Contracted

by Marni Mann

  Me: I meant every goddamn word. You’ve got to believe that.

  Eve: I don’t know what to say.

  Me: I’m the one who needs to say something. But I can’t apologize through text. It has to happen in person, so you can see how sorry I am.

  Eve: I’ll be home in eight weeks.

  Me: Does that mean I can’t talk to you until then?

  Eve: I don’t know, Max.

  Me: The ball is in your court.

  Eve: Hi.

  Me: Good morning, Eve.

  Eve: I just spilled a cup of coffee all over my shirt. It reminded me of our trip to Napa when I’d woken up so hungover that I did the same thing at breakfast.

  Me: That was such a sexy afternoon.

  Eve: You must be talking about what happened in the outdoor shower because that hangover certainly wasn’t sexy.

  Me: I need to build one of those in my next house for that exact reason.

  Eve: LOL. The wine here, Max, it’s incredible.

  Me: I’ve had it. You’re right; it is. Enjoy yourself.

  Eve: I shipped a box of clothes back to LA. My return is becoming very real.

  Me: I’m not upset over it, baby.

  Eve: I didn’t think you would be.

  Me: But a part of you is, am I right?

  Eve: I love it here so much.

  Me: Then, you’ll just have to go back often to visit. Maybe we can go together.

  Eve: James told me she drank me at dinner.

  Me: You must be referring to the cocktail I named after you at Rosemary’s.

  Eve: You know I hate jalapeños.

  Me: You’re just as spicy as one.

  Eve: Okay…but how am I anything like basil?

  Me: It’s a soft plant. Smooth on the exterior. But, once you bite into it, the flavor plays on your tongue. Yours used to do the same to me. Fuck, you tasted so good.

  Eve: The design team is going yachting for a week, so I don’t know how much service I’ll have. I fly in the night before the wedding. I’ll see you at the ceremony.

  Me: Good, because I fucking miss you.

  Thirty-Five

  Eve

  I stood from the floor where I’d just straightened the bottom of James’s wedding gown and tightened the straps on her shoes. Then, I took several steps back, so I could take in the whole picture. “James, my God, that dress is everything.” My stare rose to her face, dropped down, and slowly climbed again. “You’re seriously one of the most stunning brides I’ve ever seen.”

  Over a hundred designers had reached out to me, asking to make her dress. After a week’s worth of phone calls, some lasting for hours, James and I’d narrowed it down to three. I’d asked each of them to design a mock-up, which they’d shipped to me in Italy. James had then flown in and tried them on, and we had chosen the one we loved the best.

  The winner was an off-white Versace that was made in two layers of French lace. The strapless design slightly cupped her shoulders, ran extremely fitted down the bodice where it cinched her waist, and then bowed just a few inches at her thighs before it ended in a two-foot train.

  It was incredibly sexy.

  But it was also delicate and soft at the same time.

  Lorrie and another makeup artist had been flown to Miami to do James’s face and hair. She wore her long strands down in loose curls, and her makeup heavily accented her eyes.

  As her maid of honor and stylist, I had the privilege of helping her get dressed. To give her some privacy and a much-needed break from all the women in our suite, I’d taken her into the master bathroom.

  She looked at herself in the mirror above the sinks, turning to each side to get a view of every angle. “We did good with this one, didn’t we?”

  “None of the others could even compare.” I walked closer to my best friend, lifting a section of her curls and placing it in front of her shoulder. I checked the backing of her earrings to make sure the diamonds were tight, and I brushed away a stray lash. “Brett is going to die.”

  “I’m not nervous. Isn’t that strange?”

  I was.

  In fact, I was a wreck.

  Since my flight hadn’t gotten me in until midnight last night, I’d tiptoed into James’s suite, so I wouldn’t wake her. Fortunately, she had been up, and we’d had a glass of wine together before we both quickly passed out. But, by getting in so late, I’d missed the rehearsal and the dinner and the opportunity of seeing Max.

  I knew he was somewhere in this mansion, and that was goading my anxiety.

  It wasn’t like we hadn’t spoken since he saw me in the hospital.

  We’d texted several times, but seeing him was going to be different. It would bring my emotions to a whole different level.

  I just wasn’t sure I was prepared for that.

  “I don’t think that’s strange at all,” I answered. “I think you’re ready, and you’re confident that this is the man you want to marry; therefore, there isn’t a question in your mind. You know you’re doing the right thing.”

  “I love him, Eve. So much.”

  I wrapped my hands around hers. “I know you do.”

  “You’re shaking.”

  “I’ve had too much coffee,” I replied, tugging my fingers away.

  She laughed. “No, you’re a hot mess over seeing Max, but nice try.”

  “I’m not talking about this on your wedding day.”

  She stepped closer, wrapping both hands around my arms. “I don’t care if it’s my wedding day. You’re my best friend, and Brett and Max are like brothers. We’re going to talk about this, and you’re not going to fight me on it.”

  I rolled my eyes. “I told you last night, we’ve texted. That’s it. There’s nothing else to discuss.”

