Caged Birds Don't Like to Sing

I lifted my head as Johnny said, “Take a look” in a cheery voice. Johnny told me to keep my head facing down has he curled the last bit near the nape of my neck. I didn’t trust the hair stylist my parents had gotten for me. She was my Aunt Lucinda. She was an old, heavy smoker with lipstick all over her mouth. Her nails were at least a good inch off of her finger. I didn’t even understand how she could hold a pencil, let alone a curling iron. There was no way she was getting near my head. I trusted Johnny more, even though he wasn’t very much of a hair stylist. He swore that he knew how to use it, though. Oh well, anyone has to be better than Lucinda.

I looked up into the circular glass in front of me. It was at least three feet tall and stood on a beautiful vanity. Everything was style classically in my dressing room. I had my own that was bigger than Jackson’s bedroom. The bridal party had their own across the hall. This whole place must have cost a fortune. My parents wouldn’t have settled for less. Even if they didn’t have the money to spend, which they didn’t. But knowing about Jackson’s parents being as rich as mine, probably even more wealthy, they wouldn’t take anything less than this either. That was probably the only thing they had in common. The rich only know how to deal with other rich people.

I smiled instantaneously when I looked into the mirror. My deep brown hair was curled beautifully and half was up in the back. It had grown out a little since I’ve gotten to Jackson’s house. It now landed past my chest, but with the curls it was just barely under my collarbone. There was a small braid that took my bangs out from my face and tucked them back.

“You look better with those bangs out of your face,” Johnny grinned, putting his hands on both of my shoulders and peeked around the side. His face was beside mine in the reflection. “You want everyone to see your bridal glow.”

He handed me a small, hand-held mirror. I directed it in the right direction and turned my body around so I could see the behind. It was just as gorgeous. I had forgotten all the wonderful things I could achieve with my hair while lazing around at Jackson’s house. My half up-do was held in place by a royal blue hairpin. It was at least two inches long and had a line of silver beads right above the teeth that held it in place in my hair. The blue part was a few flower-like pieces. Something blue.

I smiled grandly and toyed with a curl beside my cheek. My makeup was already finished. It was very light overall. A hint of pinks and light browns over my lids with some black eyeliner that was thin along my lid. The corners whisked out to a very thin, very small cat eye. Then I had some shimmery, pale pink-nude lipstick painted on my lips. The blush glittered lightly in the right light. It turned out beautifully. You can thank Johnny for that, too.

He and I have grown exceptionally close in the days that we had known each other. Which is strange, I know. But I felt like I’ve known him forever. We just got each other. Maybe it was just because I needed a friend in this time because I had no one else besides Jackson and the rest of the guys in the band.

“Thank you so much for doing this,” I thanked him. I’ve said it at least twenty times in the last hour. He really didn’t have to offer up his time for me like this.

“It’s no problem. It’s your day.” He turned to check the big clock in the corner. It was in Roman numerals. I could barely understand it, but I at least knew the order of the clock.

“It’s almost time,” I sighed as my stomach tightened. Even though it was already tied in tight with the corset under my dress. Whenever I took a deep breath, it hurt. That’s how tight it was. But Johnny and my mother said that was how it was suppose to be.

He pecked my cheek. It was his normal goodbye to almost everyone. “See you when you walk down the aisle.”

“Bye,” I murmured, watching him leave. He had on a nice suit. Very chic and up to fashion. Maybe even a past the latest fashion. Nevertheless, he looked great. He shut the door behind him.

I turned to the mirror once more. I attempted to take a deep breath. During the whole makeup process, I was teaching myself how to breath. Quick deep breaths, I told myself. I fanned myself one more time. I was freaking out internally. Today was my wedding day. I was getting married to Jackson. He was going to be at the end of the aisle, waiting for me. Nothing was going to be any different than it was before besides the ring on my finger and the title.

