Chapter 23 Collette #2
I disappear into the crowd with Zara, Billie, and Marlowe because being near the boys’ section means being near Fish, and I’m not ready for that.
We dance and drink, and I let the music drown out the noise in my head.
For twenty minutes it works. For twenty minutes, I’m just a woman in a black dress in a Vegas club having fun.
Then I make the mistake of looking.
Fish is in the VIP section. He’s changed out of his suit into dark jeans and a fitted shirt, and he looks obscenely good under the club lights.
He’s with two women, one on either side of him.
One has her hand on his thigh. The other is whispering in his ear.
He’s smiling. Laughing. Being Fish. Being the version of himself that the world sees, and I used to see behind. Don’t watch.
One of the women leans in and kisses his cheek. He doesn’t flinch. Doesn’t pull away. Just keeps talking, keeps smiling, keeps being charming and available, and everything he promised me he wasn’t anymore. He’s not yours. He could have been, but you said no.
I turn away, take a long drink of champagne, dance harder, and pretend the bass is the reason my chest is pounding and not the image of another woman’s lips on his skin.
An hour later, I go looking for Jo because she disappeared a while ago, and Harper said she went toward the back of the club.
I weave through the crowd and find the hallway leading to the restrooms, and that’s when I see them.
Jo and Emmett, in the hallway. Her back is against the wall, his body pressed into hers, and her legs are wrapped around his waist. His mouth is on her neck, while her hands are in his hair.
They are full-on grinding against each other like they’re the only two people in the world.
“There you are,” I say, keeping my voice carefully neutral. “Harper was worried about you.”
They spring apart. Jo’s face is flushed. Emmett’s hair is wrecked. The distance between them is barely respectable.
“I’m fine. Just needed some air,” Jo stammers.
“In a hallway?” I raise an eyebrow.
“It was quieter.”
My gaze slides to Emmett. “Captain. Getting some air, too?”
“Something like that.” His voice is remarkably steady for someone who was grinding on my sister thirty seconds ago.
I look at Jo for a long moment, she knows I know. I know she knows I know. “We’re leaving in ten minutes. The boys want to hit another spot.”
“I think I’m going to head back to the hotel,” Jo says.
“Me too,” Emmett adds. “Early flight tomorrow.”
My eyebrow climbs higher. “Right, well, don’t do anything I wouldn’t do.”
I turn and walk away, giggling because my sister and the grumpy captain are getting it on. She deserves nothing but happiness, and if it’s a hockey player who can give that to her, then so be it.
Jo catches up with me outside, and we walk back along the strip to the hotel. The Vegas lights are blinding, the air is warm, and there are people everywhere. I link my arm through hers because she’s my sister, and whatever is happening with Emmett, I’ve got her.
“Do you want to talk about what I just walked into?”
“No.”
“That was incredibly stupid. Our brothers could have walked around the corner at any moment. You didn’t look as innocent as you thought you did,” I tell her.
“I don’t know what to do. The tension between us keeps building, and neither one of us can seem to stop it.”
Been there, girl. She seems to be giving in to it.
“At least it’s not one-sided. But you two are playing a dangerous game,” I warn her.
“I know. I need help. You have to help me stay away from him,” she begs.
“Do you think that’s even going to work?” I don’t look convinced because I know firsthand that staying away from someone you want doesn’t work. It just makes it worse. Trust me on that.
“I don’t know. But I have to try … again.”
“Or you could just embrace whatever it is between the two of you. Talk to HR and let them know you two are dating and everything is okay,” I suggest.
“We haven’t even got that far. We are not ready to date or make anything public. I don’t even know if I want to date him or anyone.”
“Really?” I’m surprised.
“I don’t know. I’m confused.”
“No shit, you’re confused. Look, from what I can see, you two have physical chemistry …” I give her a look. She rolls her eyes. “But I understand if you’re not sure if it’s just physical or if you connect on something more. Do you like him?”
“Yes.”
“Do you like his dick?”
“Lettie!”
“Hey, I’m just asking. It’s important.”
“Yes. I think so.”
I giggle. “You haven’t tried it again since London.” She shakes her head. “Ah. I see now. You’re horny.”
“Oh my god.”
“You’re blinded by hormones at the moment. You need to fuck him again.”
“Lettie.”
“I mean it, Jo. You need to try the goods again to see if it’s all worth it. Fuck him out of your system,” I advise her.
“Really?”
“Yes. It’s just pent-up sexual tension. You both need to expel it, and then you will have a clear mind. Then you work out if this is more.”
She’s quiet for a moment, thinking. And I realize the irony of my giving this advice when I can’t even take it myself. I’m telling my sister to lean into what she feels, while I’m the one who pushed away the man who loved me because I was too scared of what it would cost.
Fuck him out of your system. Maybe I should have taken my own advice.