaze up to meet mine.

“
I think we just gave a new meaning to
family restroom
. Now, it
’
s a place where people practice making families.
”

He laughs with me and props his forehead against mine.
“
You are amazing. Remind me again how I got to be so lucky?
”

I grin at him as I place my left hand against his chest.
“
You put a ring on it.
”

“
That
I did,
”
he says with a chuckle. He wraps his hands around my hips and I know it
’
s time for me to release my legs from around his. He helps me down to my feet and then we both busy ourselves with straightening, tucking, and smoothing out each other
’
s clothing. Once we
’
re freshened up and presentable again, Grayson peeks his head out the door, to ensure the coast is clear, and then takes my hand as we make our exit.

On our way back to the reception, he reaches for his phone.
“
What are you doing?
”
I ask, just out of curiosity.

“
Adding
wedding sex
to our list so that we can cross it off.
”

“
Oh,
”
I murmur with a blush.