Chapter 20
Summer
Weeks had passed since Colton had asked me to wait for him. I had hoped in the beginning that my time waiting would be short, but as the days passed, the sneaking around commenced, and soon, we were kissing in any deserted hallway and taking advantage of every stolen moment together.
My feelings for the man I couldn’t call mine only grew until I was sure that I was falling.
Guilt for cheating on Dylan quickly evaporated when he became distant, barely making time for me on weeknights or weekends, choosing to spend all his time with the boys from work.
I wasn’t enough for him.
Was I enough for anyone?
Our budding relationship was quickly turning into a friendship where we occasionally kissed and went for dinner. His sloppy kisses didn’t compare to Colton’s and only convinced me that my heart belonged to a man I couldn’t call mine.
Tonight was the company’s tenth anniversary. Mom, Dad, Auntie Ames, and Uncle Ryan had gone all out by hosting a grand event that everyone in the car industry had been invited to. All the food had been catered by Mom and Auntie Ames’s company while the event was hosted at a fancy hotel in the heart of Orlando.
It was unlike my family to splurge on a work event, but from the invitations to the napkins on the tables, everything had been given extra thought and special detail.
We even had rooms in the hotel for the night to get ready. The hotel had offered them to us at a discounted rate, and many of the guests attending tonight had taken advantage.
Glancing over my reflection in the hotel bathroom’s mirror one last time, I took note that my eyeliner couldn’t be any more precise or straight. Maddi had helped me perfect the dark, smoky eye look the last few weeks. We had practiced every weekend until we figured out the configuration that we liked best.
“Do you think this dress makes my boobs look small?” Maddi puffed out her chest as she stood in front of the floor-length mirror, her brows furrowed.
“I don’t think anything could make the girls look small, Mads.” She stopped her examination of her body to look up at me and laughed.
“You look so hot. If I were a guy I’d totally,” she paused, looking to the sky, “bone you,” she settled on with a mischievous smirk.
“You think Colton will recognize me with the mask on?” I asked her, tying the lace mask to my eyes.
Tonight’s theme had been Mom’s choice: masquerade, which meant to enter the event, your identity had to be concealed.
“Does he have a dick?” she asked, completely serious. I tied a small little bow at the back of my head, securing the mask to my face.
“You really have a dirty mouth, Mads.” She snickered and hands me her mask to put on. I stood behind her and tied the satin ribbon of her mask. “Did you end up inviting what’s his name?” I honestly couldn’t remember the name of her latest boyfriend. She went through them faster than tissues sometimes.
“Brady? Nah, decided to go solo. Find a hot hunk to flirt the night away with.” We linked arms and shot a quick mirror selfie before heading out, our heels clicking against the polished tile of the halls.
“Did you invite Dylan?”
“Not like I had much of a choice. I’m surprised he didn’t already have plans with the boys.” She snorted out a laugh as we entered the elevator and took it down until we reached the ground floor. Once we reached the lobby, we were surrounded by women in fancy dresses and men in dark tuxes. Strong perfumes assaulted my senses at once as I looked over each man, trying to find Colton in the crowd.
“Let him find you.” Maddi pulled on our linked arms, and we headed for the entrance, handing over our tickets to enter the dark room. Servers walked around holding silver trays with all sorts of assortments on them from champagne flutes to sweet treats our moms had made this week.
We did the expected rounds, greeting new and old faces, making small talk until it was polite to excuse ourselves. We both slid up to the bar, and I ordered a cocktail. I sipped on my martini, scanning the crowd, looking for him.
“What did I say?”
“Wait for him to find me,” I muttered, taking a small sip of the bitter liquid.
A warm hand wrapped around my waist and pulled me back into a hard chest. “Who are you waiting for?” Colton’s deep voice vibrated against my ear, and I sank into his embrace.
He had found me.
“How did you know it was me?” I whispered, turning my head to look at him.
“Only you would wear red to a black-tie event.” I smiled, and his eyes immediately darted to my red lips.
Red was every man’s weakness, and Colton was no different.
