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23. Ray

If I hadn't been so exhausted after Wade finished his speech last night, I would have pressed him on the question, would have begged him for an answer. But he was far too entrenched in selling himself to Dom's dad after, far too caught up with family, and after I'd played my part and kissed him goodnight, I'd gone up to the room alone.

And promptly fell asleep within seconds.

I'd woken up with his arms around me and his chest against my back, and in the pale morning light, the question still lingered, unanswered and quiet. I wasn't sure if he'd forgotten or just lost the nerve to say whatever he was going to, but he didn't speak on it as we got ready for the wedding, as we walked down the hallway toward the elevator, as we stood hand in hand behind the glass.

"You look beautiful," he said, lifting our joined hands to kiss my knuckles. "Good choice with the dress."

In truth, I was nervous as hell about the dress. Wade had told me to buy something as fancy as I could and considering the seven grand of his money that I'd spent, I'd wager a bet it was fancy enough. But what if I'd gone too far? What if everyone else had dressed far more casually, and here I was in a floor-length, shimmery green dress, complete with cape sleeves and appliqués?

"I'm terrified I'm going to spill something on it," I said.

The elevator dinged and we exited in tandem, joining the hoard of guests making their way to the outdoor setup. We still had approximately thirty minutes until the wedding was set to begin, but everyone was ready and rearing to go, gowns like mine and suits like Wade's making up the majority of the attire. I breathed a sigh of relief.

I squeezed his hand as my nerves kicked in. Thankfully, all eyes wouldn't be on us today, but somehow this felt like the most important day, the day when I really had to sell it. What woman goes to a wedding when they're supposedly in love and doesn'tget all lovey-dovey, dreaming about the day being hers instead? Half of me was terrified I wouldn't pull it off and the other half was quaking in fear that I'd sell it too easily, that I'd actually end up wanting that.

The feelings I was developing were building too fast, too soon.

"Wade! Ray!"

Wade looked across the crowd as we exited the double doors and stepped onto the patio. Pyramid heaters were everywhere, ensuring no one needed to cover themselves up with a jacket, one of Chloe's main requests. Off in the far corner, standing next to one of the heaters, stood Jack and Mandy, a baby clutched on Jack's hip. Cassie? Was that her name?

Wade and I strolled through the loitering crowd, too many women turning their heads as we walked by. I felt sick watching them and their wandering gaze, the way they looked at me with such disdain.

"Oh my God, you look incredible," Mandy grinned, her deep red gown swishing around her body as she hugged me. "Couldn't have picked a better dress for you myself."

Wade cracked a smile as he pulled me into his side. "I definitely knocked it out of the park with this one," he chuckled. Cassie cooed from Jack's hip, her little feet kicking, and within a second her hands were reaching out toward Wade. "Aww, hello, angel."

Wade scooped her up into his arms, his smile only growing, and goddammitthat wasn't helping. Now I had to deal with feelings and the mental image of him as a dad.

"She missed her uncle," Jack laughed.

Wade lifted her into the air, pressing little kisses on her cheeks. "Who wouldn't?"

————

"That's the investor, right?" Jack whispered, leaning around me and Mandy to get Wade's attention as he discreetly pointed toward Dom's dad.

"Yeah, that's Alec. He's the father of the groom," Wade answered. Cassie sat calmly in his lap, her little hands grabbing at the shiny, reflective fabric of my dress. She was adorable, but I kept my eye on her, making sure she didn't tear it. The dress cost too much for that. "He said he needs to ‘think about it'."

Jack made a face and rolled his eyes. "You could have just asked me to invest."

"You don't have the connections he does," Wade shot back. "No offense, but I need him. If I'm going to give away thirty-five percent in equity, it's going to be to him."

Mandy's eyes widened as she looked between the two of us. "Thirty-five percent? That's insane."

"If you want to design my resort, Mands, don't question it."

Her mouth snapped shut in an instant, and Wade laughed, drawing Cassie's attention up toward him. She grabbed onto the lapel of his jacket, tugging and pulling, a smile on her chubby cheeks.

"Wade," Mandy whispered, reaching across my lap to poke him in the thigh. "Dominic's dad is looking at you."

"So?" Wade picked Cassie up and passed her over myself and back to Mandy.

"So, ham it up," she giggled. "Don't you have a show to put on for him?"

I laughed as I looked up at him, the faintest blush spreading across his tanned cheeks. "Yeah, Wade, don't you have a show to put on for him?" I echoed.

He rolled his eyes and hooked a finger beneath my chin, tilting it up toward him. He kissed me, simple, easy, as normal as breathing, but it still set every part of my body aflame. As he pulled back, his gaze flicked between my eyes, searching.

"You're a good actor, Wade," Jack whispered, and Mandy snickered beside him. "Could've fooled me."

