“Dancing sounds like fun.” I extracted my arm from around the brunette’s shoulders and gave her an apologetic grin. “Have fun. Maybe we’ll get to work together sometime. I’ll see you around.”
Her eyes narrowed for a fraction of a second, but she stepped away with her head held high and shook her head at me. “Yeah, sure thing, Pax. Maybe. Have fun with that.”
On the last word, she glanced at Blondie and then spun around to disappear into the fray of people around us. Marilyn, or Madelyn—I really had to figure out which one it was—again hadn’t registered the diss.
“I wonder why she didn’t want to come dance with us. It can’t be that hot down there. There are sooo many people on the dance floor.”
I let out an internal sigh. Maybe the admin with the brunette wouldn’t have been so bad.
Still, I wasn’t about to go chasing anybody down. Besides, Blondie had pretty eyes and a great rack. She couldn’t be that bad. Again, not trying to marry her.
“I think it’s because of all the people on the dance floor that she thought it would be so hot down there,” I said gently. “The sun’s also creeping up on the patio. It’ll be shining in underneath the roof in another few minutes.”
Her wide eyes swung toward the patio in question, but then she shrugged and threaded her fingers through mine. “I’m okay with getting a little sweaty. Dancing gets the blood flowing anyway. I always start to feel a little hot while I’m doing it, if you know what I mean.”
Jesus. Subtlety isn’t her strong suit. “Sure, sweetheart. Let’s go get a little sweaty.”
On our way down the stairs, we were approached by several people wanting to say hi. Another beer was shoved into my hand by one of them, and the girl—who was definitely called Madelyn because several people greeted her by that name, and she didn’t correct them—clung to me like I was a life raft.
When we finally made it into the throng of gyrating bodies, she spun into my arms and threw hers around my neck. Almost immediately, she started planting openmouthed kisses on my bicep over my T-shirt.
Her body was hard against mine. No part of her seemed to have any give whatsoever. I’d made my choice, though. Now I just needed to try to get into it.
Splaying my fingers over her hips, I tugged her into me and hoped the mere fact that she was rolling her hips like a pro would flip that switch in my body. I needed my brain to give control over to my dick, and then we’d be good to go.
Unfortunately for that plan, it seemed like she was intent on talking while we danced. She let her head drop back a bit to look up at me, her hands roaming and her body swaying as it stayed tightly pressed to mine.
“Do you like puppies? I love them.” She smiled in this way that was much too adorable to be sexy. “Cindy has two around here somewhere. Maybe we should go look for them later.”
“I love dogs, but I’m sure she’ll have taken them somewhere away from the party. With so many people and with the music this loud, they’d only get scared.”
“Do you really think so?” Those eyes filled with worry. “Poor puppies.”
Someone bumped into her from behind, and just like that, she forgot all about the puppies and started jumping up and down against me when she realized the rest of the crowd had started doing it. For the next few songs, I tried to get into it. I really did. I even threw my hands in the air and screamed along to an alternative rock song from the nineties.
When I finally started feeling it and relaxed, she took my hands and gave me a look that was probably supposed to have been provocative. “Do you want to go somewhere quieter?”
“Sure.” I let her lead me away from the dance floor, back upstairs into a bedroom she’d obviously known was there.
She shut the door behind us but kept blabbering on about absolute nonsense even while she reached behind her back to undo the knot on her bikini top. “My mother was so worried about me when I moved out here. She owns a bakery, and she wanted me to come work for her. Did you know that bakers start really early in the morning?”
“Yep.” Did she really just mention her mother while getting naked?
I moved toward her, mentally giving myself a talking-to. Let’s just forget she mentioned her mother. Yeah. That’ll do it.
Her big eyes were trained on my movements as she let the top fall to the ground. “I was going to go to the farmer’s market this morning. Do you ever go?”
For fuck’s sake. “Yeah, I’ve been there.”
Before she could say anything else, I put my finger over her mouth and dropped my lips to hers just to keep her from talking. My hands wrapped around her narrow waist, and I hauled her closer to me. Her nipples became rock hard against my chest, and she released a breathy moan into the kiss.
I really wasn’t into it, though. It was doing absolutely nothing for me. Holding her felt like lying down on an ironing board, her tongue was like this limp fish just occasionally prodding at me, and I kept thinking that her mother might’ve had a point worrying about her before she’d come out here.
Fuck. I need to plot my escape. I’d come here tonight to have a couple of drinks and unwind, get to know some of the newer people in the industry, and catch up with old friends. A quick fuck was never an unwelcome part of any party, but this had been a mistake.
The problem, however, was that I needed an out that wouldn’t hurt her feelings or ruin what might one day be a working relationship if we were ever on a shoot together. Despite how it seemed, the industry we were in wasn’t all that big. There was a fair chance we’d end up booked for something together sooner or later.
My pants started buzzing, as if whoever was calling had sensed my predicament. Slowing the kiss to an end, I pulled my phone out of my pocket and almost started laughing when Tierra’s name came up on my screen.
“I need to take this,” I said to Madelyn, who looked like she was about to start talking again.
