Page 14 of The Duke’s Hellion (Duke Dare #3)

I f Sam thought the wedding toast had been saccharine, going through a rehearsal of the ceremony was that much more agonizing.

Sally was standing at the end of the aisle looking out over the church, pondering who knew what.

The flowers cascading over the pews? The fabric draped overhead? The lit candles at the front?

Her face was scrunched up as if the number of wrinkles produced correlated to the amount of stress she was facing.

James and Joan weren’t much help, since they were essentially staring into each other’s eyes in the corner, possibly looking for a quick escape.

They had hardly been around this house party, but being newly engaged, Sam didn’t need to ask why that was so.

As he watched Mimi walk toward Sally, he had a weighted feeling, much like a large rock, slowly sinking to his feet.

This couldn’t be good. Mimi was not known for her good ideas.

Though he was one to speak. Last night, hauling her into the garden hadn’t exactly been one of his better ideas.

After he scolded her, he stared at her wondering what to do next.

Thankfully she had just turned on her heel and stormed back into the ballroom.

Otherwise, he wasn’t too sure what he would have done.

That night his dreams had kept him awake, though he couldn’t recall (or admit) what (or who) had been the object of his feral desire. It certainly wasn’t the blonde hellion at the back of the abbey talking to Sally.

That large rock inside of him was still on a slow descent as he studied the two women speaking, but it was too much like deciphering a foreign language.

Hands were moving, a few pats on the shoulder, a swipe under the eyes, a few laughs, a scowl directed at someone near the front of the church (Sam didn’t bother verifying who), and then a few more laughs.

Sally was gesticulating with her hands, and Mimi was nodding.

Her face froze for an instant. Coincidentally, it was the same instant that the rock in Sam’s body hit the floor.

Her eyes met his, and even from where he was standing, he could see her tighten her lips and pull them back into a smile. Another nod and then Sally was walking toward him.

She was shining with happiness. This was really not going to be good.

“Sam,” she was almost breathless in her delight, “good news.” Only, he knew it wasn’t. “Mimi has proposed the most perfect suggestion.” She clapped her hands. “I was having the most difficult time envisioning everything only moments ago.”

Only moments ago, Sam had watched her struggle. He only hoped her newfound peace didn’t require anything absurd from him. But really, from the gleam in her eye, and the frozen face Mimi had sent his way, he knew that something was about to be requested of him.

“Since I’m the bride,” she beamed, “I couldn’t see everything from the outside.

Mimi,” she gestured toward the innocent-looking-but-not-so-innocent being in question, “has agreed to take my place in the ceremony so I can watch everything unfold and make certain it’s everything I have ever dreamed it should be. ”

A reply of some kind was expected of him at this point. He offered a low hum that he hoped conveyed support more than caution.

“But I couldn’t have her walk down the aisle to Jacob.” She laughed. And he wanted to laugh too because by this point he knew what the request was.

“Yes. That would be silly.”

“Of course it would be. He’s not her fiancé.”

Sam withheld from stating the obvious. That he was also in fact, not her (or anyone’s) fiancé.

“Besides, I wanted Jacob at my side so we can discuss everything.”

Sam already knew that Jacob would just agree with everything that Sally wanted. The man was smitten. More than smitten. The man was floating around on a love cloud that no one else could see or touch.

“Makes sense,” Sam mumbled.

“I knew you would see it my way.” Had he another choice? Not with a bride.

“So you’ll stand right over here.” She gently (but firmly) pushed his forearm to guide him into his spot. The spot. The spot that wasn’t his. Shouldn’t be his. Would never be his. But somehow was his.

Inwardly he groaned and closed his eyes for a moment. He wanted to rake his hands through his hair and clench his fists, but then settled on scrubbing the lower half of his face with a long blink.

He was going to have to watch Mimi walk down the aisle. Oh, he had been prepared for that. Her as the bridesmaid, him as the groomsman. It meant nothing. But now, to be the stand-in groom and her the bride? It was too much.

He didn’t need to envision her in white walking toward him, ready and willing to give him everything. Her life. Her mind. Her body. Obviously, that’s not what was happening. He didn’t need to think those thoughts.

“Everyone ready?” Sally shouted. Who needed to be ready? It was Mimi and Sam that had the bulk of the work.

