Dreaming in Dairyland Read online

  Bob grinned. This was the woman he needed for so many reasons. He lowered his head to hers, his heart feeling like it would pound out of his chest. He felt her lips part beneath his, and he took advantage, sweeping his tongue in to mate with hers. He wanted nothing more than to pick her up and carry her out of the church and take her home with him, but he couldn't. Her family and friends were watching, and he would do what he was supposed to do.

  When he lifted his head, her eyes were filled with passion. "Okay?" he asked, thankful he got the word out.

  She nodded, staring into his eyes, before putting her hands behind his head and pulling him down for another kiss much to the amusement of the congregation. When their lips finally parted, she whispered, "Very okay."

  Turning to face everyone, she heard the pastor say, "I'd like to present Mr. and Mrs. Robert Anderson."

  She leaned to him and whispered, "If we run for it, we can have a minute or two alone before anyone notices we're gone." And she desperately wanted that minute or two so they could talk and maybe kiss. She really wanted more kissing more than anything.

  He chuckled, gripping her hand tightly, as he began sprinting through the church to the bride's room at the back. Cissie locked the door and walked toward him, grabbing him for another kiss.

  Bob pulled her fully against him, kissing her like he'd wanted to kiss her in front of everyone. He pulled her hips flush with his and moved against her. Cissie pulled away from him, and for a moment he was worried he'd gone too far, but then she grinned at him. "You feeling frisky already? This is a good sign."

  She pulled him over to two chairs and sat in one. "So your name is Robert?"

  He nodded. "Bob." That had come out fine. Bob was thrilled. Maybe if he kept his answers succinct he wouldn't stammer in front of her. He felt like his brain turned to mush as soon as she looked at him.

  "Bob, huh? I like that. Do you know that Bob spelled backwards is Bob?" She suppressed her giggle. Bob had always seemed like a funny name to her, though she wasn't sure why.

  He raised an eyebrow before nodding. What kind of question was that? Everyone knew Bob spelled backwards was still Bob.

  "Too bad my name isn't Anna. Then we'd both have names that would be the same forward as backward. Of course, then I'd feel like a character from Frozen, and I'm not about to share my sandwich with you."

  Bob hadn't seen Frozen, but he'd heard the song. "No?" he asked. He'd share anything with her.

  She shook her head, pulling his head down again. His taste was intoxicating. She hoped he was planning on driving wherever they were going, because with all the kissing they'd done, she wasn't sure she was up to it. Her knees were weak. "I took a week off work. Where are we spending the night?" She couldn't think of anything but being with him. That had to be a good sign, right?

  Bob swallowed hard. "My home." He was getting words out better than he'd thought he would. He just wished his palms would quit sweating and he wasn't shaking so much.

  "Where is home? Please tell me you're close." She knew she was being forward, but she didn't care. She was ready for her wedding night. She'd stayed a virgin, but just barely. She liked kissing and always had. In that way she and Cindy were very different. Cindy had felt like it was a sin to kiss, but Cissie had considered kissing her due when she'd gone out on dates. She'd always stopped before she'd had sex, though.

  He nodded, his eyes on hers. "Shady Hills." He said naming a town that was very close.

  "Oh, man! You're our football rival." She shook her head. "Please tell me you didn't go to high school there!" How could she be married to a rival?

  He shook his head. "Chicago."

  "We can go to football games and cheer for the Blevins Beavers then. Good. I was worried for a minute there." She grinned. "We'd just better never watch the Bears play against the Packers."

  He grinned, cupping a hand over her cheek. He loved her hair down. She looked so different than she did at the bowling alley, but she was just as beautiful as ever. "Sure."

  She turned her head and kissed his fingers. "We need to go to the reception. My dad is going to give you the third degree, I'm sure, but you can ignore him if you want." She looked at him, loving his brown eyes. "What do you do for a living anyway?"

  "I'm a deputy sheriff."

  Her eyes grew wide. "Wait a minute! That's why I recognize you. You pulled Lachele over for stupid driving last night!" She giggled a little, wondering if he'd realized his future bride was in the truck.

