Chapter 33
Invisible strings
Alex
Ican’t tear my eyes off Amelia as she stands next to the limo. The way her dress clings to her body is intoxicating.
She turns her head, glancing at me over her shoulder, and it’s almost my undoing. I’m desperate to go to her, but now is not the time. I knew as soon as I saw that limo that she’d put a lot of thought into making this a fun night for Lizzie.
So I watch her get back in the car and let it drive away.
Fuck.
Checking the time, I head back upstairs to have a drink.
The wedding is happening at a resort an hour or so away, and I’ve rented out the whole damn place until Wednesday morning.
Lizzie had asked for a couple of days beyond the wedding, letting guests extend their stay and make it a short vacation if they wanted to.
My parents are flying in tonight and we’re all heading out to the resort early tomorrow morning.
I pour a small bottle of whiskey from the minibar into a glass and sip it, thinking about Amelia until my phone alerts me that the car I ordered is downstairs. Then I think about her on the drive to the airport.
The driver parks, and I walk inside.
“There he is,” my mom’s voice rings out loudly, her excitement clear. I turn and find her pointing at me from the escalator.
“I see him, Es.” Dad smiles softly at her. He adores her. Always has.
As soon as she gets close to me, Mom pulls me in for a hug. “You didn’t bring Lizzie with you?”
“She’s out with a bunch of friends having a bachelorette party tonight. You’ll see her in the morning.”
“Oh, I bet Minnie planned something fun. That girl is such a good friend to our Lizzie, isn’t she, Johnny?”
Shit, it didn’t occur to me that they’ve met Amelia, but they’ve come out to visit with Lizzie many times over the years.
“She sure is. Real sweetheart, that one. You flew in earlier than you were going to. Have you gotten to spend time with Lizzie?” Dad asks, clapping me on the shoulder as we turn toward the baggage claim.
“Pretty much all day, every day. She’s dragged me around two states for six days.”
“Sounds like Lizzie. I bet she talked Minnie into coming along. Hardly ever see one without the other.” Mom grins.
I nod. “For a good chunk of it all, yeah. She had things to do at the dance studio and helped out with her siblings a couple of the days.”
“And that sounds like Minnie,” Mom says.
As we wait at the baggage claim, I tell them about the last week.
They’ve spent the last few years traveling and have been to a few of the places we went.
Before that, they lived in New York. Mom raised me by herself after my biological father took off shortly after I was born.
When I started Delgado Technology Corp., Mom worked in the office with Katie.
Even though she didn’t meet Johnny until I was an adult, he became my dad when I saw how he treated my mom and baby daughter.
Lizzie had him wrapped around her tiny pinky almost instantly.
After grabbing their bags, we head for the car.
Dad sits up front with the driver so Mom can yack my ear off about how excited she is to see Lizzie and basically everyone except Tiffany.
The more I hear her talk about the people here, the more I just can’t believe that Amelia and I missed all the connections between us.
I help them settle into their room and promise to meet them in the morning.
Back in my own room, I find a movie to watch, but it doesn’t do much to distract me from my thoughts of the beautiful woman who owns me, heart and soul.
Especially after Lizzie sends me a picture of Amelia on the dance floor.
Lizzie
You better fix things soon. One of these days, she’s gonna stop turning all these assholes down.
Me
I will.
Lizzie
Just remember, she was mine first.
I can’t get the image of Amelia in that silver dress out of my head, no matter how hard I try. Turning off the TV, I walk into the bathroom and start the shower, leaving the temperature cooler than I like.
But replaying that look she gave me and how the shiny material clung to her body has me hard despite the cold spray.
There’s no point in fighting it. I reach down and wrap my hand around my cock, slowly stroking myself from base to tip.
Memories of Amelia flash through my mind.
Teasing smiles. Fingers brushing against mine.
My name on her lips. Whimpering with my hand in her shorts.
Moaning on my desk with my head between her thighs.
They swirl together until I can almost taste her on my tongue as I come.
In the morning, a car drives us over to Amelia’s house because Lizzie slept there. I knock on the front door, and Barry laughs when he opens it.
“As if any of you three need to knock on this door. Come on in. Lizzie’s in the kitchen.” He hugs my mom and shakes my dad’s hand.
I’ve never been part of a big family before, but the way I feel welcome here, the way my parents and daughter are welcome here, it’s something I didn’t know I was missing in my life.
We walk through the house and into the kitchen, where Lizzie’s sitting at the table with a cup of coffee in her hands. She jumps up when she sees us.
