Shaking it off, I slide my arm with his and laugh it off. “Yeah, just the alcohol buzz. Let’s go find Cedar and Meadow and thank them for a good night.”
He leans in, pressing a light kiss to my temple as we walk into the main room of the penthouse to find Cedar and Meadow curling up together on the sofa, looking through the photographs taken tonight on Cedar’s phone.
When they see us, Meadow immediately jumps up. “Are you leaving already? But we were just getting to the good part of the celebration.”
“We should get back,” Phoenix says diplomatically. “It’s been a long day.”
Cedar stands too, understanding immediately. “Of course. Congratulations again, you two. This has been…” He shakes his head with a smile. “This has been one of the best nights I’ve had in a long time.”
“Thank you,” I say, meaning it. “For everything. For being our witnesses, for sharing your evening with us, for just… being yourselves.”
Meadow throws her arms around me again. “You’re going to be so happy together. I can feel it in the universe.”
“I hope so,” I reply honestly.
“Iknowso,” she insists. “Love like yours doesn’t come around often. Treasure it. I’ll text all the photos in the morning. Have a good night, you two.”
Cedar shakes Phoenix’s hand, then pulls him into one of those masculine hugs that somehow conveys more than words ever could. “Take care of her,” he says quietly.
“Always,” Phoenix replies, then he gently leads me to the elevator.
We make our way out of the fancy hotel, and the walk back to our hotel is quiet, both of us lost in our own thoughts. I keep looking down at the makeshift cactus ring on my finger, still not quite believing this is real.
That we actually did it.
That I’m married to Phoenix.
When we reach the door to ournot so bougiehotel room, Phoenix stops me with a hand on my waist. He spins me to face him, gently pressing me back against the door. His arms come up on either side of my head, his body close, his eyes even closer. I giggle, but there’s nothing funny about the way my heart is pounding frantically in my chest.
God, he smells good.
All whiskey, late-night sin, and the kind of look that says I’m about to get thoroughly ruined by my new husband in a budget Vegas hotel room.
His iridescent blue eyes lock onto mine, and our breathing increases as he leans in, pressing his lips to mine firmly. The second his lips touch mine, it’s as if my insides turn to molten lava. I whimper against him, my hands instantly racing up into his hair, gripping tight like I need his lips on mine to breathe.
A deep growl escapes him, the animalistic tone instantly making my knees go weak, and they buckle against the door. Phoenix feels me falling against him and doesn’t hesitate. Without breaking our kiss, his arms loop around me, hoisting me up into his arms. I squeal slightly against his lips as he raises me up to his chest, the dizziness from the alcohol and our intense kissing hitting me fully now as I slide my hand down forthe door handle, frantically trying to open the fucking thing for us.
I hear the click, and as soon as it does, Phoenix kicks the door, surging us forward.
My clit throbs so fucking hard as he rushes us inside our room, using his foot to shut the door, almost tripping on something in his hurry to get us to the bed. Phoenix’s mouth crashes down on mine again, more urgent this time, all whiskey, hunger, and need. I moan into him, my hands clawing at his shirt, desperate to feel skin beneath my fingers. He tastes like everything I’ve ever wanted—wild, dangerous, and completely mine. His body presses me into the mattress as his hands roam frantically.
There’s no hesitation in his touch.
No question that he knows exactly how to drive me insane.
He kisses a line down my neck, dragging his teeth gently over the sensitive skin just below my ear, and I arch beneath him, my body responding with a fervor I didn’t know I had. His hands slide beneath my wedding dress, pushing it up and over my head, and when he feels how soaked I am through my panties, he growls.
“Fuck, Clover… you’re so wet already,” he murmurs against my skin. “You want this as bad as I do?”
“Yes!” I breathe, gasping when he hooks his fingers in the waistband and drags my panties down.
“Part your legs for me, baby,” he demands, his voice a low rasp against my skin.
I obey, spreading for him, my breath coming so fast I feel dizzy,or maybe that’s the alcohol.
He kisses a path down my torso, his mouth warm and insistent as he moves lower. When he reaches the inside of my thigh, he bites, and not gently. His teeth graze hard enough to sting, and I gasp, my hips twitching.
“You’re already shaking,” he murmurs with a dark chuckle, dragging his stubble across the sensitive skin of my inner thigh. “And I haven’t even fucking started with you yet.”