  He nodded. "Reckless."

  "Well, her reckless driving was stupid. And that's why she told me my future husband wouldn't mind me drooling over the hot cop that pulled her over, and then laughed like a loon!" She was so thankful to understand that. He really wasn't gay!

  "Hot cop?" he asked with a grin. He liked the idea that she'd been attracted to him the night before.

  Cissie nodded slowly. "Very hot cop." She kissed him again, running her hand over the front of his jacket. "Can't wait to see all of my hot cop."

  Bob laughed. He couldn't figure out why he'd been so nervous around her. His tongue was still thick, though, so he decided not to say anything else. He didn't want to scare her off yet. Of course, every word she said turned him on just a little bit more. It was like she could see what he wanted in a woman, and had the ability to become his dream girl. It was almost scary.

  Cissie jumped up. "Let's go to the reception. The sooner we eat cake, the sooner we can get naked."

  Bob shook his head. He hadn't expected her to be so eager for her wedding night. In fact, he hadn't expected her to be willing to do anything yet at all. He wasn't going to complain though. He'd fantasized about making love to her, and he was ready for it to really happen.

  "No?" she asked, her hands on her hips. "Are you denying me my conjugal rights?" He'd better not be denying her anything yet.

  Bob laughed, pulling her to him for another kiss. "Never."

  "Glad to hear it. I'd have to fight you on that one." She unlocked the door and pulled him out of the room by his hand. "Oh, hey, Dad. This is Bob. I like him." She almost added that she wanted to jump his bones, but she was certain that was something her father couldn't stand hearing.

  Her dad shook his head. "Cissie, you're a little too bold sometimes!"

  Cissie just shrugged. "You've been saying that for years." She turned to Bob. "This is my dad. He's responsible for my name." She rolled her eyes.

  "Cissie is a perfectly respectable name!" her dad protested.

  "Maybe it is, until you tell the story of where you got it."

  Bob watched Cissie glare at her father, obviously waiting for him to tell the story, whatever it was. It was something they must have done hundreds of times over the years.

  "There's nothing wrong with how you were named." Her dad looked at Bob. "She was named after Loretta Lynn's daughter, Cissie Lynn. We like music in our house."

  Bob nodded. "I like it." Of course, he liked everything about her, so her name was simply part of the overall package. He put his hand out to shake his new father-in-law's. "Nice to meet you."

  "Nice to meet you too. What do you do for a living, Bob?"

  "He's a deputy sheriff. He pulled us over while we were out bachelorette partying last night! Do you believe?" She giggled. "I thought he was really cute even then."

  Her father had a new look of respect on his face. "I feel like I'm leaving her in safe hands then."

  Bob nodded. "You are, sir." No one would protect her like he would. Not even her father.

  Cissie turned to him with a grin, standing on tiptoe to kiss him. She heard her father sigh. "I raised her to be less aggressive with men!"

  Bob laughed. "I like it." He wasn't about to complain about a beautiful woman kissing him.

  She grinned up at him. "I think we're going to get along just fine, Deputy Bob."

  He cringed at the name. What was it about people calling him Deputy Bob all of the sudden? He hoped it wasn't becoming a trend.

  *****
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  At the bowling alley, they ended up being pulled their separate ways, but Cissie kept her eyes on Bob. Who knew that a man so adorable was just the next town over? She'd have taken to speeding years ago if she'd known it would attract him to her.

  Cindy cornered Cissie when she finally paused for air. "What do you think of him? He's sexy!"

  Cissie grinned. "Remember the hot cop from last night? And how Lachele hooted like a crazy woman when I said I probably shouldn't be lusting after him?" She half-expected Cindy to understand as soon as she asked the question, because Cindy had been reading her mind for years.

  Cindy nodded slowly. "Yeah, but I didn't get a good look at him."

  "You're welcome to look at him now. I call him husband." Cissie still couldn't believe she'd married the very man she'd been ogling unknowingly the night before. How much better could her life get?

  Cindy burst out laughing. "Well, your new husband probably has no problem with you getting excited over the cop then! I can't believe you lucked out. You've always been a sucker for a man in uniform!"