When I lifted the phone, she pouted but moved back to lie down on the bed. I watched her spreading her legs and beckoning for me to join her even as I answered my sister’s call.
“Hey, you. What’s up?”
“Are you busy tonight?” she asked without any preamble. She also didn’t wait for me to respond. “We need to get together to talk about some wedding stuff. I’ve found a venue that I love, but they just got back to me this afternoon to confirm their availability, and I’m freaking out. There’s not a lot of time, and we need to get the ball rolling.”
I wasn’t proud of it, but I jumped at the opportunity. Mouthing, “I’m sorry, I have to go,” at Madelyn, I spun on my heel and left her lying half-naked on the bed while still on the phone to Tierra.
“Calm down, sis. It’s all going to be fine. Just tell me where to meet you, and I’ll be right there.”
“We’re on our way to Heaven. The sushi place. Do you know it?”
I knew it, but I didn’t love it. Sushi was fine in principle, but I needed to eat a ton of those tiny things before they made any sort of dent in my appetite. “I know it. I can be there in about thirty minutes.”
“Thank you, Paxton,” she said, her relief speaking volumes about the fact that she obviously hadn’t thought I’d get there on such short notice. “We’ll see you soon.”
When I walked into Heaven, I spotted Brett and Tierra almost immediately. But they weren’t alone.
She had her back to me, but I’d know the woman who was at the table with them anywhere.
Fuck. Colette’s here?
My heart nearly stopped, and for the first time in nearly ten years, I had an almost visceral reaction to simply seeing someone. Colette had always done that to me, though. She was the one and only person who could walk into a room and I’d sense her before I even knew she was there.
As she slowly turned when Tierra saw me and waved, I saw the blood draining from her face.
Uh-oh. Obviously, this came as a surprise to her as well. And I doubted it was a pleasant one.
Chapter 6
C
OLETTE
Paxton fucking Gould.
Damn it.
Why the hell was he here? Sure, I’d known there was a chance I’d be seeing him with the wedding and all, but I sure as heck hadn’t expected him to show up tonight.
It had been almost a decade since I’d last seen him, and I would’ve been happy if another one could’ve passed without me having to see him even in passing. Now, it seemed I had to have dinner with him.
My blood simmered as I narrowed my eyes at Brett. You could’ve at least given me a heads-up, asshole.
When he caught my glare, he slanted a pointed look at Tierra sitting next to him, and his own eyes flashed with a warning. This is her brother, he seemed to be saying. Just be cool. We can talk about it later.
Paxton, already almost half an hour late, walked slowly toward us with that same swagger he’d had back in high school, but it was on steroids now. As he came closer, I felt my heart skip a beat.
Why couldn’t he have become hideous in his older age? I so, so badly wanted to be able to look at him and think “shame, the years haven’t been kind,” but I couldn’t. Because they had been kind.
More than kind. His face was more mature, more angular, and a lot less boyish. I knew he was a model, but I’d made a point of not looking too closely at any of the pictures I’d seen of him in advertisements.
Now, it seemed I shouldn’t have actively avoided studying every inch of him I could in those pictures. Maybe if I had, I’d have been more prepared for just how much more of a looker he was now than ever before.
And he’d always been gorgeous.
Paxton moved in that way that commanded the attention of everybody in the room. Even in a faded blue shirt and cargo shorts, he looked like he could be on his way to or from a shoot. He radiated confidence wrapped in mind-blowing sex that had been dipped in a vat of masculinity.
His black hair was shorter now than it used to be but still longer at the top. It looked like fingers had recently been run through it, tousled and slightly messy. Then again, knowing him, there probably had been someone’s hands in it very recently. He’d always been a player. I doubted that would’ve changed.
Those piercing blue eyes of his were just as hauntingly beautiful as I remembered. They were a pale ice-blue, the color I imagined a glacier would reflect under a cloudless sky. That didn’t mean they were cold, though. If anything, the heat I knew could flare up in them still melted me even after all this time.
As his tall, toned build came closer to the table, I yanked my gaze away from him to focus on Brett. There were apologies in his eyes, but I just shook my head. I couldn’t sit here and spend the night with Paxton. I just… couldn’t.
Swiping my purse from the seat he was standing next to, I scooted to the edge of my chair and forced a smile for Tierra’s sake. “I’m so sorry, but I have to go. Brett can email me the rest of the stuff I need to know, or I can just catch up with you over the weekend?”
“I just got here, though,” Paxton said before bending down to kiss his sister’s cheek. He shook Brett’s outstretched hand before smirking at me. “Rude, much?”
Oh, you complete and total prick. The scowl that settled on my features was so intense, even I felt like my face might stay that way. “Creative as always, huh, Pax? Well, rude or not, I still have to go.”
Before I could stand up, I saw Brett and Tierra exchange a glance before looking at me and Paxton in turn. Tierra placed a hand on Brett’s arm, and the look he gave me was so cutting that I slumped back into my seat.
“Sit down, Colette. You’re not going anywhere. April is with Veronica tonight, right? When I checked with you yesterday, you said we could talk wedding stuff tonight, and that’s what we’re going to do.”
“Wait. Colette knew about this yesterday? Why did I only find out less than an hour ago?” Paxton raised his eyebrows at his sister. “If she could have a little bit of notice, why couldn’t I?”
