Ballad (Rockstar #5) (26 page)

“I do, but for much longer than that,” I answer.

“She’s gonna stalk his ass from the grave,” Xander says with a laugh.

“Dude,” Kennedy scolds.

“Jeez,” Xan replies, properly chastised. “Sorry.”

“Do you, Jamison Benjamin Kingston, take this woman, Nicole Alexandra Harper, to be your lawfully wedded wife? In sickness and in health, for richer or poorer, until death do you part?”

Ben’s eyes shine with unshed tears as he nods. “I do. For so much longer than that.”

“Glad you both agree on that,” the pastor teases. Ben and I smile wider.

“If you have the rings?”

Ben nods and I can only look on as this marvelous man produces rings for each of us, handing mine to Cage.

“Nicole, repeat after me. With this ring, I thee wed.”

I slide the platinum band with beautiful etching onto his left ring finger. “With this ring, I thee wed.” I peer up at him through my lashes and he looks so serious, as serious as this moment is.

Cage hands Ben the rings.

“Ben, repeat after me,” Pastor Bingham begins. “With this ring, I thee wed.”

Ben looks into my eyes, then down at my fingers as he slides the rings on. I don’t care if he got me a ring out of a Cracker Jack box, all I care about are the emotions shining in his eyes as he says these six words.

“With this ring, I thee wed.”

His gaze locks with mine and I blink back tears.

“By the power vested in me, I now pronounce you man and wife. You may kiss your bride.”

“Holy Hannah!” I squeal just before Ben’s lips meet mine in a possessive, breath-stealing kiss.

“Better check her blood pressure!” Meggie shouts and everyone laughs.

“I now present to you, Mr. and Mrs. Ben Kingston!” Pastor Bingham announces happily and I pull Ben down for another kiss.

When we pull back he rests his forehead against mine.

“Hi wife.”

My breath catches and I smile. “Hi husband.”

“Oh, that’s the sweetest thing I’ve ever seen,” Lucy says as she begins to cry. “It’s hormones.”

“No, it’s not,” a bunch of them say at the same time.

“Bullies,” she teases.

Someone turns music on at their end of the connection, and Sera nudges Ben.

“Dance the first dance with your wife, Benny,” she teases with a wink.

He points at her, but can’t hide his smile.

I stand on wobbly legs and Ben helps me, holding me close to him.

“Stand on my feet, honey. I’ll do all the hard stuff so you don’t tire yourself out,” Ben whispers.

“You always know,” I tell him.

He nods. “I always will.”

“I’m going to hold you to that.”

“Good. Now hop on these size twelves and let’s dance our first dance as husband and wife.”

I step onto his feet, swaying a little as dizziness washes over me.

“I got you, honey,” Ben tells me. “I’ll hold you up.”

“Just hold me close and let me try to take in this perfect moment,” I say. “You’re my husband,” I whisper.

He nods. “You’re my wife.”

I nod.

“If you think the press had a fun time with Jesse and Lucy, imagine what’s going to happen with Ben and Nicole,” Jace mutters.

“I heard that,” I announce, “and I don’t care.”

“Me neither,” Ben agrees. “There are more important things in the world to focus on than what the press and the people out there who don’t know us think about our lives, which are none of their business to begin with.”

“Wow. He said a mouthful there,” Megs says.

“Every word the truth,” Trace states.

There’s cake and sparkling cider—ginger ale for me.

“How are you two going to consummate the marriage?” Ethan asks.

“Ethan! Of all people!” I state with shock. “I expected that from Xander, but not you.”

“Nice, dude,” Xan tells him and they fist bump.

Ben looks into the camera. “This is one of those things you don’t need to know.”

“Daaamn,” Xan starts. “Ben’s got plans.”

“Knock it off,” Kennedy chides. “That’s my little sister you’re talking about. Respect.”

Xan’s mouth snaps closed. “Respect.”

I fight the yawn that threatens to escape, but it beats me. Ben smiles softly down at me.

“Time for a nap?” he asks.

I nod. “I think so.”

“I’m glad you don’t hide anything from me, Nicole. About how you’re feeling, I mean.”

“There’s no point in that. You’re right here with me, seeing it all, experiencing it all with me. I won’t hide from you, Ben,” I tell him.

“Good. You’ll never have to.”

“Did you find out anything?” Sera asks.

“I did.”

“Is it good news or bad?”

I press a kiss to her forehead. “It’s good. Her aunt is alive.”

“Oh, that’s fantastic!”

I nod. “It is.”

Sera’s smile fades. “What’s wrong?”

“I understand now why she chose to protect her aunt and her family.”

“Tell me, babe.”

