Ring: Chapter Three: The Shared Path

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Chapter Three: The Shared Path

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I woke up the morning of our wedding lying beside my future husband. He was nude and awake, sprawled out next to me. The sheet was barely draped over his thighs. The day before, he purchased himself some art supplies so he could relax and draw while we were here. I made sure he got the nicest pencils and markers. His glasses were perched on the end of his nose.

It was so sexy.

“So, if it’s bad luck to see the bride before the wedding, what is it if I stare at her while she sleeps?” He presented a colored picture of me, a smile on my slumbering face. My lips were so pink in the image. Jasper made me feel beautiful when he drew me like that. He flipped the page and showed me another that he did. This one had me kneeling on the bed with the Vegas Strip as the backdrop. I was only wearing his white t-shirt, and my breasts were stretching it tight. My nipples were visible through it. With my fingers in my hair, I pushed it up to the top of my head while I bit my lip. My lock and key and my ring were all done with a metallic marker, so they stood out.

“Romantic. A sweet man in love,” I finally answered his question. “I wouldn’t want to be away from you all day, anyway. I couldn’t handle it.”

He brought it to his lap. “Well, we’ll spend part of it apart. But would you like to get breakfast downstairs before we do?”

Rolling onto my back, I stretched as I grinned. “I’d love to. Just like in the beginning,” I mumbled as I thought about our first months together, stealing time in hotels and flirting in the restaurants.

“We’ve really come full circle, haven’t we?” He smiled. “So, I was too excited to sleep, and I was looking at the menu. It looks delicious. They have a buffet on the weekend that I’d like to go to while we’re here. It’s fancy as hell.”

“Sounds marvelous to me. Do you already know what you want to eat?”

Jasper laid down beside me, putting his book on the side table with his drawing bag. Slowly, he pulled the sheet away from my body. His smirk was confident and cocky. “Yes, I do,” he responded as he tugged my legs apart. 

I flushed at the predatory way he stared at me, his eyes on mine. They were glowing in the sunlight from the opened curtains. “Oh, I walked into that one.”

Chuckling, Jasper’s fingers curled around my thighs. “Yes, you did.”

There was nothing wrong with starting the wedding night early, especially the way he was doing it. My future husband wanted to get a head start on his promise to worship me.

It was a good thing we purchased a gag the day before. Our shopping had been so much fun. I wasn’t usually the type to enjoy it, but it was so different when you didn’t have to look at the prices at all. Cuffs, collars, paddles, a riding crop, lube, plugs, and vibrators. It left nothing to the imagination. I even got a sexy dress with a corset to wear when we played. Jasper picked it out for me.

After a pleasant shower together, we enjoyed a relaxing meal while holding hands. We were both quiet and nervous, but so happy. Neither of us had any cold feet, though. This was anticipation.

It took a surprisingly long time to get ready. They did my eyebrows, gave me a manicure and pedicure, and then styled my hair on top of my head so that my curls were spilling everywhere. The stylist French-braided it up the back, weaving a red silk ribbon in it to pair with my dress. My eyes and lips matched. They were a deep crimson. 

I brought my clothes with me to change into so Jasper could get the full effect when I saw him again. I returned my things back to the suite, but he wasn’t there. On the table in the living room area, there was a large white box. I walked to it and opened it slowly. Inside was a beautiful buttercream cake with fresh glazed fruit. 

It was our wedding cake.

It was an immeasurably great thing that all of my makeup was as waterproofed as it could be. The stylist said it would take scrubbing to get the lipstick off. It’s exactly what I needed.

There was also champagne and wine in the fridge. I smiled to myself. The evening would be amazing. I was ready.

“Where are you?” I typed to him on my phone. “I’m finished.”

“I ran out for a few minutes. I’m heading back to the hotel now. I should be there soon.”

“I’ll come down to meet you.”

