49. Hudson

49

HUDSON

I watch Ember from across the room, marveling at how gorgeous she is. She fits in everywhere, yet stands out like one of the seven world wonders.

Elena, Jake, and Christian caught her attention when she was heading my direction, but then whoever this new guy is joined their conversation and hasn’t seen his way out yet.

I don’t recognize him with his mask, but I don’t think I would even if he didn’t have one on. He’s as tall as Christian and just as broad. His dark mask blends with his skin tone, and his light eyes shine through his mask with a kindness that can’t be faked.

Ember knows him. I can see it in her body language. She’s comfortable with him, and he’s a bit overly excited with their conversation. Especially when I see him reach in and touch her arm once, then again, but this time grazing her low back as he points to something on the wall. I can’t tell if it’s platonic friendliness or if I am going to jail for committing a murder tonight.

“Cruz, who’s the guy Ember is talking to?” I nod in their direction.

Cruz shifts his gaze toward the bar, stalls for a brief moment, and although the music is loud, I can hear a distinct hitch in his breath.

Clearing his throat, “Corbin Maren. He runs Christian’s east coast operations.” Taking a sip of his champagne, he clears his throat for a second time.

“Hey, I think I see someone I know. I’m gonna go… over there.” He points in the opposite direction and shuffles off.

Weird.

I down the rest of my drink and place it on the tray of one of the wait staff walking by, grabbing two fresh ones. Ember’s glass is nearly empty, and I’ve had enough distance from her for the night.

I only get one step in her direction before someone runs directly into the right side of me. I drop one of the flutes as it crashes to the ground, and the woman stumbles over her feet, her dress getting caught in her heel as she reaches for something to prevent her fall. She grips both my arms as I try to balance both her and the drink.

“Are you okay?” I drop my gaze to meet hers, and she looks up at me, then behind her, like she’s being chased. “Miss?” I say again.

She’s wearing a sheer all white dress with a matching white mask, her olive skin and black hair a stark contrast to the brightness of her outfit in the dim room.

“I’m so sorry, thank you. Thank you for catching me.” She stands up straight, running her hands down the front of her dress, removing the bunching that occurred from her almost fall.

She looks behind her again, then back to me. “Sorry again… sorry,” she apologizes profusely, then continues to speed walk past me.

I’m a bit shocked by the encounter and just watch her dash through the lobby and toward the front entrance.

“Okaaay,” I whisper under my breath as I inspect myself to make sure I didn’t get any champagne on my suit. A staff member walks up next to me and hands me a towel, then begins to clean up the mess that spilled on the floor.

“My apologies, sir. Let me get this cleaned up.”

I use the towel to wipe off my hands and pat him on the shoulder.

“Thank you,” I reply, taking another step toward Ember. My eyes navigate back to where she was, but before I can find her through the crowd, Seamus appears out of fucking nowhere.

“Did you see her?” There’s an urgency in his tone.

“Who?” I grip his arms, holding him back as his eyes bounce all over the room behind me.

“Me—” He cuts himself off. “The woman, the woman in white?” He’s speaking so fast, as his eyes flicker everywhere but at mine.

What the hell? Seamus is the epitome of control. He is not in control.

“Shay, what’s going on, man?” I ask.

“Did she pass through here?” He finally looks me dead in the eye. It makes me flinch back.

“Yes, she was heading to the front door. I think she left.” My eyes look at the front door, searching for her, even though I know she’s long gone now.

“Shit.” He moves around me, racing toward the door.

I turn, taking a few steps to follow him, but stop and watch him disappear as he rounds the waterfall that separates the room from the exit. Placing my hand on my hips, I chipmunk my cheeks while exhaling.

He’s on some kind of mission. Maybe she stole something from one of the rooms or snuck in.

Deciding that’s a lost cause, I turn back and trek over to the group standing in a circle still chatting, but I don’t see Ember.

“Hudson.” Elena’s soft voice greets me as she leans in, giving me a chaste kiss on the cheek. Christian and I have become closer over the past few months, with some of the company events I’ve attended with Ember. He holds out his hand, and we pull each other in for one of those semi-professional bro hugs.

I glance over at Jake, and he nods at me, taking a drink of his whiskey, acting weird as fuck.

“Hudson, this is Corbin Maren. He runs my east coast operations,” Christian introduces me, and I hold out my hand.

“Hudson Byrnes. Great to meet you,” I reply, still unsure if it’s really great to meet him or if I need to crush his hand for putting it on Ember’s back.

“Hudson Byrnes, as in the Smashers’ new all-star catcher?” He squints, attempting to get a better idea of who is behind the mask.

My lip turns up and my chest fills with a bit of pride. A half a second away from Tarzan, beating my chest in front of him.

“The one and only.” With a bit more confidence than I would usually reply.

“Also, Ember’s husband,” Jake grits out, annoyed, side-eyeing Christian and Elena.

What the hell is his problem?

“Oh, wow, how did I miss that? I didn’t put two and two together,” he replies in awe. “Ember is something special.”

Yes. Yes, she is. I sip my drink, dipping my head and flicking my eyebrow in a silent agreement with him.

“I’m thrilled she agreed to come to New York.”

As an impulse, my drink shoots out of my mouth, spraying back in the glass chute.

“What?” I look around at my three friends, all staring at me with looks of shame, guilt, and pain etched over their faces.

Corbin, living with too much excitement, doesn’t read the fucking room and continues.

“Yes, the director position in our Manhattan office. She’s perfect for what I’m looking for. She’s?— ”

He pulls his phone out of his jacket pocket and looks down with a curious look, “Excuse me for just a moment,” and steps out of the circle to a secluded area of the club.

My gaze jumps between all of them again. I am torn between a mix of emotions. How am I just fucking hearing of this right now? She doesn’t need my permission to do anything. I know this. I fucking know this. But they could have paid me a tad bit of respect and told me that was on the fucking table.

“Was no one going to say fucking anything to me?” I finally break the silence.

“Corbin just asked us earlier today if he could talk to her about it tonight,” Elena replies softly, defensively.

“And what? He slides in, offers her the job of her dreams, and she fucking says yes without a second thought. What are you going to tell me next, that she’s leaving tomorrow?”

“Tomorrow night.” I practically snap my neck to look at Christian. “Just for a week to check—” I toss my hand up, stopping him, to avoid hearing anymore bullshit from his mouth.

I know what ‘a week’ looks like to Ember. That’s exactly how long she told her parents she was going to visit Seattle. That’s a goddamn excuse for her to permanently run.

“You knew about this?” My death stare falls on Jake.

I’ve told him how I feel about her, he knows. They all do.

The scowl has yet to leave his face as his eyes shift to Christian and Elena.

“Yeah… yeah, I knew.” His eyes avoid me.

“This is fucking bullshit.” Leaving the circle of non-fucking trust, I slam my glass down at the nearest table and leave to look for Ember.

New York might be her dream, but she’s mine, and now that I’ve had a taste of a life together, I can’t let her go. I won’t.

I pull out my phone and text Cruz.

Me: I need a key to one of the private rooms.

Cruz: Oooh ;-) Okay

Cruz: Oh, wait. It’s for you and Ember, right? If not, I’m telling. My loyalty is to her, not you. Sorry.

Me: Cruz…

Cruz: Okay, meet me outside the Chat Room.