9. Mallory
Solemn isn’t the word I’d use to describe Carson as he records his video to Sawyer and Kelsie. More like sincere or genuine or even…heartfelt. But it’s not just the tenor of his voice that hits me deep in the chest. It’s his words.
After expressing how he couldn’t be happier for the newlyweds, he dips his chin and then, still staring straight ahead, somehow seems to look directly at me as he admits that, for the first time ever, he’s jealous of the happy couple’s loving and committed relationship.
His body tenses as the words emerge. The muscles surrounding me go rigid. My heart thumps double time in my chest. But surely, his earnest demeanor, as serious as I’ve seen him, is thanks to our bet. No doubt Carson’s working hard to hold it together because of what’s at stake and not—in any way, shape, or form—because what he’s saying is actually true.
And even if it was, it wouldn’t change the fact he’s press and I’m PR.
A few seconds later, he wraps up, wishing Kelsie and Sawyer a long and happy marriage, and winning the bet. It makes me squirm with anticipation. Until he invites me to share any advice. I’m caught off guard, so distracted by his message and the ache in my low belly I haven’t given a thought to what I might say, so I reach for the first thing that pops into my mind.
“Congratulations, you two,” I say, smiling toward the camera. “Everything today has been picture perfect and beautiful, just like the two of you, individually and especially together. Although I don’t have experience being married, or even in a long-term relationship, for that matter, what I wish for you is that you always remain as close as you are today and never let anyone or anything come between you.”
Carson reaches forward to stop the video. “Well said.”
“Ditto,” I reply, determined to draw out his playful side again. The side that doesn’t make me wish, for just a minute, that he’s not the Carson Bennett, but simply a man I met at a wedding. And fell for.
“Up for more pictures?” I ask, my finger hovering over the PHOTOS button below the video recording one.
“With you?” he replies, the devilish grin returning. “Anytime.”
I laugh and press the button. A countdown timer flashes on the screen, and we pose, both with wide smiles, adjusting a little each time until all four photos have been taken.
The music outside the booth changes to a fast-paced number. We’ve got a few minutes to sneak away before the cake cutting and garter toss. I spin to Carson as he reaches for the photo strip and tucks it into his jacket pocket. “That offer for a walk by the lake still good?”
He rises so fast I topple off his lap, but his arms steady me just as his head slams into the booth’s low ceiling.
“Ouch,” he exclaims, wincing in pain.
I can’t help but bite back a smile at his eagerness. “I’ll take that as a yes.”
Moments later, the festivity of the reception extends out to the illuminated flagstone patio but floats away on the cool evening breeze as we slip past the strings of lights. The moonlight shimmers on the water in the distance as my heels sink into the thick, green grass. Carson and I silently make our way down toward the rocky shore.
I’m grateful for the quiet moment because my mind is spinning. And my lady parts are throbbing in a way that reminds me I haven’t slept with a man in way too long.
But now? I want to.
I wish I didn’t. I wish I wasn’t craving Carson’s touch so much the juncture between my thighs thrums in a way that shines a spotlight on that particular part of my anatomy as if it were center stage.
If only I wasn’t drawn to this bachelor like a moth to a flame. But facts are facts, and there are only so many ways I can use my PR skills to gloss over the truth when faced with a reality that defies reason.
If I were putting together notes for a briefing, the pro-con list for the tall, sexy, playful man at my side would be edging close to even, despite being no contest just twenty-four hours ago.
Am I crazy to consider one night of what would no doubt be great sex? It’s not as if there’s any chance of more after this weekend. If I were just Mallory and he were simply Carson, I wouldn’t be having this debate. The man oozes charisma I’m one thousand percent certain translates to the bedroom. Plus, the wine and the festive atmosphere and the way he lights up my world must be to blame. Because my reasons, carved in stone yesterday, are now fluttering away like the fireflies sparking in the night sky.
There’s no reason I shouldn’t enjoy myself. We’re both consenting adults, hundreds of miles from the city. And it’s not as if he’s the reporter on the beat covering AV Industries. Surely, he’s enough of a gentleman to keep our agreement—and anything that happens between us—off the record. Even if my heart isn’t so guarded.
“Watch your step,” Carson warns gently, his voice cutting through the quiet as his arm stretches out like a steel railing to stop me in my tracks.
I grab hold of the sinewy muscles a man who works behind a desk, in a corner office in a high-rise, has no right to have and scan the thick summer grass at my feet. I see nothing until the camouflaged frog I almost speared hops away with a croak.
“Are you okay?” he asks, the palm of his hand pressed against my belly.
“In these heels that could have been ugly,” I murmur, glancing over at him.
But as I gaze past him, my breath hitches. We’re almost to the boathouse. The lapping water is only yards away. I hadn’t realized how far we’d strayed from the reception. The shore didn’t seem this far from the patio before. But now, outside of the ring of light where the dancing has started, the music is pounding and is sure to keep going for hours? We might as well be a million miles away.
“Frog guts would have really killed the moment.”
“Is that what we’re having?” I ask, finding his dark eyes searching mine. “A moment?”
“I know I am,” he admits, flashing me a wicked grin. One that tips the scales and seals the deal.
After all, a moment is all I need from a man like this, and it’s not as if he’s looking for anything past tonight, either. Might as well enjoy a romp with this flirt and get whatever is going on between us out of my system.