“Right. Slow and romantic,” Raina breathed. She slipped between the sheets and looked up at him with a naughty expression on her face.

Nick got in next to her and stroked his hands over the soft skin of her arms. She decided to return the favor and caressed his chest in slow, sinuous strokes. Then she disappeared beneath the covers.

“Raina, wait a minute.” His mouth fell open when she tongued him through the fabric of his boxers. “Oh God.”

A giggle floated up from beneath the covers. She was giggling while he was inside her mouth. He reached down and pulled her up before she made him embarrass himself by coming too soon.

Before she could withdraw her hand, he captured one of her fingers in his mouth and laved it with his tongue. She wasn’t giggling anymore, he thought smugly.

“I can see that I need to take control.” He pushed her back gently and then maneuvered her so she was on her stomach. The line of her back and the curve of her ass were the most beautiful scenery he’d ever seen. He blanketed her with his body, his front to her back.

“Do you have any idea what you mean to me?” Nick growled, pressing deeper, pinning her to the bed beneath him. The position put him firmly in control, giving her very little room to move.

She was helpless to take what he had to give.

The delicate line of her spine was revealed in this position. Nick touched the points of her vertebrae with the tip of his index finger, then trailed his finger firmly down her back.

As she arched under the contact, he entered her, gliding slowly through her tight muscles. Her nails clutched at the sheets as he slid home, then pulled out just as slowly. Inch by torturous inch.

She tried to push back on him but he held her still, forcing her to wait. After struggling for a moment, she finally accepted it and lay beneath him, moaning and crying out his name.

With a firm hand, he urged her up on her knees. I could look at this view all day, he thought.

His head fell back on his shoulders as he powered into her, the curves of her ass providing lush padding for him every time their hips met. The sight of his length entering her and then emerging covered with the slick evidence of her arousal was a fuel to his already overhyped libido. She panted and shuddered as he took her with deep strokes. Her skin gleamed with a fine sheen of sweat. He touched his tongue to the middle of her back.

That must have set her off because she tightened around him and screamed. “Nick, please! I need, oh God, it’s too much.”

He leaned forward, pressing deeper. At this angle, her breasts were neglected and he knew she enjoyed it when he played with them. Something he enjoyed just as much.

He pulled out. “Turn over, sweetheart.”

She rolled over so she was flat on her back. There were tears on her cheeks but he knew they weren’t from pain. She looked down his chest, her mouth falling open as her eyes stopped between his legs.

“That’s right, sweets. Look how hard I am for you.”

She bit her lip as he covered her body with his and entered her again. When she buried her fingers in his hair, Nick knew he couldn’t last much longer. The sensation of her delicate fingers stroking over his scalp while he was surrounded by her tight, wet walls was a double whammy he couldn’t resist. He turned his head and latched on to her breast, tonguing the nipple until he felt her shuddering beneath him again.

“Yes, just like that. Come for me just like that.” He came in an explosion of sensation, feeling like he was surrounded by her. Her body, her scent, and her love.

When he finally became aware of himself again, he raised his head to find her watching him with a tender expression.

“That was intense,” she whispered.

Raina whimpered as he took her mouth, kissing her so deeply that it got him aroused again almost immediately. He hardened inside her and she arched underneath him.

“Nick. Nick!” She clutched his back as he made love to her again with thick, forceful thrusts.

“I’m not leaving your body this time. I don’t want to. This is where I always want to be,” he growled in her ear. He made love to her over and over again, never leaving her body until they fell into an exhausted sleep.

*   *   *   *   *

THE DAY OF the wedding dawned sunny and clear. After spending the morning checking in with the florist and Julia while Ridley bathed and gathered her things, Raina was more than ready to head to the Alexander’s farm.

She made sure Ridley’s honeymoon bag was packed and then they gathered up the simple white off-the-rack wedding dress Ridley had purchased. Raina put her white pumps, hair pins, hose, and corset in a separate bag. She’d brought her own makeup kit with her. Her sister barely owned any and the stuff she’d buy wouldn’t be as high quality as what Raina had.

As they were driving over to Julia’s house she said, “You know, there’s something really special about just jumping in and doing it this way.”

Ridley looked at her from the passenger seat of her car. “There is?”

“Yeah. Since you planned everything in such a short time frame, you kept all the stress contained.”

Ridley looked over at her and then squealed. “I’m getting married today!” They giggled all the way to the Alexander farm.

As soon as they pulled up, the front door opened and Julia came out. “Here she is! Come on in, honey.”

Ridley got out of the car and Raina followed, scooping up Ridley’s dress bag and her makeup kit.

“You can take the second guest bedroom on the left to get ready. That used to be Jackson’s room.” Julia winked as she said it. They followed her inside and down one of the hallways.