Eruption (The Hunted Series Book 3)

by Ivy Smoak

  I followed her back toward the dressing rooms.

  "Would you like to finish the dresses I picked out so that you can get a feel for the different styles? Or would you like to jump into the ones your friends picked out?"

  "Let's finish the ones you brought first," I said and entered the dressing room.

  Anna unzipped my dress and helped me step out of it. "So was your fiancé the same year as you in school?" She grabbed the next dress off the hook.

  I ran my thumb along the band of my engagement ring. I wasn't ashamed of how I had met James. Why did I always skirt around the truth when people asked? "No, not exactly."

  Anna whistled as she pulled the next dress up my waist. "Older or younger?"

  "Older." I shouldn't have to beat around the bush anymore. I wasn't embarrassed of how we met. Screw it. "Actually, he was my professor."

  Anna met my eyes in the reflection in the mirror as her fingers stopped mid-zip of the dress. "You're not talking about James Hunter?"

  The scandal had followed us to New York. I just thought that it had been so long ago that no one really remembered any more. "Yeah, that's him."

  "Oh my God, you're engaged to James Hunter?"

  "Yes."

  She finished zipping up the dress. "He is quite the catch. I remember hearing about you two. I thought your story was so sweet."

  For some reason, that hadn't been what I thought she was going to say. I turned toward her. "Thank you for saying that."

  She smiled back at me. "Love has no age limit. Now, what do you think about this one?"

  The dress was beautiful. It was strapless and the bottom of the dress was huge and poofy. I felt like a princess. "It's gorgeous." I stared at my reflection for another second. "I think I want something a little more sophisticated though."

  She nodded. "Should we show them?"

  "Yeah, let's see what they have to say about this one." I lifted up the huge skirt and walked back toward the group.

  "Oh, God no," Melissa said as I stepped up onto the platform.

  I laughed and turned around.

  "Sorry I'm late," she said and sat down next to my mom on the couch.

  "What, is this one that bad?"

  "It makes you look so young," she said. "Which you've been trying to not be ever since you met James."

  I pressed my lips together and looked back at the mirror. I didn't want simple and I didn't want poofy.

  "What you need is an elegant dress that is classy and sexy at the same time," Jen said.

  "I think you look absolutely beautiful," my mom said. She looked a little teary eyed.

  I smiled. When I was little I had pictured a big poofy dress. But Melissa and Jen were right. I had tried so hard to seem older and more mature the past few years. I wanted to look like a bride worthy of James. I wasn't a student anymore and he wasn't my professor.

  "What do you think, Bee?" I asked.

  "Sexy and classy seem to go against each other. You look beautiful in that one, though, not cute."

  I smiled.

  "Oh, please just try on the dress I picked out already," Jen said. "It's perfect."

  I shrugged. "Okay, I'll try yours next." I followed Anna back to the dressing room. She grabbed a lace dress with some diamonds embroidered into the design. It had elegant thin straps that were just wide enough to accommodate the diamonds embellished on them. And the front looked like it plunged way past where my breasts would be. There was a tan material behind the lace at the top, which gave it an even sexier look.

  "I'm not sure I'm going to be able to pull this one off," I said as Anna unzipped the poofy dress.

  "I think this really might be exactly what you're looking for. The lace is so delicate and it has just the right amount of sparkle. And the top is indeed sexy. Plus this one is actually in your size, so you get to see how it would really fit."

  I stepped out of the poofy dress and into the other one. "I guess we'll see."

  "The top goes down too much in the middle for you to wear this, though," she said as she unhooked the corset.

  I instantly felt more relaxed as she began to pull the dress up. I wanted to be comfortable on my wedding day. There was going to be enough stress without the added element of not being able to breathe. There was a layer of silk underneath the dress that felt soft against my skin. I closed my eyes as Anna zipped up the back.

  "You look beautiful, Penny," she said as soon as she let go of the zipper.

