Unfinished Business (29 page)

Alex nodded again. “And you should be. You prepared her well.”

An arrogant smile played at the corners of Clayton’s lips. “Yeah, we did, didn’t we?”

Justin came from around the foot of the bed to stand in front of Alex. Dex and Clayton walked over to join him. “We don’t want to tire you out, Alex, but we had to come and talk to you. We had to know, had to be sure, that you really love Christy. She means a lot to us.”

Alex nodded. He’d always known that and really couldn’t blame them for wanting to confront him to learn his true feelings. “Well, rest assured that I do love her and I will take good care of her.”

“And we believe you.” That statement came from Dex, and the others soon concurred. Alex knew whether or not they believed him shouldn’t matter, but it did.

“Thanks,” he said to the three of them.

Justin offered him his hand. “Welcome to the family. Although we’ve always considered you part of it anyway, I guess now it’s pretty much official.”

Alex couldn’t help but smile as Dex and Clayton offered their hands as well. “Yes, it is now official.”

Christy looked at Alex as he sipped the chicken broth the nurse had given him. “And that’s all they wanted to do? Welcome you to the family?”

He lifted his eyes and met her gaze over the rim of the cup he was holding. “Yes. But before that they needed to hear me say that I loved you.”

Christy frowned. “Why? Don’t they think you can love me?”

Alex smiled. “I guess they know you will be a challenge and wanted to make sure I loved you enough to be up to it.”

Christy opened her mouth to say something and decided for once to keep quiet. After all, she
had
been a challenge to him. “I promise not to give you any more problems.”

Alex lifted a dark brow, wishing he could believe that, but knew that she would give him more problems eventually. She was a Madaris, a female one at that. But he did believe she would try not to make things too difficult for him most of the time.

“Do you know what I’ve been remembering a lot over the past couple of days as I’ve watched you move around the room?” he asked her.

She lifted a brow. “No, what?”

“That night you were on the dance floor dancing in that club. I know you don’t remember a lot about that night, since you were under the influence, but I do. I’d never seen you dance that way before. That song by OutKast, ‘The Way You Move,’ was playing and it was as if you were dancing just for me, beckoning me to be your mate, claiming me as yours.”

Christy smiled. “I probably was but didn’t realize I was doing so.”

“Well, I can’t wait until I get better to take you dancing so I can watch you dance that way again.” He smiled. “I definitely love the way you move, Mrs. Maxwell.”

Lulled by the deep look of desire in his eyes, Christy moved closer to the bed. “And what else do you love, Alex?”

He caught her wrist in his hand and pulled her even closer. “I definitely love you. In fact, I think Barry White summed it up pretty good with his song ‘You’re the First, the Last, My Everything.’ You’re all that to me.”

He pulled her closer and their lips met in a long, slow, and deep kiss. Moments later when he pulled back she whispered against his moist lips, “You’re all that to me as well.”

He held her gaze and by slow, simmering degrees passion mounted. Alex’s mouth returned to hers and he knew he would be counting the days, the hours, the minutes, and the seconds until he was physically able to make love to her again.

And he didn’t intend for his recovery to take long.

 
Three months later

What some considered the wedding of the year had taken place less than an hour earlier.

It didn’t matter that legally the bride and groom were already married. What mattered to everyone was that they were present when Alexander Julian Maxwell and Christina Marie Madaris again exchanged those vows, sealing their lives together.

As much as Alex had wanted to, he could not rush his recovery. After remaining in Honolulu for two weeks he was flown back to Houston. Putting weight back on his leg for the first time had been difficult, and using a cane for a while had been a bitter pill to swallow. But now he was on the dance floor, without any type of aid, while he shared the traditional first dance with his wife.

Christy had practically refused to leave his side during the entire time of his convalescence and would have stuck to him like glue had he not convinced her of the importance of finishing her story. After getting an exclusive from Sheik Valdemon, she had returned to Cincinnati and written the article that brought closure to Morganna Patterson’s ordeal as well as giving Detective Mark Tyler the hero’s recognition he deserved. Senator Harris and Congressman Blair had resigned from their offices once the nature of their involvement was revealed to all America. A number of other elected officials and world leaders had been arrested in the scandal that had shocked the nation. Indictments had been served and those involved were awaiting trial. Hank Adams had been arrested for Mark Tyler’s murder.

Now, Alex thought, as he held his wife in his arms while over five hundred guests looked on, his life could not be more complete. Although he enjoyed their wedding and intended to have a good time at this reception given in their honor, more than anything he was looking forward to tonight—their wedding night.

Because Christy thought that partaking in any extracurricular activities could reinjure his leg, she had insisted that they refrain from making love. And although she hadn’t had anything against them engaging in some heavy-duty necking sessions, for him that hadn’t been enough. He wanted to make love to his wife. He wanted her bad. And if they continued to hang around much longer, all five hundred of their guests would know just how much.

