One Night With Him

by Smith, K. S.

  I couldn’t believe I’d had a one night stand with GQ. Pacing in front of the elevator bank I couldn’t help but replay last night’s events in my head. How had I allowed myself to end up in a stranger’s bed, what was I thinking? Clearly I wasn’t, that was the problem. I’d let the liquor get the best of me and now I’d have to deal with the consequences. I leaned against the elevator wall breathing heavily, rambling a mile a minute to myself, like an idiot all the way to our floor, “Oh my gosh, I don’t even know his name. It’s official, I’m a slut. How could I be so stupid? To think I gave in so easily, I didn’t even make him work for it. Sure, it was great, hell it was fan-freaking-tastic. But that doesn’t change the fact that I just had my first official one night stand and I don’t even know the guy’s name. I’m sure Mom and Dad are so proud. Damn you, Reagan, get it together, everyone does it; at least you waited until you were twenty-seven and didn’t cave at nineteen, like Addison had.”

  The bell chimed on our floor and the doors of the elevator opened, while I was still pacing the tiny space and talking to myself. An older gentleman’s throat cleared and I was brought back to reality. Wonderful, now the guests here think they’re sharing a hotel with a lunatic. “Oh! Excuse me,” I shouted as I ran past him and straight to our penthouse suite.

  Much to my surprise all of the girls were up, bearing bikinis, ready for our day at the beach. “Where in the hell did you run off to last night?” Addison screamed across the suite. “I’ve been calling you all morning!” She was standing there with her hands on her hips, looking like a pissed off mother who’d just found her teenager sneaking back into the house from the night before.

  “Please stop screaming,” I begged, “my head is pounding and I just woke up in bed with a man, oh, and did I mention I don’t even know his name, just give me a minute to process and I’ll get back to you.”

  “You WHAT?!” She was immediately at my side dragging me into our bedroom. If there was one thing Addison was more interested in than herself it was my sex life, or more like my lack thereof. She flung me onto the couch and plopped down right next to me. “You have got to tell me everything, right now.”

  “Look, I’m not even sure I remember anything. I was pretty toasted last night, no thanks to you and your damn tequila shots, all I know is he’s here, in this hotel and we have to leave before he finds out what room we’re in. I cannot run into him, ever.” I leaned back against the couch and closed my eyes, hoping it would keep her from asking any more questions. No such luck.

  “Are you kidding me, was it that terrible?”

  I laughed, “Umm, not exactly, from what I do remember it was probably the best sex I’ve ever had in my entire existence.” I blushed when I said it, granted it was only Addison, but I was still embarrassed.

  “Then what in the hell are you hiding for? You should still be in that room with him getting ready for round two.”

  “No way,” I screamed. “Look, guys like him probably have a different girl every night. I’m sure I did him a favor by leaving without waking him. Now, come on, let’s go.” I got up and moved as quickly as my aching body would let me, grabbing my things, and throwing them into my bag. Addison grabbed all of her luggage, tossed on her cover up and we went downstairs to check out. I’d put on my sunglasses and floppy hat to try and disguise myself, just in case GQ made his way to the lobby for whatever reason. I was casing the lobby of the hotel like a detective, and I think Addison was purposefully taking longer than needed in hopes of spotting him. Once we were in my SUV, and pulling out of the hotel parking lot, I felt like I could actually breathe again.

  Addison was raking me over the coals about the details, but I really didn’t have much to offer her, there wasn’t much I remembered. “Look, you know I’m not like that, I don’t just go hooking up with random guys wanting to have one night stands. I’m not sure what got into me last night, but it’s over with and I just have to forget about it.” I tried to focus on the road, but my head was still pounding. “Do you have any aspirin?” Addison dug through her giant purse and finally found a bottle of white pills and handed me two, luckily there was bottled water in the cup holder. I was going to need more than this to get through the day.

  “Does he have your phone number?” she asked quietly.

  “He won’t call, trust me, he got what he wanted last night. Now, enough about me, this is your last Sunday as a single woman, let’s focus on you.” And that is exactly how we spent the rest of the day, baking in the scorching sun, drinking Bloody Marys.

