Chapter 9

One week later…

RiffRaff

Grit slips the ring onto Hailey's finger after repeating his vows, and then the minister turns toward Joe and me.

"It's your turn." He smiles, and my girl squeezes my hands tighter in hers and gives me one of her radiant smiles. The kind that warms me up hotter than the sun that's shining down on us right now. "Now, do you, Johanna Joan Price, take this man Bronson Riff Leewood Davis to be your husband, for better…"

The words fade into the background because all I hear are the vows she's promising me with the squeeze of her hands, the quivering little smile trying desperately to hold back her tears, and her beautiful glistening eyes, which are promising to love and cherish me for the rest of our lives.

The way this woman loves me, I never thought I'd ever know the feeling. Her love makes up for all of it. It washes away all the pain of my past and makes me excited about our future together. It makes me dream of babies and white picket fences and sipping iced tea with her on a front porch swing while our grandchildren run around in the yard. Her love makes me wonder how I ever lived without her. Because before her, I don't think I was living. I was just surviving.

The minister finishes speaking, and Joe takes the ring from her sister and turns to slide it onto my finger. She lets out a gasp the moment she sees what I did, and I can't help but smile. It was my little surprise for her. She lifts my finger closer to her face and reads what I had tattooed right where my wedding band will sit. And in case that sucker ever slips off, there will be no mistaking who I belong to and who owns my heart.

"Property of JoeJoe," she whispers the words and smiles up at me. Yeah, the wedding reception may have to wait a bit. I need some alone time with my girl. I need to claim my property and add to the incredible memories of this day. Because this one is definitely going down in the books as the best day of my life. Although I'm pretty sure, with this girl by my side, there will be a lot of these kinds of days in my future.

* * *

We enterthe backyard of the clubhouse, and everyone looks to be enjoying the reception. No one seems to have even noticed that we weren't here for the past hour. My girl was feeling extra needy because seeing my new ink apparently drove her sexy little pussy crazy, so I fucked her good and hard, making sure she was sated and satisfied to get through another couple of hours. We showered and changed into more comfortable clothes, so now we're just ready for some fun with our friends and the people we call family.

I look to see where our partners in crime are, the other bride and groom, and spot them on the dance floor. That reminds me… I owe my wife a dance. I take my girl's hand and lead her onto the floor, then I spin her into me and meet her lips with a kiss. She purrs into my mouth, and when her eyes flutter open, I can already tell she wants to go back to the room and consummate our marriage again.

"Baby, you're going to drive me crazy if you keep looking at me like that."

I grip her butt cheek and pull her close so she can feel exactly what I'm talking about.

"I can't help it. I'm in love with your cock." She gives me a naughty grin that has my cock trying to convince me to take her back upstairs. "And your fingers, and your mouth. Oh, and that tongue…"

I let out a growl and nip at her lip, shutting her smart little mouth up and making her giggle in the process. She loves teasing me and getting me all riled up because then she gets punished. And she craves those punishments as much as I crave giving them to her.

"I love your heart." Her voice grows soft as she brushes my scruff with her fingertips. "Your smile. Your kindness. How generous you are. Not just with your money, but also with your time. I love how patient you are, even when I can tell you're frustrated. I love that when I talk, you just listen and aren't always trying to fix my problems. And I love that even after all you went through in your past, and even though you're haunted by your demons, you're still one of the best men I know. You're an incredible man, Riff, and I'm so lucky I get to call you my husband now. And…" She gives me one of her devilish grins again. "And I love your incredible cock."

I can't help but steal her lips in a kiss and make out with her for as long as she lets me because she just stole my breath away and made me fall that much harder in love with her. I think it's going to be a common occurrence with this one. I just hope I can find ways to sweep her off her feet, too. I lift her and spin her around the floor as she giggles against my mouth. I finally put her down, and we're next to our good friends who will forever share the same wedding anniversary as us. And a special place in my heart.

I turn to the other happy couple and let them know how grateful I am for not turning their backs on me. "Thank you both," I say, and they both turn their smiles from each other in my direction. "Thank you for telling me where my girl was. And thank you for believing me and for trusting that I wouldn't hurt her. Most of all, thank you both for being good friends to my girl. To us both. We're lucky to have you two in our lives, and you both will always be considered family to us."

My girl squeezes me even tighter, and when I look down, I see what I just felt a moment ago mirrored back. I'm pretty sure my girl just fell a little bit more in love with me at this moment. And I mentally vow to spend my life finding ways to keep that sparkle in her eyes.

Hailey and Grit both give us hugs, telling us how happy they are for us, then we all start celebrating. Tossing our girls in the air, eating, laughing, enjoying the company of our friends. And when the sun sets, and the final song comes on, I reach for Joe's hand to lead her to the floor for one last dance. But as we make our way there, I see Shiv sitting alone at a table, looking lost and broken.

Somewhere along the way, a woman broke his heart, and he's still not over her. I turn to Joe and reach for her chin. "Baby, I want to dance this last song with you, but I think one of our good friends could use a bit of your sweetness as a pick-me-up. What do you say? Will you give Shiv the honors for the final song?"

Tears form in her eyes, and I worry that I've just hurt her feelings. I'm about to retract what I just said and explain my reason for making the suggestion, but she speaks first.