“Grandma! Grandpa! I’m so glad you’re here!
” Giving them both hugs, she then turns to give me one, too.
“I wish I’d thought about the car situation before this morning.
I swear, we’re going to end up taking a hundred cars with all the people and stuff we need to bring with us.
Travis wants to ride with Leon, Aaron wants to ride with Jenny and Justin, no one wants to ride with Mom, and it’s a logistical mess right now. ”
“I should have chartered a bus,” I tell her. “I wonder if it’s too late to do that, actually.”
“Too late to do what?” Amelia asks, coming into the kitchen with Henry on her back, his arms around her neck, and a huge smile on his face.
“Oh look, it’s the little monster who woke us up at six wanting to play Paw Patrol,” Lizzie teases.
“Paw Patrol!” Henry repeats happily.
“Minnie, sweetie!” My mom descends on Amelia and grabs the sides of her face before wrapping her in a hug. “Is my granddaughter running you ragged?”
“Of course she is, Essie. But I’ll sleep after Sunday.” She grins at my mom and then my dad.
“Liar. You two always find some kind of trouble to get into. Henry, look at what a big boy you are! Come here and give me a hug!” Mom reaches for Amelia’s little brother, and he goes right into her arms.
Amelia picks up her coffee and takes a sip before looking at me and Lizzie. “What’s it too late for?”
“Chartering a bus to drive us all to the resort, so we’re not taking a bunch of cars,” I say.
She shrugs. “It’s worth a shot. I’ll give Matt a call.
” Taking her coffee cup with her, she walks out to the back porch.
About five minutes later, she walks back in with a smile on her face.
“Bus will be here in less than an hour. We’ll get a bill later.
Bean, if you want to invite any of the girls, let them know now.
I already messaged Haven. Matt will stop here first so we don’t get stuck with shitty seats. ”
Lizzie scoffs. “It’s my wedding, and I’ll sit where I want to. Shit, let’s go get coffee from Gloria while we have time. We can steal Barry’s Yukon.”
We pile into the car with Amelia at the wheel. She makes Lizzie get in the very back, saying bride or not, it’s only fair. Gloria, being Gloria, throws her arms around my parents and loudly congratulates them for having such a ‘hunky son’ before sending us on our way with a bag full of crullers.
“Do we have to let Mom on the bus?” Lizzie asks around a mouthful of pastry.
“I should say ‘of course, she’s your mother,’ but I’ve been trying to figure out a way to keep her off of it.” My mom laughs as she says it from the front passenger seat.
“Dad, find a seat-buddy A-sap because you know she’s going to try and sit next to you,” Lizzie tells me.
“Shit.” I huff and shake my head. “As soon as she gets on, I’m jumping out the back and stealing a car.”
“I don’t think there is a back door. I didn’t hire a fucking school bus.” Amelia laughs. It’s an exchange like we would have had just a few weeks ago before I fucked everything up, and it brings a smile to my face.
Lizzie grins. “Let’s do that next time. Make it feel like a field trip.”
“Nope, not doing all this shit again for you, Bean. Next time, it’s Vegas, baby.”
“Ah, come on. What about New Orleans instead? Vegas is overdone at this point.”
“Vegas is overdone for a reason,” Amelia insists. “There’s a roller coaster on top of a hotel, slot machines everywhere, and a shit ton of celebrity impersonators.”
“True. Meh, we’ll see.”
“Honey, maybe the fact that you’re already talking about your second wedding the day before the first one should tell you something.” My dad looks back toward Lizzie from the seat next to me, a thoughtful expression on his face.
“I’m just being silly, Gramps. You know how we are.”
“Mmmhhmmm.” He gives me a look as he turns back that tells me he’s not convinced. The fact that I’ve been here for a week now and have yet to meet my future son-in-law has me seriously doubting this marriage.
Matt shows up with the bus just a few minutes after we get back. “Hello, my good people. I hear you need to get a bunch of people and a bunch of bags to the wedding venue.”
“That we do. And once we’re there, you get your choice of joining the groom on the golf course, joining the bride for the bridal shower, or enjoying the spa before the rest of us.” Amelia stops next to him and hands him a cruller. “Eat that before everyone else sees.”
He shoves half of it in his mouth before speaking. “I’m assuming Tiffany will be at the shower, so no to that. And the spa will be there later. I’ll go golfing.” He wraps an arm around Lizzie’s shoulder as he finishes the cruller. “Just don’t stick me with Calvin and the jerkwads.”