Chapter 5
5
Ashley
Alcohol had loosened her tongue. Four martinis in a row on a mostly empty stomach could do that, but it was also the only way she’d been able to get through the cocktail hour. And that had been after hiding in the bathroom for the first half of it to make sure no one dragged her out to be part of the family photos.
Fuck that.
Staring up at Rebecca’s hot dad, she knew she should keep her mouth shut, but the words came out, anyway. His expression was shocked enough, she started to giggle, slapping her hand over her mouth to muffle the noise, but it only worked so well.
“Sorry, sorry, probably shouldn’t have asked that.” She managed to stifle her giggles as she turned away from him. Still, she had to wonder what he was thinking about his daughter marrying her dad. Wonder why he was over here talking to her.
“No, it’s okay. It’s an… odd situation.”
That was one way of putting it.
The bartender put a glass of water down in front of her. She should probably drink that. That would be the responsible thing to do.
But she wasn’t sure she wanted to be responsible right now.
Still, she grabbed the water glass in one hand and the martini glass in the other and hopped down from the stool she’d been sitting on. Attempted to hop, anyway. She stumbled, her knees weaker than she’d realized from all the alcohol, and the room spun.
“Whoops, I’ve got you.” Mr. Black’s strong arms wrapped around her, holding her up, and Ashley’s unfocused gaze came to rest on her martini. It was still half-full, so she had that going for her. As Mr. Black straightened, Ashley looked up at him, blinking.
He really was hot as fuck. Why on earth was his wife cheating on him? Maybe he sucked in bed. Or maybe he was a shitty guy despite the current evidence to the contrary.
“Maybe you should leave the martini,” he said, reaching for it.
Ashley twisted away.
“Maybe you should mind your own business,” she retorted. “You didn’t stop your own daughter from her bad choices, why are you interfering with mine?”
Oops. There went the alcohol, making her say the ‘inside thoughts’ again. She couldn’t even bring herself to feel regret as Mr. Black froze in place, his expression blanked. Then he stepped back, dropping his hand down and tugging his tuxedo jacket into place.
“You’re right, of course,” he said. Abruptly, he turned and walked away, forgetting his drink.
Dammit.
Ashley fought against the urge to chase after him and apologize. What she’d said was true. She hadn’t had the ability to stop her father from his actions because she was his kid, but surely, Mr. Black and his wife could have done something. Like not paying for this extravagant wedding.
This wedding was like rubbing it in her and her mother’s face that no one cared what Wiley and Rebecca had done. Nope. They weren’t just condoning it—they were celebrating it. Celebrating the happy couple.
The most sympathetic person in the entire place was the damned bartender.
Seeing people looking at her, then quickly looking away, carrying on hushed conversations with those around them, Ashley lifted the half-full martini glass and quickly tipped the whole thing down her throat. She did keep a hold of the water, too. Just because she wanted to get drunk didn’t mean she wanted to be entirely wasted.
Though her dad and Rebecca would deserve it, Ashley didn’t want to make an entire fool out of herself. It wouldn’t reflect badly on them… it would reflect badly on her. She got the feeling she’d just made a fool out of herself to Mr. Black, and she didn’t like that feeling. Not at all.
Even if it was partly his fault that they were all there today. Her mood darkened as she sat back down at the bar. Who the hell was he to judge her for having a few too many drinks at his daughter’s wedding to her father?! Seriously? He was throwing a literal party for his daughter’s bad decisions. A few too many drinks were nothing compared to that.
Fucking hypocrite.
It would serve him right if Mrs. Black did catch him cheating. Get a bunch of extra money out of him that she didn’t deserve. Ashley knew Mrs. Black didn’t work, which meant this whole wedding was being paid for by Mr. Black. She wished she could mess up their lives the way they’d messed up hers.
You already thought of the answer, remember?
Fuck Mr. Black.
Take pictures and give them to Mrs. Black.
Fuck over Mr. Black.
Let Rebecca see how it feels to have her friend break up her parents’ marriage.
The thoughts tumbled through her head, hitting her like punches to the gut, one after the other and leaving her breathless. She stumbled to a halt, wavering on her feet. Somehow it seemed like a better idea than it had earlier in the day. It had been a fantasy before.
