Brody stood and stretched, the muscles in his arms, abs, and back moving in a sequential rhythm. As he drew closer to the window, he could see a few bikers and joggers twenty-seven floors below, all making their way along the path that hugged the shore of Lake Michigan. Maybe that was what he needed to start his day, a punishing run to fire up the synapses and sweat out the lingering tequila. Who knew, with a little luck, maybe he’d find something, or someone, to make the afternoon more enjoyable than the morning.
Rebecca Halstead kept her eyes focused on the statue of Abraham Lincoln that stood at the south end of Lincoln Park. When she’d started her morning routine only six weeks prior, the thought of being able to run all the way to the iconic landmark seemed like an unattainable goal. But she didn’t give up. Every day she ran just a little bit farther than the day before, until one day she realized she was nearly there. And her lungs weren’t on fire. And there weren’t shooting pains in her shins. And she wasn’t in danger of puking her granola bar all over some unsuspecting pigeons.
But more than just increasing her stamina, she was starting to feel good. And not just good as in not sick anymore, but good as in great. As in powerful and ready to take on the world. The side effects she was seeing on her body weren’t too shabby either. Thanks to a lucky dip in her mom’s gene pool, Rebecca had always been thin. But thanks to the fact that she’d also inherited her mom’s height, or lack thereof, her tiny frame looked more like that of a preteen than a twenty-six-year-old woman. All that was changing now thanks to daily cardio and weights. Her calves and arms were starting to have definition, and for the first time, she had an ass. It would never rival those that crashed the internet, but thanks to about a bajillion squats, she had more junk than she’d ever had in her trunk.
She’d just reached the steps of the memorial and was contemplating reenacting her own version of Balboa’s triumphant climb when her iPhone rang, interrupting Rocky’s theme just when it was time for her big moment.
“Hello,” she panted into the headphones.
“Oh good, you’re up,” Olivia said. “I was afraid I might wake you.”
“Not only awake, but just finished a killer run.” Truth was she’d been up for nearly two hours. Nothing like a near-death experience to inspire someone to take advantage of every moment. Carpe diem didn’t mean sleeping her life away. She’d done enough resting when she was sick to last a few decades. Now it was time to live.
“Well, don’t overdo it.”
Seemed her new sister-in-law was in danger of becoming as overprotective as her brother. Throughout her illness, her brother had treated her like she was made of glass. It had driven her bananas even though it was partially true. But now that she had a clean bill of health, it was time to put an end to that mentality, not have it spread to Olivia as well. “I’m fine, Livvy. You’re the one I’m worried about. I think Cole is rubbing off on you.”
“No, he’s not,” Olivia said, and for a second, Rebecca thought she’d let the double entendre slide. But then she added, “Not at the moment anyway.”
“Gross.” Rebecca laughed.
“Sorry.”
She could hear the smile in Olivia’s voice. “No, you’re not,” Rebecca said, shaking her head as her mouth turned up in a grin. “But it’s cute in its own weird way. You’re like a couple of horny teenagers.” Not that Rebecca had firsthand knowledge of such behavior. Her teens had been spent in the library or working odd jobs to help out her mom. Neither of which had allowed for much age-appropriate misbehavior.
“How was last night?”
“Great.” Rebecca started walking toward the Chicago History Museum. It wouldn’t be open so early on a Sunday, but her legs needed a cooldown and she could still check out the advertisements for upcoming events. “The bride and groom are huge SNL fans, so we had the reception at Second City.” Rebecca had only been in the wedding planning business for four years, but she’d already established a name for herself when it came to organizing ceremonies that were unique to the bride and groom. Of course, the fact that her brother kept sending clients her way didn’t hurt either. Not that he would ever admit it, the sneaky bastard. She loved him dearly, but did he really think she didn’t realize half the calls she got were from couples who either attended the same prep school he had or belonged to the same country club? Still, she was grateful for the referrals, even if it was his way of circumventing her vow never to take a dime of his money.