  “You’re about to see the man you’re in love with after six months. You’re shaking; you’re so nervous. You know the two of you are going to end up having a conversation. So, what the hell are you going to say?”

  I hadn’t thought of that.

  I couldn’t.

  It was too stressful to put my brain there.

  So, I said, “I’m not going to say anything.”

  “Because you want him to do all the talking first?”

  I nodded; she was right.

  “What if he tells you he loves you?”

  I thought of the email he’d sent, which had triggered me to text him a few days later.

  You deserved more.

  I know that.

  I wish I’d given it to you.

  I wish you’d let me give it to you now.

  He understood the more I was after, and he wanted to give it to me. But that email had been sent over eight weeks ago. In man time, that was an eternity. Therefore, it didn’t necessarily mean that was what he wanted now, and his feelings certainly could have changed.

  “I don’t anticipate that happening,” I told her.

  “Eve, don’t underestimate that man.”

  I scanned her eyes, looking for whatever she was hiding. “Why are you giving Max so many props right now?”

  She shrugged, smiling. “Maybe he deserves it.”

  “Oh God,” I sighed. This was her wedding day, so of course she was all about love at the moment. I grabbed her hand and led her to the door. “Are you ready to do this? We have about five minutes before we need to go outside on the patio.”

  “I’m ready,” she said.

  I opened the door, and the bridesmaids and glam squad turned completely silent as they all looked toward me. “You’re going to die when you see her,” I teased them, and then I moved out of the doorway to make room for James.

  She slowly revealed herself, and I heard all the gasps.

  I took a peek at all of their faces, and they were having the same reaction to her as I had.

  While they soaked her in compliments, I went over to Lorrie and had her touch up my makeup and put a few more curls in my hair. By the time she finished, James was ready to leave. Since her parents were no longer
alive and her mother wasn’t here for this moment, I looped my arm through hers, and I walked her down to the entrance of the patio.

  The home James and Brett had chosen to get married at was private, directly on the water, with a grand staircase that wrapped around the back of the house, starting at the second story, where James would begin her descent. The lawn was massive, and that was where the ceremony and reception would take place.

  “The groom is already waiting outside,” the wedding planner told James. “We can start whenever you’re ready.”

  “Let’s do it now,” James replied.

  We were told to line up in order. Then, each bridesmaid would be paired with a groomsman, and they would walk us down the aisle. I would be going with Brett’s best man.

  Who just happened to be Max.

  Since the men hadn’t arrived yet, I took a few minutes to get James settled in the back of the line. I then slipped in the spot in front of her while the rest of the girls went ahead of me.

  A door opened, and the men stepped onto the patio. Their shoes ticked on the stone tiles. The scent of whiskey filled the air.

  I was too scared to look in their direction.

  Too anxious to catch eyes with Max.

  Too worried I’d fall apart before we needed to walk in front of all the guests.

  But then, the scent of whiskey faded, and a new one wafted up to my nose.

  Spice and leather.

  It was him.

  My heart started to pound inside my chest.

  My throat tightened, making it hard to breathe.

  My body felt weak as a piece of dark fabric swished across the side of my arm.

  He was standing next to me.

  His eyes were on me.

  I could feel them.

  And his heat, too, while I drowned in his scent.

  I sucked in as much air as my lungs would hold, and I slowly looked up at him.

  Oh God.

  His eyes. Lips. That deliciously handsome face.

  It was everything I had missed.

  “Hi,” I whispered.

  His eyes briefly dropped down my body, and then they came right back. “Man, you’re fucking gorgeous.”

  He held his arm out for me to loop mine through, and he didn’t take a step until I was clinging to him.

  But, even as he took me toward the grand staircase, his eyes never left me.

  Mine never strayed from him.

  And the intensity between us began to buzz.

  Thirty-Six

  Max

  I stood only a few feet from Brett as he looked at James and said his vows, but I didn’t hear a goddamn thing that came out of his mouth or the words James followed up with. I didn’t see them put on their wedding bands. I didn’t even know they kissed.

  Because, the entire time I was next to him, the only thing I focused on was Eve.

  Italy looked so fucking good on her.

  Her face was glowing. There was a sparkle in her eyes. Her body was tighter than it had ever been. If she were in pain from her injury, I would never know. That was how perfect she appeared.

  I hadn’t even felt a quiver of weakness as I walked her down the aisle.

  But she had seen my weakness.

  It’d happened the second our eyes locked, and hers had seen right through me.

  My body always had the strongest reaction to her. This time, it went deeper. I felt that shit right in my fucking heart.

  I just needed a chance to tell her.

  That moment didn’t come for almost two hours.

  Following the ceremony, we had to go for pictures. The photographer wanted to get every goddamn shot with every kind of light, using every fucking pose and angle.

  But I participated. I turned the way I had been told. I smiled at the camera, and when we were directed to take the women to the entrance of the tent and wait for our announcements, I did that also.

  After the band made the introductions, Brett and James hit up the dance floor first while everyone circled around them.

  I missed Brett dipping his bride. I missed him spinning her. I missed him going in for a fucking kiss.

