Pursing my lips, I chuckled. “I like your enthusiasm, but I'm warning you, I'm not going to get that excited about this.”

“Maybe you'll be surprised.”

I started to argue, but he reached out, pushing me gently into the stall. “Go, go!”

The curtain drifted shut, leaving me alone. Sighing, I set the dresses on the hooks on the walls. They were all different, sharing only the common theme of bright white.

I can't believe I'm doing this. Which do I put on first? Deciding it didn't matter, I ran my fingertips over the front of a ball-gown style dress. It's so expensive looking.

This stuff was meant for a queen, not me.

Tugging my clothes off, I kept my heels on, figuring the extra height would help me not drag the wedding dress along the floor.

I pulled the full skirt upwards, the weight of it amazing me. It managed to have a heaviness to it, but also, a surprising lightness. What kind of fabric was this?

The pleats were coated in filigree and glitter. It reminded me of fairy wings, and that thought alone made me smile. I hadn't been exposed to much fluff or fantasy as a child. My parents had set out from the start to infuse me with responsibility.

Binding the corset around my middle, I felt like... a bride.

Will I look like one?

Zipping the back closed, I buried that wandering thought. It didn't matter how I looked. This was about hard work, dedication, and sacrifice.

Especially sacrifice.

“Don't dawdle,” the clerk called to me. “Chop chop! Let's see how you look!”

Inhaling until my lungs could swell no more, I held the air. I didn't release it until I started to see black spots.

Okay. Here we go.

Stepping out of the stall, I was faced by multiple reflections of myself. From every angle I saw the dress clinging to me; the lace ruffles, the rose shaped edges curling down my bare back.

I'd never worn anything like this before. The woman in the mirror didn't look like me. She was serene and soft. I was hard edges and daggers.

What the hell was I doing putting this on?

I didn't belong here, I didn't... I couldn't get away with this. Everyone would laugh and say I was fake.

And wasn't I?

“Isn't it gorgeous?” Bates gushed.

Half-turning, I adjusted my hair over my shoulder. I couldn't tell the clerk my complex jumble of emotions and thoughts. “I don't know. It's a great dress, it just isn't... I look funny.”

This isn't me. I'm not a bride.

I'm a soldier.

Bates clicked his tongue. “You look stunning!”

A thick, restrained voice spoke out. “Stunning isn't a strong enough word.”

Freezing, I clutched my hair tight. In the mirror, I could see his reflection; blue eyes, a tight jaw and tighter fists.

Abell was there.

And he was watching me.

- Chapter Ten -

Abell

I was fixated on the sight before me. Nothing else existed.

Nix was a vision of radiance; a living opal, perfectly clean and glittering in the lights. The corset hugged her waist, the top enhanced her chest. In that moment, there had never been another woman so perfect.

I wanted her.

And I wanted her right now.

“Sir, please,” Bates hissed. “It's unorthodox for the groom to see the bride before the wedding!”

Digging into my wallet, I shoved several hundred dollars at him. “Go away. Give us twenty minutes.”

“I—what?” he asked.

“Abell,” Nix said, hands digging into the layers of the dress. “What the hell are you—”

“I said go,” I growled, shoving the clerk to the side. The man was flustered, but when he counted the money I'd given him, he shut up. With a pointed glance at me, he hurried out of view.

Focusing on Nix, I grabbed her by the shoulders, pushing her back into the stall.

“Abell!” she gasped, clearly confused by my response.

Fuck. I was confused, too. It had taken all of my strength that night at the party not to keep kissing her.

Nix had tried to convince me the world wasn't as cruel as I'd experienced.

If she believed that, I wanted to let her keep that innocence. It would be better if I left her alone.

Better if I never touched her again.

But I'm a selfish man.

The curtain fell shut behind us. She stared up at me, and I could see myself—my hunger—in the reflection of her green eyes. “What's gotten into you?” she asked.

Dragging my palms down her smooth, bare shoulders, I shivered. “I can't do this.”

“Do what?”

“Resist you.” Cupping her jaw, my lips captured hers. She tasted sweeter than she had the first night we'd met, more like candy canes and less like beer. Around us, the giant frills of the dress rustled. They announced our actions; shushing us or clapping, I wasn't sure.

My focus was laser sharp, entirely on her.

Under my roaming palms, the beads of her dress felt like brail. They told me a story, led me on an adventure across the dip of her waist to the swell of her ass.

Nix whimpered, pushing her palms into my chest. “Wait,” she said. “We can't do this.”

Nuzzling her throat, I inhaled until I was disoriented. “We can. We are.”

Her voice was fading, thickening with her growing need. “You said... you said you wouldn't sleep with me.”

“No. I said I wouldn't unless you wanted me to.” My fingers found the hooks on the dress, popping them one by one. “You fucking want me to. I can smell it.”

The heat of her blush touched my cheek where it was pressed to her neck. “But I didn't even buy this dress yet, and people will hear us!”

“I'm buying it for you.” I kissed her collarbone, meeting her eyes. “And let them. I'm taking you in this dress, right here. I don't care if the whole world knows what I'm doing to you.”

I need this woman.

Part of me wanted to rationalize it. I needed her? Fine, but I really meant I needed to fuck her. That was it.

Please, let that be it.

Nix bit down on her lip, trying to quiet her gasp. Her struggle was delicious. “My mother will lose her mind if the dress I pick gets damaged, and she won't buy a second, and... and...”

“Shut up,” I chuckled darkly. Running my lips over the indent of her throat, I slid the rest of the zipper down. “Don't talk unless you're saying my name, or begging for my cock.”

Her lashes fluttered. “I don't beg.”

“You do.” Threading my fingers in her hair, I yanked her head back, causing her to groan. “You will.”

Raking my jaw down her throat, I caressed every inch of her exposed skin. Her shoulders were smooth as polished ivory, the inner part of her arm so sensitive that just blowing on it drew goosebumps.

Spinning her, I pressed her face to the wall. “Stay.”

Nix looked back at me, the one eye I could see wide with anticipation.

Dropping to my knees, I threw the heavy folds of her dress up and over her hips. She was wearing a pair of white panties, the fabric pulling tight over her ass. “Fucking hell,” I said. “What a view.”

Tracing my fingers over her thighs, I hooked the panties, tugging them deep in her flesh. She squeaked when the cloth pulled between her cheeks, then further, right between her pussy lips.

With two fingertips, I lightly outlined her swollen folds, back and forth, avoiding her clit. “The night we hooked up, you wouldn't let me eat your pussy. This time, I'm taking what I want.”

“W—wait, wait—ahh!” Nix pushed her face into the wall, muffling her sounds. She hadn't been ready for me to dive in, licking straight up her cunt and along her asshole. Yanking the soaked fabric to one side, I spread my tongue over her shiny pink lips.

She tasted fantastic, a flavor that I couldn't define. I was a rabid animal in my frenzy to reach deeper, lick further. I pulled her labia open on one side, exploring every fold.