  CHAPTER FOUR

  The next week was nothing but final wedding preparations, granted Addison had hired Tampa’s best wedding planner, but there were still things she wanted taken care of herself, and as maid of honor it was my job to see all of it had been checked off of her list. From wedding ring pickups, to trips to and from the airport for family and friends, I seemed to be in charge of everything.

  I was thankful; staying busy was keeping my mind off of the fact that GQ totally met my expectations, and had yet to contact me after our wild evening together. I know I had no reason to be, but I was furious.

  While I was sitting at the airport stewing over GQ, and waiting on yet another flight, I called Addison. She answered the call, “Please tell me you are at the airport, Casey’s aunt and uncle just landed and they will die if they have to wait for someone to pick them up.”

  “Oh come on, you know I’m never late, you’ve made me your bitch and I intend on fulfilling that position, but I just want to know why Casey’s best man doesn’t have to do any of this, shouldn’t we be splitting all of the last minute to-do’s?”

  “Yeah right, you know how the guys are, they want as little to do with this stuff as possible. Casey told them the only thing they are responsible for is showing up sober the day of the wedding.”

  “Great, I’ll be sure to thank Case when I see him. I’ve got to go; I think I’ve spotted the aunt and uncle, damn, for an old man he is a total knock out.”

  “Good genes, be nice to them, they’re the Best Man’s parents.”

  “Even more reason he should be helping me!” I exclaimed.

  “Gotta run, have fun, I’ll see you soon.” She ended the call.

  I jumped out of the car to greet Casey’s uncle and aunt, “Mr. & Mrs. Conrad?”

  “Yes, that’s us,” the older man said in a deep voice.

  “Hi, I’m Reagan, Addison’s best friend. It’s so nice to meet the both of you.” We all shook hands, and then I helped Mr. Conrad get their bags into the back of my SUV. Once their bags were packed into the back of the car, I jumped back into the driver’s seat and headed towards Addison’s parent’s house.

  “Aren’t we going to The Bellevue?” Mr. Conrad asked.

  “Yes, but first everyone is going to the Cartwright’s for dinner, then I believe we’ll all carpool back to the hotel.”

  “Oh good, I hope Colton will be there,” said a tiny voice from the back seat. I looked into my rearview mirror; Mrs. Conrad looked like she was anticipating a long awaited homecoming.

  “Colton?” I asked, looking to Mr. Conrad.

  “Yes, our son, he lives here in Tampa. Hardly makes it home to see his parents, he’s a very busy man. It will be good to see him, but I don’t want you to go getting your hopes up, Candice, you know he’ll probably only be available the day of the wedding.” He said, looking into the back seat at his wife.

  “Well, I hope he is there and you get to see him more than just at the wedding. I wish I could visit my parents.” Damn. The words flew out before I could catch them and reel them back in.

  “Do they not live in town?” Mr. Conrad asked.

  “Well, they did, they passed a few years ago in an accident.”

  “Oh, I’m so sorry for your loss”

  “Thanks, it was extremely hard at first, but it gets easier as time goes by. Anyway, I can’t say that I’ve met Colton yet, but I’m sure he misses you all just as much as you miss him.” Mrs. Conrad
smiled at me from the back seat and the rest of the car ride was pretty silent. When we arrived at the Cartwright’s I dropped Mr. & Mrs. Conrad off at the front door, then went to park my car.

  I was finally done with all of my errands for the day and could relax with the rest of my family and friends. After running upstairs to my room – yes, after my parents passed Theo and Teresa Cartwright had taken me in and given me my own room in their house – and getting changed, I headed back downstairs to enjoy the evening.

  Addison and Casey looked stunning amongst all of their friends and family. They were perfect for each other, both beautiful beyond description. She was tall and blonde and he was taller and blonder, their kids would definitely be super model material. Everyone was toasting champagne and sampling hor’dourves when I spotted Mrs. Conrad from across the room. I walked over to her and asked, “Have you seen Colton yet?”

  She smiled and placed her hand on my arm, “Not yet, dear, but when I do, please remind me to introduce him to you. You know he’s single?”

