Page 48 of Separate Lives
“This is all your fault,” Reece murmured against her lips with mock severity, when Jess pointed out where they were, and the obligations they had to fulfill towards their guests. “If you hadn’t insisted on all our friends and family being present, I wouldn’t have agreed to a lavish wedding, and right now we’d be doing something far more exciting than just necking in a corner of our house.”
Without breaking lips contact, they gradually moved from the living room to the study next door, and locked themselves inside, so no one could disturb them.
“It’s your fault too,” Jess breathed, weak kneed. Reece had stopped to kiss her mouth, but, unable to break all physical contact with her body, was using his playful thumbs to tease her distended nipples through the fabric of her dress. “If you had not insisted on buying this large house, I wouldn’t have insisted on having so many people around,” she answered throatily. At this, they smiled, perfectly happy to be surrounded by their loved ones while celebrating such a joyful occasion, but at the same time impatient to be finally alone and free to physically express their love for each other.
“It’s just too damn bad that I am as hard as a stone. Are you wet and aching for me?” he rasped, moving one hand down her body and up the slit in her dress, caressing her leg, to inspect her.
She trembled, doing nothing to stop him. “Reece! We have a house full of guests.”
“Tough for them. God, baby, you are ready for me,” he rasped urgently, massaging his way inside the pliant lips of her sex. Jess buried her mouth against the column of his neck, stifling a moan while her fingers bit the fabric covering his biceps as she held onto him for dear life.
“Come for me,” Reece encouraged, murmuring in her ear, massaging her until he felt Jess’s body shake, and the gentle contractions of her woman’s center grip his impish fingers.
Taking their time to smooth down their mien, Reece and Jess finally honored their guests with their presence. Everybody was sitting in chairs around the tables set up under the tent, where the turkey was about to be carved. As they stepped across the threshold a shower of whistles and cheers welcomed them, and for about two hours, they played the perfect host and hostess until everybody had finished their dinner.
It was after the bride had danced with her dad, thrown the bouquet, and Reece had peeled off her garter that, standing side by side, the newlyweds explained to their curious friends and family members what the priest had meant when he’d said he was marrying them for the second time.
“I’m mad at you two guys for keeping this from us,” LeeHanne chided. “Johnny and I thought we were good friends, and good friends share these kinds of dark, little secrets.”
Jess and Reece had specifically asked the priest to say they were about to marry a second time in order to explain everything to everybody, wishing to start their new life together with a clear break.
“That serves you right, for the trick you played on me sending Reece to Fairbanks in your place,” Jess chided mockingly.
“If you still kiss the ground I walk upon in eternal gratitude for what I did,” LeeHanne fired back with fake indignation, having a hard time suppressing a laugh, too pleased with herself that everything had turned out so well for them.
“But tell us, when did you get married the first time around?” Johnny was impatient to know.
Together Reece and Jess related to their friends and family the whole story, including their chance meeting at the Four Seasons –minus the X-rated details, of course. After a few mild reprimands for what their parents considered only a harmless prank, they excused themselves and joined the rest of the guests, leaving the four friends alone.
“I’m so mad at you guys,” LeeHanne repeated, “that I’m seriously thinking of keeping the fact that I’m expecting a baby a secret from you until he or she is off to college,” she said with her usual dry humor.
After an initial moment of stunned silence, Jess threw herself at LeeHanne congratulating her with a bear hug, while Reece shook hands with a proud Johnny.
“Well done, buddy,” he said, slapping his shoulders.
“Hey, what about me? I was there when it happened too,” LeeHanne butt in, faking outrage.
“Congratulations,” Reece amended, hugging her.
“When is the baby due?” Jess enquired.
LeeHanne smiled, proudly exchanging a meaningful stare with her husband. “Next June.”
“Looks like your last visit to Lake Tahoe a couple months ago included more than some house-hunting?” Reece inquired, mischief dancing in his eyes.
“Damn right,” Johnny said.
“Don’t swear in front of the baby,” LeeHanne chided, making everyone laugh.
“Back to you guys,” Johnny went on after their laughs had exhausted their course. “I bet I know where you’ll be spending your honeymoon –in Alaska.”
“Sorry buddy, but this time we’re going to Hawaii.”
Reece looked at his wife.His wife. Good Lord, he still couldn’t believe that Jess would be his woman for the rest of his life.
Sensing his eyes on her, Jess looked up at him. So much had changed between them in the year they’d been back from Fairbanks, sometimes she thought they were walking in a dream. Complicity, tacit understanding of each other’s needs and desires, had deeply reshaped their relationship. Now their sexual craving –which was as strong as ever, was paired with binding love, and mutual respect. Of course, there were still times they fought fiercely like recently while they were furnishing the new house. They’d set eyes on two different sofas that neither was prepared to leave in the shop. Giving free vent to their tempers in front of an extremely embarrassed sales woman, in the end, they’d settled the matter by tossing a quarter. But at least now, Jess knew that whenever it happened, she could have her say, and Reece would take it into consideration once he cooled off.
On the other hand, Reece was certain that even if Jess drove him mad, turning her back to him in the middle of an argument or walking out of the room banging the door shut behind her, he wouldn’t need to chase her down through half of the country to make her see his reason.