Page 52 of Mic Drop

I turn to him, accepting the flute. “You’re my hero.”

He clinks his against mine. “Only the best for my wife.”

We make plates of food and sit on the bed to eat the mushroom and cheese pizza. When our slices are consumed, Bennett takes the plates and puts them on the side tables, his eyes devouring my body. The sun is just starting to set—streaks of pinks and purples cast an amazing glow over us.

“You’re the most beautiful creature I’ve ever seen,” he fingers one of my blonde locks.

“I appreciate what you’re saying, but you forget I’ve seen some of the women in your orbit. They’re gorgeous. But I’m happy to be the woman who makes you sing.”

He rests his weight onto his forearm. “No one holds a candle to your honest purity. I love the way you love with your whole heart. How you understand what I’ve been feeling. How devoted you are to your mother. You don’t have any doctor-enhanced anything, which makes you more real than the silicone and Botoxed groupies who are always around UC. So, you, Jenna Hardy, are the real deal.Myreal deal.” He kisses my nose.

When he says things like that...I can’t restrain myself. I tackle him to the bed. His Armani suit jacket is the first thing to go, sailing through the air to land wherever. We both kick off Kara’s flip-flops at the same time, and they land on the sand carpet below with a tiny thud.

My fingers open his crisp white shirt and stroke his pecs. Beneath my ministrations, his muscles flex and bow, as his breathing becomes more ragged. His hands shoo mine away, and he pulls his shirttail out of his pants, tossing it onto the beach as well.

I sit up. Seagulls fly overhead, pronouncing their approval of our wedding. The salty air urges me to twist around, offering my husband the back of my white dress. With care, he tugs the zipper down, kissing every square inch of skin as it’s exposed. When he reaches the bottom, I slip the material over my hips and leave it in a ball at the foot of the bed.

Waves crash in the near distance, providing the only soundtrack necessary. In only my white lingerie and him in his boxer briefs, we stare into each other’s eyes. He swallows. “Whatever I did to deserve you, I want to keep doing it forever.”

“Keep on being you, Bennett.”

He groans as he removes my bra, then lowers his head to suck my already puckered nipples. He takes his time with one, then moves to the other to repeat the same motions. I hold his head to my boob, awash in sensations.

“It’s been too long.”

“Hell yes,” he agrees. “One hour is too long.” He pulls back. “And I’m leaving on tour tomorrow. Come with me.”

My body begs me to accept his offer. Fly away from here, and all my problems. If it were only the stupid Black Widow stuff from Michelle, I might be convinced. But Ma’s face from today swims into my field of vision. I shake my head. “Ma.”

His arms wrap around my body and I snuggle into his warmth, needing it to do away with the coldness I know is soon to come. “I know, Sweetheart.” He kisses my neck. “I know.”

We remain locked together for a while, until Bennett rests his body weight on his forearm again and his thumb plucks at my bottom lip. “Today was a good day. Your mother enjoyed it. I think she wants you to enjoy tonight too.”

Let tomorrow take care of itself.

I allow this mantra to take hold. “You know what?” I maneuver my hips closer to him. “My husband is a real genius. He says the smartest things.” I kiss his mouth.

His lips quirk upward. “If you think a high school dropout is smart, I have a house in Aroostook I want you to share with me.”

I hate how he judges himself against academic standards. Besides, he did get his GED. And his experiences of traveling the world have opened his heart and mind to more than most people get in college. “I’m excited to share Secluded Rest with you. What’s mine is yours, and vice versa.” I kiss him again. “For the record, I think you’re much more than the sum of your schooling.”

“That’s a good thing.” His eyes dart toward the ocean.

“Hey,” I cup his cheek and force his gaze back to mine. “Many guys in your position would have given up on their schooling. But not you. You got your GED. That’s a big accomplishment.”

“Thanks. Darren was the driver behind that, remember?”

I do recall. “He was a good man.” I kiss my husband again. “I’ll forever be grateful he brought us together.” I rub my boobs against his torso.

Green eyes dart downward, then Bennett rolls us so I’m on top and his hands are at my waist. “You know what I’m forever grateful for?” His fingers loop around the blue garter on my upper thigh that Kara insisted I wear. Good call.

“What?”

“That my sexy wife is about to do a striptease for me.” His hands go behind his head and an expectant expression crosses his face.

My eyebrows raise. “Really?”

“Uh, huh.” He nods.

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