13. Tara
13
TARA
Cruz and I laugh as we walk through the lobby, but as soon as we walk into the room where the rehearsal and wedding is going to take place, I tense up.
All eyes turn toward us, and I automatically feel like curling into myself. I hate this feeling, and I hate that Cruz is going to see me through these people’s eyes.
Even my mom and dad are disappointed in me on a daily basis.
“Tara, you’re late.”
I nod my head but keep my mouth shut. Normally, I would tell her that it’s still ten minutes before I was supposed to be here, but I know there is no winning with my mother, so I’ve given up trying.
“Mrs. Brooks, if we’re late, it’s my fault. I thought we were supposed to be here at six, and it’s ten till.”
My mom’s face morphs in front of my eyes. I expect her to double down, but instead she smiles and comes toward Cruz. “Oh no, of course. You’re a busy man, we understand. We thought it was Tara running behind with her head in the clouds.”
Cruz stiffens beside me. “Tara is one of the most responsible people I know. Plus, she wouldn’t miss this for anything. She’s a good sister.”
There’s a silence in the air, and I don’t know who is more stunned: my mom because someone has stood up to her, my sister for the slight with the sister remark, my dad that someone finally stood up to my mom, or me because someone has stood up for me.
My mom recovers quickly, but her smile isn’t as bright as before. “Right, of course. Well, let’s get started so we can get to dinner.”
She turns to my sister. “Brynn and Grant, you ready?”
The rehearsal starts, and Cruz reluctantly lets go of me and sits in a seat. I go toward the back to stand with my mom, sister, maid of honor, and other bridesmaids.
“Oh my goodness, Tara, he is hot.”
“I can’t believe you’re dating Cruz Payne.”
“My husband is going to die when he finds out that Cruz is here. He refused to come to the wedding, so he’s going to be mad he missed seeing him.”
They are all talking at once, drooling over Cruz, and I just soak it all in. Usually at social events, I have to deal with jokes and insults, so being on this end is nice.
But Brynn doesn’t like it. “Hello. This is my wedding. Can we please quit talking about Tara’s date that is probably going to dump her when he gets bored with her.” A few of the girls gasp, and some of them roll their eyes because they’re used to Brynn’s attitude.
My mother comes up to me. “Tara, I’ll remind you that this is your sister’s wedding, and it’s not right that you’re trying to upstage her. I knew you were jealous, but this is a whole new low.”
I open my mouth to argue, but instead I just seal my lips. I know there’s no arguing with her. As far as I’m concerned, after this wedding, I’m going to keep my distance from my family because they obviously don’t care anything about me. When my parents found out that Grant cheated on me with Brynn, they automatically thought I should be supportive of my sister. They didn’t care how I felt about all of it.
So I stand here, stay silent, and wait for my cue. I’m one of the first bridesmaids to walk out, and I’m holding back tears as I walk down the aisle and stop at the end. I can’t even look at Cruz through the whole thing. Probably by the end of the night, he’s going to see me as a loser like my family does. Oh well, it was nice while it lasted.
As soon as the rehearsal is done, Cruz is by my side. He puts his arm around me, and I turn into his chest. His arms go around me, and he holds me to him. I take deep breaths, trying to commit this feeling to memory.
He strokes his hand up and down my back. “Talk to me, sweetie.”
I lift my chin to look up at him. “I’m fine.”
“Do you want to go to the dinner?”
I screw up my nose. I wish I could skip it. “I have to, and I hate to do this to you, but I really want you to go with me.”
He smiles and brushes a hair that came out of my clip, “Oh you’re stuck with me. I’m not leaving you alone with these people again.”
I giggle. “You going to walk down the aisle with me tomorrow?”
As soon as I say it, I realize how it sounds. “I mean, ya know, like when I walk out as a bridesmaid… you said you weren’t going to leave me alone.”
He nods, and his voice is gruff. “I’d walk down the aisle with you. What did they say to you? I knew as soon as you came out, they said something.”