  I opened my eyes and swallowed hard. I don't think I had ever looked this good. The dress hugged my waist and thighs and was a little looser past my knees. Even though it was tight, it didn't look raunchy. It looked elegant yet casual. And the top made it sexy. There must have been some kind of built in bra, because it had pushed up my breasts despite the fact that I had ditched the corset. The V down the front stopped a few inches above my belly button, but it didn't look over the top. It was very narrow and the lace made it look fancy.

  "What do you think?" Anna asked.

  "He'd love this." My voice came out as a whisper. There was a lump in my throat, and I wasn't sure why. I felt like I wanted to cry. I was always so worried about disappointing him. There wasn't a chance I could do that in this dress. I'd look like I actually belonged beside him.

  "Let's go show everyone." Anna opened the door and I slowly followed her out, holding up the delicate lace so I wouldn't step on it.

  Everyone stopped talking when I stepped up on the platform. I dropped the fabric so it pooled perfectly around my legs.

  "Penny," Melissa said. "You look like a movie star."

  I laughed.

  "Seriously," Bee said. "You look like a million bucks."

  I turned and looked in the mirror. I felt like a million bucks. It was hard to believe it was me in the mirror.

  "That's the one," Jen said. "It was made for your body."

  "Do you think James will like it?" I asked.

  "James won't be able to keep it in his pants," Melissa said.

  I laughed and turned back around to face them.

  "Ew." Jen smacked her arm. "Don't be gross. That's my brother. But yes, he'll love it."

  Melissa laughed and stood up. She grabbed my hand and squeezed it. "Penny, this is definitely your dress. Look at yourself." She spun me back around to look in the mirror.

  I felt like I wanted to cry again.

  "Here," Anna said and clipped a veil into my hair. She spread it across my shoulders. The diamonds in the clip matched the ones on the straps of the dress. I could picture it all. Walking down the aisle. James' smile.

  "Mom?" I turned around to look at her. She was the only one that hadn't said anything.

  She had grabbed a tissue out of her purse and was blotting her eyes. "You look so grown up, sweetie. You're absolutely stunning."

  I could feel my own tears welling in my eyes. "Do you think it's the one?"

  They all said yes at the same time.

  I ran my fingers under my eye where a tear had rolled down. "You don't think it's too sexy?" I looked down at the rather revealing front.

  "It's sexy, but it seems more elegant than anything else," Melissa said.

  "And it's so fancy, but you look so much more comfortable in this one," Bee said.

  "And happier," Jen added.

  "That's because I'm not wearing that corset thing anymore." I laughed and turned back to the mirror. I thought I'd be here all afternoon. But they were right. And I knew it before they had said anything. This was the dress I wanted James to see me in when I said I do. There wasn't a doubt in my mind.

  Chapter 5

  Sunday

  "So, what do you think?" James asked. He was staring at me intently.

  "It seems so...cold." It didn't feel like a home. And I didn't mean that the air conditioner seemed to be at full force.

  He laughed. "That's because none of our stuff is here yet. Use your imagination." He stepped past the foyer into the main room. "Our couch can go here. And the picture of the
beach we have can go on the wall there." He pointed to the one spot of wall along the far side that wasn't a window. He looked so excited. As if he could picture our life here together. "And you have to come see the view. It looks right out onto Central Park. It won't even feel like we're in the city."

  I walked over to him and kissed his cheek. "I love it."

  "You didn't even see the view, though."

  "I like my view right now."

  He laughed and pulled me into his arms. "You really like it?"

  "I'm happy wherever we are, as long as we're together. Aren't you?"

  He raised his eyebrow as he looked down at me. "Is that why you're upset? Baby, I didn't buy this place because I wasn't happy in our old apartment. You know that. I just want a fresh start."

  "From what exactly?"

  "We moved to New York to get away from all the rumors. But it was hard to put it all to rest while you were still in school."

  My stomach churned. I was a burden.

  "Now you're not. Your graduating puts it all in the past. I want to start our life together."

