Misty Reigenborn Romance Boxed Set (36 page)

Luke

He lost the deposit he had put down on the club during his failed attempt to change the wedding venue, but Luke didn't care.  The band he had booked was popular enough that they didn't want to play in his backyard, but he and Sierra were able to agree on a local band.  The wedding plans were mostly smooth now, though Sierra was having a hard time choosing her dress.  She had wanted to pick it out without him, but she had so much trouble he ended up helping her pick it out in the end.  He thought that she looked gorgeous in every dress she tried on, but she found one problem or another with every one of them.  Luke secretly thought she was being overly picky, but she was the one who had to wear the dress.  Their search for a dress felt almost hopeless until he caught a smile on his beautiful fiancé’s face when she looked in the mirror after trying on a particular dress.  Luke bought the dress for her immediately without bothering to check the price tag.

Three Months Later

Sierra

Sierra looked at herself in the mirror and sighed.  It was almost time for her to walk down the aisle, or what passed for an aisle in their backyard, and she had just noticed that Luke had given her a hickey.

She shook her head at herself in the mirror, glad that her mother was down the hall with Kimber and Alexis, fixing the little girl's hair.  Sierra was sure that her uptight mother wouldn't be thrilled over the fact that her daughter was getting married for the second time with a hickey.

She covered the hickey as best she could with make-up, wondering if her mother was driving Kimber completely crazy.  Her mother loved Nathan and adored Luke's sweet son, but she was excited to have a granddaughter.

Sierra took one last look at herself in the mirror, then took a deep breath and let it out.  She could hear voices coming from Alexis's room when she opened the door.

Her heart beating fast as the minutes until the wedding ticked down, she knocked on Luke's daughter's bedroom door.

"Come in," Alexis called out.

Sierra opened the door and gave the girl who would soon be her stepdaughter a bright smile.

"You are beautiful sweetheart."

Alexis smiled.  "Thank you."

Sierra turned to Kimber.  "Do you know if the boys are ready?"

"I think Paul was helping them get dressed.  I can go check on them if you want."

"That would be great.  Thank you."

Kimber left the room.  Sierra thought that she looked a little relieved, though she was sure this wasn't the most comfortable situation for Kimber.

Her mother stopped messing with Alexis's hair and turned to Sierra.

"You're beautiful darling."

"Thank you."

Her mother gave her a hug and then turned back to Alexis.  "Are you ready honey?"

Alexis nodded.

"We'll see you down there."

Sierra smiled at her mother and Alexis as they left the room.

She took another deep breath and let it out, wondering why she suddenly felt so close to a panic attack.  She looked at her reflection in the mirror, forcing a smile to her face.  It looked completely fake, and she let it fall away as she left the room.

Paul and Kimber were in the hall with Nathan and Halden.  The boys were wearing identical tuxes and had been given the job of ring bearer.

Nathan was frowning.  Not thinking about her expensive dress that she thought Luke had spent entirely too much money on anyway, she bent down to her son's level.

"What's wrong baby?"

"I want to throw flowers with Alexis."

Sierra smiled at her son, hugged her beautiful boy and turned to Halden, who was clutching his mother's hand.  "Do you want to throw flowers with your sister too?"

Halden looked to his mother, who gave him a smile.  He nodded and gave Kimber a bright smile back.  He looked so much like Luke that it seemed funny to think there could ever have been a chance that he was Paul's child.

Sierra straightened.  "It's settled then.  You can all throw flowers."

Paul looked relieved.  "I'm sorry Sierra.  I didn't know what to tell him."

"No worries Paul."

Again not thinking about her dress, she picked Nathan up and gave him a hug.  "I love you baby.  Go with Daddy and Kimber.  Mommy will be down in a minute."

She put Nathan down.  Paul reached for their son's hand.  Halden had dropped his mother's hand and was giving Sierra an expectant look.

She smiled at him.  "Do you want a hug too?"

He nodded.  Sierra's heart was full as she embraced the little boy.  When she put him down he said "I love you Sierra."

"I love you too Mr. Halden."

She wasn't sure how it made Kimber feel to hear the exchange, but the other woman's expression hadn't changed.  She took her son's hand again, turning to Paul and Nathan.

"I guess we should get down there and let you finish getting ready."

Sierra smiled.  "I guess so."

Paul kissed her cheek.  "You're beautiful.  Congratulations."

"Thank you."

She watched Paul and Kimber walk away with the boys, then headed to the bathroom to check her reflection one more time before the ceremony.

Luke

When Luke saw Sierra walking towards him, he thought he'd never seen a more beautiful woman.  Tears stung his eyes as she neared him.  Not wanting her to see him almost crying, he tore his eyes away from her, sneaking a glance at the kids.  They had all loved throwing the flowers and looked mostly content, though he knew his daughter would probably be the first to talk someone into letting her change out of her wedding clothes.