  "I can't believe it. He's more than I dreamed he would be. And I've been dreaming of this day for a long time." Cissie needed to find Lachele soon and boobie bump her. It was unbelievable just how happy she was at that moment.

  "I'm so happy for you! So—you dragged him back to the bride's room. Is he a good kisser?"

  Cissie fanned her face with her hand. "Oh, yeah! I'm completely in lust with the man. I can't wait to strip him, use his cuffs on him, and ride him like a cowgirl!" She bit her lip, looking around. "Oh, good. You're the only one that heard that!" She was so glad her parents weren't close enough to hear what she would have never told anyone but Cindy.

  Cindy laughed, holding her side. "OMG, Cissie. He's not going to know what hit him!"

  Cissie grinned. "No, he's not. He's gotten a bit of a taste, but I was restrained considering we were in a church and all." She cocked an eyebrow. "I wonder what he'd say if I dragged him off to my office and had my way with him?" She was so tempted. If she hadn't been worried people would realize they were missing, she just might do it.

  "I think you should keep restraining yourself until you're in a bed somewhere. It's your first time, and he's going to think you're a lot more experienced than you are!"

  Cissie shrugged. "I don't see how that could be a bad thing. Maybe we'll do the deed faster. I'm ready now! Have you seen him?" If Cissie had been asked to create her dream man, it would have been Bob. Job and everything. He was perfect for her in every way.

  "I have. He's pretty cute. He's not Trey, of course, but he's good for you."

  Cissie wanted to roll her eyes. Cindy's nerd had nothing on her cop, but she wasn't about to tell her friend that. "You can have Trey if I can keep Bob." She looked at him across the crowded bowling alley, meeting his eyes. "I need to go kiss him. Talk to you soon!"

  Ignoring Cindy's laughter behind her, Cissie hurried across the bowling alley to where Bob was talking to a group of people. He was telling the story of pulling Lachele over the night before, and she stopped just behind him, listening to his perspective. "I knew she was probably in the car, and I was almost afraid to say anything. Dr. Lachele is insane, but she wasn't drunk. I probably should have given her a ticket, but how could I with my bride right there in the car?"

  Cissie stepped closer to Bob, her arm going around him as she gazed up at him. "You could have actually. I wouldn't have freaked. Would have been a fun story."

  Bob looked down at her, blushing. What was it about this woman that made him blush every time she got close? His tongue felt thick in his mouth, and he knew he couldn't continue his story.

  Cissie stood on tiptoe and kissed him, her tongue quickly reaching out to rub his. "You're some kisser, Deputy Bob," she whispered before disappearing again.

  As she walked away his friend, Dave, started laughing. "You've got it bad. One word from her and you're blushing like a girl!"

  Bob glared at Dave. "I could still take you down, so don't push your luck." They both knew he spent a lot more time at the gym keeping in shape than Dave did, and he knew Dave would back down.

  They all laughed, but Bob knew it was good-natured. Hopefully by the time he went back to work in a week, they'd have made love enough that he didn't act so silly every time she came around.

  Cissie rushed over to where her mother was putting out plates. "Are you just about ready to cut the cake?" she asked. "You don't have to do it yet, but from the way you two were just kissing, it looks like he's going to want to leave as soon as possible."

  "He's not the only one," Cissie muttered, thankful it was her mother making the observation and not her dad.

  Her mom shook her head. "Well, run over and get him, and you two can cut the cake. I think you need to stay for at least the first five dances before you two take off. Where are you going to be tonight?"

  "His house. He's a cop over in Shady Hills."

  "Oh, I'm so glad to hear that. Your father won't worry nearly as much knowing he carries a gun."

  Cissie shrugged. "Dad seems to like him." She looked over at Bob and saw him watching her again. She already felt like there was something special between them, and she meant for that to be a self-fulfilling prophecy. She and Deputy Bob were going to have a wonderful time! "I'm going to go get him."

