“Cody...” I ripped off my veil and started crying as I ran over to hug him. “I didn’t leave you by choice. They took me.”
“They what?” Cody pulled back from my hug.
“Look.” I yanked up the edge of my dress and showed him the ankle bracelet. “I’ve been held prisoner here for months!”
“This was all done in accordance with God’s plan.” Reverend Brent lowered his hands.
“I’ve had about enough of God’s fucking plan.” I turned towards Reverent Brent and punched him in the nose as hard as I could.
“Oh shit.” Cody laughed and watched as the older man staggered backwards.
“Dad!” Scott ran to his father and caught him before he hit the ground.
“You’re all a bunch of cowards!” I turned towards the crowd and locked eyes on my mother who was tending to my father. “You’re the worst one.”
“Honey, we were just trying to protect you.” Tears formed in the corners of her eyes as she spoke.
“Every single one of you live in fear of this man.” I pointed towards Reverend Brent. “You believe he has a direct line to God? Well, where is God now?”
There was a murmur throughout the crowd. My mother started bawling as she finally got my father back on his feet. Sheriff James was still laid out on the ground and hadn’t moved. I was angry with so much fury coursing through my veins that I was trembling. Cody put his arms around me and pulled me into a tight embrace. I missed his touch so much. My anger gave way to tears and I started to cry.
“Johanna is coming with me.” He looked around as he spoke. “If any of you try to stop me, I will make sure you spend the night in the hospital. I don’t know what the fuck is wrong with this town, but you all need Jesus, because this shit ain’t God’s plan.”
I walked with Cody to his motorcycle and climbed on the back behind him. The bottom of my wedding dress got caught and I just ripped it off in chunks. I looked at my parents, Scott, and Reverend Brent. I was perfectly happy if I never saw any of them again. The strangest thi
ng was that when I looked at Scott, he was actually smiling and nodding his head. Cody started his motorcycle and then we were gone. The town of Dahlonega was a memory. I was leaving Scott at the altar for the second time, but unlike the first time, I knew exactly what I wanted. I wanted the man that had come to get me—the only one that had ever showed true passion for what he believed in.
Epilogue: Johanna
“Get this fucking thing off me.” I held up my ankle and Cody pulled a knife out of his pocket. “I don’t think they’ll try to find us, but I’m not giving them a chance.”
We stopped at the first rest area we came to. Cody kissed me for what felt like an eternity and the fireworks I had missed went off in my head. I couldn’t wait to be back in Reno, but we were going to have to make plenty of stops, because I had months of pent of energy to unleash on him when we found a bed. Cody quickly removed the ankle bracelet and threw it as far as he could.
“There. It’s gone.” He hugged me again. “I’ve missed you so much.”
“I’ve missed you too—although I’m a little disappointed that it took you three months to come find me.” He leaned back from his hug and narrowed my eyes.
“You made it pretty clear that it was over. I mean, it was the same thing you did to Scott before. I proposed marriage and you bolted.” He pulled me back into his embrace. “I’m sorry, Johanna. I wish I would have left the instant I got the first text message.”
“It was awful.” I closed my eyes and started to cry again.
We finally got to a hotel several hours away and stopped. I filled Cody in on the entire ordeal, from being kidnapped on my way to work, to the way my parents treated me. He seemed to get angrier as he heard more of the story. I got angrier as I told it. Everyone I trusted had betrayed me. They got so sucked into the awfulness spewed by Reverend Brent that they became slaves to his words, even though it was nothing more than a ruse to hide his son’s homosexuality.
“I want to go back to Dahlonega and burn the fucking town to the ground.” He walked over and slammed his fist into the wall. “How the fuck could your parents treat you like that?”
“It’s over. That’s all that matters.” I walked over and put my hand on his shoulder. “Why don’t you work out some of that frustration in another way.”
Cody grinned as he took me in his arms and our lips came together. His hunger was as powerful as mine. He tore more of my wedding dress as he tried to pull it off me. I didn’t care. I never intended to wear it again. I pushed his jacket off his shoulders and pulled him towards the bed. By the time we hit the mattress, most of our clothes were off. Cody removed my bra quickly and started kissing my breasts as he kicked his jeans off. I gasped as my nipples started to get hard underneath his tongue.
“Oh god...” I moaned and my head rolled back against the bed.
“Let’s leave him out of it for a while.” Cody pulled back from my nipple and started kissing down my abdomen.
“Oh, Cody.” I smiled as I felt his lips moving towards my pelvis.
“That’s better.” He chuckled and shifted my leg as he pressed his lips to my thighs.
I had almost forgotten how amazing his tongue felt. It was like the first time all over again as he circled my clitoris and drove me crazy with his touch. His hands moved along my inner thighs as he pleasured me. I loved the way he made me feel, but I still craved more. I wanted him inside me. I needed to see the intensity in his eyes that I had missed most of all. My hands ran through his hair and then they squeezed his powerful shoulders. I quickly started to moan as my clitoris formed a hard knot underneath his tongue.