by Beth Andrews
Oakes patted her arm as he passed by, his other hand carrying his dirty plate. “I’m sure you’ll find someone else to go with you.”
She made a noncommittal sound. It wasn’t as if she had low self-esteem—Zach often accused her of having too much. Finding a date wasn’t the problem. Both men from last night had given her their numbers, telling her to call if she changed her mind. But she couldn’t imagine asking a man she barely knew to attend her ex-fiancé’s wedding with her.
That screamed of desperation and by God, she wasn’t there yet.
Besides, if she asked them to do this favor for her, she had no idea what they’d want in return. With Oakes, she didn’t have to worry about how much payback would cost her.
Plus, and this was a biggie, she didn’t want to be with any other guy—not any more. Not even for an evening. She wanted Oakes.
And suddenly a new plan, an even better one, started to take shape in her mind, and she realized that she could still have him.
“Eureka!”
At the sink, he glanced over his shoulder at her. “Did you just discover gold?”
“Pretty darn close.” She gathered her plate and cup and carried them to the sink. Standing at his elbow, she leaned against the counter. “I just had the best idea ever. It’ll take some planning, but then, what brilliant idea doesn’t?”
He ran the water, began rinsing dishes and setting them in the dishwasher. “Planning is good. But not exactly your strong suit.”
Oh, if he only knew. “I plan for the important things.” She pushed away from the counter and paced the length of the room, brushing his back as she passed. “We’ll need to check flights, which I’m sure won’t be cheap, especially for a holiday weekend. Plus I’ll have to find accommodations. And I’ll need to buy a few things,” she muttered, making a mental checklist. “A winter coat and maybe boots.” She stopped to find him staring at her curiously. “I’m assuming there’s going to be snow? So, yeah, boots for sure.”
He shook his head, totally confused. “What are you talking about?”
“Snow. In Pennsylvania, where Kane lives.”
“It snows there in the winter,” he said slowly, reaching to shut off the running water. “Why?”
He didn’t have to look so suspicious. Or so worried.
She smiled. “Because I’ve changed my mind. The favor I want from you isn’t for you to go with me to Ricky’s wedding. It’s for you to take me with you to Kane’s.”
CHAPTER FOUR
OAKES LOOKED SHOCKED, as if she had indeed not only requested a kidney, but also insisted he lay back so she could dig it out of him right now. “Excuse me?” he asked.
“I could go with you to Kane’s wedding. It’s a great idea.” The more she thought about it, the more she began to believe it. Knowing body language was an important part of any conversation, she leaned forward, hoping to convey her need and earnestness, and ticked off all the ways her plan was brilliant. “It’s the same weekend as Ricky’s, which means I’d have a legitimate excuse not to attend his nuptials and, if I go with you as your plus one, no one in Houston can say I’m heartbroken or missing Ricky’s wedding because I’m still in love with him or spiteful. It’s the perfect solution.”
“Perfect.” The word said he agreed but his muttered tone suggested otherwise. “Except for the fact that Kane’s wedding is in Pennsylvania.”
“Even better.”
A change of scenery would do them good. It might be easier for Oakes to stop seeing her as only Zach’s little sister, as only a friend, if they were away from Houston. Unfortunately, they couldn’t escape the Bartasavich family entirely as most of the family would be at the wedding in Shady Grove, but she and Oakes would have plenty of time and opportunity to be alone.
She’d make sure of it.
“Weren’t you invited to the wedding yourself?” Oakes asked as they both sat back down.
“Nope. Why would I be?”
She barely knew Kane or C.J., Oakes’s older brothers. Oh, they’d spent some time together at the hospital when Zach was first brought back to the States after he’d been injured. But it wasn’t as if she had anything in common with C.J.—Clinton Bartasavich, Jr.—the current CEO of Bartasavich Enterprises, who was so far out of her tax bracket, social sphere and peer group, they might as well be on different planets. And the same was true with the long-haired, tattooed Kane, who preferred biker boots over power suits and owned and operated a bar in Shady Grove, Pennsylvania.
Oakes shifted. Cleared his throat. “I thought you and Charlotte had become friends.”
“We did. Sort of. Just not the type of friends you feel the need to invite the other to an out-of-state wedding that’s taking place on Christmas Eve.”
Daphne liked Charlotte Ellison, Kane’s fiancée. She was smart and funny and it had been great having an RN with them in the hospital to cut through all the medical terms. She’d been extremely patient about explaining things to Daphne and her mother. But it wasn’t like they’d become BFFs after spending a few days together—even though those were important days in Daphne’s life.
Realizing Oakes was grasping at straws, looking for any reason not to take her with him to Shady Grove, she frowned. He wasn’t doing much for her ego, that was for sure. “Do you...do you already have a plus one for the wedding?”
A distinct possibility given that he was seeing Sylvie. But Daphne couldn’t imagine Oakes bringing some woman he was casually dating halfway across the country to his brother’s wedding.
Talk about a commitment.
“No,” he said slowly, in that way people did when they were trying to find an excuse to get out of doing something they didn’t want to do. “I hadn’t planned on bringing a date.”