I knew I was going to trip walking. Dare I say, down the aisle and over the small flower girl. I can barely wear heels and I went from my one and a half inch shoes to a five inch heel. They were my mother’s when she was getting married. Needless to say, they were gorgeous. ‘The best money could buy.’ Something borrowed.

I was still wobbly, but I had gotten it down a bit. I had been practicing since I left home, shuffling around the little dressing room. I left before Jackson was even awake. He wasn’t allowed to see me. Some kind of wedding tradition, I guess. Plus I needed a lot of time to get pampered and ready. My nails were painted in a light pink color that was barely even noticeable. It just made them shine and seem more girly. I would wear it when I was younger and in my ‘everything pink’ phase. I had found it once I dug through my packed things at Jackson’s. Something old.

The door creaked open. I abruptly turned around to see my father standing in the doorway. I was bitter towards him still. More than bitter, I had great animosity towards him. But everyone insisted that he would be the one to lead me down the aisle. I thought I could handle going down by myself, but no. I guess it was a support to my wobbling walk.

He made a sharp hand movement for me to get up. Before I got up, I adjusted the two garters around my right leg. They had gotten too high around my upper thigh and were almost touching my underwear a bit. It was weird having a ‘necklace-type’ thing around my leg. I pulled them a little lower. One for the wedding, one for after. Yikes.

I followed the command and teetered over to him, holding my dress up a bit in both hands to keep me from tripping. Before I reached him, he spun around on his shiny, black shoes and walked off. I was close behind once I picked up the pace a bit.

My mother came from out of nowhere and slapped my arm. She startled me greatly and I looked at her and furrowed my eyebrows. “Don’t walk like that,” she scolded, grabbing my left hand and making me let go of the dress.

“I’ll fall if I don’t hold it up,” I said, annoyed. I wish my parents didn’t have to be here. But if it weren’t for them I wouldn’t be in this whole situation.

She ignored my comment. “Like this,” she said elegantly as she graced over the floor. “Remember, to the beat of the organ.”

Great, they even got an old organ. I thought you only saw those in those cliche, old movies. I quickly imagined an old soap on T.V. that was in black and white. The bride, me, smiling like an idiot and skittering down the aisle. That was what it seemed like when my mom brought up the word ‘organ.’ But I think everyone knew it was going to be the exact opposite. I can’t walk in heels. I didn’t like dressing up. I didn’t like formal events. And what I hated more than those things combined was attention.

The three of us reached a big pair of brown, wooden doors. I looked up and they almost reached the incredibly tall ceiling. I was told butler-dressed assistants would pull the door open to reveal the long line of bridesmaids and groomsmen. Then, eventually, me.

Everyone was in there already, waiting for me. Except for the bridesmaids and groomsmen. Plus the little flower girl and ring bear, both were about six years old. It reminded me of the day I have kids. God, I hoped that was not the next step in this plan. Did I even want kids? I was getting ahead of myself.

I didn’t even know who the bridesmaids were, nor the groomsmen. My parents had told me they had called my female cousins that I’ve never met, but I have a feeling that they just hired some actresses. I assumed the same for the men because I didn’t recognize them. Jackson didn’t even bring up who he was going to have, but maybe he didn’t have a choice and they were cousins, too.

All of the ladies were extremely beautiful in their purple dresses that barely hit their knees. I was afraid they’d be the ones to outshine me. They all had perfectly straight hair to counteract my luscious curls. They’re makeup was more prominent than mine, however. But it made them all look even more gorgeous.

And they held white morning glories in their hands. At least my parents didn’t screw that up. I made sure they got morning glories. They had white ones and I had a bouquet of purple ones. They matched the other dresses almost perfectly.

The couples started to pair up in front of me. I took another deep, quick, breath to calm my nerves. My dad scooped up my arm and locked mine into his. He didn’t even bother to look down at me or give me some kind of encouragement. I wanted to smack his head off right at that moment. I’ll save that until later, though. How dare they sell me away. This was just a celebration of that.