Now… God, it was tempting.
Then Rebecca would know how Ashley felt.
At least, as close as she could get, considering Ashley’s mother had been faithful and blindsided, whereas Rebecca’s mother was a scheming, cheating bitch. But it fit. An eye for an eye. A marriage for a marriage.
A father for a father.
The only question was whether or not Mr. Black would go for it, especially considering the way she’d just spoken to him. On the other hand, he’d been the one to come up to her, hadn’t he? And he caught her when she’d stumbled. There had been a spark.
Had there been a spark?
She thought there had been a spark, but it was also hard to tell when she was this drunk. It could have been her imagination.
Only one way to find out.
The bartender slid another water to her. Ashley took it without protest—and without ordering another drink. She needed to sober up a little if she was going to test this theory.
“Okay everyone, this way, this way… please make your way into the reception and find your seats!” The wedding coordinator was making her way through the crowd, gesturing. Grabbing hold of her water glass, Ashley blended in with the other people, ducking behind a particularly tall man when the coordinator glanced in her direction.
Her father hadn’t mentioned her coming into the reception with the wedding party, but she wasn’t taking any chances.
Someone came up beside her and took her arm, making her jump—then sigh in relief when she realized it was Uncle Kellar. He looked back at her with both sympathy and amusement.
“How drunk are you?” he asked. Ashley shrugged. He didn’t want the real answer to that. A tiny smile quirked the side of his lips. “Come on, I’ll help you get to your seat.”
“If it’s at the head table, I’m running.” She probably wouldn’t make it far before stumbling and falling flat on her face, but she figured she should give him fair warning since he would be the one who had to pick her up.
Fuck. If she was going to test the waters with Mr. Black she really did need to sober up some more. Or would she need to be drunker in order to go through with it? Sure, he was physically attractive, but she’d never had sex with a married man. Especially not one who was so much older, even if he wasn’t actually twice her age the way her dad was with Rebecca.
Rebecca sure as hell didn’t have any trouble fucking my married dad, so why should I let that get in my way?
“Here you are,” Uncle Kellar said, pulling out a chair. “Right next to me.”
The table was with him and the rest of her family members on her dad’s side, which was going to be torture but not nearly as bad as being seated near her dad and Rebecca. Ashley breathed a sigh of relief. If nothing else, Uncle Kellar’s presence should make the dinner bearable, then she could make her escape.
Unless she was going to stick around to try to seduce Mr. Black, of course.
It wasn’t like Mrs. Black would care. Heck, if Ashley got pictures, Mrs. Black might even thank her. And if she was pissed… well, this farce was partly her fault. She definitely had no problem with Rebecca marrying Ashley’s dad or that they’d been having an affair.
She could get a taste of her own medicine.
I can’t actually do it, though… can I?
She didn’t know.
Music started to play and everyone who was still standing hurriedly sat down.
“Okay, ladies and gentlemen… let’s welcome the parents of the bride, Mr. and Mrs. Black!” The DJ’s voice reverberated around the room as the doors swung open to reveal Mrs. Black clinging to Mr. Black’s arm, beaming brightly as cheers broke out around the room.
The noise made Ashley’s chest tighten, aching. While her mother was at home, wondering where her life had gone wrong, all these people were celebrating a fucking travesty. Her gaze zeroed in on Mr. and Mrs. Black. Rebecca’s father had a small smile on his face as he looked around. If Ashley’s words at the bar had bothered him, he’d gotten over it pretty quickly.
Grimly, Ashley reached for the glass of champagne in front of her.
“Ashley, that is for the toasts,” Aunt Jeanine whispered from across the table.
“Leave her alone,” Uncle Kellar whispered back. “If she needs to drink to get through this, then let her. I know I’m not going to be far behind her.”
Glaring at her brother, Aunt Jeanine leaned over and whispered something to her husband who waved his hand at her. He was too busy watching the wedding party being introduced and coming into the room to pay his wife much mind. That was par for the course for Uncle Michael.
Smiling sweetly at her aunt, Ashley downed the whole glass in one gulp.