“Lord have mercy, I was hoping that rat catcher was gonna stay gone,” Grandma mutters, sitting in a chair and fanning herself. “Most peaceful couple of hours my whole visit.”
“Quiet, Momma,” Mom says, setting Bertha down, where she immediately begins hopping around like her normal self. “All right, let's get going. Oliver, John and Charles are waiting for you in the garage.”
Everyone starts filing out of the room. When it’s just the two of us, Oliver turns to me. “I really enjoyed this morning,” he says softly.
“Besides the dog poop investigation, I did too,” I say before I give him a smirk. “You really ought to be careful where you plant your seed.”
He laughs. “I know the best place to plant it next time.”
A flush burns my cheeks, remembering the unbridled passion on the beach and the way we seem to crash like the waves themselves. He grabs me and pulls me in, giving me a kiss that leaves me wanting more. “See you at the reception hall,” Oliver says.
Outside, I get in the SUV with Sam, the driver, behind the wheel. All the women are in it, and Roxy’s already called shotgun. “Let’s roll, Sam!”
“So what’s this place like again, Mom? I know you told me about it over the phone, but I forget the details,” I say, turning to her. She’s behind me with Grandma.
“You’ll love it. It’s not that far, only about five miles away. It’s on the beach in a little cove,” Mom says. “You’re really going to love it.”
When we arrive at the hall twenty minutes later, it doesn’t disappoint. The outside is amazing, a beautiful giant adobe, almost Caribbean-style structure sitting just on the edge of the sand. The inside of the hall is gorgeous with huge windows along the eastern wall that give a breathtaking view of the ocean. This place looks like something out of a fairytale wedding . . . but that’s what Mom’s getting.
“I’m speechless,” I breathe as I look around the inside. “Forget the reception. I’d love to have my wedding in some place like this.”
“All right, ladies, let’s get to work!” Mom says. “Lots to do, and not a lot of time to do it in!”
Roxy and I are given the task of hanging up some electric lights shrouded in lace, and we get to work with the ladder. As we get the strands tacked, Roxy chuckles. “You know, you and Oli should use this place. You guys are just so beautiful together.”
“You think?” I ask, my heart aching. Before, I could easily lie, say he was just a bastard who has a hot body, but now, the truth hurts. He’s a sham of a fiancé, but he’s got everything I’ve ever dreamed of a man having. Face it—he’s a catch.
My cell buzzes in my purse, saving the day. I pull it out. It’s Brianna. “Hey, Rox, can you handle this for a few yourself? It’s my bestie.”
Roxy glares at me, a thumbtack in her mouth. “Hurry!”
“How you doing, girl?” Brianna asks as soon as I pick up the line, and I feel a grin start before my worries start up again. Brianna knows what this all is. Maybe she can help.
“Good. I guess.”
“What’s wrong? You sound down,” Brianna says, and I hesitate. I don’t know if I should tell her the truth. “Come on, Min, I know you well enough even over the phone. Aren’t you having fun?”
“Oh, I’m having fun,” I admit. “All I can handle.”
“How’s Oliver been?” Brianna asks. “Behaving?”
“No,” I say with a little chuckle. “But good. Very good.”
“I know that tone, Mindy. Something you need to tell me?”
“Well . . .” I say, wondering how much I should tell Brianna. “At what point did you start thinking you had feelings for Gavin?”
“Oh, it’s that sort of problems,” Brianna says. “Well, to let you know, I think it was about three seconds after I saw him the first time.”
“Come on, I’m serious!” I protest. “When?”
Brianna’s voice grows somber, and I can imagine that intense look on her face that she has when she’s worried about me. “Mindy, it doesn’t really matter. It happened. So what’s the problem?”
“You know this isn’t . . .” I start before lowering my voice. “You know this isn’t supposed to be real!”
“And I was supposed to be a one-night stand or a sport fuck,” Brianna reminds me. “Look how Gavin and I turned out. If you’re feeling something for him . . .”
“Hey! Get off the phone and help me, you lazy skank!” Roxy yells. “I’m not doing all of this my damn self!”
