Prison of Tides

Chapter 20 - Elope

Jacob's Point of View 

     The night of Caspian and Jasmine's announcement, after we first made love, Cherry snored peacefully, her body draped across mine. Try as I might, I couldn't shake Raymond's words from my mind.

     That w***e's screams sounded amazing when I ripped her open.

     As her chest rose and fell against mine, I was disgusted that anyone could hurt someone so precious. She'd shown me some of her memories, but the damage I'd seen when I made love to her let me know there was a great deal she had withheld from me. I wished I could show her that one glance into her eyes made me want to drop to my knees, and that no amount of scar tissue could change her beauty.

     And Aiden! Her ex boyfriend, who claimed to love her but left her in her darkest hour because of something that wasn't her fault. He was beyond pathetic. He didn't deserve Cherry, her wild sense of humor, her intense persona, or the surprising sweetness that lay beyond her sharp wit.

     I would spend every day proving my love to her, showing her that I would protect her, never hurt her. I would give her everything her heart desired. All I wanted was for the world to know she was mine, and that I was hers.

     The more I thought about it, I couldn't let her walk into that courtroom in a week without making sure she knew that I would protect her with my life, that she was mine.

     I shook her gently. "Cherry?"

     Her hand felt around, landing on my face. "What?" Her annoyance at being woken was muffled as she spoke into my chest. Even that was cute. Everything about her, adorable.

     "Marry me."

     She looked up, her voice groggy. "Are you f*****g with me right now?"

     "No." I grinned, running my fingertips up and down her arm. "I want to spend the rest of my life with you. If you aren't ready, I understand. I know this is soon, but I know that you're the one for me. I don't want to spend another moment of my life without being your husband."

     She stared at me for a moment, the thin sheet covering her body as she sat up, suddenly wide awake.

     "If you ask me like a gentleman, I may be inclined to say yes."

     I got on the ground, on my knee in front of her. "Marry me, Cherry. Let me take care of you. Not that you need me to. But I will do everything I can to make you happy, give you everything you could want or need, love you always. So marry me. Be my wife." I took her hand in mine and brought her palm to my lips.

     She kneeled on the floor beside me. Her hands caressed my face before her lips met mine. "Yes," She whispered. "I'll marry you. You're right, it is soon. But when you were inside of me, I saw that this is right. You and I, we're right for each other. So let's do it quickly. That way, you don't have time to change your mind." She linked our fingers together.

     I shook my head, our noses brushing as we laughed.. "I won't change my mind. I love you. Friday, then. We'll marry Friday."

     She nodded. "Yes, Friday. I love you."

     With that, she pulled me back onto the bed, kissing me so softly as our bodies tangled together under the covers.

*

     The priestess was scheduled to come to marry us in the garden. We told no one but Geoff, not wanting to take away from the earlier announcement of the week. While he helped her get ready, I had business to take care of.

     At the jewelry store, I picked up the rings I had worked with Geoff to design. For Cherry, a gold ring, featuring a large ruby centerpiece, surrounded in swirls of black diamonds. For myself, I purchased a matching ring, alternating rubies and black diamonds embedded in the band itself.

     She would love it.

     As I stood in front of the fountain in my black button down and red tie, I saw my bride walk the garden path towards me. In true Cherry fashion, she was wearing a long black dress, shimmering in the sunlight. A black netted veil stopped at the bottom of her face, and her lips were redder than ever. She took my breath away. She carried a red rose, and Geoff snapped pictures of us.

     The vows were simple. We let the priestess do the talking, and simply replied with "By the tides, I accept her hand." When I slipped her ring onto her finger, I heard an audible gasp, a sound that made my heart soar. A sound I would get to hear every day for the rest of our lives.

     "I now pronounce you Mr. And Mrs. De Luca of Lutna. You may now kiss your bride."

     When she smiled at me, I felt my eyes begin to water. Lifting her veil, I saw the same was happening to her. I'd never seen her smile so widely before. I kissed her then, pulling her close to me, savoring the moment that I never believed possible for a womanizer like myself. That was in the past now. Now, I had Cherry, and she was more than I ever could have dreamed of.

