Hot Mistake

by Cara Lockwood

  “I had a great time.” Lola broke free of Marco’s arm and gave Gabriela a big hug. “Thanks so much for everything you did. It was perfect.”

  “You’re sure?” Gabriela wasn’t. Having the bride run out of the party early typically wasn’t a sign of a successful party.

  “I’m sure,” Lola said and pulled back. “I just want to be with the love of my life.” She glanced at Marco, who returned her brilliant smile with one of his own. Their love was so real Gabriela could feel its warmth like heat from the sun. She couldn’t begrudge them that.

  “Okay, you two, don’t do anything I wouldn’t do,” Sebastian said, giving his friend a one-armed hug.

  “Well, considering you’re celibate, why don’t we just leave that alone?” Marco teased.

  Celibate? Gabriela turned so forcefully, she felt her neck muscles tense. Since when was Sebastian Lott celibate?

  Marco and Lola moved past them to the elevators. Gabriela glanced up at the tall figure of Sebastian Lott next to her, every one of his dark hairs perfectly in place.

  “You’re...celibate?” Gabriela couldn’t stop herself from asking.

  “For the weekend.” Sebastian sent her a sidelong glance, a sly smile curling his lips. “Why? Disappointed? Did you want to take me to...sexy town?” He wiggled his eyebrows and then laughed a little, acknowledging his own cheesy joke.

  “Pffft. As if.” They both moved back into the bar and toward the bartender. Felicia, lacking the male dancers to grind with, was dancing around Bill. When she saw them approach, she crooked her finger at Bill and beckoned him closer. Clear ploy to make him jealous—or something, Gabriela didn’t know.

  “You don’t think I’m sexy? Now, my feelings are going to be hurt.” Sebastian pretended to pout.

  “I doubt my opinion matters at all.” What did he care if she thought he was attractive or not? Did he need every woman’s approval? Probably. She glanced at him to see if he’d noticed Felicia’s gyrating antics. He hadn’t. “Besides, I’m sure you can find other women to flatter your ego.”

  “But I don’t want another woman to flatter me.”

  How did Sebastian make lines like that sound so...earnest? But the way that he was looking at her made her think he was telling the truth. “Want another drink?” he asked.

  “Sure.” Gabriela didn’t have to worry about Lola anymore, or the kind of time she was having. Marco would take care of that. Now she could...relax.

  Sebastian held up a two fingers to the bartender, who brought them both another round. Gabriela took her glass, though she was already feeling the vodka humming in her blood. It made her feel bold and it made her not care that she was talking to Sebastian Lott.

  “So, seriously, though, what’s up with the celibacy vow? I heard you rule Spark. That you like no strings,” Gabriela said, taking a small sip of her vodka soda. Go easy, she told herself, you’ve already had plenty.

  “Eh.” Sebastian looked less than enthused.

  “What? You’re not into hooking up anymore?” Now Gabriela was truly shocked. What was this? A joke?

  Sebastian took a drink. “I’m tired of it. The running around. The meaningless sex. One strange face after another every weekend. Sure, it sounds good, but in reality, it gets old.” Sebastian focused on his whiskey on ice, knocking the glass so the ice cubes clinked the side.

  “You’re tired of sex.” Gabriela could not believe this. She’d never heard a man admit he was tired of sex—meaningless or otherwise. “Did you have a serious brain injury? What the hell happened?”

  Sebastian chuckled, voice low. She liked making him laugh. She wanted to do it again.

  “It all blurs together, one body after another. Nothing means anything.”

  Gabriela could actually relate. “And then, if you accidentally sleep over...”

  “You’ve got that awkward ‘Let’s pretend we want to have breakfast but don’t have time’ excuse.”

  “Or the ‘Oh, got an early-morning work meeting’ excuse.”

  “Or the ‘Hey, I need to let my dog out when I don’t even have a dog’ excuse.”

  They both dissolved into giggles. What had the world come to when Gabriela and Sebastian Lott had this much in common?

  “You’re like the female me,” Sebastian said, looking amazed as he nodded his head.

  “I am not.” The idea was insane.

