The wedding is the loveliest I’ve ever seen. I hope if I get married, it’s in a place like that, with only the people I love the most around me.
After the ceremony, we drink and dance and eat, until everyone is pleasantly exhausted, including Henry and the cantankerous baby Miles, who spits out his pacifier and begins to howl. Callum and Aida hustle him away at top speed, after blowing one last kiss to Dante and Simone.
Riona is quieter than usual. I don’t mind, ‘cause she still asks me to dance. We waltz around under the glass and the stars, the air full of oxygen from all the greenery. This time she doesn’t pull away from me—we dance in perfect tandem, our bodies pressed close together and her head against my chest.
After the ceremony we go back to the Intercontinental Hotel, where I’ve rented a suite for the night. I only hoped to sleep next to Riona—she just got out of the hospital, after all. But as soon as the door closes behind us, she jumps on me, kissing me with all her might.
I have to force myself to kiss her back with a reasonable degree of gentleness. I want to tear that dress right off of her. She’s been driving me insane all night, her skin looking as pale and bright as the moon, next to the rich darkness of the dress. Her hair is like a lava flow down her back, warm and smoky.
She’s never been more beautiful. It’s funny—we were in a room full of gorgeous women, but I only had eyes for her. Riona has a fierceness that grabs me and holds me fast. I want to know what she’s thinking and feeling, always. She’s both blunt, and a mystery. Strong and powerful, but also fragile.
And above all, she’s so goddamned sexy. She’s all over me with an intensity I’ve never seen before. Ripping my shirt open so the buttons pop off, tearing off my pants.
I lift her up and throw her down on the bed, equally desperate to have her.
When I kiss her mouth, she tastes of champagne.
“You weren’t supposed to drink!” I accuse her. “When did you get champagne?”
“I only had a sip,” she says. “While you were congratulating Dante and Simone.”
“You naughty little thing,” I growl, seizing her by the throat—though not too hard. “How should I punish you?”
I pull down the front of her dress and take her breast in my mouth. I suck her nipple hard, until she squeals.
“Stop that!” she cries, slapping me away.
I grab both her hands and pin them over her head. Then I return to her breasts, noting that both her nipples are standing up straight, tightening her breasts.
Lightly, I trail my tongue around her nipples, without taking them in my mouth. I tease them with my tongue until her arms are shaking in my grip.
“Stop?” I say. “Or keep going?”
“Keep going,” she gasps.
“Say, ‘Please, Daddy,’ ”
She scowls at me, and I could laugh out loud at the pleasure of teasing her. I knew she’d hate that. I flick her nipple with my tongue, making her moan in frustration.
“Please, Daddy!” she says, petulantly.
I close my mouth around her nipple again and I suck, gently. I caress her breast with my tongue, until she gives a long, groaning sigh of satisfaction.
Then I slide down her body and go to work between her legs, instead. I put her legs up on my shoulders and I eat her pussy until I feel her thighs clenching around my head, her hands thrust in my hair, and her clit grinding against my tongue. My mouth is full of the sweet and fiery taste of her, like cinnamon and sugar, like pure, raw arousal.
I’ve never tasted anything so good. I could spend hours down here.
I let her control the pace for a while, rolling her hips against my tongue. Then, when I can feel she’s close to the edge, I grab her hips in my hands and I increase the pressure of my tongue. I lick faster and harder until she’s gasping, until she digs her fingernails into my scalp, screaming, “Oh my god! Oh my gooooood!”
She’s still half-wearing her dress, and my shirt is still on, though torn open. I don’t care. I like us half-dressed. I like the look of her, clothes pulled up, hair wild and messy, makeup smeared. I love the immediacy, the impatient lust that won’t let us take even another second to properly undress.
I flip her over and I enter her from behind, me sitting back on my heels, and her on my lap, sliding up and down on my cock. Sinking myself inside of Riona is pure fucking heaven. The feel of her is addictive. The taste and scent, too.
She’s sitting up and I pull her back tight against my chest, my hands on her bare breasts. I caress her tits as I fuck her from behind, squeezing and pulling on her nipples. I gather the whole of her breasts in my hands and they fit perfectly, the way every part of her fits me.
I grab her hair and pull her head back, so I can kiss the side of her neck. I bite her gently, and suck on the tender skin, my other hand still fondling her breasts.
I leave marks everywhere I touch her. Her skin is so delicate that I can see the flushed imprints where I squeeze her breasts, where I bite her neck. It makes me want to whip her again, just for the pleasure of seeing those red welts on her flawless ass. It makes me want to tease and torture every inch of her body.
I love how wild it makes her. The more I push her, the more she wants. She can’t get enough of it. She’s riding my cock, her head pulled back with my hand wrapped up in her hair. She presses my hand tighter against her breast, begging me to squeeze harder, to torment her sensitive little nipples.
I want to know what she was thinking at that wedding. I know she wasn’t crying from sentiment. It was a beautiful ceremony, but I know Riona—her mind must have been full to overflowing, to make her react like that.
I flip her around on my lap so I can look at her face. I watch her ride me, her bare breasts pressed against my chest. I kiss her deeply, my tongue thrust all the way in her mouth. Tasting the last remnants of the champagne.
I can see she’s right on the edge.
So am I. I can only hold on a few more seconds.
I look her in the eyes and I say, very quietly, “I love you, Riona.”
I see her face crumple up like it did at the wedding. Like she’s about to cry. And then she starts to cum, and she buries her face in the side of my neck. She’s clinging to me, grinding against me, and I let go inside of her. What I feel is so much more than sexual release. It’s the relief of saying out loud what I’ve been feeling for so long.
When I wake in the morning, she’s gone. The sun is streaming in the windows, illuminating the empty spot on the mattress right next to me.
