Chapter 4
Sutton
“If anyone can show just cause why these two may not lawfully marry, speak now or forever hold your peace.”
“Heeheehee.” Shit. I slapped my hand over my mouth, but it was too late.
All heads in the church turned to the second row, including the bride and groom’s.
Colette’s brows pinched, but when she saw who the sound had come from, her face softened with sympathy.
I waved a hand and pointed to my throat. “Sorry. Just a tickle.”
Meanwhile Miles sat next to me, about to blow.
The two of us had been giggly guzzlers since eighth grade when we stole a bottle of tequila from my mother’s liquor cabinet to celebrate his thirteenth birthday.
We’d gotten caught because we couldn’t stop laughing in math class.
Miles’s shoulders started to shake, and I just knew that if he got started, neither of us was going to be able to stop.
Luckily, it was nearing the end of the ceremony, and I managed to keep any further outburst under lock and key.
Though by the time the priest pronounced the happy couple husband and wife, a full-on belly laugh was dying to escape.
The minute my stepsister and her smiling groom walked up the aisle, I made a beeline for the side door I’d been eyeing for the entire ceremony and let out a hyena-like laugh that ended in an unattractive snort.
There was no way I could do the receiving line.
A voice startled me. “What’s so funny?”
I looked up to find none other than the Daddy Dom standing there.
And was that a joint he was smoking? At church?
I forgot all about the shock of finding someone outside and fell into a second round of laughter.
Tears rolled down my face as I released all of the alcohol-driven fits of giggles.
My entire face was probably streaked with mascara, but I didn’t care.
Jagger watched in silence, looking amused. When I finally got ahold of myself, he tilted his head. “Care to let me in on the joke?”
“This entire day is one big, fat joke.”
He squinted, but said nothing, waiting for me to elaborate. I didn’t.
“What are you doing out here?”
“I don’t like weddings.”
“Then why did you come?”
He tapped the lit end of the joint against the brick exterior of the church, extinguishing it, before turning his attention back to me. “Why is today a joke?”
I took a deep breath in and let out an audible sigh. “My stepsister just married my ex-boyfriend.”
“Come again?”
I smiled. “You heard me right.”
“And that’s…funny?”
“No. Yes. No.” I shook my head. “I don’t know. Maybe it’s not? I just get the giggles when I drink.” Jagger’s jaw flexed. I pointed to it. “Oh that’s right. You don’t like when I drink. It’s your preference.”
His eyes narrowed. “Are you mocking me?”
“What if I am? Will you put me over your knee and spank me? Is that what you’re into?”
Something flickered in his eyes. He took a step forward, but before he could say or do anything else, the door I’d spilled out of burst open again—this time producing my partner in crime, Miles. The newly anointed Daddy Dom retreated a step.
“Oh.” Miles grinned from ear to ear. “Sorry to interrupt.”
“Don’t be.” Jagger adjusted the knot on his tie. “If you ever see me near your friend again, please, make a point of interrupting.” Then he turned and walked away. Miles and I stared after him. He looked as confused as I felt.
“What the hell was that?” he asked.
“Yet again, I have no damn idea.”
***
Two hours into the reception, I had a hangover, even though I hadn’t slept.
The party was held in a giant, swanky loft on the top floor of a skyscraper.
The elevator had an electronic sign that gave the hours for a rooftop garden, so I decided to go in search of some quiet before it closed.
Outside, twinkling lights lit up New York City, while the Hudson River sparkled below.
It was peaceful, at least until I was joined by the last person I wanted to see.
Brendan smiled. “There you are.”
I rolled my eyes, anger pulsing through my veins at the sight of him. “I think you’re confusing sisters. Your bride is inside. She’s the one wearing the fluffy, white gown. But I could see why it might happen, given your history and all.”
He frowned. “This must be tough on you. I’m sorry. I never meant to hurt you, Sutton.”
I hadn’t slept well for the last week, my head was pounding, and I had a year and a half of anger built up inside me. It all bubbled to the surface together. I turned and put my hands on my hips. “What do you want, Brendan?”
“I don’t want you to be upset.”
“Why would I be upset? Because I wasted three years of my young life in a sexless relationship with a God-fearing man only to walk in on him three months after we broke up fooling around with my stepsister?” I paused.