After moving to a spot at the perimeter of the room with Jacob, Sally called out, “Sam? Are you ready?”

A nod confirmed his state of readiness, which was to say, he was as ready as he was going to ever be pretending to be a groom to a woman he couldn’t have but was for some reason of late burning to have.

“Begin!” Sally boomed. Mimi started to take a few steps down the aisle, and Sam averted his eyes, paying special attention to the paintings on the wall and then the meticulously painted stained glass windows.

“Stop!” Sally quickly called out and rushed over to Sam. “You must watch the bride. You don’t have to be in love with her—”

“I’m not.”

Sally’s eyes widened at his interruption but she quickly schooled her features. “No, of course. Just face her and watch her walk down the aisle.” A quick pat on his head as if he were a child in need of encouragement to brush his teeth, she walked away.

Sam forced himself to look up at Mimi. She must be feeling as awkward as him because she had a goofy grin on her face and she sent him a wink.

Well, so long as she felt nothing, he could feel nothing.

His lips loosened, not into a smile exactly, but at least not into a scowl any longer.

He was pretty sure he had a nice resting face of contentment.

Mimi had taken about ten steps when Sally bellowed, “Stop!”

What the deuce was it this time?

Sally’s eyes were darting around the room until she found what she was looking for. With something white and fluffy in her hands, she skipped over to Mimi. Sally’s body was blocking Sam’s view, so he couldn’t see what the mad woman was doing. When she stepped away, his heart stopped for a second.

Mimi’s face was covered in a veil and her hands were holding her flowers. He couldn’t see her teasing smile anymore, but for some reason he didn’t sense that she was as playful as she had been moments ago.

Her gait had slowed and her feet moved with great intention. Toward him.

Inexplicably, his heart was struggling to pound out its normal rhythm. In its place, his pulse beat an erratic pattern.

When she stood in front of him, he reached out his hand and she took it.

Standing before him, he studied her face through the veil.

This was what nearly every man did. It was a milestone in a man’s life to get married.

Nearly every man would search for, claim, and marry a wife.

He would devote himself to her wellbeing, she to his, and they would unite their souls together before God.

He had never once in his life considered doing that.

He knew what love did to a man. Especially to the men of his family.

He didn’t want the craziness, the dependency, the impulsiveness that came with love.

Yet, here…in these moments…watching Mimi walk toward him…he couldn’t shake the koala of emotions that was clinging to him as if he were a tree.

He needed to see her face. See what she was thinking.

He reached forward and lifted the veil.

His breathing stuttered as he looked into her eyes. The depths of her eyes led straight to her soul. She was a hellion. Nothing in life would be easy with her. But when she committed to something, she gave her all. What would it be like for her to give her all to him?

Her tongue dragged along her lower lip as she looked up at him under dark lashes. She was teasing him. Did she know it?

That plump lower lip of hers was begging to be sucked on.

Her fingers were born to explore, and he wanted them to start on his body.

He could picture her underneath him. Hell, he didn’t need to picture it.

He had experienced it. He had felt her pliable body beneath him, and he wanted to have those sensations again. With more permission.

His hands wanted to introduce her to pleasure.

She was a virgin, and he still wanted to give her untold delight.

He could feel his tongue growing thick, anticipating what she might taste like.

Her legs would open wide for him and his light stubble would graze her inner thighs.

He would spread her lower lips and suck from the fount that was her.

He wanted to plunge into her and touch her in places that no man ever had.

He wanted to see her eyes fall shut and her mouth fall open when he made her come.

Calling his name. Oh, she would scream his name multiple times before he would let up.

And he knew she would be loud. He could read it in her eyes.

Once he had her begging for more, he would cease his ministrations until he heard her sobbing, felt her thrusting, for more.

He wouldn’t let her off easily. The same way she never let anyone get away with anything.

No, she would be his in the bedroom. Even if he had to tie her there.

She needed someone to show her the realities of life, and he wanted to be the one to do it.

The one. The one and only. And that was the most alarming part of his thoughts.

“Sam?” One whispered word from her shook all his visions loose. Unfortunately, that one word hadn’t caused them to disappear. No. They had been loosed, and now they wanted to run free.

This was trouble.