She laid her hand on his knee. “But there’s no reason you can’t bring one, right?”
She let her hand linger on his leg. It was nice, touching him, feeling the warmth of him through his jeans. But mostly she liked how he reacted to her touch. As if it made him uncomfortable and not in a he-found-her-repulsive way, but the opposite. He must have felt the spark between them, too, and was fighting his baser instincts for all he was worth.
A girl could dream, right?
He brightened suddenly and she would have bet her last dollar that he gave himself a silent eureka.
And that made her nervous.
“You can go with Zach,” he said. Just as he’d done last night, he covered her hand with his briefly and then slid it away from his person. But she noticed his fingers hadn’t been completely steady. “I’m sure he’d be thrilled to take you.”
“As you’re well aware, Zach is never thrilled to do anything. But you’re right. He would take me. If he was going.”
“Zach isn’t going?” he asked. “Why not?”
She shrugged. “Says he’s not up to traveling.”
As excuses went, it was a valid one, seeing as how he was still recovering from his injuries and in rehab, learning to live without the use of his right arm and leg, both of which had been amputated.
But it was still an excuse.
Zach went out of his way to have as little to do with his father’s side of his family as possible. And if that meant missing his brother’s wedding, then so be it. Though out of all his brothers, Kane was the one Zach seemed to like the most, but that wasn’t saying much. About the only two people in the world her brother cared about were her and their mother.
“I’m cutting him some slack and not bugging him about it because he has been through a physically and emotionally traumatic event,” Daphne continued. “But I think what’s really stopping him is that he doesn’t want to travel in the wheelchair.” He hadn’t been fitted for prosthetics yet and still used a wheelchair to get around. “I don’t think he wants people feeling sorry for him.”
&nb
sp; Oakes exhaled heavily, shoved a hand through his hair. “Yeah. I can understand that.” He got to his feet, stepped away, then turned again. “Is this the real reason you came here last night? To ask me to take you to the wedding?”
No. She’d come to tell him she loved him, wanted to marry him and have his babies.
Thank God she hadn’t confessed those things.
Damn tequila. Not only was it some sort of legal truth serum, but it also gave people delusions of grandeur.
“You think it’s a bad idea?” she asked, wide-eyed and innocent. “Us going together?” He opened his mouth, probably to say yes, but she kept right on talking. “Because I think it’ll be fun. I’m a great date, honestly. I promise you’ll have a good time.”
“What about the holiday? Won’t your mother be upset about you not being home for Christmas?”
“She’ll understand my reasons. Plus, I can fly back early Christmas morning, be home in time for dinner.”
He was going to say no. She could see it in his eyes, in how he held himself, so stiffly and unyielding.
She stood, crossed to stand in front of him. “Please, Oakes,” she said softly, not realizing until this very second how badly she wanted him to say yes. How much she needed him to say yes. If the moment they’d shared six years ago on her graduation day was the beginning of her feelings for him, the beginning of their friendship, then this moment, right here, right now, was the turning point. His decision would either take their relationship to the next level...or leave them to crash and burn without ever having a chance. “Please.”
He scratched the side of his neck. Sighed, then nodded. “I’d love to have you with me at the wedding.”
He wouldn’t. That much was clear in his conflicted, tight expression. In his unenthusiastic response. Guilt nudged her. Hard. She shoved it aside. She had nothing to feel guilty about. She wasn’t tricking him. Wasn’t lying to him.
Aren’t you?
Stupid inner voice. No one asked you.
Still, she kept the hug she gave him brief, didn’t press her advantage—or her breasts—against him, choosing to step back quickly. “Thank you. You won’t regret this. And, if you ever need a favor, I’m your girl.”
He shoved his hands into his pockets and gave another nod. Rocked back on his heels. “What are friends for?”
She kept right on smiling. “Indeed.”
“I already have my flight booked, but can probably get you a seat on it.” He took his phone out, checking the information. “Once it’s all set, I’ll text you the travel and hotel details.”
“That’s okay. I can book my own flight, get my own place to stay.”
“You’re my guest. I’ll handle it.”
Meaning he’d not only make the reservations, but also pay for them. All her travel expenses and, she was sure, he’d insist on footing the bill while they were in Shady Grove.
That was not what she was after here. She didn’t want his money, didn’t care about the size of his bank account. His family and his wealth were actually part of the problems standing between them. She refused to take advantage of him that way.
“I’ll book my own flight,” she told him, not quite sharply but sternly enough for him to know she was dead serious. “And my own hotel room. Both of which I will pay for, on my own.”
“Daphne, it’s not a problem.”
It was. Too many people saw only dollar signs when they looked at him. Saw only what he and his connections could do for them.
She saw him.
“Oakes,” she said, mimicking his indulgent tone, “you’re doing me the favor here, remember? I should be offering to pay for your airfare and hotel. But, since that’s well out of my financial range, I’ll just finish cleaning up here instead.”
Clearing the bar, she gave herself a mental pat on the back.