He blinked back the tears and his eyes were clear when Sierra reached him.  He cleared his throat and took her hands, letting everyone else fade into the background for the moment.

He had tried to convince Sierra that they should write their own vows, but it hadn't worked, especially after he'd spent more time attempting to write his vows than he had to write more than one hit song.

When the minister pronounced them man and wife and Luke kissed his beautiful bride for the first time, the world felt like it stood still.  He had never been happier in his life and couldn't wait to spend the rest of his life as Sierra's husband.

Kimber

It had definitely been an interesting day for Kimber.  She wasn't sure she liked Sierra's mother very much, but she knew that the woman was excited that Alexis and Halden were joining her family.  She tried not to let it get to her, even when the older woman stepped in and finished fixing Alexis's hair.

It had felt a little strange to hear her son tell Sierra that he loved her, and she had definitely felt a little pang at first.  But she had bonded quickly with Nathan as well, and she knew that it was unreasonable not to expect her children to bond with their stepmother, so Kimber let it go.

Sierra looked beautiful.  Luke was as handsome as ever, but she only had eyes for Paul.  He looked so handsome she could hardly stand it, and she was very much looking forward to spending as much of the next few days as possible with him.

Paul

Kimber looked so beautiful on the day of Sierra and Luke's wedding that Paul could hardly stand to look at her.  Sierra was beautiful too of course, but looking at her only made him wonder what Kimber would look like in her wedding dress.  His thoughts were drifting more and more to spending the rest of his life with Kimber, though he hadn't yet had the courage to tell her that he loved her.

Sierra

The wedding reception seemed to take forever to Sierra.  She'd wanted to change out of her wedding dress, but her mother had insisted she keep it on, and had endlessly snapped pictures of everyone, even Paul and Kimber who she had happened to catch stealing a kiss.

Her mother had always liked Paul more than she'd ever liked Luke, and hadn't been thrilled when Sierra had told her of their engagement, but she seemed happy that day.  Even Timothy was playing with the kids, and Alexis and Halden seemed to like him.

Sierra almost cried when it was time to say goodbye to the kids since she'd never been away from her son for five days in a row before, but she held back.  She didn't want Nathan to start crying too, though he seemed to be happy about spending the days of their honeymoon with his dad, Kimber, and his new sister and brother.

Luke

The wedding reception seemed to take forever to Luke too, and he was glad that Sierra had talked him out of having a more public wedding.  When they said their goodbyes to the kids, he could see that Sierra was trying hard not to cry.  She'd never been away from Nathan for more than two days in a row and he knew it was going to be hard for her.

Once the rest of their goodbyes were said, they headed off to their honeymoon and their first days together as husband and wife.

Kimber

The kids were asleep upstairs, Alexis in her room and Nathan and Halden in Halden’s room.  It was a little strange for Kimber to think about the fact that Luke and Sierra were on their honeymoon, but in all honesty, she thought that it hurt a lot less than she had thought it would.  She’d even had to admit to herself that their wedding ceremony was nice.  She was much more concerned with her own relationship with Paul than she was with Luke and Sierra’s anyway.

He looked so tense sitting at the other end of the couch.  He had barely touched his glass of wine.  She thought that it was probably because he was still planning on driving home, though she hoped to talk him into staying with her, or seduce him into staying with her. 

She knew that a lot of her frustration came from the months that she had spent with Paul, sharing kisses that were so filled with passion she could hardly stand it but nothing more.  She was sure that Paul was feeling some sort of sexual frustration himself, especially since she had caught him looking at her with naked hunger in his eyes on several occasions.  But she also knew that he was feeling frustrated over his job as well.  While Kimber’s move had turned out wonderfully, Paul’s most definitely had not brought him everything he’d hoped to achieve.

His job was demanding and Kimber sympathized fully with him when he told her that he felt he didn’t have nearly enough time with his son.  It bothered him even more due to the fact that Luke worked from home and was closer to a stay-at-home parent to his son than Paul would ever be.  Kimber knew that while it might be hard for her and Sierra to truly like each other, it was even harder for Paul and Luke.  She wanted badly to comfort her man, but she knew that he was going to be miserable as long as he continued to work the hours that he was working.

Paul had hardly spoken to her since the children had been put to bed.  He was staring off into the distance now, as if trying to work something out in his mind.  She wished that he would talk to her.  It had seemed easy for him to open up to her when they had first gotten together, but lately it had seemed as if there was so much on his mind.  He talked to her of course, but it rarely seemed like he was really talking to her.  His mood make Kimber unsure of whether or not tonight would be a good night to attempt to seduce him, but at the same time, she thought that making love might release some of his tension for a while at least.