“When can we leave?”

Christy lifted her head from his shoulder and smiled. She wasn’t a fool and knew exactly what was on his mind, since it was probably the same thing on hers. But she wouldn’t let him know that . . . until after her surprise.

She was more than aware of how his body was brushing against hers while they danced and knew if they were alone without any guests around he would have stripped her naked by now. The look of heated lust in his dark brown eyes was making her skin tingle from head to toe, since she knew just what that look meant.

Instead of leaving immediately for their honeymoon—three weeks in the Virgin Islands—they would fly to New Orleans to spend a few days there. She knew she could forget about taking in the sights for the first couple of days. The only thing she would be seeing would be the inside of her hotel room, but she didn’t have any complaints about that.

“It will probably be another couple of hours before we can slip out,” she finally answered. “But if you’re patient just a little longer I promise to make it worth your while.”

She watched as the eyes holding hers darkened some more. It hadn’t been easy resisting him for the past three months and he had intentionally made things difficult in that regard, but their imposed abstinence would come to an end tonight.

She smiled at him, thinking she had to be the luckiest woman alive. The man who was holding her in his arms, who had vowed to love her forever, till death do they part, for the second time in four months, was everything she could hope for. He was her husband, her protector, her lover, her shield against any storm; the man who would father her babies, and, more important, the man who would always be the love of her life. She had resigned from her job with the
Enquirer
and was back in Houston. Already she had received another job offer, this one from Maxwell Investigative Services. Alex thought they made one hell of a team and figured he would be able to keep her out of trouble if she worked by his side. They hadn’t yet decided on all her duties, but she figured once they returned from their honeymoon they could tackle the issue.

She glanced down at the ring he had placed on her finger during the wedding ceremony. It was simply beautiful. But the one he had given her at thirteen had a sentimental value that the ring she was wearing now could never replace. Everything Alex had ever given her was special. As special as he was. Now it was his time to receive some extraordinary treatment.

“I have something special for you,” she whispered when he pulled her body closer to his again.

He lifted a brow? “What?”

She smiled. “You’ll see soon enough.”

“Are you trying to tease me into an early grave?”

She chuckled and shook her head. “No. I would never do that.”

When the music stopped, the woman her parents had hired as their wedding consultant descended upon them to let them know what was next.

A couple of hours later, Alex was chomping at the bit, more than eager to leave. The wait was killing him and he wondered if he would be able to survive the trip to New Orleans. Maybe he and Christy should just stay in town tonight and not leave until the morning.

And it wasn’t helping matters as he watched Christy standing across the room talking to the wedding coordinator. As far as Alex was concerned, they should be able to leave now. Christy had done the traditional dance with her father; she had danced with her brothers and with his; they had cut the cake; he had removed her garter and she had tossed her bouquet and they had sat down at the head table and eaten something—although for the life of him he couldn’t recall what he’d eaten, since his mind had been so focused on Christy.

“You seem to be in a hurry to leave.”

Alex turned and raised a dark brow only to find himself surrounded by the Madaris brothers. “Yeah, you could say that,” he said dryly as he took another sip of his champagne.

“Then just go get her and take her out of here,” Clayton said, grinning. “You need to establish in the beginning who’s the boss.”

Dex chuckled. “Yeah, like you’ve established any such thing with Syneda.”

Clayton shrugged. “Hey, there are benefits in being married to a woman wrapped up in this liberation stuff. I knew what I was getting into when I married Syneda, and there’s never a dull moment. You never know what she’s up to next.”

Justin shook his head. “Yes, and that’s what worries most of us. Your wife’s antics are sometimes outlandish.”

Clayton smiled as he glanced across the room at the woman he loved with a passion. “Yes, they are, aren’t they?” As he continued watching her, Syneda turned and caught his gaze and smiled. He winked and knew she understood his signal. Earlier he had cornered her and whispered his plan in her ear. They were to meet in the empty coat closet down the hall in ten minutes.

“May I have everyone’s attention?” The loud voice of the wedding consultant poured across the room with the use of a microphone. “Christy and Alex are about to leave . . .”

Thank God
, Alex thought.

“. . . and Christy has something special she wants to give her husband.”

Alex lifted a brow, thinking that an escape to one of the hotel rooms upstairs wasn’t such a bad idea, but he preferred taking her away out of the building for privacy. He didn’t want her brothers anywhere in the same vicinity when he made her scream.

“Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you Christina Marie Madaris Maxwell as she does a special tribute to her husband.”

When the woman walked off, Christy was left standing in the middle of the floor wearing her elegantly beautiful floor-length white wedding gown. The strapless bodice was beaded with sequins, with a matching border around the skirt’s hem. Her hair was pinned up on her head and she wore a tiara that gave her the look of a princess. Then there was the elegant-looking diamond necklace that adorned her neck, Alex’s wedding gift to her.

