Chapter Three Goldie
Chapter Three
Goldie
Around thirty-five people were at the rehearsal dinner, and almost every single one outside my immediate family had asked about Joshua.
It was exhausting trying to answer appropriately.
Ace had stayed true to his promise and interrupted multiple times, somehow managing to change the subject without sounding rude.
The man had a gift.
It was probably the green eyes, dark wavy hair, and broad shoulders that people found distracting.
He was the whole package, and he could be very persuasive.
We’d just finished dinner, and Poppy and I were standing near the dance floor, per my brother’s insistence, as they had a big surprise to unveil.
My dad’s boss, Harry, moved in our direction.
“Oh no, incoming,” Poppy whispered in my ear.
He’d approached us numerous times in his costume, which consisted of a too-tight tan tracksuit and a wire around his head that had a piece of mistletoe attached.
Yes, Harry, who was thirty years our senior, had attempted to kiss both me and Poppy multiple times, along with every other woman at the rehearsal dinner.
He held out a piece of peppermint candy, just as he had before dinner.
“Ladies, it looks like you have an opportunity to step under the mistletoe.”
Poppy and I reached for the red-and-white hard candies and popped them in our mouths, though we had no intention of stepping under that mistletoe.
“Three strikes and you’re out, Har-Bear,” Poppy said. “I told you, I feel like I’m getting sick, so there will be no mistletoe kisses for me tonight.”
Harry had a super-thin mustache, and he smirked at me. “And what about you, Goldie? Is it true that you’re finally single?”
Before I could respond, Ace moved beside me, his fingers wrapping around my arm. “We’re being beckoned to the dance floor.”
My stomach dipped and I smiled up at him, grateful for the save.
“Whoa, whoa, whoa. I was in the middle of a conversation, Ace,” Harry grumped.
“Hey, Harry, long time no see. But I suggest you pace yourself. That mistletoe won’t make that mustache of yours any less creepy,” Ace said, his voice playful, but the look in his eyes was telling a different story.
He was irritated with Harry.
The older man blinked a couple of times and then chuckled, the insult going right over his head.
Just as Ace whisked me out to the dance floor, Poppy let a loud laugh before claiming she had to use the restroom.
“Yes. We’ve got our best man and maid of honor, Ace and Goldie.
Ace came dressed for this particular song, so let’s all get down to one of my all-time faves .
. . ‘Gettin’ Jiggy wit It’—or, even more fitting, ‘Gettin’ Grinchy wit It,’ y’all!
” Dwayne Holcomb, the live singer performing both tonight and tomorrow, shouted into the mic before breaking out in song.
He changed the lyrics to fit the holiday theme.
“Dear God, is he singing ‘Gettin’ Grinchy wit It’?” I asked as Ace pulled me against his hard body.
“Just roll with it, Sunny.” He leaned down, his lips grazing the shell of my ear. “I believe they’ve picked a song for everyone standing up in the wedding tomorrow, so your turn is coming.”
The rest of the wedding party joined us on the dance floor, and I had to laugh. “These two never miss a beat.”
“Never.” He winked. His green eyes met mine, and my stomach dipped.
Ace was a good foot taller than me, standing six foot four, with broad shoulders and the most handsome face I’d ever laid eyes on.
He had just the right amount of scruff peppering his perfectly square jaw.
The man was sinfully good looking, and I forced myself not to stare as he continued swaying us to the music.
My legs grazed against his thick thighs, and I had to concentrate on keeping my breathing under control.
Dwayne continued belting out the words. “‘Nah, nah, nah, nah, nah, nah, nah . . . Gettin’ Grinchy wit it’!”
The guests were having a great time singing along, and it was impossible not to laugh.
“I can’t wait to see what song they chose for me,” I groaned as I pushed up to speak close to his ear, the smell of mint and sage flooding my system.
It had been such a long time since I’d been attracted to a man.
Hell, the last few years with Joshua had been passionless.
In hindsight, he’d done us both a favor, even if I didn’t agree with the way he’d gone about it.
But if I was being honest with myself, we’d just been going through the motions for the last few years.
I’d been stuck and unable to see that I wasn’t happy.
“I’m sweating like a fucking animal in this costume,” he said as one hand rested on my waist and we continued to sway to the beat together.
“‘Gettin’ Grinchy wit it,’ Ace!” Leslie Peterson shouted across the dance floor, her words slurring. We both turned in her direction.
Leslie was one of the bridesmaids. She’d shown up wearing a sexy cat costume and a strand of lights around her neck, claiming she was a holiday kitty. I glanced over to see her prowling in our direction.
“Looks like you’ve got some fans here, Bonetti.” I chuckled as his fingers interlaced with mine when I started to step away.
“Don’t even fucking think about it, Sunny. You’re my plus-one tonight,” he said as he waggled his brows.
My stomach betrayed me once again as his eyes zeroed in on my mouth. He’d had a couple of cocktails and had unbuttoned a few of the buttons on his Grinch costume, exposing a sliver of skin on his golden chest.
His hair was a tousled mess of dark waves, and I laughed when he pulled me against his body once again.
“Can I cut in?” Leslie asked, and Ace wrapped an arm around me, his hand holding me still at the small of my back.
“Sorry, Leslie. Me and Rudolph are dance partners tonight.” His voice was teasing, and I couldn’t hide the smile on my face.
Leslie glared at me before storming off.
“That is one angry woman. Why is she dressed like a witch for a Christmas-themed party, anyway?” he asked as the song finally ended.
