Page 27 of Loving the Beast (Beauty 5)
Well, it would be worth it if it could end soon.
He had sat through a long sermon about loyalty and love. He had spoken vows he’d written himself and listened to Erin’s vows without choking up visibly in front of their small group of friends and family—an extreme achievement, he thought. He’d slipped a ring on her finger, a thin gold band to match the antique engagement ring she wore. And let her put a ring on his finger, pretending not to notice the way her hands shook.
And after that had begun the longest pronouncement of a union he’d ever heard. He forced himself to stay still. Forced himself not to send a silent message with his eyes to the pastor to finish already. With his scars and his dress uniform, it might come off more intimidating than he intended.
“You may now kiss the bride.”
Thank fuck.
He lifted the thin veil and draped it behind her, pulling her in close. His lips were an inch from hers, and still he hadn’t kissed her. “How long until we kick everybody out?”
Her lips curved against his. “Hmm. Three hours?”
He groaned. “At least tell me you aren’t wearing anything under that grown.”
“I wouldn’t dream of it.”
“Good. Because there’s a tree over there with our name on it. And the dress stays on.”
Then he kissed her, his lips firm on hers, his tongue claiming, every movement a promise of what he’d do to her three hours later, of what he’d do for the rest of his life. To cherish and obey, to honor and protect, forever.
The End
Thank You
Thank you for reading Loving the Beast, the final installment to Erin and Blake’s story!
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• The Stripped series is dark, dangerous, sweet and hot. If you loved the Beauty series, you will probably also love Tough Love. which is available free from most retailers. Turn the page to read an excerpt…
Tough Love
A story about the sacrifices we make for love…
I sneak out of my room every night. My father’s guards don’t see me. My sister doesn’t see me. No one sees me, except him.
He’s the son of a mafia foot soldier. My father is the boss. I shouldn’t even know Giovanni. And I definitely shouldn’t kiss him. Our relationship is doomed to fail, but that won’t stop me from trying.
Not every girl wants to be a princess. I just want to be free.
Excerpt from Tough Love
The moon sits high above the tree line. Somewhere beyond those woods is an electric fence. And beyond that is an entire city of people living and working and loving each other. I may as well be on the moon for how close I am to them.
A guard walks by my window at 10:05 p.m. Right on time.
I wait a few minutes until he’s out of earshot; then I flip the latch. From there it’s quick work to push up the pane with its bulletproof glass. I broke the lock a year ago. And almost every night since then I’ve sneaked down the ornate metal trellis—like a thief, stealing a moment to myself.
The grass is still damp from the rain, the ground beneath like a sponge, sucking me in. I cross the lawn, heart beating against my chest. I know exactly where the guards are on their rounds. I know exactly where the trip wires are that will set off the alarms. My father is too busy in his office to even glance outside.
The office I broke into this morning.
