23. Commitment

Twenty-Three

Commitment

Elena

Today is the big day. I'm an absolute mess. I haven't seen Axle. I need his reassurance right now. Cash and I are outside, waiting for the music to play, to go inside.

"Is there anything I can do to... um... help you?" Cash asks, his eyes wide. He's keeping his distance from me.

I shake my head. My skin is on fire. I flap my arms, trying to cool down my armpits because I'm sweating up a storm. I hope I don't leave marks on my satin wedding dress. I went with an elegant, white, off-the-shoulder mermaid dress with a short train.

"Do you want me to cancel the wedding?" he asks.

"No!" I reply. My voice is harsh. "I want to get married to Axle. I'm just anxious about walking down the aisle while everyone's looking at me. I'm not good with being the center of attention." I close my eyes. "And what if Axle changes his mind?" I suck in a sharp breath, my heart threatening to burst. "What if he realizes he doesn't want to spend the rest of his life with me? What if?—"

"He loves you," Cash says soothingly, his hands on my shoulders. "Everything is going to be o-kay."

I take deep breaths, but my mind tortures me. "What happened to my parents? Are they here? Is my sister here?" I hope my sister's here. I don't want to do today without her.

"Yes, Viper said they're sitting in the front row. Rage is by their side, keeping an eye on your parents so that they behave. Everything is under control."

"Wicked Game" by Chris Isaak begins to play. It's the instrumental version. I thought it was appropriate given our love story. Cash holds his arm out and I link mine with his, then pull him close to me. "Don't let me fall..." Because it is highly likely I'll trip over my own feet, especially in these heels.

He chuckles. "I won't let you fall."

I peer up at him to see his soft, reassuring gaze. I smile, grateful I chose him to walk me down the aisle.

One slow step at a time we make our way in and down. I keep my eyes on the incredible man at the end of it. I know everyone is looking at me, so I put all my focus on Axle. He's facing me. He's wearing normal attire—dark jeans, a white shirt with his cut over the top—and I'm fine with that. I don't want to force him to change. I want him to be himself. It's his day too.

I glance at the front row. My sister is smiling widely and dabbing the corner of her eye like she's crying. When we reach Axle, Cash hands me off to him. Axle gazes at me adoringly. My anxiety floats away in his presence and at seeing his love for me. I know deep in my soul that I made the right decision to marry him, and I've never been so certain of something in my life.

Axle slowly raises his hand to my cheek, and I nuzzle into it. "You look beautiful, baby girl."

I blink back tears. We aren't even married yet and I'm barely holding back my emotions. Don't cry, don't cry.

His eyes devour every inch of me. He arches his neck and peers around the side to see my ass. "And that dress..." He whistles and wipes the sweat off his forehead, giving me his signature grin. He pulls me into him, then his eyes flick to my lips, and before I can utter a single word, his lips are on mine in a slow, tender kiss.

The priest clears his voice, and then I hear, "You're not supposed to kiss her yet." I instantly know the voice from the crowd belongs to Viper.

I pull back, giggling. It's so typical of Axle.

"You taste delicious," he says wickedly. "Are you ready to be Mrs. Evans?"

"I'm so ready to spend the rest of my life with you."

Axle

I peer around the crowd. The reception seems to be going well. I sigh while I look at my wife. Fuck, I'm lucky she gave me a second chance and said yes when I asked her to marry me. She's talking to her sister, Ava, at our table. They both laugh, then take a sip of their champagne. I smile at them. Elena looks so happy with Ava.

I thought I was going to hate Ava for how she's treated Elena, but she's sweet and quiet, just like Elena. The two of them have stayed close all night. I look over at Ava's husband. He's a drunk. I have no idea how he managed to score someone like her. The only reason we haven't kicked his ass out is because I don't want to upset Ava, which will then upset Elena, but I've had the men keep a close eye on him.

Viper and Reaper have taken a liking to Ava. I was in shock when Reaper sounded interested. He's never shown interest in any woman since I've met him. I'm just praying to God they listen to me and leave Ava alone. Tonight is my wife's night, and I have to ensure she has the perfect night with no drama.

Elena's parents haven't caused any issues, but even if they tried, we have them under control. They haven't spoken a word to me, which I find hilarious. They haven't hugged Elena or congratulated her, not that I'm surprised. They've just been stone-cold quiet. I think they came just to show their faces, but I'm betting we won't be seeing much of them in the future.

The music suddenly changes to a dirty dancing beat. Reaper is on the microphone. "Everyone, it's time for tossing the bouquet and the garter."

I rub my hands together. My body tingles with anticipation. "The garter first," I yell out. There's a round of chuckles. When Elena looks at me, she smiles. I wink back and give her an indecent grin.

She stands while I move to her. We link hands, and I lean down to give her a brief kiss. As we walk toward the chair in the middle of the dance floor, I say. "Can we get out of here soon? I want you all to myself."

She gives me a knowing smile. "You'll be alright. There's only a few more hours to go."

I snort. "No, I won't be, and this is just going to be a tease."

When we reach the chair, Elena sits. The crowd hums with excitement.

"Over here," Cash calls out. He's holding a blindfold.

"What's that for?" I ask.

"It's to go over your eyes."

I frown. "I don't need that."

"It's a request from your wife."

Well... in that case, I don't have a choice. " Fine!"

He places the blindfold over my head, covering my eyes. My anticipation heightens.

"Can you see?" he asks.

"Nope!"

"Good," he chuckles.

There's a pause and I'm buzzin'. "Well, can I go to my wife yet or what?"

"Just hold on a sec."

I groan. "What do I have to wait for?" They are teasing me on purpose, I swear. I tap my foot.

"Okay... it's time. I'll grab your arm and lead you to her."

My heartbeat quickens. I lick my lips in eagerness. I can't wait to touch her soft, smooth legs.

"Here's Elena," Cash says.

I kneel down, lift her dress, and grab her foot. The crowd cheers. I breathe in... Jesus Christ... I near gag at the stench. I keep going further, past her calf muscle. I want this to be sexy, so I start to run my tongue up her leg to the garter. Wait... her legs are hairy AF! How did the hair grow so fast? She wasn't like that the other day. But I keep going, and when I reach her thigh, I tug the soft material down her leg with my teeth. When I get up, the crowd is in stitches laughing.

I slip off the blindfold to find—to my horror—Viper sitting on the chair with a tablecloth on his lap. He blows me a kiss. I shake my head as my stomach churns. Elena is laughing. She and Viper high-five each other. I turn to the side, gagging again.

Viper gets off the chair and steps over to me. "You loved it, brother."

"You've scarred me for life. I'm going to have nightmares."

Elena comes over, wearing a smug grin.

I raise my brow. "That wasn't very nice, Mrs. Evans."

She laughs. "Oh, babe , that was hysterical."

No doubt it's payback for all the times I embarrassed her. At least she's got a sense of humor. I suppose she'd have to to put up with all my shit.

The end.

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