The Girl's Got Secrets

by Linda Kage

  Her cousin snorted at that, but didn’t argue any of her claims.

  I sighed and glanced skeptically at the karaoke machine. I usually hooked it up to the sound system, but it was also designed to play on its own if it had to.

  Apparently, tonight, it was going to have to.

  Remy and I bent at the same time to turn it on.

  “Sorry,” we murmured together when we nearly bumped foreheads. Then we shifted an inch apart, but still both going in to get the machine up and running.

  “Holy shit,” she murmured under her breath, turning toward me slightly. “You smell really good.”

  I didn’t want it to, but my body reacted, remembering every touch, lick, and kiss she’d ever given me. I glanced at her face, and her eyes flared as if she was in trouble for saying such a thing.

  “Sorry.” She lifted both hands in some kind of surrender. “It’s just...it’s new. You’ve never smelled like that before.”

  Lust stirred through me. I tried to bite it back, tried to cling to the fact I was mad at her, but a need unlike any I’d ever experienced with any other person roared through my blood.

  I had to shake my head and blink myself back to the present, remind myself where I really was and what I was doing. And that was most definitely not Remy Curran.

  “It’s, uh...Eva gave it to me as the best man gift. I figured I should wear it today.”

  She nodded, agreeing. “Well, it’s amazing. I think I just got pregnant.”

  I snorted out an amused sound, not meaning to smile, but smiling anyway.

  She leaned in closer to me as I set up the karaoke, and suddenly I could smell her too. Something girly and not at all like Sticks’s masculine shampoo.

  She smelled like...Elisa.

  And yep, now I had wood.

  “You have to admit,” she told me as my fingers fumbled over knobs. “It must be nice not having to sneeze when I get close to you now, because you know...no more need for the latex mask anymore.”

  I glanced at her, about a second from leaning forward and kissing the hell out of her. But the predatory gleam in my eyes must’ve come off more like warning to her.

  “Okay, fine.” She lifted her hands. “I’m backing off. Just...damn it, one more sniff before you go.” She leaned in quickly, took a quick, noisy drag, and was promptly pulling away again. “And by the way, you look sexy as hell in a tux.”

  “Sticks,” I warned, but I wasn’t really mad. I was tempted to my limit.

  “I’m staying away now,” she argued with a small scowl. “I swear. I’m accepting the fact I bombed any chance I might’ve ever had with you. From here on out, I’m going to be the real, unvarnished me, and the real me would totally flirt with you while you look like that—even if I would prefer to be home in bed, bawling my eyes out right now.”

  I glanced at her, not sure what to think because honestly, I was as disappointed as I was relieved by her words. Crossing an X over her heart with her finger, she kept her promise and stepped back. Then she waited until I was done and had straightened until she moved back to the machine, already searching for the first song she wanted to sing.

  I scanned the crowd. All my friends from the bar were present. Even Mason, Reese, and his sister Sarah had made it. Decked out in her maid of honor dress, Reese hovered close to her fiancée, rubbing his arm as if to soothe him, and Brandt Gamble sat by Sarah’s wheelchair saying something that tugged a reluctant smile to the girl’s lips.

  Though I knew they must be suffering from the loss of Mason’s mother, I hoped tonight helped cheer their spirits a little.

  Gaze wandering on, I smiled at Julian and Skylar, who ran circles around the dancefloor, making balloons fly above them. Then I caught sight of Ten and Caroline hovering around Quinn and his wife Zoey, who was holding a swaddled bundle in her arms before she passed the baby off to let Caroline hold him. Noel and his wife Aspen were over by the bar, talking to Felicity and Knox. When I spotted the bride and groom near Murphy from the repair shop, I unintentionally caught Pick glancing my way.

  When I nodded to him, letting him know we were taking care of things, he turned to Eva and held out a hand to her. My heart lurched in my throat, hoping he didn’t think we were ready yet. I seriously did not want to mess with his vision he had of how his first dance with his new bride was supposed to take place.

  But then the music started in the karaoke machine, and fuck me if Remy wasn’t playing “Baby Love,” the very song Pick had told me he danced to with his new wife.

  I gaped at her, stunned.

