Chapter 2
Chapter Two
Jude Silver
Roughly an hour after picking Kendall up for the wedding, I looked ahead at my eldest brother, who had just said his part of the vows.
Haven was oblivious to everything but Elsa.
His eyes were locked on her as she stood in front of him.
They were getting married outside, and it was a beautiful day for an outdoor wedding.
A soft breeze rustled through the air. The fireweed was in full bloom in the field nearby.
All in all, there might as well have been birds chirping.
Who knew my grumpy oldest brother could fall so hard that he would actually not be so cranky?
I took a breath, shifting my shoulders. “Are you okay?” Kendall whispered from where she sat beside me in the front row of chairs.
“Fine,” I all but hissed through my teeth.
“Sheesh, I was just asking,” she muttered.
After this afternoon, I would never, ever, ever walk into any space again after knocking without waiting for someone to tell me to come in. Walking in and seeing Kendall bare from the waist up had nearly undone me. I was still trying to recover. And honestly,I didn’t know if I ever would recover.
We’d been friends since middle school when she moved to town. For years, I’d tried to pretend that I didn’t have that big of a crush on her in high school. Except I knew better. But then, I’d convinced myself I’d gotten over it.
For a few years, we’d both gone our separate ways. Kendall left town for college. And well, my life, along with the rest of my family’s, had been a hot mess for the past decade or so.
So it had been fine. No crushes for me. Then she moved back, and we fell back into our friendship. It was all fine.
But, as of roughly an hour ago, I knew what her breasts looked like, and they were perfect.
Absolutely perfect. But then, she was perfect.
With her wild brown curls, her big brown eyes, the freckles on her cheeks, her cute little body, curvy and soft-looking.
Now, I was forever cursed with the knowledge that her breasts were more than a handful and her nipples were a light, dusky pink and puckered up beautifully.
So beautifully that it had been all I could do not to walk across that room in her apartment, cup both breasts in my hands, and suck her perky nipples into my mouth.
I was going to fantasize about that, well, probably for the rest of my fucking life. It would be torture. Her perfect nipples were the problem.
Well, her nipples weren’t the problem. The problem was I was half in love with her, and she was my best friend, and I didn’t want to screw up our friendship. Yet now my mind would be forever filled with the images of her breasts and the way her skin flushed.
Fuck me.
Kendall’s breath drew in with a soft sound of surprise, and I glanced over to see tears shining in her eyes as she pressed her palm against her chest.
Oh, that’s right. We were at a wedding, and my eldest brother was pledging himself to the woman he loved. Focus, focus, focus.
I brought my attention back to the happy couple. They must have just been pronounced man and wife because Haven dipped his head to kiss Elsa.
The next few hours were a blur. No matter how hard I tried not to pay attention to Kendall, it was impossible.
She was like a magnet for me. I might as well have been physically attached to her.
Of course, we were good friends, and we truly were, so everyone kind of expected us to hang out together because we usually did.
Spending time with Kendall was usually one of my favorite things. Until I saw her breasts today.
“Congratulations, man.” I clapped Haven on the shoulder and pulled him into a back-slapping hug.
He chuckled. “I’m finally married,” he said, looking almost surprised.
“You are. Elsa is perfect for you,” I said, meaning it in a way that I couldn’t have imagined, even at the beginning of their relationship.
“She is. Thank you.”
“For what?” I prompted.
“Being my brother. Being here. Giving me a nudge when I needed to get my head straight. About Elsa, all that stuff,” Haven explained.
“Anytime, man. That’s what brothers are for, right?”
“Something like that,” Asher, another brother, said dryly from my side.
I chuckled, sliding my eyes to him.
“It’s your turn,” Asher announced.
“Excuse me?”
“I’m just kidding, but now that Haven’s fallen, somebody else has to.”
“Well, it’s not gonna be me,” I said flatly.
“Oh, I think you’re the most obvious one,” Asher returned.
“Why?” I was flummoxed.
He narrowed his eyes, his expression knowing as he glanced over toward Kendall.
Her makeshift wedding outfit looked amazing on her. It was a wrap skirt with a silky blouse on top. Of course, all I could do was picture her without the blouse. I wanted to lift her hips onto a counter, drape that skirt around her thighs, and—
Well, there went my thoughts again. Slow your roll, dude.
“You’re in love with Kendall,” Asher said flatly.
“What?!” I exclaimed.
Haven overheard and chuckled. “Maybe you haven’t figured it out, but the rest of us have,” he pointed out. “Anytime you want to talk about it, I’m here. After our honeymoon.”
Elsa appeared at his side after parting with her mother, who angled over to chat with ours. “What’s happening after our honeymoon?” she asked.
Haven grinned. “Jude is in love with Kendall, and I told him we all know it, even if he doesn’t.”
Elsa nodded, her gaze understanding as she glanced at me. “When you’re ready, Jude, you can face it.”
“Oh my God,” I muttered.
Of course, the part that killed me the most about this entire ridiculous conversation was that the one person I wanted to vent to was Kendall.
“Wow.” I looked among them. “How about you guys steer clear of the gossip? Not cool.”
“You’re family,” Elsa said matter-of-factly.
“It’s not gossip, just observation,” Haven added, his gaze teasing.
“All right, lovebirds. Off with you. It’s getting late,” I finally said. “Do you need a ride to the airport tomorrow?”
“Actually, that’d be awesome.” They were flying to Hawaii for their honeymoon. Elsa insisted she needed somewhere tropical.
“You got it,” I replied, relieved they let me drop the burning-hot topic of Kendall.
When the happy couple moved along, Asher glanced over, one brow rising. “Looking for Kendall, aren’t you?”
“Oh, shut the fuck up. I’m giving her a ride home.”
Asher chuckled, but then his gaze sobered. “I won’t tease you.” He paused. “I mean, just a little.” He held up his thumb and forefinger with a tiny space between them.
“Fuck you,” I teased before turning and threading my way through the crowd to find Kendall.
The space inside my truck was unusually quiet as I drove her home. I contemplated whether I should discuss what happened. Then, like an idiot, I started the conversation. “So should we talk about that, or…”
“No, we shouldn’t talk about that. In fact, why don’t you just forget what you saw?”
I almost choked. “Well, that’s impossible, Kendall.”
When I glanced her way as I parked my truck, her eyes were wide. “Why is it impossible?”
“Because you’re fucking beautiful, Kendall. And now I know you have perfect breasts,” I said flatly.