I started to grow angry about this all for a second. But then I realized it was Jackson and that wasn’t too awful. It was a love-hate relationship that was ruled by love. We’d bite each other’s heads off every now and then. Okay, maybe a little more than now and then, but it worked.

The doors swung open and I was still to the side so that they couldn’t see me even after the last pair left. They were going to save the organ playing until I came into view.

I had a good view of the place. It was packed, but there was still room to spare. The room was white with accents of lavenders and other shades of purple that grew deeper. The pews were a dark brown with a lavender sheet that barely covered the seating and back area. Everything matched wonderfully. Even the petals on the floor were dark purple. But I think that was a bit overboard.

The last person had walked down and everyone was smiling greatly. They turned in their seats to face the front to watch the last girl and boy reach the end of the line. I could see almost everything, except the groom’s side of the line-up. That meant I couldn’t see Jackson. That made me more angsty.

I felt a little tug on my dress. I looked down to see the cute, little flower girl looking up to me with crystal blue eyes. A smile hit my lips as she said, “You look pretty. I like your dress.” Her voice was soft and baby-like.

Something new.

I smiled a wide grin this time. “Thanks,” I said genuinely. I needed that small boost. “You look beautiful yourself. Are you ready to toss the petals?” Yes, even more petals for the girl to add to the ground. As if there wasn’t enough already.

My dad nudged my side. He thought it was ‘improper’ to talk during things like this. I scoured up to him, and then smiled again at the little girl. She nodded wildly.

The organ started to play a few notes, not the Bridal Chorus yet, but it was preparing. The girl looked back forward as the door started to open and she was guided along with the young man beside her.

Now the tune picked up. I watched the flower girl and ring bear totter out to the middle. Then it was my cue to go. My dad started to walk and I sank into step to the beat of the song. Once I passed the huge doors, everyone stood.

I kept my head straight, but my eyes scanned around the room. Everyone was smiling at staring as I slowly walked out. I gulped and twitched a smile in return. I saw Johnny. He waved lightly and blew a kiss. I raised the corners of my mouth more to show that I had noticed him.

My eyes started to scavenger around some more. I caught a quick glimpse and did a double take. Riley was here. God, why did my parents invite her? I thought they hated her. She was all the way on the other side, closest to the non-wedding party entrance door on the bridal side. Beside her was a young man, tall and lean. Blond hair that barely reached his eyebrows. I squinted a bit. It was Chase. I gasped, my dad nudged me subtly with his elbow. It dug into my side, but I barely even noticed because I was gawking at the sight of Chase.

My mind went nuts. Why did my parents invite them? Well, they were my only friends in high school. They didn’t even know I dated Chase. Maybe they thought they were doing me a favor when in reality my life was on the line.

I mentally shook out my head to try and focus on walking. My foot stuttered a bit as I reached the front. Jackson was smiling at me, hands folded in the front of him. I smiled broadly at him and he made a subtle nodding gesture. One of the first things I noticed was that he shaved. His face was completely smooth. It was an entirely different look from what I had grown accustomed to. But it seemed right for the occasion and I really liked it.

The music stopped as I reached him. My dad gripped my arm, a little too tight, and kind of tossed it rudely to Jackson. I caught myself before I almost hit the Officiant. Even he seemed a bit shocked at my dad’s attitude. Luckily Jackson took my hand and squeezed it quickly. He took the other one as well and our hands were held at waist height. Everyone sat down.

The Officiant started saying the usual thing. I was focused on Jackson’s face and couldn’t even move my eyes to look at the Officiant. I probably seemed like I was staring too much. My mouth was held slightly open in a, most likely, goofy grin. Jackson had his normal, tilted smile. It still made me melt on the inside.

I had completely tuned out the Officiant at this point. I was actually going through with this. After weeks of completely blowing off the idea, my disdain had suddenly disappeared. I was content in this situation now. I was more than content, I was smiling back at Jackson and he was smiling back at me and it made sense.

