Page 24 of The Pucking Fake Marriage (The Ice Kings #4)

Five months later…

Seriously, Las Vegas bars are just different. And not in a good way.

I quell the stream of discomfort in my belly as I look around the room. Why does this place have to be so dark, anyway? I can’t make out any person’s features, even those closest to me. Still, the noise is deafening. People drinking, dancing, partying loudly. Even the people huddled in the booths in the far corner of the room are making noise by drumming on their tables.

At least I don’t have to go all the way over there this time. “ Meet me at the bar, ” he said.

Striding across the room, I keep my head up, adjusting my skirt as I walk. It’s a slightly longer version of the one I wore last time, but it still rides up my thighs as I move. A strong wave of déjà vu hits me with every step I take. It feels like I’ve lived this scene of my life before.

That’s kind of true. Only, I get to live it again without the bundle of anxiety and nerves that riddled me last time. I already know that this story ends well .

The farther I walk in, the darker the room gets. The bar is spread out to my right side, several feet of gleaming mahogany wood raised above dozens of barstools. I walk by several of these, only stopping at the far end, where I finally see him.

Ken. He’s grown out his hair over the past few months, and the dark waves curl around his chin and over his ears. His handsome face seems to glow, and his smile lights a fire in the pit of my stomach.

My heart misses a beat. I only saw him a few hours ago, but right now, it feels like it’s been days. My knees feel weaker as I close the gap between us. I start to reach for the stool beside him, but then…

“Fuck that.” He pats his thigh. “Come sit on my lap.”

A grin forms on my face. “That subtle, huh?”

“I’ve gone hours without feeling your skin against mine. I’m going to say fuck subtlety.”

I sit down on him. His arms wrap around me, and I melt against him. Just eleven months ago, Ken and I were right in this spot, and I was trying to work through the smartest-slash-dumbest idea in the world, depending on who you asked. My life was a mess.

And now, life couldn’t be any better. First, the restaurant is thriving. Over the past few months, I’ve managed to pay off all my loans, including to my parents. We’re opening up another location in Fishtown because of the demand. The Faye hype is far from gone. People still troop in every day, mostly because we have carved out a brilliant niche for ourselves—meals with a genuine homemade feel.

But that’s not even the best part. That award goes to Ken, my husband. I’m still filled with amazement when I think of being married to him. We never did have a formal ceremony. We didn’t feel the need, since we were already legally married. Having a real marriage involved heartfelt midnight conversations and therapy sessions, but it was still the most fulfilling part of my life. Literally, it feels like I’ve been waiting for this since I was born.

“How was the party?” I ask. Three weeks ago, the Philly Titans finished the season as the second best in the league. In usual fashion, they came out to Las Vegas to celebrate. But Ken missed most of these outings because he’d been hanging out with me. Today, I decided to kick him out of our hotel room to go for one of their meetups.

“Boring.” He nuzzles deeper into my neck. “Couldn’t wait to leave. We’ll be meeting for some drinks here in a while, but at least I’ve got this time with you first.”

His cock is digging into my thighs, confirming his words. I rub against him automatically, moaning at the friction of our bodies together.

“Keep up with that, and I’m going to screw you right here,” he groans. “Lord knows I was this close to doing it the last time we were here.”

“A lot almost happened the last time we were here.” I look around the bar, grateful that we get to be here again. “And I’m grateful for all of them.”

“Are you sure about that?” Ken’s voice is slightly amused as he pulls away from me.

I feel a lick of embarrassment. “If you’re talking about those viral videos…” Those were most certainly a low point of the past year. For a month or so, people actually came to the restaurant merely to gawk at the girl who, to pull a quote from the internet, “brazenly declared her love without shame.” Ken didn’t get away easily either. For weeks, he was bombarded with questions about me in his interviews. It took a lot of PR photos—sponsored by the Philly Titans—to reduce the attention .

“I wasn’t talking about them.” Ken sounds even more amused. “I was talking about my brother.”

I groan. Kali’s the last person I want to remember right now, although it is satisfying to think that he got his comeuppance in some way. My public confession must have clued him into the fact that I believed what Ken said because he gave a hasty confession to his parents.

