12. Chapter 12
Grace
“Ican’t believe I’m getting married next week!” Nellie grabbed my hand, refusing to set down the wine glass she held in the other. She looked the usual levels of excited until she was suddenly more nervous than usual. My confidence sank when she squeezed my hand. “Don’t be mad, okay?”
“Why would I be mad?” I took a hesitant sip from my glass, wishing the wine was stronger. My soon-to-be sister-in-law smiled awkwardly, looking at Aurora like she was waiting for assistance. Aurora sat forward, and I was filled with dread no buzz could get rid of.
“We have a surprise for you,” Aurora said, preemptively grabbing the wine bottle and topping off my glass.
I took two large gulps before I set it back down. “What did you two do?” My stomach swirled, and I was sure more wine wasn’t going to help. I took another gulp anyway, just in case.
It didn’t help.
“We are getting you a date to the wedding!” Nellie said, as if the more excited she sounded, the better the idea would be. She practically sang it. A date? Make me yours. Oh no.
No, no, no.
I took another gulp of wine, almost draining the glass. “You really didn’t have to do that,” I said. Panic started to choke me, depriving me of the ability to explain I didn’t want a date.
“Yes, we did.” Aurora put her hand on my forearm with a sympathetic, almost concerned look on her face. “You can’t be single forever.” My mother must’ve gotten to them. Between the three of them and Mariah, I couldn’t catch a break.
“No, you don’t understand,” I said, preparing to rip the bandage off and tell them about Connor. Just like it did with my mother, it would get them off my back. I think. “I don’t need to meet someone. I already—”
“Good evening, ladies,” a low voice said, approaching us from behind. I groaned while Nellie and Aurora buzzed with proud-of-themselves excitement. “You must be Grace.”
I spun around, coming face to face with a blond-haired, blue-eyed man wearing more tweed than any probably-thirty-something year old should be wearing. “No, sorry,” I said quickly.
“Yes, she is,” Aurora said forcefully, stepping forward and putting her arm around me. “Grace, this is Nelson. He’s an orthodontist.”
I glared at her before putting on my best forced smile and shaking Nelson’s hand.
“Uh, it’s nice to meet you, Nelson.” When his eyes lit up, I cleared my throat.
“Look, I’m sure you’re a great guy, but I’m not really looking for anything right now.
These two got a little ahead of themselves.
I’m sorry to have made you come all the way out here.
” And to have you going right back to wherever you came from.
His face twisted in confusion, and he shot quick glances over my shoulders at my sisters-in-law. Then, he shrugged and put both of his hands up in front of him. “I mean, can’t blame a guy for trying. You’re exactly as beautiful as they said you were.”
“Thank you.” The first hint of guilt hit me when he took the first step away. When he took the second and then third, I turned back to face Nellie and Aurora. “You two are out of control.”
“You can’t say no to everyone,” Nellie said, putting her hands on her hips. “You can’t be that picky. When the next guy gets here, you should try to be nicer.”
“The next guy?” I reached for my wine. “Oh, marone. How many guys did you two call?”
They exchanged a stubborn glance. “Don’t worry about it,” Aurora said. “Here comes the next guy.”
“You’ve got to be kidding me.” I turned around, coming face to face with a blast from the past I thought I could go the rest of my life without seeing again. “You?”
“What’s wrong?” Nellie said, looking at me, then at Aurora, and back at me.
“Hey, Gracey.” He rocked his head side to side, cocky as he always was.
I groaned. “Damon.”
Nellie gasped behind me, and Aurora stepped forward. “Hold on. You two know each other?” We both nodded.
“I rocked her world in college,” Damon said. I wanted to slap the smirk off his face; if it wouldn’t get me kicked out of my favorite bar, I just might have.
I rolled my eyes. “We slept together one time, and all you did was leave a quick stain on my sheets and then brag about it for three weeks.” I crossed my arms, growing more frustrated when the girls seemed entertained.