“I do,” Jackson stated, still looking straight into my eyes. I squeezed his hand tightly. I was antsy and just wanted to kiss him already. Sum this whole thing up quickly.

As the Officiant started to say the same lines again, but this time to me, my mind wandered back to the same place.

When I first met Jackson and came to his house, it just made my hateful feelings worse. I absolutely despised him. Now thinking about it, maybe I just hated the whole idea more, thus making me hate him. I thought he was vile and mean. When in reality, he was actually a great guy. It just took me awhile to realize it.

I think I realized it a lot more the night I was laying on his bed, curled up and listening to his stories. That was when he seemed like a real person rather than the conceited celebrity I assumed he was. You could almost fall in love with anyone once you see them at their most vulnerable, or their most boring, or heir touching moments. When you see them when they think no one is watching and the embarrassing things they do that make them human.

And when I opened up to him, it seemed real. Granted, I didn’t really open up much. Hell, I still haven’t opened up much. But it helped, it really did. It meant a lot to know that he was the exact opposite of Chase and that he was really there for me. Even though I treated him with nothing but disrespect at first.

When we got in the fought and I went to Ben’s house. That was when I felt truly awful. That’s when it really hit me that I was being harsh. Jackson and I may still have our vast amount of differences, but now we know how to pass them a bit. Sure, I know it was not healthy in a relationship to avoid the differences altogether, but for now, it worked. We had to find some way to make something work. It wasn’t like we were going to get out of this.

“I do,” I said, after realizing there was a short silence. Not huge enough to make people start to question my mindset, though.

“You may now kiss the bride,” the Officiant spoke to Jackson. His voice was monotone and deep and, frankly, scared me. But he had on a small grin as well. I could see he liked the whole wedding process.

Jackson’s hands pulled mine in closer, then took his hands slightly higher on my waist so it didn’t seem lustful. Which was the exact opposite of the usual Jackson, but this time we had company. This time, I was tall almost all enough that I didn’t have to be on my toes. But I was still a good four inches lower than him. I lightly threw my arms around his neck and he pressed his lips to mine. It was a soft, open mouth kiss with no tongue. That’d be weird. The crowd clapped once he pulled back. He smiled down at me and I giggled quickly.

“I love you,” he whispered quietly.

“I love you, too,” I said softly.

Later, at the reception, we had another ceremonial thing. This one was slightly more embarrassing than the whole ‘walking down the aisle thing.’ I really just wanted to be in Vegas or something. An Elvis impersonator would have been a good officiant. The shots and the bars would have been nicer, too.

Jackson and I got up on a small stage-esque thing. I held my purple morning glory bouquet tightly in my grasp. It was a shame to see it go. Music began to play as I readied myself to throw it, The single ladies danced around up the area where the flowers would land. I shimmed and danced around some, too. We were all laughing.

Against my will, I turned around and tossed it into a group of girls. I turned around promptly after hearing some giggling and footsteps. All of my bridesmaids were in there. One of them caught it. She was the one beside my maid of honor, I think. I knew none of their names. I only recognized her by her red hair that was tied in a straight pony and straight across bangs. She cheered and held it high and proudly above her head. Everyone clapped.

Now it was time for the more embarrassing part that I dreaded. Everyone insisted that it was done.

I sat down in a chair that someone had brought up here. I was blushing like crazy and Jackson leaned one arm on the back edge of the chair, smiling down at me. And just to make it worse I Know What Boys Like by the Waitresses started playing this time. I scowled up at the sound system that was around the huge reception. Jackson clasped his hands and laughed at my pure embarrassment. Lucky enough for him, he had no shame at this point.

The crowd clapped to the beat to try to encourage me. Jackson knelt down beside my and I buried my face in my hands and shook my head back and forth. I felt a breeze of air as my dress flew up, but Jackson was in front of my knees. I felt his fingertips touch my upper thigh and I jerked slightly. I laughed and tossed my head back. They snatched the garter off fairly quickly. That surprised me a bit. The crowd hooped and howled when Jackson came back out with the purple garter in his grasp. I clapped a bit, too.