I slipped my cell into my clutch purse with all the things I would need for the night. Giving myself one last spritz of perfume between the breasts, I went to the elevator.

We saw each other at the same time. Jasper had gotten a haircut, his skin was freshly shaven. He was wearing a fitted black tux, complete with a bow tie. In his lapel was a red rosebud. He was so beautiful and all mine. His smile grew so wide. When I got close enough, he pulled something from behind his back. It was a bouquet of red roses, perhaps two dozen, all tightly wrapped together with a crimson silk ribbon. It matched the one in my hair.

He didn’t know I was doing it, and I didn’t realize he was getting me flowers. I had forgotten I would need them. Somehow they went together perfectly.

Stopping, I put my hand over my mouth. It was so hard not to cry with happiness. Blinking, I tried to keep the tears from coming. He rushed to me, pulling me into his arms.

“You’re so beautiful,” he declared in a laugh thick with emotions. “Oh, my god. You’re perfect.”

I took the flowers from him, turning only a little while still in his grasp. I didn’t want to smash them as we embraced. “Thank you. I love them. The cake, too. Thank you for thinking of everything and always taking care of me.” I pecked his soft cheek.

“You’re welcome,” he said as he brought my hand up to his mouth to kiss. “We should go before we draw any more of a crowd,” he mumbled as he looked around. The whole lobby had stopped to watch us, the room still for only a second. “The limo just got here.”

Red Springs was lined with a wooden boardwalk. It was tranquil and quiet since it was December, not many people were around. The Justice of the Peace was waiting for us there, as well as the witness who was their assistant and the photographer and videographer. He went all out and would have every moment captured to give to his mother. He was hoping it would quell some of her anger.

We held hands as we walked to the spot where we would get married. As we did, the pair moved around us. For once, I really didn’t mind having my picture taken. I wanted to remember this for the rest of our lives, too.

We kept stealing glances at each other, grinning as we caught the other’s eye. It was still in the sixties, so I wasn’t cold with my bare shoulders. The sun was just starting its descent below the horizon. Everything was glowing with the blue skies behind us. It was like stepping into a painting.

Stopping in front of the official, we continued to hold hands as we turned to look at him. I thought my face would break open with my joy. The older man smiled at us before glancing down at the little black notebook that he carried with him.

He cleared his throat. “Usually, I make some grand speech about love, maybe even read a poem, but looking at you both, I can see I don’t need to do that. It’s literally pouring from you both. Keep that. Hold on to that for the rest of your lives. This bond you’re creating is not one you make lightly. Never let go of that adoration. Be always worshipful, and you will never lose the spark you’ve created. Nourish it and help it grow, so it can light the shared path you will build together from now on.”

Jasper squeezed my hand and smiled at me.

I said everything when I was supposed to, but I wasn’t listening to him anymore. I couldn’t take my eyes off of my man. He was looking back just as happily. His smile was so beautiful. My hands were shaking when I slipped his ring onto his finger. I almost dropped it. But he was trembling, too. He held my fingers, twisting his with mine, after slipping my band into place next to the engagement ring that had only been there for three days. 

“You may kiss the bride.”

My husband placed both of his palms on my cheeks and pulled my mouth to his. It was so intense, my eyes fluttering closed as my arms snaked around his neck. I giggled as he dipped me back, all the blood rushing to my head. One hand purposely slipped to my ass to help keep me up.

Luckily, my lipstick was kiss-proof.

We posed for pictures until the sun went fully down. It was a stunning sunset, pink and orange with clouds streaking the sky. Too quickly, it turned to a velvet purple before fading totally to black. As it did, it got colder. By the end, Jasper wrapped his jacket around me.

I couldn’t wait to see all the photos. We were told they would be sent to us by the end of the week.

My new husband made reservations at one of the nicest steakhouses in Vegas called Edge. They aged their steaks for forty days, according to the menu. I instantly understood why he would want it. The limo dropped us off there and left us for the night. With my bouquet in hand, we went to the hostess stand.