     We pulled back and smiled at each other, walking side by side towards the palace.

     "So, babygirl. What do you think about starting the adoption process?"

     She grinned and ruffled my hair. "I think we should do it. Why waste time?”

     I nodded. "Let's get to it, then. We've gotta make sure little baby Gale will have someone to socialize with, you know."

     She nodded, her curled hair swaying around her face. "We should-" her words were interrupted by a voice.

     "Cherry!" I looked up, seeing a disheveled, dark haired man racing towards us, three guards chasing after him.

     "Aiden?!" She looked towards me, uncertainty in her eyes. I frowned, recognizing the man who'd dismissed my wife like she was trash instead of cherishing her for the treasure that she was.

     The guards caught up to him, holding him back about ten feet in front of us.

     "Sir, you need to leave," One of the guards spoke.

     "I came back to tell you I'm sorry, okay? I was a complete arse! But I love you, Cherry, I can't stop thinking about you. Think of all the good times we had!" I could smell the alcohol from where we stood.

     "This is a joke, right?" She was shaking. At first, I thought she was crying, thinking that marrying me was a mistake. Then, I realized she was pissed. I'd never seen Cherry angry before, not like this.

     "No, it's not a joke, Cherry! I don't care that he cut you up until you were infertile, I don't care that you'll never have kids of your own, I-"

     I was seeing red. "Hey, watch it, dickwad!"

     "Who even are you? This conversation is between me and my girlfriend, buddy, so maybe you should back the hell off!"

     I pushed Cherry behind my back, loosening my tie and stepping towards him. "Hey, pal. She isn't your f*****g girlfriend. You treated her like f*****g s**t when she needed you the most. You wanna know who I am? I'm-"

     Cherry yanked on my arm, pulling me back. Her eyes could have cut through steel, and her voice was so calm and collected that it scared me as she turned her eyes towards her ex.

     "Aiden, this is Jacob. I think you should apologize for being so rude at our wedding."

     Gods, I loved this woman. She never failed to amaze me. She didn't need me. No, she didn't need any man, but this woman, who could command armies with a simple nod of her head, wanted me. Wanted me enough to have married me.

     His mouth dropped.  "Wedding? This is a mistake, Cherry. We've been broken up for two months and you plan to marry the first bloke who comes along?! He's just using you. He doesn't love you!"

     The control she held earlier was lost. "You're shitting me, right? I was gone for five months. Five! And the only thing that got me through was this childish idea of you as some hero, riding in to rescue me. Instead, you showed up drunk, just like you are now. And then, then, when I decided the only way to get you to even f*****g look at me was to f**k you, you acted like I was the ugliest person you’ve ever laid your eyes on. After I was torn and cut open again and again for months! And you have the nerve to show up here and act like I'm some bad person for leaving you in the past?! No. I'll stick with the man who's shown me what love looks like." Her screams could have shattered glass, the same way her songs did at the karaoke bar.

     I placed my hand on her shoulder and turned to Aiden, who looked baffled.

     "You've upset my wife on our wedding day. Leave. Now."

     He didn't move. "Wife? You're already married?"

     "NOW!" I yelled, infuriated.

     I felt something on my chest and saw that Cherry had turned to face me. She had tears in her eyes that she refused to show him. I looked at her, understanding suddenly that I had been wrong. She did need me, although she didn't care for others to know it. I squeezed her hand for a moment before turning my eyes back upwards.

     "Look, Aiden. If you leave without making another scene, we won't press charges, so long as you apologize to Cherry and then remove yourself from her life. Permanently. If not, things will get ugly. I have the right to protect my family, my home and myself." A generous offer, considering that he made her cry on a day that should have been all smiles.

     His eyes met mine. He pulled a bottle of vodka from his coat and chugged more of it.

     He slurred his words as he spoke. "And why the hell should I apologize to her? She's the one who held out on me, but spread her legs the second she looked at you." He spat on the ground, looking disgusted. "Can't believe I humiliated myself for a whore."

     Again, Raymond's words echoed in my head. I didn't stop to think about my actions. I closed the distance between us and found my fist connecting with his face. He pulled me to the ground with him, scratching at me, but I pinned his scrawny body down with ease.

