Chapter 9
NINE
TALLY
I placed my hand in Alec’s and let him lead me onto the uncovered wooden dance floor adjoining the restaurant. A surge of something like electricity zapped between us and I bit my lower lip to stop myself from gasping.
My fingertips tingled as he firmed his grip on me, as if they were desperate to touch more of him. They wanted to journey up his muscular arms and discover all of the parts of him I’d never experienced before.
This is a dangerous game you’re playing.
I hoped like hell that I wouldn’t come to regret it. If I lost Alec, I’d be crushed. He was more than just a friend. He was the most important person in my life.
The song changed to something upbeat with an acoustic guitar and a rapidly beating drum. Alec guided me around until I was standing chest-to-chest with him. Or close to it, considering I was quite a bit shorter than him.
We began to move. We’d danced together many times before, so I knew he had good rhythm, but we’d always maintained a certain level of distance between us.
Now, he erased that space, moving closer to me each time we swayed until his hand came to rest on my hip and my breasts brushed against him each time we moved.
My nipples tightened and I sucked in a breath, hoping he wouldn’t notice. I was wearing a strapless bra beneath the dress, so fortunately, my reaction shouldn’t have been obvious.
It’s just friction, I told myself. Friction causes a physiological response.
It was easier to believe that than to admit to myself that my best friend’s touch turned me on.
I closed my eyes, trusting him to keep me safe and hoping that the visual barrier would stop my unwanted physical reaction to him. But not being able to see him merely amplified the current between us, causing the hair on my arms to stand on end with each accidental caress.
Heat pooled low in my core as Alec twirled me. He smelled of lemon, sea salt, and man. Delicious and unique and so tantalizing that I wanted to bury my face in his chest and breathe him in.
Opening my eyes, I blinked up at him hazily while my vision cleared. His dark gaze stared back at me, never wavering. His tattooed arm flexed ever so slightly around me and his hold on my waist tightened.
“Tally, I—”
The song ended and, suddenly, Thad was standing beside us.
Alec turned to him and growled, “What do you want?”
Thad puffed his chest out. He looked ridiculous, trying to posture in front of the wall of muscle that was my best friend. While Thad wasn’t a limp noodle, he could never match Alec in size or sheer intimidation power.
“Stop embarrassing yourselves,” he said snidely. “You’re obviously faking this whole thing so that Tally doesn’t look like a loser, but we can all see through the act.”
I froze. My stomach hardened and my chest constricted as I temporarily forgot how to breathe.
Was it true?
Did everyone know we were pretending?
Were they gossiping behind my back?
I never should have gone along with this. It was a stupid idea. Alec had meant well, but I was the one who would end up paying for our bad decisions.
Coral appeared behind Thad and yanked on his arm.
“What are you doing?” she hissed, flashing me an apologetic look.
Thad folded his arms. “I just want Tally to admit the truth.”
“Why do you care?” she demanded. “It isn’t any of your business.”
But Thad didn’t budge.
I risked a glance at Alec, scared to see what his reaction to this confrontation would be. His jaw was set, his expression thunderous, his eyes so dark they surely spelled Thad’s doom. I shivered.
Alec squared up to Thad. Though my ex was tall, Alec was a good inch taller, and he outweighed Thad by forty pounds. He’d also been in far more fights than Thad had.
My insides fluttered with anticipation. Dear God, was I excited by the idea of Alec handing Thad his ass?
Alec leaned over him, and when he spoke, his voice was a low rumble. “I know this is a wedding and we’re all supposed to play nice, but if you ever disrespect my girl again, you’ll be seeing stars for a week.”
Thad’s eyes widened and he instinctively stepped back. When he realized he was visibly backing down, he scowled and made a show of scraping his foot against the floorboards, as if he’d slipped or tripped rather than simply been intimidated by a bigger, stronger man.
“You won’t lay a finger on me,” he sneered. “You wouldn’t risk your job.”
Privately, I agreed. Any altercation Alec ended up in could impact his career. The NHL didn’t mind its players fighting on the ice, but it preferred they not throw fists when they were off it.
Alec’s steely glare didn’t waver. “Some things are worth it. Tally is abso-fucking-lutely one of those things.”
“She’s just a friend,” Thad protested. “You don’t care about her that much.”
“See, that’s where you’re wrong. There’s very little I care about more than her.
Not hockey. I love the sport, but I don’t need to worry about my job.
I have enough money to retire tomorrow and live in comfort.
So if you think concern about my career will stop me from defending my girl, then you’re wrong. ”
A kernel of worry began to form in the pit of my gut. He sounded a bit too convincing. Alec wouldn’t actually do anything to throw his career away because of me, would he?
I couldn’t let him. I never should have gone along with this ruse in the first place.
“Alec,” I said, laying my hand on his arm. “Perhaps we should—”
“Admit it’s fake?” Thad suggested, his voice higher and less confident than before.
Without taking his eyes off Thad, Alec said, “Does this look fake?”