“Roxy?” Brianna asks, and I chuckle.
“How’d you know?”
“She reminds me of some foul-mouthed, cute as hell coffee shop manager I know,” Brianna says. “Seriously, though, if you like him . . . don’t wait and give yourself the drama I did. Tell him.”
“I’ll keep that in mind,” I reply. “Thanks. Love you, Bri, but I gotta go before Roxy starts throwing tacks at me. Bye.”
I head back over toward Roxy, but before I can get halfway across the hall, the doors open. I see Oliver carrying a huge set of speakers, one in each hand, the DJ behind him.
“Over there,” she says, and Oliver gives me a sexy little grin and blows me a kiss as he heads off across the hall.
I get back over to help Roxy, who climbs down from the ladder, handing me what looks like paper lanterns. “Here, you hang. I’ll hand you the next ones,” she says, grumbling. “You know how hard I’ve been working?”
“Sorry,” I say, climbing the ladder. I start putting up the lanterns but get distracted in my thoughts. I think about what a good man Oliver is. With the dog and all that, I could totally see settling down and . . .
I try to push the thoughts away. I have to remember this is fake. In a few days, it will all be over. I just need to enjoy it for what it is—a fun vacation fling.
But it’s not that easy. The passion. The connection. All of that feels real.
Maybe Brianna is right.
Roxy waves her hand in front of my face.
“Mindy?” Roxy says. “The lanterns?”
“Huh?” I ask, looking away and blinking. “What’s that, Rox?”
“I know you love your fiancé’s ass and stuff, but we need to get this done.”
I chuckle as we go back to work, doing my best to deal with the questions running rampant in my head.
But there’s one thing I know for sure. I don’t know what’s real anymore.
Chapter 18
Oliver
The bedroom lights are low, and I marvel as I run my fingers down Mindy’s arm, enjoying watching the goosebumps rise on her skin. “How do you keep doing that?” she asks, smiling. “Two days of us having sex, and you keep surprising me. I know it’s coming and you still make it happen.”
“A secret.” I chuckle, looking into her eyes. “And you’ve got great skin.”
The past few days have been paradise. With most of the big stuff done, we’ve had some more time to just spend together. Most of it has been spent talking.
The more and more time we spend together, the more I grow confused. At first, this was all fun and games. But it’s turned into something more. Being here with her, getting to know her and her family, I’ve enjoyed every minute of it.
Sure, some of them are wild. Her sister has sex on the brain way too much, her mother’s a bit too worried about money, and her grandmother gives exactly zero fucks what anyone thinks about what she has to say.
But they’re real, and they love each other. All of them. And Mindy herself . . . she’s more than a Princess. She’s an angel.
She reaches up, cupping my face to look into my eyes. Her breathing is still ragged from our early morning quickie, and watching her naked body on top of the sheets, I can’t believe that I’ve had the chance to be with her as often as I have. “That was great,” she says, shuddering. “You take my breath away.”
“Good,” I say, delivering a kiss to her lips. “Because I plan on doing that a lot more.”
She smiles for a moment, then it slo
wly fades. “A lot more? We only have a few days left. Reality’s coming, and it’s coming too damn fast.”
I feel a little jolt. It’s now Friday. It’s the day before her mother’s wedding. Honestly, it feels like our last day together. Our return flight is Monday morning, but I’m sure Sunday will be spent preparing to go home and spending a lot of time with the family. It’ll be the hug and kiss goodbye time and a chance to wish Mary Jo and John off on their honeymoon. They’re flying out Monday too.
We don’t even have all day today. Today is already packed with rehearsals and trying on stuff. This will be our last leisurely morning. And it’s hard to admit, but I don’t want it to end.
“Yeah,” I murmur, my chest feeling like I’ve got a lead weight pressing down on it. It’s taking away my breath and making it hard to even say what I want to say. I want to tell her that the dream doesn’t have to end. I want to promise her more than just a fantasy week on the ocean.
