Joy (Hell's Handlers MC 7)

Screw waiting the full five minutes.

It was time to see her husband.

MAVERICK

“You ready, man?” Zach asked as he slapped Mav on the back with a little more force than necessary.

Bracing his hand on the wall so he didn’t stumble forward from the blow, Mav nodded. “Very fucking ready, brother.”

“No cold feet? No second thoughts?”

Not a one. From the moment he asked Stephanie to marry him, he hadn’t had so much as a flicker of doubt. “Nope.”

“Lotta women weeping tonight.” Zach’s shit-eating grin had Mav flipping him off.

“Pfft.” Screw strode overlooking sharp in the same black leather pants, white Henley, and cut the rest of the wedding party wore. “No one is weeping. I’m keeping them too occupied to shed any tears. Unless they’re crying for more of my dick.” He winked.

“Fuck, did I used to be that annoying?” Mav asked, but he couldn’t keep the smile off his face. Nothing would break his fucking spirit today. Not a goddamned thing.

“Yes,” Jig, Rocket, and Copper all answered at the same time.

“Well, fuck you all. I was gonna apologize, but now you can all shove it.”

“Hey!” Izzy shouted from the top of the stairs. She wore a baby carrier on her front with Joy snoozing away. “You jokers ready?”

Fuck, Mav loved this. His family just acting themselves on his wedding day. No prissy fluff everyone would forget the moment they woke the next day. No flowers that cost a mint and would wilt and die before the ink dried on their marriage license. Just good friends, good food, good booze, and him promising to love Stephanie for the rest of their fucking lives.

Perfection.

“Fuck yeah, we’re ready,” Screw answered. “Bring on the ball and chain.”

Mav smacked him on the arm. “You fucking upset my woman and you’ll be partying with my boot up your ass.”

“That mean I’d get to be there when you fuck your wife for the first time?”

Jesus, of course Screw would go there. Mav thought he was bad, but Screwball took it to another level.

“Fuck no, brother. I’d cut that boot off, foot and all before I’d let you watch.”

“Oh please,” Screw said as he rolled his eyes. “You guys are the first family of public fucking. Nice try.”

Mav shot him a wolfish grin as the music kicked up. Steph had picked a country mix to play in the background as her girls walked down the aisle—or down the stairs and across the clubhouse to where Mav and the boys lined up in front of the bar. Zach had agreed to get ordained online and would be the one marrying them.

Izzy walked down the steps first, looking fierce as usual, even one week out of having a baby. Holly followed, then Chloe, Shell, and finally Toni. Once the ladies were in position, the music changed, and Ed Sheeran crooned out the lyrics to Perfect as Stephanie appeared at the top of the steps.

Mav’s jaw dropped and he swore his heart stopped beating. Everyone else disappeared. They might as well have been the only two people for miles around. The entire clubhouse could have exploded around them and Maverick wouldn’t have noticed.

“Fuck,” he whispered an exhale as the vision in white leather descended the steps toward him. Her hair was curled, but not in a neat style. More as it would look had he been running his hands through it as he kissed her stupid. And her eyes…fuck those eyes begged him to follow her to the bedroom.

But it was the dress—if one could call it that—that had his dick rising to attention. Not that he cared, the entire room could point and laugh at the groom with a tent in his pants and he wouldn’t give a fuck. Not when he’d be peeling her out of that thing shortly. And peel he would have to do because it was goddammed tight. So tight, it’d be an effort to work it off her. But so worth it. He bet she had something even more sinful on underneath. Something he’d tear off with his teeth seconds before he ravaged her.

His wife.

It didn’t take long for Stephanie to reach the bottom of the stairs. He’d been instructed to wait for her to make her way to him, but fuck if he could make it another second without touching her. Mav strode forward, meeting her halfway to the small podium Zach stood on. He took her hand, brought it to his lips, and pressed a lingering kiss to her palm.

So sue him, he may have tossed in a quick lick that had her gasping and her eyes dilating.

“You’re so fucking beautiful,” he whispered.

Stephanie beamed. “So are you,” she said, smoothing a hand down the front of his shirt.

“Ready?”

“So ready.”

“Let’s do it.” Mav guided her to Zach, who pecked her cheek before addressing the crowd.

“Welcome, everyone. We’re gonna make this short and sweet so we can all get back to partying, and these two animals can go and find a corner to consummate their marriage in.”