Wade narrowed his gaze at Jack, a slight warning. "I'm not acting."

I'm not acting.

I lost every ounce of air in my lungs. "What?"

He met my gaze again, his lips pursed. "You heard me."

"You're not acting?" I asked. I had to tell him, needed to tell him, that I wasn't either. I needed to get the words out, somehow, some way.

"No," he said, the littlest smile tugging his lips up at the corners. "I'm not."

I opened my mouth to say it, begged my tongue to work, but nothing came out. Please. Please, tell him you're not either. "I…"

As if the universe took over, music began to play over the speakers as the bridal party filed in. I wanted to beg Chloe to give us five more minutes, but this was her wedding, her day, her night. I should have said it back.

I fucking should have.

————

The family table, a staple at every wedding. I should have considered the possibility that we could be seated with Chloe's new in-laws for the majority of the evening, but it had been the absolute last thing on my mind.

Glasses clinked and forks scraped on plates. The idle chit-chat of three hundred guests filled the space, squeezed comfortably into one massive ballroom at least four times the size of the one we'd occupied on our first night here. A live band played classical dinner music as question after question was directed at Wade. Chloe and Dominic sat at the head table with the rest of the wedding party so we had little reprieve.

I let him do the majority of the talking. I didn't trust myself with two glasses of wine into the evening. He'd retold the story of how we met, only tiny, minor changes, and I breathed a sigh of relief when Wade's mom hadn't questioned it. Beside her, Wade's stepfather picked at his food as his son, Zane, watched us. His eyes seemed to hover on us, questioning, reading. Wade's dad, however, had been seated with the rest of the guests, forgotten and aloof.

Wade answered questions as if lying came to him as easily as breathing. When asked about our first date, he'd stayed truthful, explaining how I wanted to go ice skating and he'd agreed even though he was horrible at it. When asked about our second date, though, the embellishment really kicked into high gear. Apparently, he'd taken me to the Denver Zoo, going so far as to rent out the entire establishment for the day so we could have a private tour. I'd also, surprisingly, held a penguin.

"What do your parents do, Ray?"

I nearly choked on my fork full of lobster. "What?"

Wade's fingers tightened around my thigh, every muscle in his body locking up. "That's kind of personal, don't you think?" he asked, the words coming through gritted teeth as he looked across the table at Alec.

"I'm just curious if they run in the same circles as the rest of us," Alec shrugged. "It's not an issue if they don't."

"They don't run at all," I replied, a small trace of venom to my tone.

Wade's grip tightened on my thigh, bruising me with his fingertips. "Ray's father passed away three years ago," he clarified.

"I'm sorry to hear that," Dawn, Dominic's mother, said.

"And her mother has been unwell for several years." He glanced at me from the corner of his eye, an apology lurking there. "They met when they were in college, right, baby?"

I nodded. I couldn't remember mentioning it, wasn't sure when it had slipped out.

"Then married a couple of months later. Had Ray the following year," he continued, and my stomach dropped, knowing damn well where this was going. This wasn't another lie. He'd clearly done some research and learnedabout them. "They just knew they were right for each other and had twenty-six happy years of marriage."

"Your parents sound lovely, Ray," Alec said, his smile tight-lipped, a hint of regret in his tone.

"Her father was a bus driver. And before she got sick, her mom taught third grade." Slowly, finger by finger, he dislodged his grip on me. "So, Alec, to answer your question, no, they didn't run in the same circles as you. However, that shouldn't matter."

I couldn't breathe, could barely hold my fork. He'd spoken to Alec with such disdain, such disrespect, simply for asking about my parents. For asking if I was one of them. He put his investment at risk for me.

Maybe he really was telling the truth earlier, when he'd said that he wasn't acting, it wasn't just another easy lie. My chest ached at the idea. He was putting it all on the line just to stand up for me.

I was entirely, unreservedly, going to fall for this man.

————

Wade's hand enveloped mine as we stood off to the side of the dance floor. Chloe's dress fanned out as Dominic spun her, every layer of tulle and lace floating as if it were weightless. It was gorgeous, perhaps even more so than her ceremony dress. This one screamed winter wedding—long, billowy sleeves that hung off her shoulders like a princess, a corseted top intricately draped, and winter flower appliqués scattered across the bottom of the skirt that snaked their way up toward her waist.

The guests around us clapped as the song for their first dance slowly came to a close. Wade had warned me about what came next, what was traditional in his family. The waltz, apparently, was typically performed by members of the bride and groom's family immediately following the first dance, and considering I was a ‘potential' member of the family, I was to be included. But my two left feet when it came to dancing were not pleased about it.

In tandem, we joined the couples and walked onto the dance floor in time with the music. Wade's mother and stepfather were across the floor from us, Chloe and Dom in the center, Wade's father and his plaything on the outskirts. Dom's parents sidled up beside us, along with Wade's stepbrother, Zane, and a woman I'd not met yet. The floor filled up with aunts, uncles, and possible grandparents, many of whom I had not spoken to yet, and all I could do was pray that no one would pay too close attention to how awkward my moves were.