“Sounds really cool,” Olivia said.
“Well, it was no Elvis wedding chapel,” Rebecca teased.
Olivia snorted. “Hey, how many brides can say they were married by the King of Rock and Roll?”
“In Vegas? Probably quite a few.”
“Yes, but how many can say they also had Angus Young as the best man?”
She had her there. “Not many,” Rebecca agreed, wishing for about the hundredth time that she’d witnessed Cole and Olivia’s Vegas wedding. But that would have required them to tell her—or anyone else for that matter—about their impulsive decision to marry, something no one could have predicted seeing as how they’d hated each other’s guts before, during, and after the wedding. At least that’s what they’d told themselves.
For three months, Olivia had made it her life’s work to lobby—or harass, depending on which one of them you asked—Cole into moving his latest venture to a site that wouldn’t threaten an endangered bat. Then an alcohol-fueled night in Vegas led to a night of passion, which led to a hungover marriage of convenience, and the rest, as they say, was history. And while Rebecca would have given just about anything to see that sitcom of a ceremony, especially when she heard about the personal touch the King had put on their vows, she would be forever grateful that she was present when her half-brother and his bride renewed their vows on her family’s farm a few months later. No matter how many weddings she witnessed, a couple pledging their love was a sight that would never get old. Add to that the fact that the groom was the man who’d seen her through the worst two years of her life and forget it, she was a blubbering mess.
“Is that Rebecca?” Cole’s deep voice echoed in the background of the call. A few more words were spoken that Rebecca couldn’t quite make out, but Olivia’s reply helped her fill in the blanks.
“I do not hog your sister,” she said. The smile in her voice was hard to miss. “She just likes me more than you.”
Cole’s muffled voice replied.
“You’re a bossy bastard,” Olivia said with a laugh. “Do you know that?”
Of course he knew that. And Olivia knew it too. And yet she loved him anyway. Simply put, Cole and his bride were proof positive that every pot had a lid.
“Your brother would like you to meet him for lunch tomorrow.”
She bit back a smile. “Tell my brother I will have to check my schedule.”
“Don’t tease him. You know he doesn’t have a sense of humor.”
“True.” Rebecca laughed. Although the irony wasn’t lost on her that this was coming from the woman who seemed to live to tease the man she loved. “Fine, tell him I’ll meet him for lunch, but not at one of those stuffy, wood-paneled clubs he likes.”
Cole and Rebecca had been raised by different mothers, but more than that, in different worlds. Private clubs with steep membership dues and snooty clientele were about as appealing to her as an afternoon at the dentist. And she hated the dentist.
“Tell him he can pick the time, but I’m picking the place.”
“Oh no, you’re not putting me in the middle,” Olivia said. “I’m stepping out of this negotiation. Here, putting you on speaker.” A moment later, Cole’s voice came across the line, and this time, it was loud and clear.
“I’m not eating in the park again. Nearly ruined my favorite Tom Ford last time.”
“Fine, a place with tables. But no tablecloths.” That would rein him in a bit. The fact that Rebecca hadn’t been raised with the same silver spoon Cole had was something he seemed to be forever a
ttempting to correct. But she was just fine with her life the way it was. And while it might have been nice if her late mother hadn’t had to worry about making rent, Rebecca’d had a far happier childhood than her half-brother had had growing up in a mansion full of servants.
“My office. Noon. I’ll handle the rest.”
“Your wife is right. You are a bossy bastard.” Although to be fair, no matter how Olivia described her husband, the word “bastard” always seemed to follow. Depending on the day, Cole was anything from a “gorgeous bastard” who could melt his wife with a smoldering glance, to a “depraved bastard” who would destroy the earth if it weren’t for her near-constant intervention.
Cole chuckled. “Part of my charm.” With that, he was gone. Rebecca smiled and shook her head as she tucked her phone back into the pocket of her jacket. She was tugging the zipper closed as she rounded the corner of the monument and slammed right into a solid wall of human.