  “You are,” he persisted. “Except that nobody in Miami knows it. You’re me on the down low. Why?”

  Gabriela shrugged. “I don’t know. Maybe I don’t want to be Felicia.” She studied the blond as she deliberately shook her boobs in Bill’s face. Nothing subtle there.

  Sebastian chuckled.

  “I prefer to have my fun in New York,” Gabriela said.

  “I bet you do.” Sebastian studied her a moment. “But don’t you get tired of all the hookups? I don’t want to have sex again unless it’s with someone who really knows me. And I know them,” Sebastian admitted. “I want something more, like what Marco and Lola have.”

  Gabriela took a sip of her drink. She doubted Sebastian was really serious. Maybe it was just one more come-on line.

  “Oh, sure, use the ‘I want to settle down line’ to get a woman into bed and then the next morning go back to being your player self. Then it’s, ‘Oh, I forgot about the sick cat I don’t own.’”

  Sebastian laughed a little. “It’s not a line.” Sebastian glanced at her and his hazel eyes looked earnest. She suddenly believed him.

  “So, who’s your perfect woman, then?”

  “Someone sexy.”

  “I thought you were trying not to be shallow,” Gabriela crooked her head to one side.

  “Someone smart.”

  Gabriela sniffed. “Okay, but then, if she were smart, why would she date you?”

  Sebastian laughed again. Oh, she liked the sound of that. Liked also that he was tough enough to take her barbs. He surprised her. His ego didn’t seem as fragile as she would’ve thought.

  Sebastian gave Gabriela a playful shove. “And my ideal woman has to be funny. Razor-sharp sarcastic wit...” He paused, studying her with sudden serious attention. “Like yours.” He stared at her a moment and, for a split second, Gabriela wondered if he were serious. Then she quickly decided he was just pulling her leg.

  She threw her head back and laughed. “Flattery will get you nowhere.”

  “Should I insult you, then?”

  “You mean like by ignoring me when your locker was near mine?” She raised an eyebrow and they both burst out laughing.

  “We had lockers together?” he deadpanned.

  She shoved him. “See? You proved my point.”

  “I know we had lockers together. It was easy to ask you about what you got on your homework.”

  Gabriela shook her head. “You never needed to ask me about homework.” It was true. He’d always had his schoolwork handled.

  “Got me.” He raised a glass and she clinked hers against his. “In fairness,” he said, staring at the ice cubes in his drink. “You were much different in high school.”

  “And you were exactly the same.” She sipped on her vodka soda, avoiding the lime wedge bobbing in the top.

  “Oh, come on.” Sebastian glanced up at her, his hazel eyes steady on hers. “I’ve matured since high school.”

  “Not according to Felicia and Liv.”

  A too-loud, brash laugh from Felicia took their attention then. She’d moved closer to Bill and they were now grinding in earnest, the thump of music seeming to grow louder.

  “Isn’t he married?” Gabriela said.

  “You think Felicia cares?” Sebastian downed the rest of his drink. Gabriela studied Felicia as she did her version of twerking. There was a lot of hair-whipping and butt-gyrating.

  “Do you get the feeling Felicia ordered the d
ancers for herself and not Lola?”

  “Completely,” Gabriela agreed. “There was zero thought about how Lola would feel about dancers. This was all about Felicia.”

  “What isn’t?”

  “Agreed.” Gabriela glanced at Sebastian’s profile, so striking, his straight nose and strong chin. In middle school he’d been almost pretty: too-long eyelashes that made the girls jealous. But he’d grown into a striking man. No doubt about that. Her inner fourteen-year-old, the one who’d once tried out the signature Gabriela Lott on her spiral notebook, reminded her that she’d long found the man irresistible.

  “Although,” she began, “if you ask me, I think she’s just trying to make you jealous.”

  Sebastian nearly spit out his drink. “Me? Why?”

  “She’s always had a thing for you.”

  “She hates me. Ever since senior year.”

  “When you dumped her,” Gabriela pointed out.

  “Look, we only ever kissed and then she started talking about how we should have sex, and how I didn’t need to wear a condom, and how she was okay if she ended up pregnant.”