  "James, we already have."

  "You know what I mean. As husband and wife."

  "We could have just rearranged the furniture or something."

  He laughed and pulled me toward the wall of windows. "But then we wouldn't have this view."

  I could feel my jaw drop. Dusk was just settling over the city. A few lights had already turned on in Central Park. We were so close that it almost seemed like the building was in the middle of the park. I could see the Tavern on the Green in the distance. That was where we were getting married. Every day, I was going to be able to look outside and remember our wedding.

  I knew that James didn't care about having this view. He had picked out this apartment because he knew it would make me happy. I felt him wrap his arms around me and kiss the side of my neck. I leaned my head back against his chest. Maybe we did need a fresh start. It was time to brush off the chip on my shoulder whenever people snickered about how we met. I was ready to let it all go. "When did you want to move our stuff in?"

  He rested his chin on top of my head. "I took the whole week off."

  "What are your employees going to think? A whole week off now and then time off for our wedding and honeymoon at the end of the month?"

  "They're going to think that my fiancée isn't starting her internship until next Monday and I wanted time off to spend with her."

  "If I don't get a different position."

  "Of course. Although, I really only want you in one position right now."

  I laughed and turned around, clasping my hands behind his neck. "Aren't you going to give me a tour of the rest of the house?"

  His hands slid to my ass. "Is that really what you want to do right now?"

  I bit my lip and shook my head.

  Before his lips met mine, his phone started vibrating.

  "Don't answer it," I said.

  "It's probably work."

  "I thought you had off this week?"

  He squeezed my ass before putting his hand in his pocket and pulling out his phone. He turned around without even looking at the caller I.D. "Hunter."

  His body seemed to stiffen. He cleared his throat. "Hi, Mom." He turned to me, put his finger in the air to signal he'd just be a minute, and then quickly walked back toward the foyer.

  I folded my arms across my chest and turned back to look down at Central Park. The apartment suddenly seemed even colder. I closed my eyes, picturing myself in my wedding dress. All that mattered was that he wanted to marry me. His parents didn't have to be there. They didn't have to ever even meet me. James' love was enough.

  I opened my eyes and stared down at the Tavern on the Green. The lights hanging in the trees outside the restaurant were shimmering, dancing in the summer breeze. James' love was all that I needed. But Jen said that their parents not wanting to meet me was weighing on James too. It was hurting him. Which meant I was hurting him. And it killed me. I ran my hands up and down my arms. It was freezing.

  A few months ago, I had found their address and gotten a taxi to their house. I had stood outside the gate for several minutes before retreating. I had wanted to barge in on them and tell them they were being ridiculous. That they were horrible for treating their own son like this. I hated them for making him feel like he was unlovable. They had hurt him, in more ways than James would ever admit. But my telling them that wasn't going to help. They didn't respect me, so they wouldn't care about my opinions. I couldn't force it.

  What it came down to was that they didn't want him to be happy. They put their own wants in front of his. And that wasn't what parents were supposed to do. It certainly wasn't what I was going to do with my own kids. I shook the thought away. That was just another reason to despise them. James said he was scared to have kids because of his problems. But really, it was their fault. He was worried he'd be a horrible parent because they were so awful.

  "So, that was my mother."

  I jumped. I hadn't heard him come back over to me. "Oh?" I used to get so excited whenever she would call, hoping that it meant she had changed her mind. Now I knew better.

  He smiled. "They want to meet you."

  "Sure." I laughed. "Let's set a date so they can cancel at the last minute. Can we not talk about this right now?"

  "Apparently they found out the Caldwells were throwing us an engagement party. They've decided to commandeer it."

  "What?"

  "Jen told them about it or something. The party is being thrown at their house now. Apparently they just needed to feel like they were being cast aside." He shrugged.

  "I think that's awfully rude to the Caldwells when they've been so nice."

  "Yeah." He ran his hand through his hair. "That's what I said. She assured me the Caldwells were fine with it."

