Authors: Elisa Elliot
The ride to the arena was a silent one, neither Lily or Hannah dared to bring up the subject of the race so instead, with music blaring, they made their way to what Lily hoped would be the last race she would ever have to see. Mason had coaxed her into going, wanting her to see that not every race ended in disaster, she was far from convinced. All too soon they arrived at the arena and for Lily, nausea set in. Everything was so familiar, the crowds, the stadium, even the sickly smell of excitement and fried snacks.
It was Chris who broke the solemn silence as he came bounding up to the old beetle where Lily and Hannah sat nervously, most of the nerves belonging to Lily. “You’re late,” he exclaimed pulling open the car door and dragging Lily out.
Seeing the worry edged across her normally happy face he wrapped her into a warm hug, holding her tightly against his chest. “Chris, get off,” Lily groaned through the wide smile on her face, Chris was too easy to miss and having spent most of his time with Mason, she rarely saw him anymore.
“Mason’s waiting,” Chris said excitedly and suddenly Lily had his undivided attention.
“He should be focusing on the race,” she said worriedly.
Chris chuckled softly, releasing Lily from his embrace and wrapping Hannah into an equally as tight one. “He is, come on,” he said as he started off in the same direction he had come from leaving Hannah and Lily to rush along behind him.
Hannah sent Lily a quick apprehensive look as they finally found their seats, right in the front row. To her relief her friend didn’t look as worried as she had the first time they were here, in fact she almost looked excited. Lily soaked in the atmosphere; she could see why Mason loved it here, why he was so reluctant to leave. For the first time she truly let the idea that this may not be the last time he raced settle and she knew that she would never try to stop him again.
The race was everything that it wasn’t the first time, with one exception, Mason still won. He didn’t look at Lily and for that she was eternally gratefully, his eyes were on the race. While he could not look at her, Mason could still see her, she was with him through every lap; she was his encouragement. He had always raced for himself, but this time it was solely for her, he raced for their future and like he knew he would, he won.
Chapter Five
Lily had never imagined getting married so young but as she awoke on the morning of her wedding, next to her husband to be, she knew that right now she could not imagine it any other way. Mason still slept lazily beside her, his hair messily sprawled over the pillows and a peaceful smile on his face. While Lily would never admit it, she liked to watch him sleep, to see those precious few moments when the worry was void from his face and the sleep brought nothing but a smile to his lips. For right now though everything was more than ok, Mason had won the competition and Lily had graduated at the top of her class, in turn winning the job she had sought after for years.
Lily stretched out on the luxurious white silk bed sheets, somehow Mason had gotten them the best room at the hotel; why they had to have a hotel when they were so close to her house she didn’t know, but she definitely wasn’t complaining about the fact either. It wasn’t the first time they had slept in the same bed together, as with the few times it had happened though as Mason began to stir, a blush coated Lily’s pale cheeks. His bright blues eyes opened slowly and his smile widened as he looked at the woman that would soon be his wife. Lily smiled back, brushing away the few strands of Mason’s hair that had slipped across his face.
“If I get to see that blush every morning then I will be a very happy man,” Mason whispered in a moment of softness that Lily was still getting used to.
On cue her blush deepened to a darker shade of red, one that completely claimed her cheeks. “I’ll do my best,” she laughed lightly.
Mason placed a soft kiss on Lily’s lips and she moaned happily at the gentle but sensual pressure. “Good morning soon to be Mrs. Mason,” he chuckled.
Lily’s face screwed up, Mrs. Mason definitely didn’t have a ring to it. “Good morning soon to be Mr. Lily,” she retorted teasingly.
She waited for Mason’s frown or sarcastic words but strangely they did not come. “I could get used to it,” he smirked. Seeing Mason this carefree was a shock to Lily, it seemed to her that weddings definitely agreed with him.
Mason rested his weight on his hand so he was leaning over Lily, his finger traveling aimlessly across her jaw and over her flushed cheeks. “I have a surprise for you,” he said softly.