And then he turned and kissed me.
He caught me off guard and I gasped against his lips, which were firm on mine.
At first, the kiss was chaste. Alec was making a point. But then he softened and drew me against his body, cupping the back of my head with one of his big hands.
I tilted my face, angling myself closer. I wanted more.
His tongue brushed along the seam of my lips and I shuddered and parted them for him. He delved inside, his tongue caressing mine. A groan tore from him and he pressed himself tighter against me.
Something stiff and insistent throbbed against my belly.
Oh, God. He was hard.
My best friend was kissing me, and he liked it so much that he’d gotten hard. Was this a dream?
I pretended not to notice, worried that drawing attention to the situation in his pants might stop this glorious, all-consuming kiss. He tasted of sugar-free soda. His fingertips dug into the soft flesh of my hips and I whimpered.
He released me. My eyes flew open and I gazed up into his. They were almost black, his pupils blown out. His breath came in ragged bursts.
I searched his face, wondering what he was thinking and how much of that had been real. It was too raw to have all been a show, wasn’t it?
A whistle pierced the air, and we leapt apart.
I looked around. Thad and Coral had gone, but we’d drawn quite an audience.
“Let’s go to our room,” I suggested, immediately blushing when I realized that he might think I was coming onto him. “Before there’s any more drama, I mean. Not for anything else. You know I—”
His expression eased into a smile. “I know, cocobug. Let’s get out of here. We’ve had enough excitement for one night.”
He wound his arm around me, the embrace as comfortable as ever. I tried to sense if there was any tension in his muscles, and whether he’d been as shaken by our kiss as I was, but he seemed completely at ease. Meanwhile, I wanted to wrap my legs around his waist and demand more.
It’s only fake, I reminded myself. He isn’t yours. He doesn’t want you. Not like that.
But I couldn’t help recalling what he’d said to Thad. None of it had come across as false or exaggerated. He truly cared for me that deeply, so perhaps there was hope for more.
We returned to the table. Mom and Dad were sitting opposite Chris and Lake now, chatting about their plans for tomorrow. I heard something about beach volleyball but I was too riddled with nerves to make any sense of it without context.
“We’re off to our room,” I said when they fell quiet for a moment.
Mom frowned. “Is everything okay?”
I glanced at Lake. If none of them had noticed the confrontation with Thad, then I was hardly about to mention it. “Yeah. Just tired. I’ll see you tomorrow.”
“You too, darling. Sweet dreams.”
I hugged Mom and then Dad. As we turned away from the table, Jackson waved at me and I waved back. He was a nice guy.
The journey to our room didn’t take long. Once inside, I took my pajamas to the bathroom, locked the door, and stripped off the beautiful dress Alec had bought for me.
I smiled to myself. I’d definitely have opportunities to wear it again. It was the sort of dress that could look completely different depending on what shoes, jewelry, and accessories I paired it with.
I changed into the pajamas and wiped my face clean of makeup, then slowly made my way out of the bathroom.
It was still relatively early, but Alec was already in bed, the blankets around his waist, his muscular torso on display.
Tattoos wound up his left side, around his shoulder, and down his arm to his wrist.
Ugh, why did he have to be so hot?
I looked at him and then at the ottoman. It really wouldn’t be terrible to sleep on. It was long enough that I could lie down, I’d just need to curl my legs up. As long as I didn’t move from my position, I wouldn’t roll off the edge.
Shame I’d never been a very peaceful sleeper.
I nibbled my lower lip, torn. I didn’t want to sleep on the ottoman.
The bed looked far more comfortable. But Alec had just turned everything on its head.
How was I supposed to lie next to him when I now knew the delicious friction of his body against mine, and when the scent of his skin would remind me of the wonderful kiss we’d shared?
It was only for show.
I had to remember that. Alec didn’t really want me. The kiss had been part of the ruse. He didn’t seem flustered by the idea of sleeping together at all, and he’d already pointed out the hypocrisy of my protests about snuggling earlier.
I had no reason not to get into that bed with him.
None—except my sanity.
Too bad my priorities were skewed.
Hesitantly, I pulled back the covers and slipped underneath. I kept a safe distance between us, internally debating whether to use one of the pillows as a divider. But that would seem silly. Over the top.
With a sigh, I flicked off the light and closed my eyes. I could get through this. Sharing a bed with Alec didn’t have to be a big deal. He’d said as much himself.
“Good night,” I murmured.
He rolled onto his side and faced away from me. “Night, cocobug.”
I waited for sleep to claim me. Unfortunately, the minutes dragged on and I remained perfectly awake.
Eventually, Alec rolled onto his back. I started when his hand slipped into mine and gave a gentle squeeze.
“Everything will be okay,” he promised in the dark.
“I know,” I whispered, but it was a lie. I couldn’t help feeling that everything was about to go very, very wrong.
Perhaps, in trying to protect my dignity, I’d endangered something even more precious: my heart.