  Now that it finally seemed like it was happening, I wasn't sure why I felt so hesitant. "What are the odds that they'll cancel a whole party?"

  "It wouldn't look good. So, not very high."

  "Does that mean they're coming to the wedding?"

  "She didn't say. She just said we have a lot to talk about."

  "You don't look very excited."

  "Because you don't look very happy."

  "I'm sorry." I took a deep breath. "They've just canceled plans with us so many times that..."

  "She sounded serious this time. I think they're finally coming around. She said she was excited to meet you. She's never said that before."

  I bit my lip.

  "And she said to tell you congratulations on graduating."

  "That was nice of her." I tried to dismiss all my negative thoughts from earlier. "I'm so disappointed that my parents won't be there. They were really looking forward to meeting your parents."

  "They can't change their plans?"

  "My parents aren't their own bosses like you." I smiled at him. "I guess they'll just have to meet your parents at the rehearsal dinner."

  "It's probably best if you meet my parents by yourself first anyway. They can be rather intimidating."

  "Do you think they're going to try to scare me away?" I laughed.

  He lowered his eyebrows for a second. But the worried look was fleeting. "No, they wouldn't do that. We should have set Jen on them awhile ago. They rarely ever say no to her."

  "I should have known she'd interfere when she told me she wouldn't."

  He laughed.

  "Does this mean I get to see where you grew up?"

  "You can make fun of my old bedroom." He smiled and pulled me back into his arms. "But like I told you before, there really aren't tons of embarrassing photos of me or anything. My parents aren't like your parents."

  I closed my eyes as I pressed my face against his chest. I knew he didn't mean that as an insult. He meant that his parents didn't care for him like my parents cared about me. I didn't want to go into meeting them feeling like this. But I wasn't sure if I could ever like them. Not after everything they had
put James through.

  Chapter 6

  Thursday

  We had almost moved everything in and I was completely exhausted. I pulled my hair up into a ponytail as I looked around at all the boxes. The living room and kitchen were a complete disaster. Luckily Ellen was going to help me organize everything in the morning.

  "Your ass looks amazing when you do that," James said.

  I laughed and turned around as I finished putting the elastic in my hair. "You think?" I arched my back slightly before letting go of my hair.

  He smiled at me as he dropped a box down next to my feet. "Why was it again that you wouldn't let me hire movers?" He was wearing athletic shorts and a fitted t-shirt. There was a v-shaped sweat stain down the front of his shirt, and I found it unbelievably sexy.

  "Because I love how you look when you're all sweaty."

  "Is that so?"

  "Mhm." I traced my finger down his chest. "So hot."

  He gave me that smile that always made me feel overheated. It was playful and sexy and I knew exactly what was on his mind. "It actually is a little hot in here, don't you think?" He grabbed his shirt by the collar and pulled it off over his head. His abs glistened from sweat.

  "Scorching."

  He smiled. "That's better. Are you ready for a break?"

  I had gotten the perfect idea. "I'm going to give you to the count of ten, James."

  "To get you into bed with me? Done." He leaned forward to kiss me, but I put my hand on his chest.

  God. Seeing him like his always turned me on. "To hide." I ran my fingers down his muscular stomach.

  "What?"

  "Let's play hide and go seek."

  "I'd rather christen the new..."

  "Ten. Nine."

  "Shit."

  I put my hand over my eyes as James jumped over a box and sprinted out of the living room. When I finished counting down from ten I opened my eyes. I had only walked around the apartment a few times. But there was barely any furniture in any of the rooms. He'd only be able to hide behind doors and other fixtures.

  I wove my way through the boxes on the floor in the living room and through the kitchen. I hadn't heard him run upstairs, so I assumed he wasn't in any of the bedrooms. My eyes gravitated toward the balcony above me, just to check. This place really was amazing. It was an apartment that was probably designed for a big family, not just two people. It must have cost him a fortune. I didn't even know apartments in New York could have an upstairs.