  “Oh really,” I laughed “I hadn’t heard that, you’ll have to introduce me to him when he arrives.” I really wasn’t interested in meeting anyone, in fact my mind was still all over GQ, but Mr. and Mrs. Conrad seemed nice enough and I’m sure their son was just like them. So what the heck, besides, it was Thursday evening which meant it was almost a full week since I’d had my first one night stand and I still hadn’t heard from him, I’m pretty sure that meant I wasn’t going to. It was time to forget about him and move on, and what a perfect thing to do with Casey’s mysterious cousin, Colton. If he looked anything like his father, I was sure he had to be gorgeous. I excused myself from Mrs. Conrad and enjoyed the rest of the evening.

  By the time Friday evening rolled around Addison had run me ragged, I was sure the wedding planner had it easier than I did, and she was getting paid. Luckily, I’d just finished my last errand of the day and I was off to the spa to get my hair blown out for the rehearsal dinner. After my hair was finished, I swung by my house, got dressed, and headed straight for the church. Of all nights to be running late this was not it, Addison was going to kill me.

  I barged into the church and Addison and Theo were standing at the end of the aisle, she looked panicked. Shit. They had to start without me; at least my hair looks good. I thought as I grabbed my fake bouquet from Addison, hugged and kissed her and Theo, and mouthed I’m sorry, I’m late to the both of them as I scurried down the aisle.

  I don’t think I’d even made it half way down the aisle when I glanced up to see how excited Casey looked and at that very moment I locked eyes on none other than GQ himself, he was standing right next to Casey. I stopped in my tracks as his eyes peered into mine. My heart was pounding out of my chest. Addison’s mom, Teresa, whispered from the front pew, “Keep walking Reagan, you’ve got to make it all the way down the aisle.” Thankful for her interruption, I regained my focus and continued walking down the aisle, all the while keeping my eyes sealed on GQ. From the looks of it he was just as stunned as I was. I made it to my spot front and center just as Addison and her dad finally began their descent down the aisle. I tried to keep focused on her, but I felt him glaring at me as they made their way towards us.

  The rehearsal took forever and each time I’d position myself perfectly behind Addison she’d move and there he was staring straight back at me. When Pastor Bob announced that Casey may kiss the bride, Addison only allowed him her cheek, and everyone laughed as they applauded in excitement. I sighed with relief that it was finally over and began to bee-line it to the exit of the church, thankful Addison had enough faith in us to not have to practice the recessional back up the aisle. But before I could make it Mrs. Conrad stopped me and grabbed my hand, “Reagan, Colton is here. I would love for you to meet him, please let me introduce you.”

  “I’m sorry Mrs. Conrad, but I really have to step out for some fresh air, can we do this a little later?”

  “No, ma’am, I insist, it will just take a moment. Wait right here while I go get him.” I smiled at her as she hurried toward her son. Seconds later GQ and his mom were standing right in front of me as she introduced us. “Colton, this is Reagan, she is the maid of honor and Addison’s best friend.”

  He stuck out his hand. “Pleasure to meet you, Reagan, my parents call me Colton, but everyone else calls me Cole.”

  I stuck out my hand to shake his and the instant our skin touched there it was, that same shock I’d felt the first night I’d met him. “Cole, it’s nice to finally meet you, your mom and dad have told me so much about you.”

  Mrs. Conrad squealed and clapped her hands together. “I’m so excited to finally introduce the two of you. Weddings are such wonderful places for singles to meet.”

  “Mom, stop. I’m sure Reagan isn’t interested in a relationship with anyone, she’d probably rather get what she wants out of a man and leave him in the middle of the night without any explanation.”

  “Colton Conrad, apologize to Reagan, right this instance, I will not have you be so rude.”

  “No worries, Mrs. Conrad, I’m sure Cole is just referring to his own ways as opposed to mine. Cole, it was a pleasure meeting you, now if you’ll both excuse me.” I marched hastily away from the both of them as I heard tiny Mrs. Conrad ripping her son a new one.

