Page 70 of Irresistibly Wicked

“Sounds like this young lady can hold her own,” Preacher said. “Shauna, do you promise to stand with and support Zander as his partner and his friend, in sickness and in health, with honesty and respect, from this moment forward?”

“I do,” she said.

The mix of trust, worry, and unmistakable hope in her eyes nearly did Zander in.

Zeke handed him the rings.

Zander took Shauna’s left hand, feeling it tremble as he slid the ring on her finger and whispered, “I can’t believe you’re my wife.”

She laughed so softly, he was sure he was the only one who heard it as she took his ring from him and slid it onto his finger.

He wrapped his fingers around hers, unable to look away as his father said, “With an open heart and prayers you both survive, I now pronounce you husband and wife.”

As cheers rang out, Preacher said, “Are we sealing the deal? Because, son, this is when you’d kiss your bride.”

Shauna’s eyes widened with surprise.

“What do you say, Angel?” Zander asked. “I know you’re dying to kiss me.”

“I am not dying to kiss you.” She laughed, and so did everyone else.

Zander stepped closer, lowering his voice. “Then I guess I’m in this alone, because I’m dying to kiss you.”

She blushed a red streak, and he thought she might look away, but her eyes didn’t shift. They locked in. He barely had time to register the flicker of heat in them as she grabbed his shirt, hauling him into a kiss like she owned him. Oh yeah, Angel, you were dying to kiss me, too. He took control, wrapping one arm around her as her arms snaked over his shoulders and he threaded his other hand into her hair, taking the kiss deeper, earning the sexiest sound he’d ever heard. His tongue slid savoringly over hers, tasting, taking, possessing, in an unhurried claiming, when what he really wanted was to ravage her until the sun came up, but he was all too aware of their audience cheering and whistling.

Fuck.

Forcing himself to break the kiss, he kept her close, taking in her flushed cheeks and the intoxicated haze in those gorgeous eyes. She blinked several times, as if she was having trouble getting ahold of herself. Then all at once, her eyes sharpened, and her lips twitched into a nervous smile that said, Holy shit. Did I really do that?

He grinned and took her hand, turning to their family and friends, and said, “And to think I almost asked for a handshake.”

AS THE NIGHT wore on, someone kicked off a playlist with a mix of country music, classic rock, and pop. There were toasts with champagne and sparkling cider, enough food and cake for an army, and countless lingering glances between Zander and Shauna. They weren’t the hey, want to hook up glances he usually gave women who caught his attention. These were deeper, checking in on her, making sure she was okay, and yeah, he couldn’t stop thinking about that scorching-hot kiss, which his mind naturally took to the next level, wondering how the rest of her would taste. He had a feeling that kiss was taunting Shauna, too, because she’d kept a polite distance and had been looking at him a little differently. Her eyes carried a charge he hadn’t seen before. Curiosity shaded by desire and tempered by restraint. As much as he wanted to push past it and convince her to explore, that wasn’t part of the agreement, and he respected her too much to push.

The sun had set long ago, the lights in the trees casting a soft glow over their evening. Zander stood by the dessert table, untouched drink in hand, alone for the first time tonight, which meant he was free to watch the woman who had captivated his attention before he even knew she wasn’t just a figment of his imagination. Madigan and the other girls had absconded with his wife a little while ago, and he couldn’t be happier for her. He’d hoped the girls would welcome her as warmly into their group as they had the other women.

He spotted his angel sitting on the deck steps with Emerson and Chloe. Marybelle toddled over in her pretty pink dress and patted Shauna’s knee. A momentary flash of unsurety shone in Shauna’s eyes. Zander had the strange desire to rescue her from that unease, but Chloe said something that made her smile, and his glossy-haired wife—Holy shit. I have a wife—lifted Marybelle onto her lap. Marybelle put her chubby little hands on Shauna’s cheeks and leaned in. Zander knew she wanted to rub noses. That was Marybelle’s newest thing, but Shauna’s gaze flickered between awe and uncertainty. She turned to Chloe, her brows pinched. Chloe must have clued her in, because Shauna turned bright eyes back to the happy toddler and rubbed noses with her. Marybelle bounced excitedly, and Shauna rubbed noses with her again.

“Rethinking this whole marriage thing?” Blaine asked as he sauntered over with Maverick and Zeke.

Zander scoffed. “No, man. It’s the least I can do.”

“Because she saved your life?” Maverick asked.

Nah, because it’s her was on the tip of his tongue, but he held it back because he wasn’t supposed to feel like that, and went with “What do you think?”

“I think you might be crazy,” Blaine said, and took a swig of his beer.

Zander ground his back teeth to keep from arguing that point.

“But aren’t we all?” Blaine added. “I get it, man. I mean, I was all in helping Reese with her situation when she thought I was nothing but a pushy asshole.”

“You are a pushy asshole,” Zander said, breathing a little easier with his support.

“There’s a reason everyone calls you a bulldozer.” Maverick tossed out the barb with a grin.

“No shit,” Blaine bit out. Then a slow grin slid into place. “But I still got my girl, and it didn’t take me a year to get her.”

Zander chuckled. Maverick had spent a year trying to get Chloe to go out with him.