“Definitely not grateful for those moments,” I admit. Ken’s parents had been shattered. Even my mother was taken aback by it. It shook both families hard. Interestingly enough, I was the least affected. Looking back, I was always more hurt by the fact that Ken could have caused the accident than I was about the accident itself. Kali being the preparator merely makes me feel pity for him, especially now, when I’m finally carving out a fulfilling path for myself.

“Yeah, they were more hilarious than anything, like my mother coming up to my apartment and finally admitting that she overlooked me my entire life.”

I squeeze his hand. Both our relationships with our parents have undergone radical transformations. While Ken’s parents are trying to make amends with their only son whose whereabouts are known, my mother is starting to come around to the idea that she never really knew me. It is a lot of work, but it also involves a lot of pay off. For one, Elizabeth is not averse to giving her new daughter-in-law new recipes that keep my customers wanting more.

“What would you change about the last year?” I ask suddenly. It’s not a question I’ve ever thought of before, but it feels right to ask it now.

Ken pauses for a moment. “Nothing,” he says a second later. “Only…”

“What?” I ignore the pang of anxiety that crawls up my spine. I’m no longer terrified of losing Ken, but I’ve got to admit that this sometimes feels too good to be true.

“I’d like to have a real wedding. One where we are both sober and both know what we’re doing.”

I giggle. “I’ve never pictured myself in a white dress. Or holding on to a folder and barking orders.”

“So what?” Ken places two fingers on my chin, tugging my face around to look at him. “Let our mothers handle the planning. Since they’re both desperate to make amends, they can start there. I want a wedding I can fully remember. Where I say vows to you. It’s been my lifelong dream.”

And here I thought I couldn’t be happier. “Yeah,” I say, “Let’s do that.”

Ken gives a whoop, nuzzling into my neck again and giving my skin gentle bites. The light airy feeling between us is suddenly replaced by thick, sensual energy. I moan, caught up in the middle of it. Ken is hardening against me again, and I feel glad about the fact that I’m only wearing a thong. If I were to slip it to the side and Ken were to pull down his zipper, then…

“The Edwards!”

I yelp at the voice, looking around at the same time Ken does. My cheeks burn as I see that we’re now being watched by a sizable portion of the Philly Titans team and their partners. Blake is right in front of the little crowd, grinning broadly with his arms outstretched.

For the first time in my life, I’m completely fine with the ground opening up and swallowing me whole.

“Hi,” I hear myself stammer. As a fairly new addition to the team outings, nothing can be more awkward than having them walk in on Ken groping me.

‘Hi, Charlie.” Blake’s eyes are twinkling. “You ready for us? Or are you…indisposed? ”

I know Blake is only teasing, while Brit and the other girls merely seem amused. Still, this is beyond embarrassing.

Ken appears to be more predisposed toward anger than humiliation. “Fuck off, Blake.” His hands are still gripping me tightly to him, and he’s making no move to back off.

“My bad. You know how it is. I’ve got to blow off some steam, since my wife can’t come out with me without shutting down Las Vegas.” His grin is getting eviler by the minute. “But I get that you guys are in that newlywed stage.”

“Can’t really call it that,” Alex chips in. “Since they’ve been married for about a year.”

Kill me now.

“Well…” Holding on to me more firmly, Ken raises me up and sets me on my feet. He rises a second later. “It’ll please you to know we’re getting married, for real this time. And you’re all invited, except for Blake.”

A small cheer goes around the group. Suddenly, I’m being hugged by the girls, while Ken is getting pats on the back. I hug them, my embarrassment burning off in the wake of their joy. Even with the little lapses, it feels good to be celebrated by the group.

“Congratulations, you guys,” Blake says, giving me a quick hug. “I’ve got to text Faye. She predicted this would happen. Plus, fuck you, Ken. I’m going to come to your wedding, whether or not you approve.”

“We should get to our table,” Nelson says, as Blake peels away to text his wife.

Ken puts his arm around me. I snuggle into him as we all walk toward the booth together. Brit is already discussing wedding theme colors, and Luke’s girlfriend, Lisa, is going on about dress styles. Evidently, our mothers are going to have to get in line if they want to plan this wedding. I listen to the girls, catching on to their excitement, taking mental notes.

It’s time to open another chapter of my brand-new, amazing life.

THE END