“She’s a sexy holiday cat.”
“Ahhh . . . more like a bitter pussy, got it.”
I laughed just as the song came to an end and Dwayne got everyone’s attention once again. “This one is for our beautiful maid of honor, Miss Goldie Jacobs. You heard me, fellas, word on the street is, she’s single and ready to mingle.”
No. He. Didn’t.
“Single and ready to mingle”?
Please make it end now.
I felt my cheeks heat. I hated this kind of attention, not to mention the fact that Dwayne was trying to play matchmaker when I was related to most of the people in this room. Leave it to my brother and Holly to have us all in the spotlight throughout the night.
Poppy hurried out to meet us on the dance floor, and the music started playing.
“No. Noooooo.” I shook my head.
Poppy used her hand to cover her mouth as Ace looked between us.
“What am I missing?” he asked as he looked deep in concentration while he listened to the beat before Dwayne belted out the first line of Beyoncé’s most famous song, “Single Ladies.”
“‘All the single reindeers, all the single reindeers,’” he shouted into the microphone as the entire room started singing along with him.
Nothing like being called out for being single, even while in costume.
My brother and Holly came and danced beside us as well, and we all sang along and laughed our asses off.
And Ace Bonetti never left my side.
Not when Dwayne sang “Hot in Herre” by Nelly, changing the lyrics to “It’s getting hot, Heat Miser” for Paul Belmont, a groomsman who’d dressed as the Heat Miser, and Dwayne repeatedly sang into the mic, encouraging everyone to take off all their clothes.
Not when he sang “Come on Eileen” by Dexys Midnight Runners and changed it to “Come on Virgin Mary,” while my parents danced like they were auditioning for a spot on Dancing with the Stars.
Ace stayed by my side even when the party had finally come to an end. He’d promised Poppy that he’d get me home, as her house was in the opposite direction.
I’d sat beside Ace in the car as my brother and Holly went on and on about how much fun they’d had. We pulled up to their house, since they weren’t traditional and they didn’t have any desire to spend the night before their wedding apart.
“Tomorrow morning, first thing, we all meet at our house to open gifts,” Holly said with a goofy smile on her face. “And then he’s all yours for the few hours before the wedding, Ace. I need to make myself beautiful.”
We both said we’d be there and hugged them goodbye.
“I’m getting married tomorrow!” Holly squealed as she got out of the car, and we all laughed as they shut the door and my brother helped her up the front steps.
“Where to next, boss?” the driver asked.
Ace looked at me, and I couldn’t quite read something in his look. My heart raced, and I quickly called out my address to the driver.
It was quiet for a beat before he spoke. “Did you know I had a crush on you when we were teenagers?”
I rolled my eyes. “You did not.”
“Did too.” He shrugged as he leaned back against the seat, a sexy grin settling on his face.
“You’re drunk.”
“Not drunk, Sunny. Just don’t feel the need to hide it anymore.”
I studied him, trying to decide if he was teasing me. “So why didn’t you ever tell me? I’m sure you knew I had a crush on you for most of my adolescence.”
He did a slow nod, leaning forward and resting his forearms on his massive thighs.
“I thought you might have. But we were kids, and I wasn’t going to act on something that I probably wouldn’t have handled well at that time.
Plus, you know my family was always the talk of the town for the wrong reasons, and I wasn’t going to drag you into my shit. I was embarrassed by it back then.”
“And now?”
“And now I know that their actions have nothing to do with me, and I’m not going to let dumb shit stop me from telling you the truth.”
My heart sank a little for him, because as much as Ace was the luckiest guy I’d ever known, it was no secret that he’d had a rough homelife.
But he was good at hiding the fact that it bothered him from most people, though I’d always felt honored that he’d opened up to me many times when we were teenagers.
“So you just kept this little secret to yourself?” I asked.
“I was leaving for school, and you still had another year of high school. It seemed like the right thing to do.”
My mind was slightly blown by this revelation.
“And then it passed?” I asked, my voice laced with humor, though my heart pounded against my chest.
“I don’t know if I’d say that.” He chuckled, leaning back against the seat again when the car came to a stop. “You left for college the year after I did, and then you were with that dickhead for years.”
“You were in a few relationships yourself, dating like it was your day job.” I gave him a look.
“Fair enough. And this is the first time that we’re both single since said crush.”
We are both single.
And of course, I still found him to be ridiculously sexy.
We’d stopped in front of my house. The driver came around and opened my door.
I didn’t want the night to end yet, but what was I going to say?
This was Ace Bonetti. My brother’s best friend.
Hell, he was one of my best friends as well.
And he didn’t live here.
I turned to step out of the car, and panic set in.
Would we ever have this conversation again?
I whipped around and leaned into the car. “I’m not sure how long you’re in town, but with the wedding being tomorrow, things will get busy.”
“I head back to Los Angeles the morning after the wedding.”
“I know how much you love my dogs, and there might not be another chance to see them,” I said awkwardly.
Oh my gosh. Could I be any more obvious?
“Are you asking me to come inside and see SJP and Clooney?” He smirked.
“I mean, no.” I cleared my throat. “Well, yes. It’s just, if you want to see them, this might be the only time to make that happen. But only if you want to.”
Please make me stop talking.
“Absolutely.”
Abso-freaking-lutely.
Ace Bonetti just admitted that he’d had a crush on me when we were in high school. And now he’d agreed to come inside.
I wasn’t freaking out at all.
Not. At. All.