I look up into the concerned face of the man in front of me. How did I not notice it before? What I always wanted was right here in front of me, all along. My husband. But will he still want me? Now that I don’t need his money, will he ask that we annul our marriage? I’m suddenly tired, I need to go home and rest. I need to think. “Can you take me home, now?” I ask Stone.

 

Shannon hasn’t realized yet that we don’t need to be married.

With Effie and Harold arrested, the debt owed to her daddy is cleared and Saddles is saved.

A selfish part of me doesn’t want Shannon to figure it out. Not yet.

I gently lower her naked form to the bed, trying to be as careful as I can with her injured leg. Zeke has gone to Ruth’s, to give Shannon and I time to figure things out.

She smiles up at me and something blooms in my heart, something I haven’t felt in a really long time. Love. I fucking love Shannon Harper.

No, I correct myself silently. Shannon Stone. My wife.

I lower my lips to hers, my teeth gently nibbling on her bottom lip as I draw it into my mouth, worrying it. She moans and wraps her arms around my neck as my lips travel down her throat, heading straight for her breasts. My lips wrap around her nipple, suckling lightly. Her back arches, pushing her nipple more firmly into my mouth.

My hand sweeps down her ribcage, trailing a path across her navel to the small, well-groomed, triangular patch between her thighs. I gently part her legs and slide my fingers down the slick folds. She cries out and grips my shoulders, digging her nails into my flesh as I rub and tease her sensitive skin. She’s so wet that movement is easy and she rolls her hips, drawing my fingers into her warmth.

My cock swells, and I have to stop for a second to adjust my jeans as they tighten across my balls.

“Take them off,” she moans, but I ignore her, replacing my fingers between her legs. She gasps as I find her clit and gently flick it a couple of times.

I slide down the bed and position myself between her thighs. Draping one leg over my shoulder to open her up, I spread apart the lips of her pussy with my fingers.

My lips immediately find her clit, and I suck rhythmically as I slide two fingers deep inside her. My teeth very lightly graze her sensitive flesh and she cries out, pulsing around my fingers but not coming. Yet.

I push my face closer to her, my free hand going up to pluck at her hard nipples as I continue to tease her clit with my lips. She cries out again and this time she does come, but I don’t slow down. I push harder, faster until her cries all begin to connect to one another. I feel her start to shake and only then do I stop.

I stare down at her flushed face and my cock twitches with need. I want nothing more than to bury myself deep inside her, but suddenly the bed isn’t good enough. I need . . . more.

I pull my pants off and waste no time picking her up. I carry her out of the bedroom and into the kitchen, where I sit on one of the chairs and carefully position her astride my legs, facing away from me. Her good leg remains bent at the knee while the injured one stays straight, propped up on a chair, both spread apart as far as is comfortable for her. I position my hard cock at the entrance to her pussy and slowly press up inside her. My fingers go to her front, where her splayed legs allow the lips of her pussy to stay spread open, baring her to my touch. And touch is exactly what I do.

As I press in deeper, my fingers find her clit, lightly rubbing it in a circular motion. She gasps and her head drops back against my shoulder as she moves her hips on me. I grit my teeth as my fingers gently pinch and roll her clit around in my fingers. My other hand moves up to her nipples, where I tease them into hard points as I thrust into her again. I sit back on the chair, embedding myself firmly inside her wetness. I’m already so fucking close; this isn’t going to be the romantic love-making session I’d planned.

But Shannon doesn’t seem to want that, anyway.

Her fingers move down to her clit, pushing mine gently out of the way as she toys with herself. I renew my efforts and thrust into her hard, over and over, until she’s bouncing up and down on my cock. Feeling my balls tighten, I squeeze my eyes shut as I grip her hips, moving her faster on me. “Shannon,” I grit out between my teeth.

She knows.

I fall apart as she bounces again, and I feel her come directly after me, pulsing around my cock as she cries out.

Our breathing is harsh in the quiet room and I rest my forehead on her back, trying to catch my breath. Gently lifting her off me, I carry her back to the bedroom and set her on the edge of the bed. She picks up her clothes and begins to dress, not saying anything. I pull on a pair of shorts lying on the floor, not bothering with a shirt. A million thoughts are going through my mind. Has she realized we no longer need to be married? If she has, does she want a divorce? An annulment is out of the question now that we’ve had sex. The marriage is consummated. Legal. A fire burns low in my stomach as I consider the implications. Am I ready for this? A wife, a son?Yes, I tell myself firmly. I’m ready. “Shannon,” I say, sitting down on the edge of the bed. She lifts her face to me, and it hurts my heart to see tears glistening in her eyes. “What’s wrong, babe?” I ask, brushing her hair out of her eyes.

“I don’t want this to be over,” she cries, tears streaming down her cheeks.

I pull her close to me, holding her tight. “It’s not,” I whisper. “Why would it be over?”

“Because,” she says, pushing away from me gently. “You think I don’t know? Harold was arrested, which means any debt my daddy had is gone.”

My heart stops beating for a moment, and I feel the room start to spin. She knows.

“You won’t want to stay married to me,” she cries.

I almost laugh in relief. “Of course I want to stay married to you, Shan,” I tell her, kissing her forehead gently. “I fucking love you, babe.”

“Yo-you do?” she stammers, looking up at me with a tremulous smile.

“I do.” I nod. “How could I not? You got me off alcohol, forced me to grow up and be a father. A husband. You’ve made me a better man. I almost died when I lost you. I don’t ever want to feel that way again.”

“Oh, Stone,” she exclaims as she wraps her arms around my neck and pulls me down for a kiss. “I love you, too. I don’t know how it happened, but it did. You saved my life.”

“I think we’ve saved each other’s lives,” I say gruffly, fighting back my own tears. “Just do me a favor, okay?”

“What’s that?”

“Will you wear that mini-skirt I love? With no panties?”

 

Four weeks later

I flex my leg under the bar, reveling once more in the fact that I no longer have to wear that damn bandage.

“Hey, Shan,” Ruth says, walking up to the bar with a tray of dirty glasses. “You got a sec?”

“Of course,” I smile. “What’s up?”

She pauses and puts the tray down. “I need to quit,” she finally states, turning to face me.

“What? Why?”

“I think I just need to get out of this town,” she answers. “So much has happened, I think I need to just got out there and find myself again.”

“But what about Keets?” I ask. He’s going to be devastated when he finds out.

She smiles ruefully at me. “He’s a great guy, Shan, but he’s not the right one for me.”

“Are you sure?”