She drained the rest of her wine and poured herself another glass.  Paul gave her a look, but she ignored him.  She wasn’t driving, the kids were asleep and she wasn’t planning on getting shit faced.  She just wanted to have a buzz when she made what she hoped was a successful attempt at seducing Paul.

Kimber ran her hand down Paul’s arm.  “Are you okay babe?”

“I’m fine Kimber.”

There was irritation in his voice.  She didn’t think that he was upset with her, but she was starting to get irritated herself.  She was tired of him trying to solve all of his problems by himself without bothering to explain to her what was going on. 

“Paul, talk to me.  Something is eating you up inside and you won’t tell me what it is.  I want to help you baby.”

Paul sighed and moved his arm.  She was tempted to give him a dirty look, but instead she looked away from him, wondering if he was going to ignore her, or make an excuse to run away.

When he remained silent for several minutes, Kimber took a big gulp of her wine for courage, then she moved over on the couch, settling her head against Paul’s chest.  She breathed in his scent, loving the fresh, clean way that he smelled.  She wondered if telling him that she loved him would make him feel any better, or if it would stun him into saying something to her at least.

Paul’s arms tightened around her.  She let herself enjoy the feeling of being in his arms for several minutes, trying to shut her worries out for the time being.

Paul cleared his throat.  Her heartbeat kicked up a notch as she waited for him to speak.

“Kimber.”

She turned her head to look at him.  “Yes Paul?”

“I love you.”

Her heart rate didn’t slow.  It felt wonderful to hear the words leave his lips.  She held his blue gaze with her own. 

“I love you too.”

There was much more that she wanted to say him, but Kimber's hormones were on overdrive and they were telling her it was now or never. If she didn't make a move on Paul, she knew that she definitely wouldn't be getting laid that night.  Her seduction felt selfish in some ways, but he had taken a step towards opening up to her when he had told her that he loved her, and she didn't want him to shut down again.

She kissed him, trying to show him not only how much she cared for him, but how much she wanted him too.  His want for her became evident as she felt him start to harden.

Not taking her mouth from his, she moved her hand to his crotch.  He stiffened further, but pulled back from her almost immediately, giving her a dirty look as he removed her hand.

"Kimber what are you doing?"

She tried to give him a wide eyed innocent stare when she felt anything but innocent, but she could see it wasn't working as his blue eyes turned cold.

"I'm sorry Paul."

"No, you're not."

Kimber let out a sigh full of frustration.

"You know what Paul? I'm not sorry.  We're consenting adults and this is far from our first date.  The kids are asleep.  And you're so damned tense."

"Screwing isn't going to relieve my tension Kimber."

"Then talk to me dammit.  And don't make me feel like it's wrong to want you Paul.  Sex is a normal, healthy part of a relationship."

"Sex makes everything complicated.  My life is complicated enough as it is already."

"It doesn't have to make things complicated.  I love you Paul, and to me making love to you would be connecting on a deeper level.  If you're serious about being with me, it's going to happen eventually anyway."

"Not tonight Kimber."

He turned away from her as if dismissing her, and she fought an urge to laugh.  She had a feeling that she knew how Sierra had felt due to Paul's seeming lack of interest in sex.  It didn't feel very good either.  She knew she was attractive, but to know that the man she loved didn't want to make love to her made old insecurities surface.

"When Paul?  Are you going to save it for our wedding night when I know that you didn't make Sierra wait that long?"

"What the hell is it with women and sex?  I thought that men were supposed to be the ones that never stopped thinking about it."

"Wanting to have sex is a normal urge Paul.  Are you afraid that it won't be as good as the first time?  Don't worry baby.  We shared something that night, a deeper connection that we didn't want to admit.  And now the connection is stronger.  You won't disappoint me."

"I don't want to have sex with you Kimber.  And I'm not going to let you bully me into it the way Sierra did."

Kimber snorted.  "I know you were aroused Paul."

"So what?  I think with my big head."

Kimber rolled her eyes as she drained the rest of the wine in her glass. 

"I think about other things besides sex too Paul."

"You certainly can't tell tonight.  You're drunk Kimber.  I'm going home."

He got up off of the couch and headed to the stairs without another word.  She heard Halden's door open.  Nathan woke up and protested as his father carried him down the stairs.

"Daddy I was sleeping."

"I know buddy.  I'm sorry, but it's time to go home."

Nathan looked at Kimber as his father helped him put his jacket on.  "Bye Miss Kimber."

"Bye sweetheart."

Paul didn't look at her as he opened the door, nor did he bother to say goodbye.  As she heard his car start, Kimber wondered if she had messed things up irreversibly with Paul.  But then again she thought as she locked the door with a sigh, if he didn't start opening up to her again, she had a sinking feeling that her happiness with Paul was doomed to end.