“I didn’t buy you a wedding gift, so here’s some advice instead: The clit is not a golf ball that you whack once and it takes off.
You should know, you never once gave me an orgasm, not with your hand or mouth.
I faked them all. I hope you do better for poor Colette. ”
Not wanting to be near the jerk a second longer, I turned to walk away, but two stomps in, I crashed directly into something that felt like a brick wall. Or someone. I didn’t even have to look up at the face, the delicious smell gave it away.
I closed my eyes. “How much of that did you hear?”
Jagger’s tone was laced with venom as he glared at Brendan. “Shouldn’t you be with your new wife?”
The two men were such polar opposites. Brendan’s blond hair, sinewy runner’s body, and boyish looks made him seem like a child in the shadow of Jagger’s manliness.
My ex was a junior Ken doll, and the man currently looking down his nose at him was brawny GI Joe.
It made me wonder how I’d ever been attracted to that when guys like Jagger Langston existed.
Brendan had always been intimidated by successful men—his father, his boss. It was something I’d disliked about him. But right now, I was glad he was a wimp. He nodded at Jagger and swallowed. “You’re right. I should find Colette.”
Then it was only Jagger and me on the rooftop, and I stared straight ahead looking out at the City. “How much of that conversation did you hear?”
“Enough.”
I sighed. Great. First, I show up for a date completely unaware of what kind of a dating app I’d joined, then I run into the man bolting from a church drunk, and now…
Now I’ve revealed that my ex never gave me an orgasm.
“How many times can I possibly humiliate myself in front of one person in twenty-four hours? I have to be near a record.”
“Pretty sure he’s the one who should be embarrassed for not being able to get you off.”
I closed my eyes and laughed—because if I didn’t, I’d probably cry. “I feel like you should tell me your most intimate secret, so we’re even.”
Jagger was quiet for a moment, but I felt his gaze slide over my profile. “What would you like to know?”
“Anything.” I shrugged. “How about what you’re into? Why are you on that dating app? Because my imagination has been running wild, and you have a collection of new nicknames—Dungeon King, Daddy Dom, and most recently Ball-gag Boss.”
Again, he stayed silent for a long time before speaking. “I like rules and order.”
I turned to face him with a wrinkled nose. “What does that mean? You’re like a Dominant?”
He smiled. “The correct term technically would be top.”
“A top?”
“What did he want?”
The quick change of subject confused me. “Who?”
“Your stepsister’s new husband.”
“Oh. I have no idea. I think he probably wants me to make him feel better, to absolve him of guilt or something.” I looked around for the first time. It was still just the two of us on this roof. “What made you come up here?”
“I saw him follow you. He’s been keeping tabs on you all night when he should be paying attention to his new bride.”
“How do you know that?”
Jagger’s eyes bounced back and forth between mine. “Because I’ve also had my eyes on you all evening.”
I tilted my head. “Why?”
A smile tugged at the corners of his lips. “Because apparently, I can’t keep away from trouble.”
My belly did a little flutter. “I’m not trouble.”
“You’re a twenty-four-year-old virgin who now works for my company and whose stepfather is one of my executives, yet I can’t seem to keep my distance like I should. You’re the definition of trouble, sweetheart.”
I felt so drawn to him. I couldn’t quite put my finger on what it was, other than the obvious—he was gorgeous. It was more than a physical attraction, though. Maybe it was curiosity, because he seemed to know exactly what he wanted, and I was still trying to figure out who I was.
I met his stare, and a question tumbled from my mouth. “What did you do after you left the bar the other night? Did you use the app to meet someone else?”
I saw the wheels in his head spinning. Since the question was a pretty simple one, I assumed he was deciding if he should answer at all. The muscle in his jaw flexed before he spoke. “I went home.”
An unexpected rush of relief flooded me. It was absolutely illogical and ridiculous, but I couldn’t help what I felt. I smiled. “Me, too.”
“How long were you with the Ken doll?”
My smile broadened at the description he chose. Maybe Miles was right and we were a little alike. “A little over three years.”
“That’s a long time to not have an orgasm.”
I looked away, feeling my cheeks heat pink. “I had them. I just had to give them to myself.”
Jagger grumbled something I couldn’t make out, then cleared his throat. “We should get back.”
I looked out at the City once again. “You go. I’m going to stay up here for a few more minutes until the rooftop closes. I need to clear my head.”