For a moment, I feel a sick swoop of dread. I think I’ve scared her off again.
Then I see the note on the pillow.
Before I snatch it up, I tell myself, Trust her. Trust that she hasn’t run away.
I read the first line in a glance:
Don’t worry Raylan, I haven’t run away.
I smile to myself. I know Riona, and she knows me.
There’s something I have to do this morning. It won’t take long. Please come meet me downstairs at 12:00. I promise, I’ll be there. I want to respond to what you said last night.
xoxo
Riona
It doesn’t say, “Love, Riona.” But after all, we’re talking about a woman accustomed to legal correspondence. I know the “xoxo” alone is a big step for her.
I get in the shower and clean myself up. I actually packed a bag this time, so it doesn’t matter that Riona destroyed my shirt. I’ve got a perfectly comfortable flannel button-up to replace it.
Once I’m all spruced up and fit to be seen, I head downstairs to get a coffee and a muffin in the hotel cafe.
It’s 11:00. I’m feeling calm and confident.
The closer it gets to noon, a little bit of nerves sneak in.
I want to believe that Riona feels the same as I do. I want to believe she loves me.
But I know as well as she does the barriers that stand in our way. We each have commitments to our families. We each have goals.
I didn’t know Riona was still in danger from her uncle—I came to Chicago to chase after her. To make this thing work between us.
But I didn’t have a real plan. As I mull it over now, I wonder if I can give up on the ranch, and my life in Tennessee. If she asks me to stay, will I say yes this time?
I think I have to. I promised my mom I’d come home for good. But I know my mother. I know she wants me to be happy. If I tell her that Riona is the thing that will make me happiest . . . she’ll understand.
With that decided, I finally feel the peaceful spread of warmth in my chest. When Riona comes back, I’ll tell her that I’ll stay here. I’ll learn to love the city life. She’ll probably take over the law firm, and I’ll . . . figure something out. I’ve always been good at making myself useful.
Riona pulls up to the curb in a taxi cab. She jumps out, carrying a rolled-up sheet of paper in her hand.
“Hey!” she cries. Her cheeks are pink from cold and happiness. “Are you hungry? There’s a restaurant next door . . . ”
“What do you think?” I ask her, grinning.
She smiles back. “I think you’re always hungry.”
“You got that right.”
We head next door. As we’re walking, Riona slips her free hand in mine. The ease of the gesture makes my heart swell in my chest. I hold the door open for her, and she sweeps through with an unusual lightness in her step.
“Table for two, please!” she says to the hostess.
The hostess sits us in a booth against the window.
Riona is smiling so hard that it makes me laugh. I’ve never seen her so cheerful.
“You’ve got to tell me what’s going on,” I say. “The suspense is killing me.”
“I bought an office,” she says.
That is not what I expected her to say.
“What do you mean?”
“Look,” she pushes the paper toward me. I unfurl it, smoothing out the edges so I can see the printed image. I see a brick building with large, square windows. It looks familiar, though I’m not sure why.
I read the listing:
6800 W Hill Ave
$789,000
2,746 square foot office building on 0.66 acres. Built in 1949, renovated in 2011. Has 12 parking spaces, plus a walkout basement of 838 square feet. Single tenancy. Partial view of the Tennessee River.
“Riona,” I say, slowly. “This is in Knoxville.”
“I know,” she says. “I saw it when we went into town to get the horse stall mats.”
“You bought a building . . . in Tennessee?” I know I sound like an idiot but I can’t quite believe this.
“Yes,” Riona says. She’s starting to look concerned—either that I’m not as happy as she expected, or that I might have brain damage. “It’s a bit of a drive from the ranch—but not too bad.”
I just can’t believe it. I don’t want to allow this wild happiness to rise up inside of me, in case it isn’t real.
I grab her hands and grip them tight. “You want to come back home with me?”
She looks at me with her green eyes bright and shining.
“Yes,” she says, simply.
“What about Griffin, Briar, Weiss? Without your uncle . . . there won’t be a Griffin. Unless you stay.”
Riona sighs. “I know,” she says. “I thought about that. For a long time, actually. All the time I was in the hospital, I felt this duty to stay. But then I realized . . . duty isn’t the same thing as desire. Just because I always thought I wanted a particular thing in a particular way . . . that doesn’t mean I can’t find something even better, and want that even more. Even if I was still hung up on the idea of a big law firm in a big city . . . I want to choose you, Raylan. I want to choose you over anything else.”
I shake my head in amazement. I really thought I was getting the hang of Riona. Then she knocks me over like this.
“I want the same thing,” I tell her. “I was all set to tell you that I was gonna stay here, in Chicago. And darlin’, I’m still willing to do it. We can pick right now—I want you to be happy, Riona. If that means staying, then I’ll stay.”
Riona just laughs. “I wasn’t kidding—I already bought this place. I sent over the deposit this morning. I used the insurance payout from the condo. And even if it wasn’t a done deal, I don’t care. I already got closure here. What you said was true, Raylan . . . the happiest I’ve ever been was that week on the ranch with you and your family. It’s beautiful, and it’s peaceful, and it feels like home. It’s where I want to be.’
I still can’t believe it. I lean across the table and kiss Riona, to be certain that I’m actually awake, and not just dreaming.
‘I love you,’ I tell her again. ‘I really love you.’
‘I know,’ she grins. ‘And I love you, too.’
I chuckle. ‘Did that hurt you to say it out loud? Was it hard?’
She laughs. ‘No. I thought it would be hard, but it wasn’t. It feels good to tell you, finally.’
‘Finally?!’ I shout. ‘How long have you known that you loved me?’
‘I don’t know,’ Riona says, seriously. ‘I didn’t even know what it was, at first. But I’m sure now.’
I kiss her again. ‘Let me make you more sure.’