Lily looked up at him, her chocolate brown eyes full of curiosity. “Is it that we’re getting married today?” she whispered.
Mason chuckled lightly, his fingers now trailing small circles over her tender lips. “You guessed?” he exclaimed, pouting his lips in a very un-Mason like way.
Catching Mason off-guard Lily bit down roughly on his finger, drawing it into her mouth. Mason’s eyes bulged as Lily seductively drew his finger in and out of her mouth, the heat and softness of her lips almost too much for him to handle. He breathed in deeply, trying his best to keep check of his dwindling self-control. “Now are you going to tell me?” Lily whispered, her voice low and tempting as finally she let Mason’s finger go free.
It took Mason a minute to compose himself, pushing away all his increasing impulses enough to meet Lily’s teasing grin with one of his own. “I think showing you would be so much better,” he said softly.
Mason caught Lily’s lips with his own in one painfully short, heated moment of passion that promised so much more to come. “Get dressed, we don’t want to be late for our own wedding,” he said playfully. Diving off the bed he left Lily breathlessly wanting for more, more that she was sure would lead to things better saved for their wedding night and not their wedding morning.
With so little time to spare before both had to get ready, Mason sped along the roads, easily breaking the speed limit. Lily gripped him tightly, enjoying every last second of the ride as she had done so many times before. The roads were almost empty in the early hour and as Mason pushed the bike to its limits she felt nothing could stop them. She had no idea where there were going, Mason and refused to give her a single hint about their destination. All she knew was that the roads were familiar, from their hotel room they seemed to be heading in roughly the direction of her new job; the thought caused excitement to surge through Lily.
It took them an hour, an hour of blissful undisturbed riding to reach what seemed to be a small village. When the roads narrowed and the large concrete buildings of the city were a distant memory Lily could feel Mason’s growing excitement mix with her own. Even through his leather clad back, which she held on to so tightly, she could sense that whatever awaited them was something she would love.
“If you don’t like it we don’t have to keep it,” Mason muttered nervously as he helped Lily to climb off the bike.
She looked skeptically at him, much to her growing intrigue they had stopped in the small village, the quaint little countryside village where Mason looked far from at home. “Like what?” she questioned, her nerves easily meeting those of Mason’s now.
Mason took her hand softly and led her away from the bike and down a very narrow pathway, his hands were trembling a little making Lily’s brow furrow. Her excitement was quickly being replaced by worry, Mason was very rarely nervous about anything, even the wedding. “Close your eyes,” Mason whispered.
Lily turned to stare at him, her hand dropping out of his. “Fine,” Mason chuckled with a hint of amusement.
Suddenly his hand wrapped around Lily’s waist while the other covered her eyes. She could see nothing but the darkness of Mason’s palm now and as he slowly walked forwards she began to shake, having no idea what to expect. “Mason, what’s going on?” she whispered.
“Just wait,” he said quietly. They walked for a minute more, the path was uneven and Lily leaned heavily on Mason, her feet unstable on the foreign ground.
Mason came to a stop; he clutched Lily to his side as he looked up at her present, the one present he knew she wanted more than anything. “Mason please,” Lily begged.
With a smile Mason placed a small kiss on Lily’s lips, the sudden pressure made Lily jump a little and Mason’s smile only grew bigger, it was the little things like that, the smallest of responses to his touch, that he loved the most about her. “Just tell me if you don’t like it,” Mason said and before Lily could respond he moved his hand away from her eyes.
The bright light of the morning flooded Lily’s vision and then all at once she could see the house before her. She stared at the old thatched cottage in confusion before she finally realized why they were there. “Mason,” she breathed as she looked up at the cottage, the cottage that was theirs.
“You like it?” Mason asked quickly.
Lily couldn’t look away from the small cottage that was surrounded in flowers, perfectly nestled in its wild surroundings. “You brought this for us?” Lily questioned, momentarily surprised that words could actually push past her shock.