  Because my eyes never left Eve.

  When it was the wedding party’s turn to join them, I grabbed two of her fingers that were hanging at her side, and I walked her to the center, right next to her best friend. There, I brought her hand up to my chest, and I placed it on my heart, wrapping my other arm around her.

  I waited until her pulse wasn’t pounding against my arm, and I felt her take a deep breath before I said, “I’ve wanted this moment for six months.”

  A warmth came over her skin. “You mean, even after I kicked you out of the hospital?”

  I’d earned that dig.

  “Yes, and I deserved you booting my ass out. I had gone all the way to Italy, and I couldn’t even give you what you wanted.”

  “Max—”

  “No, Eve, I need to tell you something first.” I turned her, trying to make an attempt to at least look like we were dancing. “I fucked up. I knew it then, but I wasn’t in the right place to do anything about it. I wanted you more than anything—I never questioned that—but I couldn’t give you all of me.” I shook my fucking head as I recalled all the mistakes I’d made.

  “You have to understand something. When shit ended between Kristin and me, work was the only constant in my life and the only thing I could control. So, I put everything I had into it, and I became obsessed. I wasn’t capable of seeing that at the time. Honestly, I couldn’t imagine my life any other way.”

  I held her hand tighter against my chest, my thumb brushing across her fingers. “There wasn’t even an opportunity to choose you. Because you, like everything else, came second.” My teeth clenched together as I thought about how disappointed I was in myself. “I know that’s wrong, Eve. I know that’s so fucking wrong, and I’m sorry.”

  She bent her thumb around one of my fingers and squeezed it. “God, did you fuck up.”

  “Since I realized it, I’ve beaten myself up every day about it. I feel fucking sick, thinking of the way I treated you.”

  “Good.”

  I smiled. “I don’t know how I could go all the way there and not tell you I loved you.”

  I saw her take in a breath, but she didn’t release it.

  I knew she was going to sit on that for a few seconds, so I said, “Do you want to know what I’ve been up to since I got home from Italy?”

  She nodded.

  “I’ve been doing a hell of a lot of thinking, testing my mind, putting it in situations to prove to myself how far I’ve come. Eve, you wouldn’t believe some of the shit I’ve done.”

  “Try me.”

  I shook my head, my smile returning. “I bought a suit that would fit a five-year-old.”

  Her brows furrowed. “You mean, you got the wrong size?”

  “No, I bought an actual kids suit and hung it in my closet to see if I could visualize a child in my life.”

  Now, her eyes were widening. “And?”

  “I could picture it. It’s something that I want. Not today, but certainly in the future.”

  Her mouth opened, but she said nothing.

  “I’m not done,” I told her, watching her pupils dilate, bouncing between mine. “I’m now living in LA.”

  “What?”

  “I have so much to tell you. We’re in the middle of finalizing a partnership, and our LA offices are going to merge. I’m going to manage all the agents.”

  “You moved?” she whispered, her face still so shocked at the news.

  “I’m going to get to spend more time with you because I’m not going to be on the road as much. I’m cutting my traveling way back. I want to be in LA with you as much as I can…in our new home.”

  “Max,” she said and paused. “I don’t even know what to say.”

  “I know where I went wrong, and I’m doing everything I can to fix it.” My hand rose from her back and climbed to her face, my thumb
resting just to the side of her mouth. “I want you to be mine, so I have to show you how much I love you and that I’ll do anything to spend every night with you.”

  Her pulse was hammering against my hand, but I wasn’t going to try to calm her down or get her to take a deep breath because I was just as worked up as she was.

  “I knew I loved you. I’ve known that for a long time. I just couldn’t admit it to myself, never mind say it to you. But I’m ready to recognize those feelings now. And I want you to know how heavy they are and that they’re so fucking strong.”

  “You’re sure you’re ready?”

  It was an honest question.

  And I could tell by her expression that she needed the reassurance.

  “Yes,” I said. “I’m more than ready to live in LA with you.”

  “Where are you staying now?”

  “In The Agency’s condo. I want to buy a house, but I didn’t want to do it without you.”

  She searched my face. “What if I don’t take you back?”

  “Then, I’d buy one without you. I’m not leaving LA, baby, but I’m also not going to give up on you that easily. If you do take me back, then I want us to buy it together. You need to love it if it’s going to be the place where we raise our children.”

  “Max…” She was shaking her head, her eyes so fucking wide and watery. “I can’t believe what I’m hearing.”

  “I’ve been waiting months to say this to you. But I knew you needed space while you were in Italy. I also knew I’d have a chance to talk to you at this wedding. And I thought, if you decided to move on, then at least you’d know how much I loved you and that you made me into a changed person and a much better man.”

  “I don’t want to move on.” Her voice was soft, but each word was so fucking powerful.

  A part of me had worried that I was too late. That I’d blown all my chances at the hospital in Italy. The other part believed she’d come back to me.

  “You want me?” Just like her, I needed the reassurance.

  She nodded and backed it up with, “Yes.”