     "Watch your f*****g mouth when you speak about my wife."

     "You know, I could never want her after she f****d all of those men. Does it not bother you, knowing you're married to used and damaged goods?"

     My hands held the bastard's shoulders to the ground. How dare he talk about her in such a way? It took every ounce of restraint not to strangle him then and there, but I didn't wring his neck the way I wanted to.

     He lifted the bottle of vodka above my head and brought it down. I didn't flinch, just removed my hands from his shoulders and secured him with my tie as vodka and glass rained down.

     "She isn't damaged goods. She hasn't 'f****d' anyone. She was r***d and you shunned her instead of taking care of her the way she deserves."

     "You're just saying that because you're f*****g her! But you're nothing but a rebound." He was screaming. "She should be with me, not you!"

     I raised to my knees and looked down at him, breathing hard after our scuffle. "She deserves so much better than you. Maybe I am a rebound, but at least I'll show her the way a woman like her should be treated. She is much too intelligent, much too hilarious, much too gorgeous to be humiliated on her wedding day by a drunkard like you. In the meantime, I think I'll go take care of my precious wife. Because I'm pretty f*****g sure I'm not a rebound, but even if I am, I love her and I plan to give her the world."

     I stood up, only to hear a thunderous noise - applause. The palace staff surrounded us, along with the royal family. Cherry took a step towards me, throwing her arms around my neck and kissing me. In the heat of the moment, I'd forgotten she was there.

     "That was the hottest thing I've ever seen in my life," She whispered into my ear.

     "Every word of it is true, Cherry. And you know that it doesn't matter how we have kids. They'll be our kids."

     She nodded, biting her lip. "For the record, you're not a rebound." I just grinned at her.

   Bennett pushed his way through the crowd, his lip curled in disgust when he saw the foolish man bound on the ground.

     "I've seen enough. Get up, Aiden. You're coming with me." Turning his attention towards myself and Cherry, he grinned. "And by the way, congratulations, you two. You make a lovely couple."

     He dragged Aiden off the ground and out of the garden.

     Caspian and Jasmine approached us.

     "You guys got married without us?!" Jasmine said, giggling. "That's okay though, I'm happy for you guys."

     "Nicely handled, Jacob." Caspian's hand clapped my back as I slipped my arm around Cherry's shoulder.

     Elenor's voice rang through the crowd. "I believe this calls for a celebration and drinks!"

     All the staff and visitors at the palace were invited to the ballroom, where Elenor turned on some music before requesting the finest champagne and bourbon that the palace kept. Drinks were quickly passed out, and everyone, help, guests and residents, all enjoyed the celebration.

     Here I was again, dancing with Cherry after a wedding in the same spot as before. This time, it was our first dance. She was somehow even more beautiful than before, the way her curled hair framed her face, the way she smiled with more confidence.

     My eyes stayed on hers for hours, holding her close as we danced and laughed. Nothing mattered except for those moments, nothing existed except for us. Cherry was the woman of my dreams.

     I took her upstairs to our room. We hadn’t spent a single night apart since that night when we shared our first kiss, although we’d only made love once. I picked her up at the door and carried her to bed, making sure she knew she was my wife now. My babygirl, my entire world.

     Kneeling in front of her, I unzipped the side of her dress, pushing the straps off of her shoulders and pulling them down. Her strapless red bra hooked in the front, and as the dress fell off of her, I saw she had matching panties on, hugging her perfectly curved hips. I stood and kissed her, needing her to know how much I loved her.

     She kissed me back, and looked up at me for a moment before she took off my shirt and unbuckled my belt. She took her time taking off my pants and boxers, leaving me in less than she was wearing. I wanted to push her back and remove every piece of fabric between us, but I needed to remember to take it slow, not get carried away. She’d had more than enough roughness in her life.

     Her hand found my c**k, and she started to stroke me, her touch so soft and gentle as she coaxed me further into my lust for her. I closed my eyes for a moment, images of her dancing through my mind, when I felt something warm and wet on me. When I looked down, she had bent over and taken me into her mouth, her blue eyes never leaving my face as her tongue circled the bottom of my head.