He got up and turned around, getting ready to toss it. The same song continued playing as I watched. After it was thrown, a random guy caught it. I looked out. It was Chase. My eyes widened and I tried to look away, but I couldn’t drag my eyes off. He smiled wickedly at the the lace in his hand. He made quick eye contact with me before walking to the red headed bridesmaid.

If you don’t know how it goes, the single man who catches the garter is suppose to hook it around the single woman who caught the flower bouquet.

Riley grabbed his arm and tried to halt him from doing it. She was clearly offended when he continued on. He seemed to be against her cheating, I remembered him freaking out when I questioned his relationship with her that night he came into my house. But he clearly didn’t have a problem when he got to have the fun.

The girl blushed and chuckled as he got on one knee to hook it around her leg. His fingers tickled down her leg and she let out a giggle. The whole crowd got a good laugh at that except for me and Riley, for the obvious reasons that were completely opposite.

It was customary for me to dance with my father. But I quickly rejected that offer. He didn’t seem to mind. I knew he couldn’t stand to be around me. The feeling of it made me sick to my stomach, even more than it would when I still lived with my parents.

I danced with only a few people and that was after the dinner. I barely could eat, my corset was on so tight. So I just pushed it around on my plate after a few bites of the small steak and whatever else was on there. I didn’t pay much attention. After that I took a few sips of champagne that we made a cheers to at the wedding party table. I got a chance to get to know three of my bridesmaids then. They were the only ones that had permission to sit up here. The one on the far end was a cheery brunette who had deep blue eyes that counteracted her pale skin. Next to her was the redhead who caught the bouquet. She seemed overjoyed about that and thanked me. But really, I had no clue who it was going to end up with. Then my bridesmaid was a brunette with short hair that made it just past her ears. It was straightened so it flipped out lightly at the bottom. She had a beautiful tan that made her dress stand out. They were all super sweet and excited to be here.

I ended up dancing with the flower girl, who I later found out was named Jenny. She said the wedding was beautiful and she had a great time. But she didn’t want to get married because ‘boys are icky.’ She’d only get married for the dress. Which she also said that she’d want the same dress as mine, but in bright pink. She was very opinionated and very adorable. I kind of wanted to take her home for myself.

After her, I danced with Johnny. That one was a given. He complimented me on the whole wedding and said it was a lovely affair. I was honest and said that I had nothing to do with it and that my parents planned it. He said my parents had great taste, but I scoffed at that. Before he let me leave after the song ended, he whispered, “Good luck tonight. Have protection.” I roll my eyes and made a retching noise and he chuckled.

Then I danced in a big group with the bridesmaids. That one was fun, we just danced around in no particular way and just did our own thing. It helped me loosen up a bit more before I would embarrass myself with the next dance.

Finally, I was passed to Jackson to our first dance. The music took a sudden turn to a slower beat. He took me into a tight hold. There wasn’t much room between the both of us. I smiled up at him and followed around with his steps. I had no clue how to dance. He definitely took the lead for this one.

“How do you know how to dance so well?” I asked in a complementary way, looking up longingly at him.

“I took some dance lessons back in Texas actually. Ballroom, tap, and some jazz. Just kind of stuck with me,” he admitted, still doing fancy footwork that I was attempting to keep up with.

He spun me out, I was two arms lengths away from him and our hands were still held together. He rolled me back in. My back was against his chest and I laid my head back, almost touching his shoulder. “Really?” I was surprised at that, as well. He seemed to know a lot about almost everything artsy. It impressed me greatly. I’ve always been a sucker for that.

“Mhmm,” he mumbled back, twirling me back to facing him.

I started to lose track of where he was going so I tapped off my shoes. I was barefoot on the cold, wood floor. But Jackson took a small break for me to set my feet onto his. He guided me around for a bit as I leaned my head onto his chest. We couldn’t really move around much more, but it was nice to just rock back and forth until the song ended.