Tierra didn’t back down. “I told you, the venue only confirmed for sure earlier today, and plus, she needs a little more lead time. She does have a child to make arrangements for. The only child you need to make arrangements for is yourself.”
He grabbed hold of his chest and continued to talk about me like I wasn’t there. “You keep wounding me like that, and you just might break my heart one of these days. What is she doing here, anyway? You and I are family, Brett is as good as family, but Colette—”
“Colette just wants to know why you asked the two of us here together,” I said. “I figured he was going to be at the wedding, but it’s not like he’s actually going to do anything to help us in the preparation phase.”
Tierra sighed but didn’t argue. Brett let out a loud huff of air through his nostrils before burying his face in his hands and peering at her from the side. “Maybe this was a mistake.”
“No, it wasn’t,” she said softly before taking a deep breath. “We did this for a reason, remember?”
“Yeah, I remember.” He dropped his hands before he sat back, slung his arm over the back of her chair, and brought his green eyes to mine before they darted to Paxton’s.
“Look, I know you two have a lot of history, but you’re both important to us,” he said with such honesty and conviction that even Paxton sat up a little straighter. “We’re about to become man and wife. We can’t have our wedding ruined by the two of you having things you need to air out. It’s been ten goddamn years since you split. So far, we’ve made sure that we don’t really talk about either of you to the other, that you don’t have to see each other at birthdays or other events, but this is our wedding.”
Paxton and I hadn’t seen eye to eye on anything in a long time. A much longer time than we had spent being on the same page.
But when I glanced at him to find him already looking at me, I knew we were in agreement about this. We were going to have to play nice for the bride and groom we both loved.
“Do you have any idea what he’s talking about?” Paxton asked me, those beautiful eyes of his glittering with amusement but also pleading with me to go along with him.
It might just kill me, but I was going to do it.
Shrugging, I gave my head the smallest of shakes and tried to be okay with pretending that everything was fine. “I have absolutely no idea. We’re not going to ruin anybody’s wedding. It’s going to be the best wedding there has ever been, and we’re going to make sure of it.”
“Damn straight.” He lifted his fist to bump it against mine, and though I wanted nothing more than to not touch him, I sucked it up and ignored the sparks that burst through me from that one brief point of skin contact. “Glad to be in business with you.”
“Same here. Did you ask them not to talk to you about me?”
He let the corners of his mouth dip down as he shook his head. “Nope. In fact, I feel like I still know the basics about what’s going on with you. Did you ask?”
“Nah. I know you.” Which was the whole dang problem, but hey.
Paxton and I turned as one to smile at our bride and groom. Tierra rolled her eyes at us, but Brett’s jaw tightened as Paxton gave his attention back to me. “Well, then. I don’t know what the problem is. Do you?”
“Nope. It seems like Brett has a bee in his bonnet about nothing.”
He laughed, and I wasn’t proud of the fact that my knees went a little weak at the rich, melodic sound. He’s always had a great laugh.
“It sure seems so,” he said. “To be honest, it doesn’t surprise me. He’s always had a bit of a childish streak, hasn’t he”
“Oh, I know you two are childish, but what am I?” Brett said, his tone biting. His fiancée, bless her gentle soul, widened her eyes at him to get him to stop, but he didn’t. “You know what? Enough is enough. I know it must’ve been tough on both of you not to budge for even a second on trying to act like everything is fine, but it’s not.”
He pushed his chair back. “We’re getting married, and you are the two most important people in o
ur lives for some reason I can’t fathom right now.”
As he moved to stand behind Tierra, he held out his hand to her but kept his eyes—and his scowl—on us. “We have a venue, but we’re going to need help planning everything from the man of honor and the head groomswench. Plain and simple.”
Guilt flashed through me when I saw how serious he was. I squared my shoulders as I held his gaze, but I couldn’t pretend that I wasn’t pissed at him about this. If Paxton was going to be Tierra’s man of honor like he’d just said, he should’ve been honest with me about it instead of ambushing both of us with the other’s presence at dinner.
At the same time, I had committed to standing up with him at their wedding, and I loved them both too much to let any of this make me renege on that promise. Tierra put her hand in Brett’s and allowed him to pull her up. He plucked her purse from the table and handed it over while still glaring at us.
“If you care even a little bit about our wedding, you will find a way to work together to help us make our big day what we deserve it to be.” His expression softened when he looked at me. He knew what he was asking, but he was doing it anyway.
“The curveball?” Tierra said, taking over from Brett. “The wedding is in four weeks, so you’d better get to it.”
With that, they turned and left me alone with Paxton. After the door swung shut behind them, he glanced at the drinks and the menus on the table. “Do you think this means we have to cover the tab?”
I rolled my eyes at him. “Yes, Paxton. I think that means we’re going to have to cover the tab. It’s the least we can do, don’t you think?”
Actually, the least we could do was to not jump up and follow after them. But Brett was right. We would have to find a way to work together to give them the day they deserved, and if they really were getting married in four weeks, I was staring down the barrel of spending a ton more time with Paxton before they would finally make it down the aisle.
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