Escorting the Groom (The Escort Collection 4)

Nikki was nursing a ginger ale. "No one's more disappointed than I am," I heard her say. "About the puking. Not about the voting. I'm not sorry about that one bit."

"You should be ashamed about both." Jake's voice was stubborn.

"I'll still drink you under the table—I'm ready to prove that right now," Nikki said. "Hair of the dog. Let's get some shots going, Senator. I believe you're all talk—all you Democrats are."

"Bring it on," Jake said. He nodded at the bartender. "Start lining up the tequila shots. I have a Libertarian I need to school."

Nikki tossed her hair. "We'll see."

"We all saw you and that bush," Jake taunted.

"Do you have to keep bringing that up?"

I chuckled as I watched them, then I signaled to the bartender for two glasses of wine. Blake and I had both been taking it easy on the alcohol, but we were still sharing toasts with our guests. Surprisingly, the wedding reception was fun. Being in Vegas had put everyone in a celebratory mood. But now that we'd been drinking for several hours straight, things were starting to get out of hand. Helena and one of my cousins were dirty dancing. It was starting to look like a public sex act. My father and Elizabeth were on the dance floor, glued to each other, whispering and looking as if they might need a contraceptive device. Serena and Robert were now in a secluded corner, having what looked like a heated argument.

Rupert, the administrator of my family trust, approached the bar with a stagger. He'd been my mother's trust attorney and a valued confidant for years before she died. Of course, that wasn't the reason I'd asked him to join us.

"Lucas, my boy! Congratulations." He grasped my hand lightly and shook it. "You two make a fine couple. I know your mother would be proud."

"Thank you, Rupert. I invited you to honor her memory."

Rupert looked at me skeptically. "Let's be honest. You wanted to nip Serena's impending fraud campaign in the bud." He was slightly unsteady on his feet, looking as though he'd had a few.

I smiled at him. "I wanted to get out in front of it. Yes."

He slapped me on the arm. "You don't need to worry." He eyed Blake appreciatively across the room. "Everything looks good to me. Your mother would be happy to see you settled."

I clinked my glass against his. "Cheers to that." He staggered back to the bar, and I headed toward Blake. "I think we should get going soon. This is starting to get messy, and you know how I feel about messy."

Blake rolled her eyes good-naturedly. She hadn't stopped smiling all night. "Oh yeah. I know all about that."

I leaned closer so I could whisper in her ear. "I think we should have a brief round of PDA if that's okay with you. The trust administrator's here." Rupert seemed perfectly satisfied with the marriage, but I wanted to be sure. And also, I wanted…

I ran my hands down her arms. Blake's skin felt hot to my touch as she gazed up at me, her lips parted. My cock jumped to attention, and I leaned down, grazing my lips against hers. I put my hand on her back and felt her arch. You need to consummate the marriage. Jake's voice rang in my head.

I crushed my lips against hers, and she pressed against me, her tongue meeting and tangling with mine. I pulled back slightly, and she let out a low moan. I dug my fingers into her hair and kissed

her again until I heard a loud wolf whistle and applause all around us. We pulled apart, embarrassed, and found that we were surrounded by our guests, who were whooping and hollering. I saw Shirley wiping her eyes, my cousin Shane with his face buried in Helena's chest, and Serena with her arms crossed, glaring at me.

"I think we should go. But there's someone we need to speak to first." I grabbed her hand and maneuvered her over to where James and Audrey were slow dancing with their arms wrapped around each other. "I hate to interrupt, cousin—"

James straightened up and released his wife immediately. "But you're narcissistic, and you always come first." James grinned at me and shook my hand. "Congratulations, Lucas. Blake. That was a lovely ceremony, aside from the vomiting."

"Oh, honey, stop." Audrey stepped forward and kissed Blake on both cheeks. "It's a pleasure to meet you! Congratulations on your marriage." She turned to me, her brown eyes gleaming. "It's nice to see you looking so settled, Lucas."

"I'm full of surprises," I said. "It was nice of you guys to come. Where are the kids?"

James pulled Audrey back to him and wrapped his arms possessively around her. The way they touched made me want to reach out and grab Blake, which I did.

"With their nanny," James said. "We're flying out first thing in the morning. So we're going to make the most of tonight, right, babe?" He nuzzled Audrey's neck.

Audrey swatted him, but her eyes were sparkling. "Right, babe." She turned her attention back to us. "We really are thrilled for you two. Blake, if you ever want to talk about anything, call me. I'd love to get to know you better."

"Thank you," Blake said, clearly touched. But Audrey had already turned back to her husband, who wrapped his arms firmly around his wife.

James looked up at me one last time. "Call me," he commanded. "And come out to California to meet my kids, dammit."

"How many do you have, again?" I asked. James looked as though he was going to come after me, but I started laughing. "Just kidding. Blake and I will come out."