The crowd around us cheered. I completely forgot I was dancing in front of people. It made me slightly nervous and embarrassed. But Jackson held tightly onto my hand and pecked my cheek. That just made the crowd clap more and made me turn redder.

I was getting tired after the dances. I went over to a table off in the back and sipped on some wine. I wanted to be alone for a little bit to take a break. But I didn’t get that time.

“Hey, girl,” Riley chirped as she skipped towards me with a glass of some drink that seemed pretty potent. She threw her arms around me and pulled me in for a celebratory hug.

“Hi,” I said back. On the inside I was bitter. I desperately yearned to be alone. Just for a second. And she was the last person I wanted to see after hearing all the jokes she had pulled on me in the past.

“Nice garter ceremony. It was hot,” she joked with a cackle. She plopped down in the seat beside me, dropping her small clutch on the table. It seemed extremely expensive. It was dark blue and matched her dress that she was practically stuffed into. All the guys were drawn to her eagerly pressed out cleavage.

I made a soft ‘hmmph’ kind of laugh, twirling my finger around the rim of the glass. I wasn’t really focused on anything, so something caught my eye easily. It was a man walking over, he set his hands on the back of her chair. I looked up to see the face. It was Chase. He was smiling arrogantly. I jumped back a bit, almost knocking over the wine glass. It spun around on its base until I frantically caught it before the maroon liquid could hit the white table cloth.

“Someone’s on edge,” Chase chuckled.

My eyes glanced back at the expensive purse. Riley must have noticed because she immediately said, “Do you like it?” She picked it up. “Chase got it for me. He has some wealth to his name now. Looks like we both hit a homerun, Rissa. Right, honey?” She massaged his hand gingerly since it was right behind her on the back of the chair. He smiled down at her.

So that was how it went. She stayed around for the money and dragged him along because he thought she really loved him. When really, Riley was just a cold, heartless gold-digger. Nice thoughts about a ‘best friend,’ right?

Thankfully, Jackson came up behind me and sat next to me. I was able to avoid the awkward conflict. I looked quickly behind me and at him. I widened my eyes and faked a smile towards him. He seemed to get the hint that I was having some sort of trouble.

After a long second had passed, Chase spoke again. “So are you going to introduce me to your husband?”

“Um,” I said in a feeble voice. I held my arm out to Chase in a pointing manor and moved it to Jackson as I said, “Chase, this is Jackson. Jackson, Chase.”

“Nice to meet you,” Jackson said in a friendly way. Chase didn’t deserve Jackson’s kindness. Little did Jackson know that Chase was the one who stabbed me.

“The pleasure’s mine. It’s nice to finally meet you,” Chase smoothly said in return. He was a conniving demon. It made me sick to my stomach to even see him. I had a feeling he wished Jackson was there that night he snuck into my house. He wanted to hurt Jackson, too. Either that or have Jackson watch me get hurt. I snapped out of my paranoid thoughts once Jackson said something.

Jackson looked from him, to me. “So how do you two know each other?”

“We were good friends in high school,” Chase explained briefly, leaving out the boyfriend part.

Thankfully, I’ve told Jackson a little about my past. Based on his quick facial expression, I could tell he made the connection. The connection that I only had two friends, Riley and my boyfriend. And the fact that my ex had cheated on me with Riley. And based on the fact that Chase was now sitting down and slung his arm around Riley, they were together. Thus leading to Chase being my high school boyfriend.

Jackson looked over at me, worried. I could imagine the gears turning in his head. “So Marissa, I came over here to tell you that.... Johnny was looking for you.” He thought a little bit on that last part, but I caught on. And I was looking for any escape out of there.

“Really?” I said. I looked to Riley and Chase. “I’ve gotta run. Nice seeing you guys.”

I started getting up. Chase snatched my hand. I met his glance. Riley seemed stunned by his movement and glared at him. He let go almost immediately. “You just got here,” he said, looking at me serious. Jackson’s head quickly turned and he glared at him, making sure he didn’t make any bad moves.