I try to wave him off, but he’s insistent. “My mom thinks I’m trying to upstage my sister by bringing you here. I’m sure she knows this is all fake. She’d never believe you would want to be with me.”
He leans down. “She’d be wrong.” Before that can sink in, he says, “Come on, let me get you a drink.”
I instantly reach for his hand, and we walk from the room with the sound of my sister complaining behind us. The wedding planner is ushering everyone into the dining room, and Cruz and I go straight to the bar.
He has his hand low on my waist, barely above my ass, and he’s smiling at me like he could eat me up. “What do you want to drink?”
“Peachy keen, please?”
He orders an old fashioned for himself and a peachy keen for me. As we’re waiting, he has his hand on me the whole time. When the order comes, he holds both drinks and puts his arm out for me to hold on to.
He leads me through the room, and luckily everyone can sit wherever they want, so we sit at a table that no one else is at.
A few people from the wedding party come over and say hello to Cruz. My sister’s friends have never paid any attention to me before, so it’s surprising that they are tonight. Now her friends’ husbands are another story. They come and sit around the table instead of sitting with their wives and talk to Cruz.
He answers their questions, but somehow he remains focused on me the whole time.
One of the groomsmen comes over, and it looks like he’s already had too much to drink. He sits down in the only vacant chair that happens to be next to me. He nudges me and leans in to whisper even though it’s nowhere near a whisper because I’m sure the whole table hears him. “Hey, kid, just a warning. Grant is losing his shit. He’s saying he messed up and picked the wrong sister.”
I try to ignore him because I don’t even know how you respond to that, but he doesn’t give up. “Hey Tara, what do you think? What should I tell Grant?”
I finally look at him. “Hell would freeze over before I would ever go back to him.”
I barely get the words out, and he is pulled out of his chair. I gasp as I see Cruz holding him up like he weighs nothing, “Hey buddy, I think you’ve had a little too much to drink. Find somewhere else to sit.”
A few of the groomsmen grab their friend, pulling him away and apologizing to Cruz and me. When Cruz sits back down, his hand goes to my thigh, and he leans toward me. “Hell would have to freeze over, huh?”
I nod as his fingers grip my thigh. “Yes,” I practically moan.
“That’s good,” he announces.
Breathless, I ask him, “Why is that good?”
He leans over and whispers, “Because I don’t share.”
I look around the table, and all eyes are on us, but I don’t think they can hear Cruz. Why is he saying he doesn’t share? Is this fake? Is this real? The back and forth and up and down is driving me crazy, and I don’t know where to go from here.
Dinner is served, and while we eat, Cruz keeps his hand on my leg.
I start to relax the longer we sit here. Cruz is attentive, and no matter how many people come over to talk to him, he never leaves my side.
When I need another drink, he has someone bring them to us. He takes pictures with people, and by the end of the night, everyone has fallen in love with him. Well, everyone except for my mom, Grant, and Brynn.
“How you holding up, pumpkin?”
I look up at my dad and try not to tense up. I’ve always felt bad for him. He’s a nice man, but he has no backbone. My mom has bossed him around my whole life, and he never stands up to her.
“We’re doing good, Dad. I guess I should formally introduce you. Dad, this is Cruz Payne. Cruz, this is my father, Danny Brooks.”
They shake hands and start talking about the playoff win from the other night and Cruz’s announcement about retirement. “So what are your plans after football?”
Cruz sits a little taller. “Well, I had a few endorsement deals come in, and I signed a seven-figure deal on my book.”
“You did?” I gasp. “You didn’t tell me.”
He strokes his thumb across mine. “I know, I’m sorry. It all happened earlier, and you’ve had your own things?—”
I put my hand over my chest. “Oh Cruz, no! We should celebrate. Have you told Lexi? She would be so excited.”
His cheeks turn ruddy, and even though it’s obvious he’s excited, he’s embarrassed about the attention. His face goes from joyous one minute to defensive in an instant.
“Hey, Tara.”
I turn in my seat, and Ben, Grant’s brother, has pulled out the chair next to me, turned it around, and straddled it.
I lean toward him. “Ben, hey. I’m so glad you made it.”