But I can't form the words. How can I tell her that I don’t think this is fake anymore? Our engagement might be fake, but what I’m feeling damn sure isn’t.
“What are you going to do when you get back?” she asks softly.
“Probably check on Mom first, then make sure my business isn’t in total shambles before it ever gets off the ground,” I say, slightly troubled. Last week, making Steele Security a name in the corporate world dominated my thoughts and my efforts. Now, it just doesn’t seem as important as spending time with Mindy. “Then I’ll make sure my little shithead brother hasn’t burned down my house. I asked him to watch my place.”
She smiles. “I’m sure everything will be okay. If he’s anything like Roxy, he’s a pain in the ass but comes through when your back’s to the wall.” She sighs and turns on her side, running her hand down my slightly stubbled cheek and making my morning shadow crinkle. “But I’m not gonna lie. I'm not looking forward to going back to that damn coffee shop. I’ve been having so much fun, and the days have flown by.”
“I’ve been having a blast,” I agree. “I’ve really enjoyed my time here.”
A flush comes to her cheeks and goes down her neck to her chest, and she bites her lip, smiling slightly. “Thank you. It means a lot, and you make me feel good. And to think, the first time I met you I wanted to choke you.”
I chuckle. “Yeah, well, that was hot. I loved how you walked in there with your little list, thinking you could tame me. It was . . . cute.”
Mindy smiles and traces my jaw with her fingers like she’s trying to memorize me with her touch as much as with her eyes. “Who’s to say I'm not just doing this to wrap you around my finger? An insidious plan to make you my love slave?”
“Who’s to say I’m not doing the same? When I first saw you, I told myself you thought you were a queen and I was going to have to be your king. How am I doing?”
Mindy laughs. She runs her hands down my body, making my skin prick. “I can’t complain, that’s for sure. I don’t think I’ve ever been this satisfied.”
I don’t need compliments, but her words still warm me on the inside. Her opinion matters to me. It makes me feel important.
Her eyes flicker for a moment before they dim, and I see her gaze grow distant. She’s thinking about something. I’ve grown close enough to her over the past few days to know that look.
“What is it?” I ask her. “Whatever it is, you can tell me.”
Her lips part, and she struggles for the words that I can sense even before she tries to form them. They’re foolish, but I want her to say them. I want her to tell me that she truly wants me, that perhaps there’s a chance for something back home. I don’t know how I’d react, but to hear her say those words . . . I need it. I need her.
She looks away, turning over and wrapping her arms around her body. “It’s nothing.”
“It’s something,” I say, spooning behind her and feeling her amazingly soft skin press against me. I bring my lips to the back of her neck and nuzzle, knowing just where she likes to be touched already, just how much she likes that little spot right where her hair makes a little V-shape at the nape of her neck. I kiss and nibble, wrapping my arms around her and stroking her arms. “You know you like it. Tell me what's on your mind.”
She lets out a soft little moan, arching her back to slide her right breast into my hand and pressing her ass back against my cock. “Jesus, you know what you’re doing. But really . . . it’s nothing.”
“Oh, really?” I say playfully, trailing my free hand down her thigh, enjoying the feel of her soft flesh. “I think you’re lying to me.”
“What gives you that idea?” she asks breathlessly, gasping as I pinch her nipple and tug on it lightly. “Fuck . . . I didn’t know I could get this hot so quickly again.”
“I can feel your pulse racing,” I murmur, kissing her neck again. “Under my lips.”
“That’s just because of what you’re doing to me.” She gasps. “And we both know where your hand’s going.”
I grin, recognizing the deflection. “Well, if you’re not gonna tell me, I can stop. Or I can continue.”
She squirms, still not answering me. I pull her tighter against me and press into her. I roll her onto her back and get on top, kissing her lips with more passion. She melts, and I pull back, grinning. “Got anything to say?”
Silence.
“Okay, if that’s how you want to play it,” I warn her. I bring my lips to her neck, trailing kisses down her body. She arches her back, her head pointed to the ceiling as I stroke her skin with my hands while I kiss down to the hard buttons of her nipples, sucking on them and biting them lightly before I make my way down her belly. Then I stop. “Still nothing?”