  Damn it, she was amazing.

  Asher drove me crazy by sticking around as I sang the first song. And not only did he linger, but he watched me the entire time I sang. And the way he watched me was...affectionate.

  It was enough to give a poor girl ideas, make her think his will was softening toward her, like he might actually one day forgive her.

  But after the brutal way he’d turned me away last night, I knew better. I’d sung my heart out to him, told him with each lyric that I loved him and was sorry for hurting him.

  And how had he responded? He’d told me right back that there was too much bad blood between us and that he was better off without me.

  Ouch.

  Message received. Painfully.

  I was never going to have another chance with him, ever.

  So why the hell was he still watching me? As the song came to an end, he shifted closer, squinting as if confused. “How’d you know to sing that specific song?”

  “Huh?” I frowned and glanced at the machine. “I just remember you once mentioning that was their song.”

  “Oh.”

  He continued to watch me as if I’d done something wrong though, so I said, “Was I supposed to sing something else?”

  Shaking his head, he murmured, “No. That was perfect. Thanks again for doing this for Pick.”

  He reached out as if to pat my arm and maybe call me a true friend as he used to do when I’d helped him with something, but then he furrowed his brow, his hand retreated, and he turned away to stroll off.

  I watched him, his hands in his pockets, which lifted the back of his tux jacket and pulled his pants snug against his ass.

  Damn, he looked good dressed up. It was hard to believe I’d had him naked and under me once in my life.

  “You’re drooling,” Big T said into my ear, making me jump. “And...we still need more music.”

  “Shit.” I spun away from Asher’s backside and unconsciously wiped at my mouth as if I really had been drooling. Then I returned to the karaoke machine and started song after song.

  The night progressed, alcohol flowed freely, and my cousin picked up a few songs for me so I could rest my voice. I chugged water and watched the dancing and the laughter and the comradery. But mostly I watched Asher. He fit with this crew. His coworkers continually jostled him and laughed, joking and bantering.

  It was nice.

  He looked happy. Which made me glad, and yet sad because I’d never get the chance to make him happy again.

  When it came time for the bouquet toss, Reese and Felicity wheeled Sarah onto the floor, and they helped her catch the flowers. Afterward, all the guys shoved a stumbling Asher into the middle of the dancefloor by himself as Pick removed Eva’s garter. He turned and tried to get Mason and Knox to join him, but they both shook their heads and said they were practically married, so Asher found Noel’s two younger brothers, Colton and Brandt, and dragged them out there with him.

  I laughed and shook my head, amazed I remembered everyone’s names. But Asher had talked about them enough, describing them all perfectly when he’d thought I was a guy, that it was easy to tell who was who. I almost felt as if I knew them as well as he did.

  Brandt ended up catching the garter after Asher dive-bombed out of the way. Grinning, he waved it like a flag before carrying it over to Sarah and slipping it around her head like a headband.

  When I started to play the group-dance son
gs like The Chicken Dance, Limbo, and Cha-Cha Slide, I couldn’t help but give Asher a shout out, when it came time for the Hokey Pokey.

  “Hey, everyone,” I called into the microphone. “The best man’s going to need a little help from all the ladies with this next song because...” I placed my hand over the mike for a bit to make a face, then I removed my fingers to lean forward, confessing, “He doesn’t know his left from his right very well.”

  He laughed and shook his head even as he flipped me off. But then he gladly accepted all the help from Reese, Eva, Felicity, Caroline, Zoey and Aspen, who hurried forward to do the Hokey Pokey with him.

  Afterward, I passed the microphone to Big T so he could entertain everyone with the Mexican Hat Dance song. The best man saw me taking a break and strolled forward in that sexy male saunter only Asher Hart could perfect, shaking his head and still chuckling.

  “Thanks a lot, smart-ass,” he said. “I can’t believe you remember me admitting that.”

  I sent him a small smile as I sipped my water. “I remember everything about you.”

  His eyes heated at my confession, and I knew he was remembering things too. Nipples hardening and my panties growing moist, I cleared my throat and tried not to get too aroused, even though I failed.

  A giggling pair of drunk girls stumbled up to us, breaking into the moment. When I realized it was the bride and maid of honor, I straightened respectfully.