"It's just a box step," Wade whispered, his gaze locking onto mine as he got us into position.

"What the hell is a box step?" I asked, my throat tightening as the music began to play.

"Just follow my lead."

"Can't you put me on your feet again?"

"No, baby, not here," he grinned, amusement painting his features. "One, two, three. One, two, three." He counted aloud for me, giving me the rhythm, and before I could memorize it, we were off.

I nearly tripped over my heels on the first backward step, but he kept me upright with his hand around my waist. I followed a second behind, out of time until I got the movements right. Right foot back, two, three. Left foot forward, two, three. I knew I was graceless in my movements but the smile he gave me as I slowly got the hang of it made my chest ache.

"There you go," he said. "You've got this. Over and over, just like this. Just us." His fingers splayed out against my back, pulling me just a tiny bit closer to him.

"Just us," I repeated, nodding.

"Until the spin," he clarified.

"The spin?"

"Oh, and the lift."

"What—"

The air loosened from my lungs as his hands gripped me around the waist and hoisted me upward. I grabbed him by the shoulders, my heart pounding, my feet dangling. The way he looked up at me made me feel like I was the only one in the room, as if I was the sun shining down on him.

He slid me down his chest slowly, effortlessly, and pressed his lips to mine, no longer caring about staying in time with the music. I kissed him back, taking every second of tranquility he gave me.

But then my feet were on the floor, and we were back to dancing, reality slowly filtering back in. I wanted to thank him for what he'd done at the table. I'd hoped that on the dance floor, with everyone focused on their own partners I'd be able to. But when I looked up at him, it was like words didn't exist anymore, there was only the here and now, no before and after. It was just us, the music, our steps in time.

Until a hand caught mine and gently pulled me away.

Surprised, Wade let me go, stepping in within a second to take the man's partner instead. But his eyes watched me closely, his brow furrowed, worry flickering across his cheeks as I turned to the man who had taken me from him.

Alec.

My pulse skyrocketed as I tried to remember the steps of the dance again. Right foot back, two, three. Left foot forward, two, three. Nausea boiled in my stomach. Why had he grabbed me?

"Enjoying yourself?" he asked. The hand he held on my waist made my body cringe, but I did my best not to show it.

I swallowed. "Yes," I breathed. "It's better than I imagined it would be."

One singular, gray brow rose.

"I helped Chloe plan it," I admitted. "Or shall I say, helped turn her ideas into reality."

Oh, he mouthed, the sound of it lost behind the crescendo of the music. I couldn't help but feel like this was some kind of formality, something I was meant to be doing, but it irked me just the same. His gut protruded against my stomach, his oiled, slicked-back hair making him look as if he hadn't washed. He was the pinnacle of a wealthy, older man. A true Tom Buchanan. A man who cared about money and money alone.

I glanced at Wade, his hand so loose around Dawn's waist. Maybe Wade wasGatsby after all. He wasn't new money by any means, but there was a tender man beneath the walls he had. I couldn't imagine Alec having anything resembling tenderness.

"Are you angry with him?" I asked, the words coming before I could think to stop them. I didn't dare meet his gaze.

"No," he said blankly. "It was an unfair question for me to have asked. I apologize."

I nodded, watching as Wade spun Dawn with one hand, his eyes flicking to me every chance he got.

"If anything, it showed me just how serious he is about you," Alec continued. "To risk putting the investment he needs at stake to defend you. That's not the Wade I knew a few years ago. He's definitely changed."

I slowly turned my head to look at him. "He has," I agreed. "He's a good man, Alec. I'm sure you look for someone you can trust whenever you agree to invest, and Wade is that person. He's kind and loving. Shit, he came and picked me up when my car broke down and drove me to the graveyard on the anniversary of my father's death. He didn't have to do that. We weren't together then. There was nothing in it for him."

I didn't care that I'd just cursed in front of this absurdly wealthy, reserved man. I didn't care about formalities at that point, not when Wade could lose the one thing he needed, the one thing that had led us to the situation we'd found ourselves in. Words began spilling out of my mouth, making me realize just how deeply I'd fallen.

"He fixed my car. He stopped sleeping around. He's helped me with my mom's medical bills when he absolutely didn't have to, going above and beyond just to make sure she and I were okay. He…" I choked, glancing at him once again, too many emotions flooding through me. "He's everything I could have asked for. More, even. He's a good fucking man, Alec. He won't let you down."

Not a single word out of my mouth had been a lie. I was in too deep, further than I thought I could go in such a short time. Maybe it was my desperation to have someone, or maybe it was him. The past was the past. I didn't haveto repeat it.

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