She was absolutely stunning, and seeing her standing there took Alex’s breath away the same way it had when she had walked down the aisle to him on her father’s arm. She had a look of concentration on her face. But more important than that, her eyes were locked on his.

The entire room got quiet as everyone waited and his heart began racing a mile a minute. He recognized that look in her eyes and thanked God for it. She wanted him just as much as he wanted her and tonight they would share something beautiful in each other’s arms. They would definitely wrap up any unfinished business between them.

“Do you think she’s going to sing?” Dex Madaris asked, chuckling.

“God, I hope not,” was Clayton’s response as he checked his watch. Seven more minutes before that very important meeting with his wife. “Christy can’t sing.”

“Do you know what this surprise is about, Alex?” his brother, Trask, came up to ask him.

Alex shook his head, his gaze not leaving Christy’s. “I don’t have a clue.” His body began feeling heated as Christy continued standing there just staring at him. Then he watched, like everyone else, as she unsnapped the waistline of her wedding dress to whip off the bottom portion of her floor-length skirt to reveal a shorter matching bridal skirt.

“What the hell is she doing?” Dex Madaris asked, shocked. “Just look at how short that gown is. That’s something like what Syneda would wear.”

Clayton laughed. “Yes, it is, isn’t it?” He checked his watch.
Five more minutes
.

Alex didn’t see anything wrong with his wife’s outfit. He would admit it was short, but with her long, shapely, gorgeous legs he thought that she looked pretty damned good.

Then he heard the music; he recognized the tune immediately and ignored Justin’s shocked whispered words of, “I don’t believe it,” and an even more shocked Laverne Madaris asking her youngest son, Jake, “Has my granddaughter lost her mind?”

As the OutKast song “The Way You Move” filled the room, Christy began shimmying her body to the beat of the sound the same way she had done that night in the club. She threw everything she had into it—her breasts, hips, hands, legs. And her buttocks were wiggling just as much, sending Alex’s heated lust into overdrive.

Alex didn’t care what others thought about his wife’s surprise, but personally he felt like he was the luckiest man alive to receive such a special gift. She was letting him know that the only influence she was under this time was him.

“Do something,” Trask whispered frantically to him.

Without his gaze leaving his wife’s, Alex smiled and said, “I intend to.”

Removing his tux jacket, he handed it to Trask. Then Alex removed his bow tie as he slowly began walking toward her, watching her every move; especially how she was working her midriff, and loving every minute of seeing her do so. She was dancing for him and she was right: It was special and only the two of them understood just how special it was.

Desire so thick he could plaster the walls with it was consuming him as he kept walking toward her. When he came to a stop within three feet of her he stood and watched as her body continued to dance just for him, beckoning him as her mate, publicly claiming him as hers.

Then she eased up to him and shimmied her body against him, around him, letting him know that she was truly his. He could only take so much and reached out and pulled her to him and kissed her, ignoring the applause, catcalls, and whistles coming from their audience. She had issued the invitation and now he was answering it.

And when the music finally ended, without missing a beat he swept her into his arms and headed for the nearest exit.

Christy set cross-legged in the bed Alex had just placed her in and glanced around the room. He had carried her out of the ballroom to the nearest elevator, which took them to the tenth floor, and to the room he had reserved for them to use to change into their traveling clothes before leaving for the airport. A private plane, compliments of her brothers, would fly them to New Orleans.

Alex stood across the room, leaning back on the closed door and looking at her. He was missing his jacket and bow tie, but then, she had replaced the floor-length skirt of her wedding gown with a much shorter one. And from the way Alex had stared at her while she was dancing, he hadn’t seemed to mind.

Deciding to elicit conversation, she said, “Shemell thought she had died and gone to heaven when Rasheed walked in. But then she actually had near heart failure when Sterling Hamilton arrived.” She chuckled. “I think she was upset that I’d never mentioned that he was a close friend of the family.”

Christy heard an odd catch in Alex’s voice when he asked, “Was she?”

Christy smiled. “Yes, at least she was for a while. Then she set eyes on Blade, Slade, and Lucas. I had to promise her that I would invite her to any Madaris family reunions we have.”

She glanced at the clock on the nightstand next to the bed. If they wanted to make it to the airport for their flight they needed to start getting dressed. She slipped off the bed to begin changing her clothes. She glanced over at him. He hadn’t moved an inch. “I guess we need to change into our traveling clothes if we want to be at the airport in a few hours.”

Still he didn’t say anything but continued to watch her. When she discovered she needed help unzipping her gown she said, “Could you come help me please?”

Without saying anything, he moved away from the door toward her. She turned and presented her back to him when he came to stand behind her. She felt her knees weakening when he brushed his lips against her neck before going to work at her zipper.