     She took me deeper into her mouth, and I combed my fingers through her hair, resting my hand there without pushing down. She sucked on me, and picking up the pace, I felt myself entering her throat.

     “Oh, f**k,” I whispered. She pulled away, grinning at me, and I climbed onto the bed, guiding her onto her back. My mouth covered hers while my thumb traced her cheek. Her sweet sighs led me to dip my head into the curve of her neck, kissing softly down to the top of her bra. I ran my hands over it before bringing my fingers to the center and unclasping it. Her breasts fit perfectly in my hands, and I cupped them as I kissed her again, grazing her n*****s with the tips of my fingers.

     My hands found their way to her thighs, caressing the shape of them before I traced over her panties. A little sigh made its way into my ears as I kissed her collarbone and pressed my fingers into her underwear, feeling how wet she was. I pushed them off and let my mouth take each n****e, dipping a finger into her and listening to the noises she made.

     I moved my mouth downward, layering her body with love bites before spreading her legs and kissing the inside of each thigh, piece by piece, until I was at her center. I admired her for a minute, watching her quiver as I slipped a second finger inside of her. Her puffy lower lips begged me to lick them, to take them into my mouth and make her legs shake. I did just that, taking my time when I traced the inside of those perfect lips. She was salty and sweet at the same time, and I let my tongue drag from her delicious p***y to the very top of her c**t.

     Her hand in my hair let me know that I was doing exactly what she needed me to, worshipping her body the right way. Her chest rose and fell heavily as she started to twitch around my tongue, started spasming against my mouth. I kept my pace, needing to lap her up through her orgasms. Her legs tightened around my shoulders, and she flooded my mouth.

     “Jake, f**k, f**k Jake,” She moaned as she threw her head from side to side.

     I kissed up her body then, and she leaned up to meet my lips, her tongue in my mouth. I loved that she wanted to taste herself on me. I kissed behind her ear before whispering to her.

     “Turn over, babygirl.”

     Her cheeks had that flush that I loved so much on them, and she nodded, rolling over for me. She got on her knees, but I gently guided her onto her stomach, kissing from the base of her neck down her spine. Her back started twitching a little as I kissed the small of her back, and she let out a moan when I kissed her soft cheeks.

     I spread them, licking her p***y again, dragging my tongue upwards towards her rear.

     “Oh!” She let out a whimper of surprise, her legs wiggling a little as I focused on that sensitive muscle between her center and her ass. “Oh, f**k Jake, what are you doing?”

     I sucked on that little spot, licking it once more before kissing from her lower cheeks to her shoulders, nibbling on each piece of her that my mouth came into contact with. “Making sure you feel good, babygirl. Did that feel good?”

    “Yes,” She whispered as I spread her legs a little with my knee and slipped into her.

     I pressed in carefully, pushing her hair away so that I could see her face and kiss her elegant neck. I linked my fingers with hers against the sheets, making love with her at the pace she needed me to. Her mouth was open, little pants escaping as I made it all the way inside of her, warranting another moan from her.

     “Gods, Cherry, how is it possible for you to be so perfect?” I loved being inside of her, watching her face as I took her. Her scent was still on my lips, making me want to pick up the pace, and I did, just a little.

     “Oh! Yes, Jake, yes!” Her fingers tightened around mine, and I felt the muscles of her legs and ass tightening again.

     “Oh, Cherry, f**k,” I groaned as I pushed just a bit faster, resisting the urge to dominate her. I tugged her hair, feeling her ass lift up against me. She let me in deeper as she orgasmed, calling out my name, her hot and wet little p***y like a vice around me. I came with her, unable to hold out when she just felt so damn good.

     “Jake, gods,” She whispered as I kissed her shoulder, draping an arm over her when I lay beside her. She turned to face me, laying her head on my upper arm and kissing my tattoo there. “You make me feel so complete.”

     “So do you, babygirl. That’s why I married you, Mrs. De Luca. You make me the luckiest man alive.” I kissed her nose. Her snore filled my ears, and I smiled, knowing I’d worn her out in the best way possible.