  She hurried across the room and grabbed Bob's hand. "Sorry to drag him away, but my mother says it's time to cut the cake." She knew she should meet his friends, but right then all she could think about was going through the reception rituals so she could get it over with, and they could move on to the exciting part of the program—the wedding night.

  As they walked back toward the table where her mother had the cake set up, she whispered, "None of this shoving cake in each other's faces. I spent way too much on this dress for me to be willing to ruin it with stupidity." She wanted to save it for someone else to wear. If they never had a daughter, then one of Cindy's girls. She was sure her friend would have a half-dozen kids.

  "Okay," he said, blushing again. She was about to eat from his fingers. His heart was pounding madly at the mere idea. Why did everything about her seem so sexual to him?

  They got to the table and she looked at her mother. "Mom, this is Bob. Bob, this is my mom."

  Bob smiled at his new mother-in-law. "Nice to meet you."

  Mrs. Rivers smiled back. "Nice to meet you, too. Be good to her, and you'll never have problems with her father and me."

  He nodded. "Yes, ma'am. I'll treat her like the precious woman she is."

  "That's all we ask." She handed Cissie the cake knife. "People are gathering and the photographer is ready."

  Cissie looked at Bob. "You have long arms. Just stand behind me and hold the weapon of cake destruction with both hands over mine."

  "The weapon of cake destruction?" Bob grinned, liking the idea of that. He had to press up against her back completely as he wrapped his arms around her, his hands over hers. "Like this?" he asked, brushing a kiss against her neck.

  It was all Cissie could do not to wiggle against him, but she really didn't think that would be playing fair. "Just like that. Ready?"

  "Oh, yeah."

  Cissie got the feeling he wasn't talking about being ready to cut the cake, and she knew she wasn't. It was nice to feel like they were of one mind. She moved the knife down and sliced through the cake, cutting off a small piece and putting it on a plate.

  She put the knife down and turned to him, reaching out for a small bite of the cake and waiting for him to do the same. She held the cake up to his lips, and he took it gracefully, the white of his teeth flashing. She opened her mouth for his bite, but made certain she nipped his finger just a little.

  Bob leaned close. "You're killing me," he whispered against her ear.

  "Nah," she whispered back. "I'm helping you know what you're in for. If you want to run, you'd better do it now." She knew some men were turned off by aggressive women, and if he was one of them, they were not
meant to be.

  "Never."

  She looked up at him with a huge smile on her face, stunned that she was actually married to this man. She was sure he had some faults somewhere, but so far, all she could find was a lovable man who seemed to think she was pretty darn special. What more could a woman ask for?

  Of course, he had a small bit of icing on his top lip, but that made him all the more adorable. She crooked her finger at him, to lean down just a bit, fully aware that there was still a crowd around them, and a photographer was ready to capture a picture.

  Bob leaned down, not sure what Cissie needed, but not really caring at that moment. She pulled his mouth the rest of the way to hers, making certain to lick every drop of frosting from his lip. "Mm."

  Bob stroked her cheek softly. "Can we go?" He had to get her out of there and into his bed soon. He wasn't certain how much longer he could wait.

  Cissie's smile was bigger than ever. "Mom says five dances."

  "Can we start dancing now?"

  Cissie laughed. "My sentiments exactly." She looked at her mother who was watching them with more amusement than reprimand. "Can we do the first dance now?"

  Her mother nodded. "I'll go see to it."

  Cissie rested her hands gently on Bob's shoulders. "I'd invite you into my office for a little alone time, but I think we should be in a bed for my first time."

  He kissed her forehead. "Our first time together." He blushed again, but it was getting easier to talk to her at least. Maybe soon they'd be able to have an entire conversation. He was just glad she didn't seem to notice his short answers.

  Cissie made a mental note to bring up the topic again when they were alone in the car. Bob seemed really nervous already, and knowing he had a virgin bride on his hands just might send him over the edge. She'd rather be alone when that happened.

  The band started playing a slow song, and Cissie smiled. She'd almost forgotten she'd arranged to sing this first song to him while they danced. Taking his hand, she rushed over to the singer of the band, who gave her a mike to wear.