“Her aunt is married to Frank,” I tell her.

“Frank who?” she asks.

That was my first instinct too when Gio told me. I wait for it to sink in and it doesn’t take long.

“Our Frank,” she whispers.

I nod.

Her eyes narrow. “Gampy knew.”

I nod again.

“You’re as pissed as I am,” she states.

I nod yet again. I’m more than pissed. How he could have kept something like this from me…

“He knew the whole time?” she asks.

“Yep.”

“He set this up?”

I nod.

“But how could he know Lucy would pick her email out of all the rest?” my Fee asks.

“It was simple really. He had someone change the color of the text in the subject line to pink and added flowers and hearts as well,” I tell her, biting back my anger at his manipulation of Lucy.

“He…”

I nod grimly and she clamps her mouth shut.

“My gampy’s in for a world of hurt when Lucy finds out.”

“He certainly is.”

“B
EN
.”

“Yeah, honey.”

I’m lying next to my wife in her hospital bed and there are only a couple hours left before she has to undergo more treatment.

“I want you to touch me,” Nicole whispers and my eyes snap open.

“Nicole, you’re not well enough for that,” I say softly.

“Don’t you want me?” she asks, the insecurity coming through loud and clear.

“Beautiful wife of mine,” I tell her, cupping her cheek in my hand, the sliver of light shining in through a crack in the blinds not high enough so I can see her face, but merely a shadow. “I want nothing more than to touch you and take you and fuck you until you’re screaming my name, but I really don’t want you to do something that could set back your treatment.”

She blows out a breath. “The nurses left us alone tonight for a reason, Ben.”

I nod. “I know, I do. I’m just afraid of doing something…”

“I know what you’re saying, but if I just lay here and promise not to exert myself in any way, shape, or form, will you officially make me your wife?” she asks.

God, I know she’s so tired and she feels like hell. If I deny her… I can’t deny her.

“You can’t move,” I tell her, leaning in to kiss her lips. “This is going to be sweet, slow, and easy.”

“Mhm. Okay.”

I kiss her neck, licking and sucking, making her breath catch when I get to those sweet spots she has. I raise the hospital gown up to bare her breasts. I can’t see them, but I know what they look like. I close my eyes, remembering as I gently squeeze and she moans softly. I replace my hand with my mouth, sucking on her nipple, biting it lightly before licking it quickly with the tip of my tongue.

“More,” she asks, and I give it.

I slide my hand down her body between her legs.

I groan. “Damn. You’re already so wet.”

“It’s you. You do that,” she pants as I slip a finger inside her tight pussy. My dick gets hard remembering how snug it is when I’m fucking her, how her pussy clamps down so hard when she comes it makes it impossible for me not to come with her.

“I want you to come for me just like this.” I add another finger and she sinks back into the bed.

“Oh yes,” she says when I press the heel of my hand against her clit, moving it in time with my fingers.

“Do you like that, Nicole? Do you like it when I finger you?” I ask, remembering how she told me dirty talk got her off.

“Mmm,” she moans.

“If you like it that much, you should reward me for giving you what you like. You should let go and come on my fingers so when you’re done I can stick them in my mouth to taste your release,” I say soft and low against her ear.

Her breath hitches and her body starts to shake.

“There you go. Let me know I please you, wife,” I demand. “Come for me, Nicole.”

I thrust my fingers faster, then curve them ever so slightly, and she’s flying. I smother her cries of pleasure with my kiss. As her pussy spasms around my fingers it’s all I can do not to thrust into the bed until I come with her. It’s been long enough that it wouldn’t take much.

I pull down my joggers and boxer briefs, kicking them to the floor.

We lie there facing one another and I trace a finger down her cheek. “Tell me if it becomes too much.”

“I will. Promise.”

I nod then lift her leg over my hip. I grab my cock and place it at her opening. It kills me, but I push in slowly, her wetness surrounding me, her heat enveloping me.

“You feel so fucking good,” I tell her.

“Oh Ben,” she whispers. “Don’t stop.”

“I don’t think I could stop if the fucking building was on fire,” I admit. She snickers. I don’t. I want her with a fierceness I’ve never felt before. It’s not just the physical, it’s the emotional, the coming together as man and wife for the first time. It’s me wanting to claim and mark her as mine.

Slowly I work my cock further and further inside her. When I’m completely inside her I let out a sigh.

“I love you, Nicole.”

“I love you, Ben.”

“Now you’re mine completely.”

“I was already yours, love.”

It’s the second time she’s called me that and I fucking love it. I hold her hips as I thrust into her pussy, my cock growing with each thrust. I am not going to come without her. No fucking way. Not this time, when it’s this important.