Chapter 2
A melia was parched. The day had been long and exhausting. She had been so focused on Maggie there had been little time for self-care. But that was how it should be, and she knew one day Maggie would do the same for her, if it ever became her turn. She thought of Piedmont Bonvoy and had to calm the nervous flutters in her stomach. They weren’t there yet; they might never be there. They had only been dating a few weeks. Amelia hadn’t even been certain she should invite him as her date for the wedding, but when she’d brought it up, Piedmont had seemed enthusiastic.
But after three dances with him, she suddenly realized how incredibly thirsty she was. When was the last time she’d had a glass of water? Her throat felt dry, her skin felt dry, and her lips felt especially dry. If she planned to do any kissing later, and she definitely did, then she needed hydration, stat.
“Well, well, well. Amelia Eldridge, we meet again.”
Amelia knew who spoke the words before she turned to look. She stood upright, the bottle of water grasped tightly in her fingers. Ethan. Six months ago she’d had a major crush on him. And then, after a blush-inducing makeout session, he had disappeared off the radar. She had dreamed about him seemingly forever after that, but those days were over now. He’d had his chance, and he’d blown it.
She whirled to face him with a light smile, revealing none of the irritation she felt in his presence. “Ethan, nice to see you. Maggie and Ridge got their perfect wedding, don’t you think?” She took a step forward, intending to bypass him, but he put out a hand, halting her progress.
“Where are you rushing off to?” he asked.
“I got my water, and I’m heading out,” she said, holding the bottle aloft for his inspection. They’d been out of water bottles in the reception hall, but a helpful waitress had indicated there were more in the pantry. “Did you want one?”
“Water, right,” Ethan said, his gaze falling to her lips. “Isn’t this the pantry? That’s kind of our thing, you know?”
What was he talking about? Did he genuinely believe she’d lured him to the pantry for a repeat makeout session, that all pantries were now connected to him in her mind?
“Are you for real?” she blurted.
“You can’t tell me you haven’t thought about that night in Maggie’s pantry,” Ethan said. “I know I have.”
Amelia was speechless, and it took a lot to leave her speechless. Did he really believe she’d been pining for half a year, six months in which they’d had no contact after he promised to call her? Okay, it had been her idea to go into the pantry in the first place, but he’d been a willing participant. And if she hadn’t started something, he would have. Their attraction had been mutual, as had their flirting. The only difference was that Amelia believed it was heading somewhere when it clearly wasn’t.
“I must have missed your call,” Amelia said. People like Ethan got away with bad behavior because they were handsome and charming, but Amelia was having none of it.
“Life’s been busy,” he said. “I started a new job.”
“So did I. And I finished school, and I moved cross-country to a new city, got a new apartment. And yet I called everyone I was supposed to,” she said.
“Hmm,” he said, his eyes still on her lips. It was obvious to Amelia he wasn’t hearing a word she said, so she decided to speak his language. She grasped his shirt, drawing him closer so they were toe-to-toe, chest-to-chest.
“I was thinking,” she said.
“Yeah?” His eyes glazed as his hands slid to her waist. Clearly he thought this was leading somewhere fun.
“I’d like to see you again.”
“You would?”
She nodded. “But this is my sister’s wedding. I don’t want to risk any sort of distraction on her day.”
“What did you have in mind?” he asked.
“Maybe sometime you could show up at the salon when I’m about to end a shift.” Her hands slid to his shoulders. “I could slip a cape on you.” He nodded again, more enthusiastic this time. Her hands threaded into his hair and she stood on her toes until her lips were almost but not quite brushing his, and she whispered. “And then I could color the gray out of your hair.”
He blinked a few times. “Wait, what?”
“Your hair.” She rifled his scalp with her fingers. “You should let me color it.”
“What? Why would I do that?”
“Because of the gray,” she said.
“I’m not going gray,” he argued.
She plucked a gray hair and handed it to him, taking a step out of his embrace as she did so. “It’s looking a little more salt than pepper up there, but maybe that’s the way you like it. With your coloring, you could totally pull off gray hair. Of course you might have to change your handle, but ‘Silver Fox,’ has a certain ring to it.” She winked at him and patted his chest. “See you later, Foxy.”
When she walked away and left him standing there, dumbfounded and speechless, she had to fight hard not to laugh. Now that had been fun, almost but not quite as fun as making out with him in the first place.
Piedmont was waiting patiently where she’d left him. He smiled at her approach. “Everything all right? You were gone for a while.”
“Everything is perfect,” she said, unscrewing the water to take a few drinks. She wanted to guzzle the entire thing, but her mother’s voice rang in her head, reminding her to be a lady. She offered the bottle to Piedmont, but he shook his head, his lip curling slightly. He didn’t like to share food or drinks. For Amelia, who had grown up in a family of sharers, that was almost but not quite a strike against him.
“Would you like to dance some more, or are you ready for a break?” he asked.
“Dancing, if you please. I so rarely get the chance anymore,” Amelia said.
“I’m going to have to take you to some more charity events. You’ll get enough dancing and canapés to last a lifetime.”
“What’s a canapé?” she asked.
“As far as I can tell, it’s a dry piece of toast with some sort of grayish meat on top,” he said.
“Mmm, my favorite,” she replied, earning a smile from him.
“Did I mention you look especially beautiful tonight?” Piedmont said.
“You may have, but I’ll allow another,” Amelia replied. She wasn’t insecure, but Piedmont was quite the snag. Of all the women in DC, she wondered how she had been the one to catch his eye. It was only by some stroke of luck he’d chosen her salon for his last haircut. She hadn’t been his stylist, but she’d been nearby with her own client, chatting happily. New to DC, she’d had no idea who he was until after he asked for her number. Since he was a stranger, she had at first refused. It was his stylist, Julie, who snatched one of Amelia’s cards and shoved it into his fingers.
Don’t you have any idea who that was, stupid? Julie had hissed after he left. When Piedmont Bonvoy asks for your number, you give it to him. They’d been out a handful of times the last few weeks, and each time he seemed more interested than the last. Amelia was fairly certain she liked him, but there was also a part of her that wondered how much she liked him versus how much she liked the idea of him. Either way, she was flattered by his attention.
“I liked your maid of honor speech,” Piedmont said, drawing her back to the present. “I should have you write for me next time I have to give one.”
“I could only do it if it’s for my sister,” Amelia said. “She and I go back a ways.”
“Your family’s nice,” he said.
“They seem to like you, too, although it’s hard to tell because they pretty much like everyone. I mean, that came out wrong,” she tried, frowning.
Piedmont chuckled. “Don’t worry about it, I got the gist. They’re warm, nice people. And so is their daughter.”
“Maggie’s sweet,” Amelia agreed.
“Maybe everyone else in the room is thinking about Maggie today, but I’ve only had eyes for the other Eldridge sister,” he said.
“Yeah? I’m not familiar with that one. They must keep her in a closet to hide the crazy,” Amelia said.
In reply, he kissed her palm before spinning her so quickly she had to grasp his shoulders to keep her balance. When she reoriented herself, she found that she was facing Ethan who stood against the back wall, arms crossed. They locked eyes. He smiled and shook his head, mouthing something. It took a while to work out what he said, and then she got it:
It’s on now.