“Okay!” Mindy gasps. “Please, don’t stop!”
She needs this, we both need this. But I don’t want to rush things. We’re not going to have many more intimate moments. Fuck everything else. If we have to bring it all to a close in a few days, and this is the last chance for me to show her what she is, what she’s starting to mean to me . . . then that’s what I’m going to do.
“Oliver, let’s make this quick. They’re waiting.”
As I go down between her legs, my mouth watering at the heavenly scent already wafting from her wet pussy and ready to devour her, I growl, looking up into her eyes. “Let them wait.”
Chapter 19
Mindy
“Oh, Mom,” I crow, tears coming to my eyes as she steps out of the dressing room in her wedding gown, her arms held out wide. She looks glorious. The beautiful white gown hugs her figure, all lace and classy design that makes her look elegant. The full train scrapes the floor, and she looks like she’s walking on a cloud as she crosses the polished hardwood. Tears cloud my eyes as I search for the words to tell her how she looks, but I can’t. “You’re beautiful. Absolutely radiant.”
It’s hard to believe that it’s already Friday afternoon. After missing breakfast and sleeping in with Oliver, it’s been pedal to the floor the whole time. Doing rehearsals, getting last-minute adjustments to our dresses, and checking that Sam and the other staff are on the spot with bringing in dozens of people from both sides of the family.
Now, we’re all dressed in our gowns for the wedding, doing the last dress rehearsal and fit, making sure things look good. Aunt Rita, Layla, Roxy, and Grandma are all together with us, sitting around the room, and all of us are amazed at Mom as she comes out.
“Beautiful is right,” Rita says, putting a hand on her chest. “I can't wait to walk you down the aisle tomorrow.”
Grandma cackles lightly. “Yeah, my baby is beautiful, but my word, Mary Jo, your butt looks like it grew three sizes.”
Leave it to Grandma to work in a wisecrack. Mom waves it off, knowing it’s the design of the dress itself, and of course, Roxy puts her own two cents in.
“Yeah, Mom. You got so much booty in that dress you’re gonna be making John holler tonight,” Roxy adds, thinking she’s funny. It’s definitely not something I want to think
about, and I doubt I’m alone. Roxy looks cute though in her white knee-length Valentino dress, flirty but still sexy at the same time. It hugs her upper body before flaring itself at her waist but doesn’t go full party dress mode and keeps the poof under control. It’s perfect for her.
“Oh he’ll be hollering all right,” I say with a grin, “hollering for her to shut up about where they’re going for the honeymoon. You thought about where you’re going yet?”
“Probably Hedonism, where they can get their freak on right there on the beach,” Roxy says before Mom can answer. It’s been one of the only secrets left . . . where they’re actually going on their honeymoon.
“Oh, stop it,” Mom says, laughing. “You two are such a riot. I love you both.”
Roxy and I go over to Mom, the three of us doing a group hug, and I can’t help but tear up a little at it. “We love you too, Mom.”
We walk out of the dressing room for rehearsals after Mom lectures all of us about what she wants. I can tell Grandma wants to tell her to shut up a few times, but we all just listen, knowing it’s her show. It’s crowded in the chapel near the reception hall, with staff going around everywhere. There are family members I haven’t seen in ages, and I know that tomorrow’s going to be all playing catch-up with them. Some of them, like my cousin Jamie, I’m looking forward to. Others, not so much.
“Hey, check it out,” Roxy says, jostling my elbow. “Stud alert.”
My breath catches in my throat as I follow Roxy’s guiding hand. I see Oliver standing with the group of men, talking like he’s part of the family. He’s just come out of the dressing rooms, and the rest of the room fades away as I look at him.
He’s gorgeous dressed in his tux. It fits him in a way that makes him look debonair, relaxed, and powerfully seductive. More than ever, he looks like the devil in a tuxedo. My heart is doing back flips. He is so damn handsome. He sees me and blinks for a moment before giving me a smile and a nod.
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