He pulled me away from the bar and Maddi, and we snuck into a deserted corner of the room.
In this stolen moment, hidden from view, I held my breath at our close proximity. Our chests brushed, our noses about to touch. His lips were so close that I could smell his minty breath. Oh, God, I wanted this man.
One of his hands rested on my hip, his fingers gripping me tightly as he held me to him. His other hand slid into my hair, his fingers just brushing my scalp. I resisted the urge to let my eyes close because I never wanted to forget this moment.
I never wanted to forget what it felt like to touch him, to be touched by him.
A clatter of a plate falling made me jump, and it subtly reminded me that we could get caught at any moment. The idea sent a thrill through my veins just as much as it terrified me.
He leaned his forehead against mine, bringing me back into our little bubble. The static noise of the people around us faded as I became tuned in to the sounds of his even breaths.
He made me forget everything and everyone.
He made me forget our coworkers who were so close by, made me forget our boss: my dad, made me forget my boyfriend, but most importantly, he made me forget that he was a taken man.
Because when he looked at me with those emerald-green eyes and smiled at me, I knew he was mine.
“I wish I had met you first,” he whispered, his eyes closed as he drew in a deep breath. “I could stay like this with you forever. You smell so amazing - addicting.” He opened his eyes, and the look in them took my breath away. His green eyes swirled with desire and primal need. “You are gorgeous, Summer, and I want the whole world to know that you are mine.”
His.
“You make me forget how to breathe,” I breathlessly whispered. I closed my eyes and counted to three in my head to slow my racing heart.
“You make me forget how to think, darlin’.” I couldn’t help the smile that stretched across my lips. “I want to kiss you.” I sucked in a sharp breath, my heart beating so quickly that I knew he could feel it.
“Then kiss me.”
There was a pause. I couldn’t hear past the roaring sound of my quickening pulse. He suddenly stiffened against me, his body going rigid, cold.
Did I do something wrong?
Then I heard it. My name – someone was calling my name.
“Summer! Where are you? It’s time for a toast, honey.” My mom’s voice was easily heard over the chatter of the staff, and I froze, all the blood draining from my body at once.
We were going to get caught.
Colton still hadn’t let go of me. Instead, his hands tightened around my body, warmth and comfort rolling off of him in waves.
“I don’t want to go.” I leaned into his touch and inhaled his spicy cologne.
“One day, you won’t have to,” he whispered, leaning forward to quickly brush his lips against mine before he was gone, leaving me standing there by myself – cold.
Did that really just happen?
I rested a sweaty palm against the wall to keep myself standing as reality crashed into me. I heard my name again, but this time, it was my father, and silence ensued when he hollered for me.
I turned and rushed into the crowded room, almost tripping over my own feet when I found them. I quickly took the offered champagne glass from my mother who glanced at me funnily.
“I’d like to thank you all for being here,” my dad started, and I searched the room for Colton once again. Immediately, like a moth drawn to a flame, I found him… and his cute-like fiancée wrapped around him like a wet towel as she kissed his cheek.
Dylan slid up next to me, his arm going around my waist as he pulled me into his body. Colton watched me, darkness filling his eyes as my boyfriend kissed the side of my head.
Great timing Dylan. Just perfect, I mentally applauded my poor excuse of a boyfriend.
“This has been a wonderful year for us as a company. We have experienced so much growth, come to love so many new faces, but most importantly, we made it to ten years as a company. This accomplishment is not without great battles and many days where I questioned if I could keep the doors open and if I could continue to keep food on your tables. But here we are, stronger than ever. Thank you for being a part of my dream and helping our company succeed.” My dad raised his champagne flute, and everyone followed.
A loud “cheers!” filled the room. The clink of many glasses could be heard, and everyone took a sip of the expensive bubbly.
I watched Colton lift his glass in a silent salute to me before bringing it to his lips, the same ones I was about to kiss. I did the same, all while wishing that it was me in his arms.
But all I could do was dream and wait like I promised – a promise I was regretting more and more with each passing day.