He nods and looks around the room. “Yeah, it’s really not my scene, and Mom and Dad would rather I not come, but I couldn’t miss my brother’s first wedding, now could I?”
We both laugh and then I put my hand on Cruz’s arm. “Cruz, this is Ben, the good brother.”
Ben is a bigger guy, probably as big as Cruz. He’s got scruff on his chin, and even though they’re covered right now, I know he has tattoos up and down his arms. Ben holds his hand out to Cruz, and for just a second I think that he’s going to refuse him, but I squeeze his arm, and he shakes hands with Ben.
When they release each other, Ben leans toward me. “This is a shit show, right?”
I nod. “Yes, it is.”
He picks his beer bottle off the table and points it at me. “You holding up okay?”
I shrug. “Ready for this to be over.”
He nods and takes a swig of his drink. “Ain’t that the fuckin’ truth.”
He gestures between Cruz and me. “You two dating?”
Without looking at Cruz, I nod my head and answer shortly, not trusting myself to say more. “Yep.”
Ben smiles. “Good.” He looks at Cruz. “Watch her back. I don’t trust my brother. He’s ready to blow this all up.”
I point at myself. “I can take?—”
Before I can get it all out, Cruz interrupts. “I’ll take care of it.”
Ben nods, and when he stands up, so does Cruz. This time, Cruz sticks his hand out. “Thanks for the heads up.”
When they release their hold, Ben looks at me. “Lexi coming to the wedding?”
I practically snort. “Nope, she wants nothing to do with Brynn or your brother. She’d probably stab one of them with a flower pick if she did.”
Ben smiles, but it doesn’t quite reach his eyes. “Right, well, tell her I asked about her.”
“Sure thing.”
As soon as he walks away, Cruz breaks the silence. “Why is he asking about my sister?”
I look at Ben’s retreating back before answering Cruz. “Uh….” I start but don’t finish. Should I tell him that his sister met Ben at a tattoo shop? I’m not sure he’d like that.
He tenses. “Fuck, is he the one that broke Lexi’s heart?”
My mouth drops open. “What are you talking about? No one broke her heart.”
He looks at Ben. “She said she liked someone but it didn’t work out. She’s been different the last few months. Something is going on with her.”
I think about the past few months and wonder, have I been so caught up in my stuff that I’ve ignored Lexi? “Noooo, if she liked Ben, I would know that. They never… I mean she met him when I went to get a tattoo.”
His eyebrows raise. “Tattoo? He gave you a tattoo?”
“Yeah, he’s an artist at Heat & Ink.”
He grimaces. “Where is your tattoo?”
“His shop is next to the clubhouse at the outskirts of Whiskey Run.”
“He’s a biker!” Cruz exclaims, and I instantly hush him.
“Yes, Cruz, he’s part of the club.”
He juts his chin in anger. “I wasn’t asking where his shop is, I’m asking you where your tattoo is on your body?”
By this point, we’re both standing, and I point to my hip. “Right here.”
He puts his hand over my hip and squeezes me gently. “I don’t know if I should carry you over my shoulder back to the room and punish your sweet ass or if I should go kick his ass because I’m sure he’s the one that broke my sister’s heart.”
I hold up a finger. “First of all, what you do mean, punish me?” I hold up a second finger. “And second of all, how do you know he’s the one she was talking about?”
He grits his teeth and pulls me against him. “I don’t like to think of another man’s hands on your body.”
He doesn’t answer the last question, but I don’t ask him about it because I’m trying to get past his possessive words. His hard manhood is pressed against my belly, and I melt into him. “Be careful, Cruz. You’re starting to act like a jealous boyfriend.” I tap his hard stomach. “This is fake… remember?”
I try to hide the hope from my voice. I keep reminding myself that this is fake, but I can’t deny that I want something, and the way he’s acting, I’m wondering if there’s a possibility he does too. As I rest my head against his chest, I know what I need to do. If one Valentine’s Day is all I have with him, then I’m going to take complete advantage of the situation. For one night, he’s going to be mine.