  “What?” Now it was Gabriela’s turn to nearly spit out her drink.

  “She freaked me out. Can you blame me for not wanting a date two?” Sebastian shook his head. “I was scared.”

  “I can see why.” Gabriela couldn’t think of a worse nightmare. “Did that happen to you often? Women wanting to have your babies?” Gabriela meant that to come out as a joke, but it sounded more serious than she’d intended.

  Sebastian glanced at her, a wry smile on his face. “More than I’d like.” He studied his empty whiskey glass.

  Another loud laugh came from Felicia as she pulled Bill even closer, wrapping herself up in him.

  “She’s doing that for your benefit, you know,” Gabriela said, sipping at her cocktail.

  Sebastian sighed. He seemed like he didn’t want Felicia’s attention, but he would get it anyway. She was nothing but trouble. A new song drifted in through the speakers of the bar and Felicia squealed in delight. She broke free from her partner, clomped on top of a bar table and began to sway her hips, dancing with her hands above her head and beckoning to Marco’s brother, James, to join her.

  “Didn’t we just get her down from there? What is with Felicia and tabletops? Could she be more of a walking cliché?” Gabriela sighed.

  “Ah, let her have her fun.”

  Gabriela watched as Felicia took off her skimpy halter top, revealing an almost-transparent lace bra. The other groomsmen started to whoop and holler, and one even produced a five-dollar bill and waved it in the air. Then she whipped off the bra, too.

  “Why did she even need to hire dancers?” Gabriela mused aloud.

  The bartender got wind of her near nudity. Apparently actual dancers in skimpy swimsuits were fine, but showing nipple was not. Gabriela couldn’t hear him but his gestures made it pretty clear that he wanted Felicia off the table.

  Liv jumped in to defend her sister and suddenly a whole tumbler of whiskey went sailing off the bar and crashing to the floor.

  “Not again,” Gabriela groaned and was on her feet.

  “Again?” Sebastian asked, surprised.

  “They won’t rest until they’ve broken all the glassware on this freakin’ ship.” Gabriela took a final sip of her drink and grabbed her clipboard. Somebody had to rein in Felicia.

  The bartender looked heated as he exchanged words with Liv and pointed to Felicia. Theo was trying to mitigate the situation but it seemed the bartender was having none of it. “You guys need to go,” he said just as Gabriela stepped up. Sebastian was right on her heels.

  “Hey, man, we’ll settle down,” Sebastian offered.

  “You guys are out of control. You have to go. I’m going to call security.” The bartender picked up the phone.

  “Like hell you will,” Liv growled. Then Liv threw her drink in the bartender’s face. He was dripping with margarita and had a slice of lime on his shirt.

  Everyone froze.

  “Get the hell out of my bar,” the bartender shouted as he wiped at his face with a bar towel. “Get the hell out!”

  “I think we’d better go,” Sebastian told Gabriela, who could feel the heat rising in her face. Felicia and Liv had gotten them kicked out, and the whole incident was mortifying. She hadn’t been this embarrassed since...well, since the last time Liv and Felicia had gotten them kicked out of a bar. It seemed to happen more often to them than anyone else she knew.

  “Let’s go to the pool!” Felicia shouted. The rest of the party followed her out the door.

  Gabriela thought for a minute about just letting them go. Letting Felicia make a mess out of the whole evening. But then again, she thought of Lola. How would she react if Felicia got arrested?

  “I’m truly sorry about this,” Gabriela told the bartender. “I really am.”

  “You better rein in your friend or I will call security,” he growled. “If you knew what was good for you, you’d get her back to her cabin so she can sleep it off.”

  “I know. We’ll stop her.” Sebastian remained quiet by her side. Gabriela looked at him. When he still said nothing, she let loose an elbow to his ribs.

  “Ow,” he cried. Then he glanced at her face. “Uh, right. Yes, of course. We’ll take care of it. We promise.”