“Dr. and Mrs. Hale,” he told her proudly, smiling.

“Yes! Dr. Hale,” she answered in recognition as she looked at the screen. “Congratulations! Let me get your table ready, and I’ll be right back.”

“Thanks.”

I giggled at my thoughts. “Mrs. Hale. Oh, my god. It sounds so authoritative,” I joked, making him chuckle. “Ms. Swan sounds like the meek book nerd who would get pushed around the library. Mrs. Hale could kick someone’s ass while not spilling her champagne.”

He leaned in and kissed my shoulder. “She could, and it’s so fucking hot.”

Laughing loudly despite myself, I shook my head. “Maybe I’ll make you call me that when we play.”

“I’ll call you whatever you want, Goddess. I’d be more than happy to,” he continued to beam. He was radiating joy.

Looking at him and feeling the overwhelming bliss made me realize we were doing the right thing. Somewhere in the back of my mind, I was worried. There would be people who weren’t pleased and maybe some who would judge us for what we did, but it was exactly what we needed for us. We were taking control of our moment and going forward together as equals.

“I love you, sir,” I breathed. He bumped his forehead to mine.

The hostess came back, smiling at us. “All ready! Follow me this way, please.” She picked up two menus before typing something onto her computer screen.

“Oo! They have shrimp in sweet chili sauce,” I said once we sat, glancing at the menu. It was the first thing on the starters and was one of my favorites. I had finally gotten my appetite back and was ready to eat. My stomach growled quietly.

He ordered them as soon as the waitress came to the table and the five glasses of wine flight that paired with the meal for both of us. “I’m so hungry,” he told me, taking a sip of his water as he shook his head. “Breakfast feels like months ago.”

“Me too. But it’s so hard to decide. I definitely want an aged New York strip. But the seafood sounds so good too.” I bit my lip, reading the words again. “I might add some.”

He hummed. “The lobster tail, the scallops, or the crab legs?”

“Both the lobster and the scallops, actually.”

“I’ll get the ribeye, you get the lobster, and I’ll get the scallops. We share everything?” I nodded, my curls bouncing around my ears as I did. “Okay, what about sides?”

I looked down at them again. “Grilled asparagus, the potatoes Au gratin, or the wild mushrooms.”

“We’ll get them all and split them too?”

“We’ll be so full,” I laughed. He chuckled, too. My husband just shrugged. He was so relaxed. “I guess we’ll need our energy for the next couple of days.”

The waitress came to the table to take our order after bringing the first glass of wine. He ordered confidently for us, passing her the menu after. When she left, he took a sip of his drink. Jasper nodded his head at the flavor, licking his lips.

“Oh, darlin. The things I plan to do to you over the next few days…” He chuckled in a low tone, the sound deep and sexy. “You’ll need all the energy you can get.”

I ran the tip of my shoe over his ankle. “We might need to stay longer just to recover. I’ll have to go back to the spa for a massage myself.”

He leaned his head to the side slightly as he thought about it. “Oh yeah, let’s do that together in a couple of days. We’ll go get massages and whatever else they have because we’ll need to go back to Dallas as relaxed as possible. We should take turns being in charge then do it. That would be great for aftercare.”

“What if they see all the marks I’m planning to leave behind?” I asked before taking a sip of my drink. I liked the wine, too.

He smirked. “I want them to. I want them to see our skin and see what we do to each other. How we turn each other on and what we’re willing to do to give each other pleasure.”

Blushing uncontrollably, I laughed as I grinned. “That’s so dirty,” I said into my glass.

“And you like it, too. So… shall I plan that?” He was so self-confident and bold.

“I will.” I reached for his hand. “You’ve made today perfect. I want to do something nice to thank you.” 

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Thanks to Gina for Proofreading! 

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✨The next chapter of✨
💍Ring💍
will post on
October 23rd!
💛See y'all then!💛