  “Remy,” Reese called, glassy-eyed and swaying into Eva as she grasped my arm. “Can you sing ‘Dear Future Husband’ so I can dance for Mason? I think it could really help cheer him up.”

  I ground my teeth at the request for a Meghan Trainor song. I’d been hoping to avoid all of her music tonight in the hopes of not irritating Asher’s ire further by reminding him of “All About That Bass.” But Reese had been through a lot of shit lately, burying her mother-in-law, taking on a teenage sister-in-law. I couldn’t tell her no.

  Before I could nod, though, Eva said, “And I want you and Asher to sing ‘Marvin Gaye’ together. I heard about your antics last night and how awesome you two sounded together, so now I want to hear it myself. Plus, I want to dance with my man to that one.”

  Really? These guys were trying to doom me here. Not one but two Meghan Trainor songs, and one of them with Asher? He’d flip his lid.

  He and I shared a reluctant glance. He didn’t want to sing with me as much as I didn’t want to make him but secretly did want to sing with him.

  Before we could refuse though, Eva lifted her arm and declared, “The bride has spoken.”

  “Shit,” Asher muttered, but turned to Eva and said, “Whatever you want, baby doll.”

  “Goodie.” She clapped and leapt forward to slap a kiss to his cheek. “You’re the best brother-in-law ever. Now play my song first.”

  So, after Big T finished, Asher and I queued up Meghan Trainor and Charlie Puth and got it on. It was strange, standing so close to him when he sounded so amazing, smelled so good and looked so fine as we sang about sex together, all the while knowing I’d never get to touch him again.

  I found myself glancing over at him as I sang a few meaningful lyrics, only to find his gaze on me as well. We kept eye contact for the rest of the song, and there was no way I could stop my arousal from claiming me full force by the time the last words left our lips.

  He breathed out a heavy breath, staring at me, before saying, “Una más.”

  I crinkled my eyebrows, even though my heart leapt with excitement, thrilled he wanted to sing one more with me.

  “I want to do that one from the Tinker Bell movie,” he said, frowning as he tried to remember the title.

  “‘1000 Years’ with KT Tunstall and Bleu?” I said, and he nodded, snapping his fingers.

  “Yes. That one.” He looked it up, found it and, yowza. If singing “Marvin Gaye” put me in a certain mood, then “1000 Years” finished me off for good. Asher and I gazed into each other’s eyes as we promised each other that our love would still be around after a thousand years.

  Tears glistened in my lashes as the last of the melody faded away. Then Asher took control of the microphone. “Before you start the song for Reese, I need to say a few things to everyone.”

  I nodded, my heart hopping into my throat, because I kind of wished he’d say something about me, how he’d forgiven me and wanted to give us another chance.

  But instead, he called, “Okay, so everyone, listen up.” He waved his hand to gain the crowd’s attention. “Pick told me I didn’t have to give a best man speech, but I’ve had just enough to drink that I think I’m going to anyway.”

  He paused, waiting for the chuckles to die down before he started again. “I came to this establishment a little over a year ago, with no band, no real family to speak of, and no true friends. But thanks to one Patrick Ryan, I’ve gained all three. If it wasn’t for that man right there,” he pointed to Pick, “I would’ve given up on all the dreams I ever had. My band would’ve died out in its garage days, I wouldn’t have gotten to know all you asshole bartenders I work with and love to death...or fallen for all your lovely lady halves.” He bowed toward his group of friends. “And I never would’ve learned a couple months ago that I had a true-life, blood-related brother out there. Pick.” He fisted his hand and held it up as a kind of salute. “I am honored to be the little brother of an amazing man like you...and jealous as fuck over the gorgeous, amazing wife and kids you got. Congratulations, man.”

  Pick strode forward and pulled him into a huge bear hug. When he pulled away, he wiped tears from his eyes and then laughed as Eva leapt at Asher to hug him next.

  Then Reese was there because she wanted to give a maid of honor speech too, but it wasn’t anything as amazing as what Asher had said...in my opinion, anyway. It did give me time to compose myself, because I was so happy that Asher had found a place to belong after a childhood of being so alone. But all too soon, Reese was thrusting the microphone at me, announcing it was “Dear Future Husband” time.