“Well, give me another chance, sweet thing.” Damon stepped forward, brushing the back of his finger over my cheek. “You won’t be able to resist it this time.”
“Yeah, I don’t think so.” I shook my head and took a step back, bumping into a wall of muscle before a familiar scent wafted around me. I spun around.
“Who’s this?” Connor asked, glaring over my shoulder at Damon. The look on his face when he narrowed his eyes was possessive.
“This is eligible bachelor number two,” Nellie said, puffing her chest out with wine-infused confidence. “And you are?”
Connor’s brows lifted. “Well, I’d say I’m interested in applying to be bachelor number three. How does one go about that?” When he finished his question, he turned his attention to me, and the frustration in his glare made any buzz I had been feeling from the wine disappear.
“I can explain,” I said, putting my hands on his chest. I could feel his heart pounding, and mine sped up even more to match. “These are my sisters-in-law, and they think I need a date to my brother’s wedding next weekend. I started to tell them I didn’t, but—”
“Hey, buddy.” I cringed when Damon interrupted me. “I don’t know who you think you are, but you’re going to have to wait your turn.”
Connor clenched his jaw, and when he took a step forward, I felt even smaller in front of him. “It’s my turn now. She’s not interested in you. You can go.” He pointed to the door and turned his attention back to me. His chest heaved; with each deep breath, my nerves grew more erratic.
“Hey, hey,” Damon said, far too casually. He clapped Connor on the shoulder, and for a second, I thought it might be his last breath. “You don’t have to feel threatened just because Gracey and I used to sleep together!” He put his arm around me, and I slipped away before Connor could break it.
“Do you want to ask her who fucked her better? Because I’m pretty sure she can still feel me inside her from last night, and I don’t think you want to hear that answer.
” Damon gasped, and behind him, so did Nellie and Aurora.
I felt my cheeks warming with embarrassment at the same rate my pussy pulsed with a request for more.
For a moment, Connor and Damon glared at each other, and it felt like the entire bar was staring, even though hardly anybody glanced in our direction.
Damon looked at me and back at Connor, like he was tempted to call his bluff, before he apparently thought better of it.
“Whatever, fuck this.” He threw his hands in the air and walked away.
“Good,” Connor said when he was gone, grabbing my chin and turning my gaze upward. He lowered his voice, leaning closer to me. “I hated everything about that,” he said quietly, and my stomach twisted in a knot.
“Me too. I’m so sorry,” I said, matching his volume and ignoring the stares from Nellie and Aurora. “I had no idea they were doing that.”
Beside us, Nellie leaned over to Aurora. “Who the fuck is that?” she asked, loudly enough that we could both hear.
“I have no idea,” Aurora said. Neither of them stopped staring.
“So which bachelor are you going to choose?” Connor smirked, but the angry burning never left his golden eyes. I wanted to dance with the flames. For him, I would burn.
I slid my hands up his chest and over his shoulder, wrapping my arms around his neck and stretching onto my toes. “You already know exactly who I’m going to choose.”
“I just watched someone else put his arm around my girl. I want to hear you say it, little pearl.” His voice sent shivers down my spine, and I swallowed. My mouth was dry.
“Obviously, I choose you.” I kissed him, humming at the taste of his lips. “And you definitely fucked me better.”
Connor laughed, kissing me again before he let go. “You didn’t have to tell me that part. I already knew that.” He looked at my empty wineglass before he looked at the bar. Then, he kissed the top of my head, lingering to inhale. “I’ll be right back,” he said.
“Okay, well, you didn’t tell us you had a boyfriend,” Aurora said as soon as he was a few steps away.
“It’s kind of new.” I shrugged, watching each step Connor took and missing him when he was only on the other side of the bar. “I didn’t have much of a chance.”
Nellie looped her arm through mine, practically vibrating in the space next to me. “Well, you’re obviously bringing him to the wedding, right?”
“I guess I am.” I gulped. This was going to be a disaster.