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  THE LAST THING Gabriela wanted to do was trek around the ship looking for Felicia and a bunch of drunk goofballs who planned to make fools of themselves, but she was also determined that none of said fools would embarrass Lola—not during her big weekend. She’d be mortified if she woke up tomorrow and discovered her bridesmaids had been kicked off the ship—or thrown in the brig. Then again, did cruise ships have a brig? She didn’t know. She didn’t want to find out.

  “There are at least three pools on this ship,” Sebastian pointed out. “Do you think they went to the starboard one? Leeward one? Outdoor one with the Jacuzzi?”

  “Knowing Felicia, my money is on the Jacuzzi.” Gabriela tucked her ever-present clipboard under her arm and sighed. It’s not like she needed the party itinerary anymore but something about it still felt reassuring.

  They walked down the corridor to the elevator bank and as they stood waiting for an elevator to take them to the mezzanine, Gabriela realized the two of them were completely alone. No party, no bartenders, no other member of the wedding party. He was so tall walking next to her, she had to crane her neck to look at his strong profile. His chin could cut glass. She felt the warm buzz of alcohol in her brain like the low hum of bees. The elevator dinged then and the small gold doors slid open. She felt less angry with him all of a sudden, though she couldn’t say why. He’d forgotten me entirely, she reminded herself, and yet, maybe it was the cocksure smile on his face, or the way he put his hand on the elevator door, holding it so she could go in. Gentlemanly, even though she knew he was anything but a gentleman.

  She stepped into the cruise ship elevator—acutely aware that Sebastian was on her heels. As he stepped inside, his broad shoulders took up all the available room in the small elevator. She almost felt pressed up against him, even though there was a good ten inches between them. Gabriela took in a breath and smelled the lingering trace of his shower gel: woodsy with the hint of sandalwood and something sweet. Or maybe that was just how he smelled, like the manly outdoors.

  Stop it, she told herself. This is just the vodka talking. There’s no way she could really be attracted to the man, not with his huge ego. He was toxic and she needed to remind herself of that. He leaned across her and she sucked in a breath. Then she realized he was hitting the elevator button.

  “You know, we could just let them...be,” Sebastian said.

  “What do you mean?”

  “It’s technically not our job to police Felicia.” Sebastian glanced at her, hazel e
yes steady.

  “I promised Lola I wouldn’t let things get out of hand.” Why did it seem like Sebastian was moving closer to her? She realized she was leaning into him. Leaning into his sweet smell. Cinnamon?

  “But Lola is safe upstairs with Marco. You don’t have to babysit Felicia. She’s a big girl.”

  Sebastian leaned his arm against the wall behind her head and suddenly he was even closer. But she didn’t move away. She couldn’t. She wanted to stay right there, the subject of his gaze.

  “We have to make sure she doesn’t get kicked off the ship. Or ruin the wedding.”

  “She won’t.” Sebastian seemed so confident. Gabriela wondered why. How could he know what crazy thing Felicia might do?

  “Then what do we do?”

  “I don’t know.” A small smile quirked up the corners of his lips. “What do you want to do?”

  Taste you. The thought burst into her mind without her permission. Taste him? What the hell? He was the world’s worst player, an admitted Spark addict. A jerk of the first order. Why was she even considering tasting him?

  But then, she knew why. He was sexy as hell, that’s why. The man just oozed primal attraction from his thick, muscled shoulders to his trim, tapered waist. He even smelled good. So very good. He was so close now their noses were just inches apart. She could stand on her tiptoes and kiss him right here, in this elevator. Who would know?

  “What did you have in mind?”

  “Well, I heard there’s Scrabble in the games’ room. Is that your speed, Ms. Salutatorian?” He grinned, mocking her.

  “I don’t even like Scrabble.” It hardly seemed like a proper defense.

  “No? Well, we could hang out. Party a little. I want to find out about this Gabriela Cruz I don’t know. The one who is a platinum dater on Spark. That’s not at all the girl I knew from high school.”

  “I’m still the same person,” she protested.

  Sebastian stared at her from the corner of his eye. “Are you? A little wilder than you want everyone here to believe.” He paused. “I like wild.”

  Gabriela got the impression that he could see right through her, right to the core, to the woman who’d blossomed since high school, the woman who’d learned to loosen up.