She’d done it. She was going to Shady Grove with Oakes. No, that hadn’t been her original plan, but in all honesty, her original plan had sucked and the backup she’d come up with on the spot hadn’t been much better. This one, though, was a keeper. They’d get to spend an entire weekend together instead of just one evening. She was certain that once they were out of Houston, they’d be able to connect on a different level. One that left friendship way behind.
* * *
OVER AN HOUR later Oakes pulled into a driveway across town. He’d just dropped off Daphne at her apartment and was due at his mother’s house to watch the Texans’ play the Patriots with his stepfather and younger half brother, but before he enjoyed some quality family time, he had to visit the one and only member of his family who couldn’t stand him.
Actually, Zach was the only person, period, who didn’t like Oakes.
He hated to admit how much that bugged him.
Still, Oakes may be easygoing, but he didn’t back down from doing what was right. Even if it threatened to ruin a perfectly good Sunday.
One that had started with a gorgeous woman with messy dark hair, wearing a clingy, wrinkled red dress, eating his breakfast and somehow convincing him to take her halfway across the country to his brother’s wedding.
Not that she’d needed to do much convincing. He was nothing if not accommodating, especially to the people he cared about. It was a trait he usually took pride in—being there for his family and friends. At this moment, though, that particular trait seemed less like a good quality and more like a glaring flaw.
C.J. was always telling him that his generous nature was going to get him into trouble one of these days. But Oakes hadn’t listened. For one thing, C.J. was generous in his own right—mainly with his opinions, most of which rolled off of Oakes’s back. For another, C.J. was most like their father and if there was one person Oakes wanted to be as opposite from as possible, it was Senior.
His father was selfish, self-involved and arrogant. He didn’t do anything for anyone unless there was something in it for him. So, of course, when Daphne—his friend—had asked Oakes for a favor, he’d wanted to do all he could to help...even if it might cost him his sanity.
He really, really hoped she didn’t wear that red dress to the wedding. Not when all he could think about was peeling it off of her.
He climbed out of his car, shoved his hands into his coat pockets and hunched his shoulders against the cool, winter breeze. Time for some damage control.
He followed the walk toward the neat, ranch-style house. Multicolored lights lined the windows and a fat, green wreath with a huge red bow decorated the door. A six-foot-tall, blow-up Santa, complete with red cheeks and a jolly smile, hefted a bag of toys at the far corner of the house, while ceramic versions of Mary and Joseph, kneeling on either side of a peacefully sleeping Jesus, took center stage in the front yard. Though it was daytime, the sun shining brightly, a spotlight had been left on, pointing directly at the trio.
Climbing the three steps up to the small front porch, he sidestepped a quartet of plastic carolers—hands holding song books, mouths open in an unsettling way—and rang the doorbell. A dog barked from inside but other than that, there were no hints of movement. He glanced at the driveway. Only his car and Zach’s pickup. During their drive to her apartment this morning, Daphne had explained that her mother would be at Mass until past noon, then she called Zach to tell him she’d be by in a few hours to pick up her dog, Cyrus. Oakes couldn’t imagine his brother dog-sitting, but after she’d hung up, Daphne had said that Zach and Cyrus had bonded since the accident.
Probably because Cyrus couldn’t talk. Zach preferred quiet.
Oakes pressed the bell again, heard a definite ding dong, then more barking. But no footsteps. No voice calling that they were coming.
Good thing he was a patient man.
He leaned back against the siding and crossed his legs at the ankles. The wrought-iron railing to the right had been removed so
that a wide, wooden ramp could be installed to accommodate Zach’s wheelchair. The doctors said it would be at least another month before Zach was ready to be fitted with prosthetics, but Oakes didn’t doubt Zach would eventually walk again under his own power. Until that time came, Susan had done everything she could to make her house accessible to her son.
The barking got closer, followed by a male voice saying something that had the dog quieting. Oakes pushed away from the wall and turned. The door opened only a few inches, but Cyrus squeezed his big body through, his tail wagging fiercely when he spotted Oakes. He barked, two quick yaps, then pressed his quivering body against Oakes’s leg.
Oakes stumbled a step before catching his balance. He crouched. Scratched behind the golden retriever’s ears. “Hey, bud. Hey, boy.” Cyrus attempted to give him some love in the form of sloppy licks, but Oakes leaned back and gently shoved the dog’s head away. “No French kissing, remember? We talked about this. I’m just not into you that way.”
Cyrus sat on his haunches, barked as if to say Oakes didn’t know what he was missing, then almost knocked him over in his zeal to sniff at the carolers.
Oakes straightened to find the door fully open and Zach watching him, his dark gaze hooded. Zach’s black hair was longer than it had been in years, the ends brushing the collar of his faded USMC T-shirt. A full beard covered his cheeks and chin, though it did nothing to mask the gauntness of his brother’s cheeks, or the scarring on his right temple. He wore grey sweats and his left foot was bare. His right foot was gone, along with the lower half of his leg and his right arm, all the way up past his elbow.
“Cyrus, go,” Zach told the dog.
Taking his cue, Cyrus raced down the ramp, sniffed all four of the tires of Oakes’s car before deciding to pee on one.
Oakes pursed his lips as the dog drained his seemingly huge bladder on his tire. “New trick you taught him?” he asked Zach.