“Sorry. Johnny’s my boss. I need to go see him.” I pulled my hand back quickly and shuffled after Jackson quickly. I whispered a ‘thanks’ under my breath and he nodded.

The night ended soon after that. I was really scared that by the time I got home Chase would already be there, waiting for us. But I pushed that thought out of my mind. Today’s my wedding. I am suppose to be happy, delighted, and cheerful. Even my thoughts.

Jackson and I arrived to a dark house. When he unlocked the door and let us both in, Dean rushed to us and nuzzled against my dress. I couldn’t even feel it. But I smiled down at him because I couldn’t bend over in this stupid thing.

We both slipped off our shoes and he took me into his arms. “Hey wife-y,” he said teasingly, pecking my forehead.

I leaned my head on his shoulder. “What’s on the agenda now?”

He took my hands into his and faced me. “Well I think it’s only right to continue on the customary wedding plans.” He winked right after.

Before I had the chance to say something, he brought his lips to mine. It felt so right at that moment. I let his hands trail down my back as he swept me away into the family room.

Between quick, passionate kisses, we took steps to the stairs until he pushed my back up against the wall. He started moving his lips down my throat at kissing all over. I let out a couple giggles as he lifted my legs up to wrap them around his waist. As my arms were holding onto him around his shoulders, lips still interlocked, he took a hold of my thighs as we made our way up the stairs.

Once in the bedroom, he used my body to slam the door closed. As I began to lower down, both of my hands were firmly on his face as my lips touched every part of his until they lowered to his neck. I could hear his breathing change in my ear as his hands squeezed onto my hips. They slid higher up as he began fiddling with the lacing of my dress. I could tell he wasn’t getting it so I let out a small giggle and turned around. I used my hands to try to help him. Little did we know this thing was laced up tight and in an intricate way. “You’d think they were trying to seal you up and send you across country,” Jackson chuckled.

Eventually, we reached a breakthrough and the lacing came undone in one pull. I wiggled my way out of it and almost toppled over. Jackson caught me before that happened and helped tug me out of it. With one final hop out, I landed back into his arms, corset still tightly around my abdomen. He carried me over to the bed and I dropped on top of him. His eyes looked up at me wistfully as one hand toyed with my fingers in his palm and the other traced over the ruffles and lace of my corset. I slowly brought my lips back to him. His suit jacket was already off and I started undoing the tie and throwing it off to the side. Once again I had to turn around for us to attempt to get off the aggravating corset. I was greatly relieved when it was thrown to the side.

For once I didn’t feel embarrassed to be almost completely bare besides my underwear. The room was still dark, but Jackson’s fingers touched over my cut across my stomach. “It’s almost healed,” he whispered, sitting up straight and bringing his lips to my collarbone. He began undoing the buttons on his own shirt and tossed that aside as well. I let my fingers grab onto his biceps as my head laid over his shoulder as he kissed my neck I traced over his tattoos on his arm gingerly, taking the whole experience in.

Once there was nothing separating our skin, he laid over me, staring down at me in much thought. He murmured out that he loved me and I said the same words back as he twirled with my hair before his lips grazed mine again. I wasn’t anxious at all, as I had assumed I would be. But each of my nerves were heightened to full sensitivity. I could feel his fingertips tickle up my arm as he held onto my upper arms. The smell of his sheets that matched his scent as he was right in front of me. Everything was taken into perspective as time didn’t even seem to pass. His hands ran over my chest and down to my thighs, separating them slightly so they were around his body now. Fingers still roaming over my abdomen, they began to fall lower on my body. I let out a small gulp.

“You are positive you want this, right?” Jackson made sure before anything started.

I nodded in reassurance. “Positive.” I then let my hands run down his body, as well, mirroring almost the exact same movements as he had made. He ended up with a perverse smile on his lips that matched mine as he pressed his lips back to my lips.