The collision sent her stumbling backward with such force, she fell flat on her ass. Although not before flailing and flapping her arms in what must have looked like an attempt to fly away. If only she could have been so lucky. But no. Instead, she ended up sprawled across the concrete with her elbows scraped and her ego bruised. Of course, that was when she thought she’d run head on into a normal human. Once she had a chance to get a better look, she realized there was nothing normal about the man in front of her, which somehow made her state of disgrace all the more humiliating.
Her eyes traveled up his body, from the sculpted calves and the thighs that appeared to be carved from stone, to the black running shorts that did little to hide a hard-to-miss eye-level bulge, to the planes of his broad chest, clearly defined beneath his damp T-shirt. And the arms? Holy cow, forget a gun show. His biceps were a full-on armory. But all of that paled in comparison to his face.
With light brown hair, mischievous green eyes, and features that were almost too pretty to be real, the man in front of her easily could have been a movie star. Hell, maybe he was for all she knew.
His lips moved, but she couldn’t hear a word he said. A moment later he bent down, his elbows resting on his solid thighs. And then he leaned forward, close enough for her to smell the clean scent of light sweat mixed with spicy soap. And then his gaze dropped to her mouth, and his eyes seemed to grow a darker shade of green. And then his hands reached up as though about to frame her face. And then…
And then he plucked the earbuds from her ears.
Well duh, what had she been expecting, a kiss? That sort of stuff only happened in books.
“Are you okay?” he asked. This time, she could hear him, but she still didn’t answer. She couldn’t. And it had nothing to do with her fall. It wasn’t her tumble that had taken her breath, not to mention her capacity for speech, away. It was him.
“Miss?”
“Huh?” Even to her own ears, she sounded dazed and confused. She shook her head to clear it.
“You okay?” he repeated. His voice was deep and rough and had the slightest rasp of a Southern drawl. It made her think of honey and lounging in a field in the warm afternoon sun. On a blanket. Naked. With the honey.
Whoa. Where did that come from?
“Um, yeah… I’m fine.” Her words croaked from her suddenly dry throat. But then again, maybe she wasn’t fine. Maybe she’d hit her head when she fell. How else could she explain the outlandish thoughts of naked, honey-covered sunbathing that were currently flooding her brain? Rebecca reached up but felt no lump or blood in her short dark hair. So that’s how it was, eh? Losing her mind at twenty-six.
“Let me help.” He held out his hand, and when she took it, Rebecca could have sworn a tingle passed between them to rival the one Bella felt with Edward. She narrowed her eyes to check for sparkling skin, then silently wondered if it was possible to have a head injury without actually hitting your head. Whiplash concussion, perhaps? Something, anything, to explain her current state.
The wall of muscle hauled her to her feet. He was taller than she was—something that wasn’t too difficult given her size—but this guy was tall. Like six-foot-four kinda tall with a confidence that was hard to miss. Even in casual workout clothes, the man in front of her had a commanding presence. Clearly, he was used to being the center of attention, and if the smug grin that played on his lips was any indication, he enjoyed it.
And there she was, sweaty and covered with sidewalk dirt and staring at him like she’d never seen such a handsome man before. Well, at least not up close.
“Sorry about that,” she said, hating how awkward she felt, especially in comparison to his self-possessed demeanor.
“Don’t be.” His grin stretched into a full-blown smile, unleashing a dimple that made him look too adorable for words. “I rather enjoyed it.”
She quirked one brow. He enjoyed seeing her fall on her ass?
The thought had no sooner crossed her mind when it seemed to occur to him as well. “Um, I mean, bumping into you,” he said. “Not that you fell.” Uncertainty flashed across his face for the briefest of seconds before his composure returned.
She tipped her chin up. “So, figuratively instead of literally?”
He unleashed the dimple again, and her knees did a little wobble. Surely, it was from the adrenaline crash? While there was little doubt that dimple of his had the power to make grown women drop their panties, it was highly unlikely he was actually making her weak in the knees. That was just an expression, wasn’t it?
