“ARE YOU TWO GONNA COME ON THE ROOF RIDES? They’re supposed to be amazing!” Rory asked after the ceremony and photographs.

I grinned and shook my head, fighting the blush trying to colour my cheeks. I had much more exciting things in mind for now, and it didn’t involve anything else other than my new husband and a king-size bed.

“No, er, I’m pretty tired actually,” I lied, losing the battle against my blush. “I think I’ll just go to bed.”

Carson’s fingers dug into my waist as his arm tightened on me. His whole body seemed to stiffen. “Oh, hell yeah, I’m tired too,” he chimed in, grinning down at me knowingly. My girlie giggle made Rory scoff and shake his head, now understanding.

Lucie chuckled, raising one eyebrow. “Yeah, the newlyweds will be riding their own Vegas thrill ride tonight,” she teased, winking at me.

“Eww, Christ, TMI!” Rory stated, fake gagging dramatically.

I chuckled and pressed against Carson’s side, grinning up at him happily.

Lucie grinned wickedly at Rory’s uncomfortable face. “Oh, come on, how do you think Sasha was made? Immaculate conception?” she joked. “Just accept it. Your sister is madly in love with a hottie, so she’s gonna want to jump his bones from time to time.”

Rory closed his eyes and wrinkled his nose in disgust. “I don’t ever want to hear the phrase ‘jump his bones’ and my sister mentioned in the same sentence again.” He shuddered.

Everyone laughed, even Carson’s mum who had been fairly quiet through the whole ceremony and flight over here. I smiled awkwardly at her, and she smiled nicely in return.

Lucie grinned. “Go on, you two. Go have your fun. I’ll look after Rory and Sash,” she said, winking at us.

I chuckled and nodded, slipping my hand into Carson’s back pocket and giving his bum a little appreciative squeeze. “Okay, you sure you’re all right with Sash? You won’t get to go on the rides tonight,” I countered worriedly.

She rolled her eyes and waved a hand dismissively. “Just get out of here.”

Jillian stepped forward then and smiled. “I’ll help you watch Sasha. If you want to go on the rides for a bit, we’ll wait down the bottom and watch, won’t we, sweetheart?” Jillian asked, holding out her hand to her granddaughter.

Lucie’s smile widened. “Yeah? Thanks! I’d love to go on the mechanical arm thing that hangs you upside down over the side of the building!” she chirped, clapping her hands together excitedly.

I winced, secretly glad I had an excuse to get out of that ride. “Okay. Well, I’ll call you in the morning and arrange picking Sasha up,” I suggested.

“Whatever, though I can’t imagine he’ll let you come up for air before dinnertime,” she replied, nodding toward Carson.

My insides squirmed at the thought alone, and I actually hoped she was right.

“All right, see you guys tomorrow. Be safe and have fun,” I said. Sasha was sitting on Jillian’s lap, playing with the fake flower in her hat. “Goodnight, beautiful. See you tomorrow. Be good for Auntie Lucie. I love you.” I bent and planted a kiss on her cheek.

“Bye, Mummy!” she chirped, not even the least bit tired even though it was nine o’clock at night.

After Carson had bid his farewells, we both climbed into the lift, and he swiped his card, which would take us to the honeymoon suite where we were staying for the next week.

The air in the lift seemed to thicken as the doors closed and we were finally alone. Wordlessly, his hand closed over mine and he gave me a little tug toward him. His hand cupped the side of my face as he dipped his head, looking directly into my eyes. “I love you, Mrs Matthews.”

The thrill the new name gave me actually made me squeal with delight as I grinned and pressed myself to him tightly. “I love you, too.”

The lift ride was taking too long in my opinion. The passion was spiking to dangerous levels inside me with each passing second. He stepped forward, pressing me back against the wall as I bit my lip and looked up at him through my eyelashes. His resulting smile set my heart racing and made my scalp prickle. When he finally pressed his lips against mine, I seemed to lose all control of myself. The passion took over as I threw my arms around his neck and kissed him as if I could devour his soul. Grunting, he pushed me tighter against the wall, crushing his body to mine before his hand slid down to my bum.

My hormones were raging. This was the part of our relationship Carson and I were the best at – the physical stuff always seemed to happen perfectly naturally between us. My teeth unconsciously sank into his bottom lip when he tried to pull his mouth from mine. He gasped and effortlessly lifted me off my feet as the lift door pinged, signalling our floor. I whimpered into his mouth as I awkwardly wrapped my legs around his waist, clamping myself to him as best I could in my dress.

After way too long, the door creaked open. It opened up directly into our suite so in a few quick strides, we were on the bed. I didn’t even take my eyes off him long enough to look around the suite which was sure to be as spectacular as the brochure promised.

Carson’s hands traced down my body over my dress, skimming my sides and down my thighs as his hand slipped under the silky material and onto my bare leg. As he pushed his hand higher, following the line of my thigh, he hitched my dress up around my waist. I let out a moan at the feel of his hands on my skin. When he looked down, lust and passion were clear in his eyes, but more importantly, I saw the love there which made my heart ache.