Total pages in book: 23
Estimated words: 21368 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 107(@200wpm)___ 85(@250wpm)___ 71(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 21368 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 107(@200wpm)___ 85(@250wpm)___ 71(@300wpm)
“I, Jasper, take thee Sadie to be my lawfully wedded wife. I promise to love, honor and obey forsaking all others, for as long as we both shall live..” He says it with so much conviction I believe every word. He slides the ring on my finger, and I marvel at its simple elegance. The one simple diamond in the center is fitting a girl of my simple tastes. A calm comes over me feeling that piece of metal on my finger.
“Sadie,” Alton says my name letting me know it is my turn.
“I, Sadie, promise to love, honor and obey you, forsaking all others for as long as we both shall live.” I put the ring he gave me onto his hand, and I physically sigh. I am a wife. I am someone’s wife. No. I am Jasper’s wife.
Chapter Five
Jasper
I am a husband. I honestly never thought I would be, but here I am. Suddenly, nothing else matters. I always thought the Sutton line would carry on through my brother, but with Sadie as my wife, I don’t think that will be a problem.
“You may kiss your bride,” Alton says, jarring me from my thoughts. For some reason I don’t want our first kiss to be in front of her sisters and my best friend, so I lean in and kiss her cheek instead of taking her into my arms like I want to. The fucking caveman part of my brain is demanding that I do so. That and so much more.
As we walk to the van, I hold my wife’s hand.
“I didn’t think about rings. Thank you for thinking of me.”
“Of course. They were my grandparents. I hope you don’t mind heirlooms.”
“Of course not. They are beautiful. Thank you again. I have never worn anything so nice,” she says, and I immediately want to remedy that situation. Sadie Sutton is my wife, and she deserves the best of everything.
I place her into the passenger seat, the same as before and buckle her seatbelt for her. As we drive through double iron gates with a large S on it, there are various gasps and noises coming from the back, but my girl is silent. I look over at her and her eyes are wide.
“I thought to invite a few people over for a small reception. It’s nothing fancy and we can have another after you’ve settled in, but I wanted to commemorate the day, that is if you aren’t too tired.”
“Oh, no. I’m sure it will be lovely,” Sadie says quietly.
We get in the house and while I’d like to take them on a tour of the house and show the other’s their rooms, our guests are already on the way. I do take the time to tell them about the house. This one was built in the early eighties, but a Sutton house has been in this spot since the late 1700s. The ranch house is eight bedrooms and nine and a half baths.
“Can we do anything to help?” Sadie asks.
“I’ve got everything covered. Why don’t you just relax.”
She nods, but I can tell these girls have never relaxed a day in their lives.
I introduce the girls to my best friends; the mayor Lloyd takes a keen interest in all of them. Paul, the sheriff, is a new friend but I feel like I’ve known him all my life. Jude runs the bank in town, I’ve known him since kindergarten. Hell, I’ve known everyone but Paul since kindergarten. My best friend Alton always looks like something has soured right in front of him. Geeb looks like he doesn’t know what to do with a room full of women. We’re a motley crew but we get along well.
As the day wears on, the more I realize this whole reception was a mistake. My ranch hands won’t stop staring at my wife and her sisters. Staring is too mild of a word. They are leering and I fucking hate it. I lose my shit when Milo, the ranch foreman, moves right next to Sadie. When she takes a step back, he crowds her, I see red. I’ve had enough so I walk over to them and put my hand on the small of Sadie’s back. I feel a shudder run through her and I know she’s not indifferent to me.
“Hey boss, I was just getting to know your wife,” Milo says, smiling that smile that never fails to get him laid. I want to kill him. Thankfully, Sadie doesn’t notice it all.
“Yes. Well, it was nice to meet you Milo. Jasper, could you help me with something over there?” Sadie asks, expertly extracting herself from him.
“Of course,” I say, leading her away with my hand still on her back.
I’ll have to watch him like a hawk. He shouldn’t want what he can’t have.