“Both,” he said, looking quite pleased with himself. “I literally enjoyed bumping into your figure.”
Good God almighty. He might have looked like a deity, but his lines were mere mortal. Maybe that was the curse of being so good-looking. He never had to try, so he didn’t know how? Either way, the moment was broken. That, or the blood was merely returning to her brain.
“Well, I better get back to it,” she said, popping her earbuds in as she backed away. His face registered a hint of surprise, and then his lips moved with words she couldn’t make out over the blast of music that now filled her ears. It was just as well, she thought as she turned onto the path. The wall of muscle might have been dreamy, but he was also rather full of himself. The hot ones usually were. Still, it would have been fun while it lasted, and there was little doubt that Mr. Sexy-And-I-Know-It could have taught a girl like her more than a few new tricks. If only she could have him, no strings attached, for a night. Or two. The thought alone put a smile on her face that lasted far longer than the walk home.
Chapter Two
Brody stared at the ceiling of his hotel room for what felt like forever. For the second day in a row, he was up earlier than he would have liked, despite having nothing on his calendar. But no matter how hard he tried to clear his head in the hope of falling back to sleep, he couldn’t stop thinking about the girl from the park.
With her short dark hair and wide blue eyes, she reminded him of one of those little ceramic figurines his mom used to collect. And while cute was definitely a word to describe his mystery jogger, there was something inherently sexy about her as well. She’d been wearing a baggy sweatshirt and had shorts over her leggings, but even under all that fabric, Brody could see the outline of a shapely figure, sending his imagination into overdrive as his mind tried to fill in the blanks.
When she’d gazed up at him from her sidewalk sprawl, he’d had to fight the urge to scoop her into his arms. And if that wasn’t bad enough, when her delicate tongue darted out to lick her bottom lip, he’d nearly kissed her for fuck’s sake. But none of that compared to how he felt when she’d turned to walk away. The sight of her hips swaying from side to side had had him adjusting his shorts. He’d only spent a few minutes with her, but even in that small span of time, he could tell she was the perfect mixture of sexy and sweet. It was a devastating combination. One that left him wanting to both protect her and seduce her—and not necessarily in that order.
While Brody’s reaction to her might have been surpris
ing, it was nothing compared to her total lack of reaction when it came to him. Clearly, she didn’t have a clue who he was. But what’s more, she didn’t seem to be the least bit affected by him. In any way at all. What was up with that? Even if she didn’t know about the arm the press dubbed the Golden Rocket, he still had what those same reporters referred to as “cover model looks.” And yet she didn’t even bat an eye. Nada. Zip. Zilch. Not even when he flashed the Dixon Dimple.
And what was even worse? When he tried to lay on some of that famous Brody charm, she’d nearly laughed in his face. To be fair, it had been a pretty cheesy line. And he had no idea where it came from. It was like he completely lost all his game. But still, cheesy or not, it would have worked on most women. Then again, even from the short amount of time he’d spent with her, Brody already knew this one wasn’t like most women.
Bottom line: he wanted more. Problem: he had no idea who she was. Maybe if he went jogging on the same path next Sunday? Christ, had it really come to that? Waking up early on a weekend for no other reason than to search for a mystery girl? He was Brody Dixon. He didn’t have to work that hard. But there was no denying the fact that she’d piqued his interest. Or that the thought of seeing her again was already causing a familiar sensation to stir below the sheets. Waking at the crack of dawn would be worth it if it meant he could bump into her again. Figuratively not literally, he thought, smiling to himself as he remembered her sassy reply. Of course, a literal bump, especially if paired with a grind, wouldn’t be too bad either. He nearly laughed out loud imagining the inevitable eye roll that line would undoubtedly earn him. Part of him knew this one would be trouble. But another part of him already knew he’d be making that Sunday run, despite the ungodly hour. And an even bigger part of him knew that the day would end with his mystery woman in his bed.
Save the Date (Wild Wedding Series Book 3) Page 2