  Once outside, I walked around to the side of the church and went into full on panic attack mode. My heart was heaving out of my chest and my hands were trembling. How dare he talk to me like that in front of his mother? Damn it, I was so stupid, I’d fallen right into his trap, he played me for a fool and I’d fallen for it hook, line, and sinker. I leaned against the side of the church and tried to catch my breath. But it was next to impossible, that night just kept playing over and over in my head. What were the odds that my one night stand was none other than my best friend’s future cousin? It must have taken me a half hour to get my heart rate back to normal when I realized I was one of the last ones at the church.

  Pulling myself together, I heard Addison yelling my name, “Reagan! Where are you?”

  I came around from the side of the church and she spotted me, “Why’d you run off?” She looked concerned.

  “Sorry, I just got choked up seeing you and Casey. I needed some fresh air.” She hugged me. There was no way I was going to fill her in on what had just happen, not the night before her wedding. “Go get your car and follow me and Casey, we’ve got to get to the restaurant, so everyone isn’t waiting on us.” I ran off to my SUV and jumped in, just as I started the engine my phone chimed.

  WE NEED TO TALK.

  Need to talk my ass! My fingers were going a mile a minute on the keypad.

  I’M SORRY, BUT I HAVE NOTHING TO SAY TO YOU! I’LL BE CIVIL BECAUSE ADDISON IS MY BEST FRIEND AND I WANT NOTHING MORE THAN FOR HER TO HAVE A PERFECT WEDDING, BUT I DO NOT WANT TO TALK!

  OH QUIT BEING A BRAT.

  You have got to be kidding me, that didn’t even deserve a response. I threw my phone on the passenger’s seat next to me and kept my eyes focused on the road, avoiding anything that was coming through on my cell phone.

  Dinner was brutal. Of course, Addison and Casey wanted their maid of honor and best man right by their side at all times, so I was forced to interact with Cole the entire evening, from sitting next to him at dinner, to taking pictures with him and his family. Every time he touched me, I cringed, but I was going to be the better person, I wasn’t going to let him win. By the time dessert rolled around I was beyond ready to get as far away from Cole Conrad as possible. But I still couldn’t, Addison insisted that we stay as long as the guys did because she didn’t want to leave Casey.

  It was tradition that the bride and groom spend their last night apart from each other, so, of course, Addison was going to stay until we absolutely had to leave. “Addison, we really need to go, you’re going to have bags under your eyes tomorrow, just think how that will look in pictures.”

  “Come on,” she leaned into me pouting her lips, “I ha
te being away from Case, just a few more minutes, please” she begged, scurrying over to Casey. Gosh they were irritating sometimes, they were inseparable and I was glad. I’d always hoped she get her knight and shining armor, but sometimes it made me want to gag.

  “Why don’t you have a shot of whiskey? Maybe that will calm your nerves, and you’ll loosen up a bit.” My body froze as Cole’s breath caressed the side of my cheek and his hand traced the length of my arm.

  I snapped my head around and looked up into his golden eyes, my breath instantly faltered. Damn this man. “I won’t be needing anything to loosen me up, especially around you.”

  He smirked and cocked his head to the side. “I guess you’re right, I’ve already seen you as loose as you’re going to get.” Before I knew it the palm of my hand was connecting with his face and the entire room fell silent. Luckily, all that was left was the wedding party. I’d have died had all of the Cartwright’s and Conrad’s still been there.

  Casey walked up behind me and rested his hand on my back, “everything ok?”

  I turned around to look up at my best friend’s fiancé and I wanted to scream, No! Your cousin is an asshole! But instead I smiled and said, “Yes. Sorry, Case, I was just startled by your cousin, but I think he’s okay.” Casey looked towards his cousin, and Cole nodded his head. “Good, now if you’ll excuse me I’m going to get back to my future wife.” He kissed my cheek and rushed off towards Addison.

  “What the fuck did you just slap me for?” Cole whispered, so we wouldn’t draw any more attention to ourselves.

  “I’m not some two bit hussy who goes around sleeping with people, and let me tell you, I loathe the day I ever crawled into your bed.”