  I sang her song, but I didn’t sing it to her. I watched Asher, and the entire time the words left my lips he watched me right back, guzzling from a bottle of Angry Orchard as he did.

  After that, Quinn and Zoey approached to relieve me from my deejaying duty, saying they’d sing a few songs before they told me to go get some cake and punch and rest a bit.

  I found myself alone by the refreshment table, burying my fork into a lush-looking slice of cake when suddenly the entire plate was slapped out of my hand.

  “Don’t!” Asher snapped, his eyes wide with fear.

  Glancing down at my empty hands, not even a crumb or hint of frosting to behold, I gaped a moment before returning my attention to Mr. Slappy. “What the hell?”

  “I just overheard someone talking about how there was peanut oil in the ingredients.”

  “Peanut...?” I started softly. Then I gulped. “Oh, shit. Thank you.”

  He nodded and was gone again. I gazed after him, a small smile lifting my lips. But, hell. He’d remembered my allergy and saved me.

  My hero.

  Caroline caught my gaze then and sent me a thumbs-up, but I rolled my eyes, letting her know she was crazy. Just because he hadn’t let me kill myself didn’t mean the man was ready to hook back up with me, let alone forgive me. But a small part of me hoped she might be right, anyway.

  I returned to the microphone and sang a few more songs. Since Big T had to open the restaurant the next morning, he took off early, but that was fine. I was having too much fun to care that I’d be hoarse as hell tomorrow. And besides, a couple other people were willing to give me a break and try their hand at karaoke. The most surprising pair were a drunk Ten and Asher as they stumbled toward the stage, their arms wrapped around each other’s shoulders before Ten announced, “We want to sing ‘I Just Had Sex.’”

  Then Asher pointed and laughed, “No, he wants to sing it. I’m just here for the backup Akon part...and to watch Noel kick his ass.”

&nbs
p; I lifted my eyebrows, then I chuckled and shook my head. “Ten? You seriously sing?”

  Ten scowled as if offended. “Fuck no, but I’m drunk enough to right now. Plus it’ll really piss off my brother-in-law, so...I must!”

  I laughed and had to ask, “Your brother-in-law?”

  “Noel. Didn’t you know he was Caroline’s brother?”

  “He is? No, I had no idea.” My eyebrows arched as I scanned the crowd to see Caroline and Noel gathered around Brandt , Colton, Sarah, and Aspen. “Huh.”

  So I handed the microphone over and started the song for them.

  As soon as Ten belted out the first line, covering Lonely Island’s part of the duet, an outraged Noel yelled, “You motherfucker,” as he marched forward.

  Afraid Asher might get caught in some crossfire, I stepped in and held up my hand to stop him. Crazily enough, he didn’t try to get past me, but he did stay there and glare and flip Ten off, calling him a few dirty names.

  Asher bent over, laughing so hard he could barely sing his lines. But he straightened up by the end, and even as slurred as his voice was, he sounded amazing.

  Watching him have such a good time was taxing, though. It was selfish of me to want to be the only one to make him smile, but I couldn’t help it. I’d fallen hard for this man.

  By the time the wedding reception winded down to an end, my feet were killing me and my throat was raw. But I merely stretched the kinks of out my back before beginning to put away the karaoke machine.

  Only half a dozen people remained: Knox and Felicity helping clean the floor, Ten and Caroline doing the same thing, and Asher.

  Stumbling my way, he waved a hand. “Hey, sexy lady. Let me help you put that up.”

  I laughed and waved him away. “Oh, no you don’t. I’ve got this just fine, plastered boy. I’m surprised you’re still able to stand upright.”

  “I know, right?” He spread out his arms and looked down at his wobbling legs. “It’s like some kind of miracle.”

  Damn it, he was even adorable when he was drunk off his ass.

  “Yo, Drummer Girl.” Tearing my gaze from Asher, I scowled toward Ten, who’d wrapped his arm and suit jacket around Caroline’s shoulders as he steered her toward the exit. “Hart’s not fit to drive shit, so you can get him home, right?”