Stepbrother Charming(86)

I look at our “priest,” really a Buddhist monk we've chosen to marry us here in Denali. The thin man smiles and says the words I've been waiting for. “You may now kiss the bride.”

Thank fuck. I'd been worried I'd freeze up and forget a few crucial words.

Our little audience explodes as I lift Claire's veil back and taste those lips. Having her pressed up against me, tight and salty and hot as fuck makes this all real.

She's officially my wife. I suck the air outta her precious lungs and leave her panting for more. Damn if I don't enjoy a long buildup, and I tease her mouth with everything I've got, hand on her ass, heart thudding like a goddamned jet engine in my chest.

It's late spring in Alaska, and the high afternoon sunlight glows down on us approvingly, as if the whole world's decided to celebrate along with us. Damned straight.

When I pull back, her cheeks are rosy red, the same hue they usually turn before we fuck. I gotta give her one more grin and look away before my cock rips right through my expensive trousers.

She leans into me. “Tonight.”

Fuck! My dick does a hard jerk in my pants. I grab her by the hand and we walk down the aisle, listening to our small crowd clapping and cheering for us.

All my boys are there. Tommy, Ed, Mike. They're the only remnants of my old life in Washington worth keeping.

On Claire's end, there's her ma, an aunt, and several cousins I just met yesterday. I can't believe how much the power hungry Congresswoman's changed, and I can almost believe she's given up her dreams of going back to DC. Hell, she's the one who got us this monk to make things official, and I can't say it's a bad idea with all the eastern spice we're inviting into our lives.#p#分页标题#e#

She's brought Joan too. It's nice to see the old housekeeper again, and even better that they'll be working for us after the honeymoon. Claire's ma kept her gainfully employed after blowing my dad's estate, and now she's coming home to work for me, just like I promised.

I'll need all the help I can get to keep things running in the household too.

I'm due to open the doors on Club Tao next week, Anchorage's first full service bar and lounge, complete with an authentic West Coast feel. My boys are up to watch me tie the knot and make sure things get off to the great start.

We stop near the curb, not far from where our limo's parked, and wait for everybody to come up and give us their congrats. One big plus about having a slim guest list means it doesn't take long to see everyone.

I'm goddamned thankful for that. The sooner we have our dinner and reception means the sooner we'll take off for the high end resort at the park's edge. After that, we're fucking the whole week away, whenever we're not taking long walks into the wilderness and staring at the stars with champagne flutes in our hands.

Claire's ma comes up and kisses her. She throws her arms around me and I hug her back.

“Congratulations, Ty! Welcome to the family.”

I outta cringe hearing that shit again. She said the same damned thing on the day we met, but this time it's happy. It's real. I study her face carefully for any lingering bitterness. There's nothing.

She's learned to live and let go of her mistakes. I can do the same, even when we're getting married in the same national park where Mandy tied the knot with my bastard of an old man.

Don't worry, he's got his comeuppance. Even if I'd sent that fuck an invite to wedding, there wouldn't have been a response. Spree's in somebody else's hands now.

I hear he's busy selling off his properties and drinking like a fish. Even the family estate on the coast is up for grabs, part of a whirlwind auction to raise sorely needed cash.

Turns out, the fuck got into a multi-billion dollar dick waving contest and tapped his company's money behind the shareholders' backs. The experimental shit Dad tried to fund to take a private rocket into lunar orbit ate up everything, and the fucking thing exploded on the launch pad, killing two engineers.

The media ruckus blew his finances wide open, and it only took a week for the board to come for his head. Now, he's CEO of nothing, and he'll be lucky to live a quiet, comfortable life of mediocrity on whatever the hell he's got left.

It's not much. Looks like it's up to me to rebuild the family fortune, and his greedy old ass won't be getting a dime.

Maybe I'll make an offer for the Stingray this summer, assuming the new club takes off and I can stand letting my lawyer send him a letter. Or maybe I'll leave him to die alone. His bullshit stole a whole year away from my woman, never mind watching his goons fry her before my eyes, and that's fucking unforgivable.

I don't miss his sorry ass. Everything I need's right here at my side. I swing Claire's hand in mine, letting out a possessive growl.