"I love you so much, Riff. Thank you for trusting me and what we have." I do trust her. With all of my heart. And that feeling that I detest—jealousy—is never going to destroy what I have with my girl. "While l go dance with him, would you go dance with my sister?"

I lean down and steal myself a kiss. "Of course, babe."

I turn and walk over to the bar. Nicky's staring into her cocktail like she's deep in thought or caught somewhere in a memory. Whatever it is, it doesn't look like it's a happy one.

"Hey, sis! Any chance I could have this last dance?" She turns her head in my direction as I come to her side, and I see the tears in her eyes.

"You okay, Nick? If you ever need to talk, I'm here. You're my family now, and you know I've got your back."

She shakes her head like she's shaking the thoughts away and then plasters on a smile. I've perfected the poker face. I can read people's body language. And I know damn well when someone is hurting and trying to hide from the pain. But I also know that pushing them doesn't help.

"You know, I may think marriage is a joke and that a piece of paper doesn't do squat to keep men faithful, but when it comes to you and my sister, I am truly happy you two found each other." The sincerity in her voice pulls at my damn heartstrings, and I already know I'm going to love this girl like the sister I never had but always wanted. "You really are one of the good ones, Riff. Joe's right about that. And I want to thank you for fighting for her. I'd never be able to live without that girl. And now I know I won't have to because you're always going to keep her safe and protect her."

A tear slips down her cheek, and I wipe it away. "I'm going to protect you both," I tell her, and that's a promise. The girl before me, the one who looks like my Joe but different in her own unique ways, is hurting. She wants to be loved. Maybe not by a man, at least not right now, but by her family. And I'm going to make damn well sure that she knows exactly how important she is to both her sister and me. And I'm pretty darn sure some of my brothers are already starting to feel the same about her, too.

As if conjuring up the devil himself, Trigger chooses the moment to interrupt. I've been watching him watch Nick all night long, and finally, he decided to approach. Took him damn long enough.

"You gonna give me the last dance, Nick?" He sounds a bit surly, and I'm about to tell him to fuck off because the girl is hurting right now and doesn't need a growly bastard gettin' in her face.

She turns toward him, and her face transforms, changing into that of a seductress. Damn. For the first time, I can't get a read on what someone is feeling. I'd claim she's attracted to him, but I know her stance on men. As far as Trigger goes, he's eating her up head to toe and I know he wants her in his bed tonight.

"Are you going to put those big hands all over my body if I do, Trigger? Are you going to squeeze my ass and grind that cock into me while we move to the music? Make me feel the pulse of the song in all the right places?"

Suddenly, I'm pulling at my damn collar, thinking I should give these two some privacy.

"Damn, babe, I was going to be a gentleman, but with you talking like that, I might be dry fucking you in the middle of the dance floor." Now the man sounds even more strained than when he approached.

"Then no thanks. I'm good." And just like that, Nicky turns her head back toward me with what I'm positive is a fake-ass grin on her face. "Weren't you going to take me for a spin around the floor, Riff?"

I bite back my chuckle. If I were placing money on this round, I'd be doubling down. I'm positive that Nick's full of shit. She's interested in Trigger, but she's not going to admit it. Not even to herself. I reach for her hand and tip my chin toward Trig, whose eyes are now calling her bluff, too. And knowing Trig, he's going to drive the truth right out of her. If I were Nick, I'd watch out. She just tempted the beast, and he's not gonna stop until he gets what he wants. And he clearly wants her.

I lead her to the dance floor and straight to where my girl is dancing with Shiv. He now looks like he can breathe again, and the smile on his face is a damn good sight to see. I may hate the fact that he knows my girl intimately, but I know damn well I have nothing to be jealous of. The two of them are friends. Good friends at that. And I'm happy knowing they both have someone in their corner. And I love knowing my Joe fits right in with my Savage Knight family, and is loved by the men I call brothers.

My beautiful wife gives me one of her radiant smiles as soon as she spots Nick and me. Nicky, of course, takes the hint and grabs her sister to switch places. She then begins dancing with Shiv for the final part of the long-ass song, and Joe steps into my arms.

"Thank you," she says, leaning up and kissing me. "It felt like she was slipping into the past again, but you managed to bring her back."

I nod, being able to relate to exactly what Nicky is going through, well, in most ways. I got stuck in the past one too many times, but now, I'm right here ever present and so thankful to only be daydreaming of the things to come and not the things I can no longer change. We'll get Nicky there, too. It just may take some time. It's definitely a good thing, though, that she's agreed to move in here for a while. I think it will do her some good being around everyone and especially having her sister close by.

The song finally comes to an end, and I'm so fucking thankful that I now get to have my girl all to myself. I lean down and lift her into my arms and start carrying her into the house. "You're mine now," I growl, nuzzling into her neck, and breathing her in. "I'm not sharing you anymore. Well… I may share you with a plastic dick, but that's it."

She giggles and wraps her hands around my neck, the heat now burning in her eyes. "My sister got us a special wedding present, by the way. You get to control the remote."

Damn, do I love my new sister-in-law. And man, do I love my sexy little Joe. Have to say. Had it not been for that emotion I detest so much, I may never have gotten the kick in the gut I needed to chase the girl down. So this is one time, I can honestly say, I'm thankful for the emotion. Jealousy served me my truth, and now, I have the girl of my dreams.