“I hoped this would be our normal, our future together,” Mason whispered, his eyes firmly directed at the floor, all his winnings had gone into buying the house, everything he had.
Lily wrapped her arms around her husband-to-be in front of the house she hoped they would spend the rest of their lives. A smile fought its way through the tears that marked her pale skin; with Mason around she knew things would never be normal.
Chapter Six
In the singular moment where Mason had expected to feel the most nervous he found himself simply unable to entertain the concept, he was too excited and far too consumed in the woman walking towards him. The soft melody of the ancient wedding song echoed through the church and with each painfully slow step his Lily was getting closer to him. He knew he should have waited, that he shouldn’t have turned to face her so soon but he wasn’t one for customs, not when his Lily was involved. She was a vision in white; Mason tugged at his suit jacket worriedly, knowing that while he had done his best he couldn’t quite live up to her beauty.
Lily paced her steps, moving in time to the gentle hum of the music, if it was up to her she would have run down the aisle. She had eyes only for Mason; he was impeccably dressed in the finest black suit she had ever seen. His normally messy brown hair was pushed back, perfectly styled; if he had managed one thing it was to put her to shame. She had no idea how he had even fallen for her in the first place, yet here he was, waiting for her at the altar.
The crowd watched on, hardly a dry eye in the room as they watched Lily and Mason take their vows, of course the pair hardly noticed anyone but each other; they had worked so hard to get to this moment. Chris and Hannah stood to the side; neither having believed that this day would come or that they would be there to watch as, what were now both of their friends, got married.
There was just one thing left, two words that would seal their fates for what both hoped would be forever. Lily looked into Mason’s bright blue eyes and smiled, her own eyes damp with unshed tears. “I do,” she whispered.
Mason breathed a sigh of relief, only when the words finally left her lips did he believe that she would utter them. For the first time in his life he let a tear slide down his cheeks. “I do,” he breathed.
….
Hand in hand, husband and wife stood at the door to what was going to be their wedding reception. With a wide grin Mason turned to Lily, forever his blushing bride. “In the mood to party?” he said with a chuckle.
Lily dragged her eyes across the room before finally settling on her husband. “Do you think they’ll miss us?” she asked, already knowing the answer.
“Do you care?” Mason laughed, his brows rising. Lily could see the hunger in his eyes as they raked over her body, now finally free of the restrictive wedding dress, right now she hardly cared about anything except for being alone with Mason.
“Let’s go home,” Lily stated and without another word she dragged her husband out of the reception room and through the open doors before anyone would notice.
Their first bike ride as a married couple was, for Lily at least, blissfully short. There would be time to ride, but as her husband carried her over the threshold she knew that that time was not now. “I love you Mrs. Mason,” he grinned, placing her down softly on the balls of her feet.
“And I love you Mr. Lily,” she grinned in turn. He placed a soft kiss on her lips, just letting his touch linger a second longer than normal, allowing the smallest hint of his passion to show through his smile.
His kiss was not hungry, it was not lust filled but as Lily looked into the depths of his bright blue eyes she knew he wished it to be. “I want you Mason,” she whispered, “all of you.”
He smiled at his wife, one of his few rare genuine smiles that seemed to be saved solely for her. “Then who am I to deny you what you want?” he teased.
His hands cupped Lily’s cheeks and she felt the first surges of heat bubbling in the pit of her stomach. “Do we own a bed yet?” she questioned, struggling to get the words out as Mason’s lips brushed against hers.
“Who needs a bed?” Mason chuckled, his thumb stroking soft sensual circles across Lily’s cheek all the while.
“It seems that we don’t,” she laughed slightly, her mind already beginning to fog at Mason’s touch, “After you,” she added, hoping that with just the small space it would put between them that she could regain control over her racing heart.
“Now you think I’ll going to let you walk? Oh no I fully intend on carrying you,” he chuckled sarcastically. Before Lily could truly register his words she was in his arms and not for the first time she couldn’t believe how lucky she really was.