by R. Linda
“Manly.” She narrowed her eyes and deepened her voice to imitate a guy. “Rugged.”
I was still laughing.
“Look, it’s just really sexy.” She slapped my chest and tried to pull away.
“You can lick whatever you’d like, Ace.” I smirked and brought my hands up, folding them behind my head. “Have at it.”
Her eyes widened, and she sat up, curling her knees under her. With her bottom lip pulled between her teeth, she dragged her gaze from my face and down my chest.
“What’s wrong, In?”
“You’re making fun of me, aren’t you? You don’t think I’ll do it,” she said, lying back down beside me.
“I’m still waiting.” She was right. I didn’t think she’d do it.
She propped herself up on her elbows and raised a challenging eyebrow.
“Go on, then.” I nodded, giving her my permission to lick my collarbone, and dammit, she did.
Not in a sexy way. Not in the way I hoped she would. No, she stuck her tongue out and dragged it across my skin, just once, like she was licking an ice cream, and hell if it still didn’t make my toes curl.
She smiled at me, one hundred percent proud of herself. “Proved you wrong.” She giggled.
“Yes, you did.” I laughed and hugged her to my chest.
She snuggled against me and sighed.
“What’s up, Princess? Want to lick my funny bone now?”
“That’s not even a real bone.”
“I know. What are you thinking about?”
“Jasmine…”
“Indie, that’s—”
“I know you said it was a story for another time, but I want know. Please tell me.”
I couldn’t say no to her. Me getting engaged to Jasmine culminated in Indie avoiding me, her family, and coming home for over a year. I owed her an explanation.
“Okay.” I groaned and wiggled down in the bed a little more to get comfortable. Indie’s hand rested on my heart, and I was sure she’d feel it beating in its cage. “I met Jasmine a while ago. About six months before Cole’s birthday—the last time you came home. There wasn’t anything particularly special about her. We didn’t connect at all. It was just physical…”
She tensed in my arms.
“Sorry, Ace, but I don’t want to lie to you.” I kissed the top of her head.
“Okay,” she whispered.
“She was just there at the right time. I used her as much as she used me.”
“How?”
“When I met her, I was hurt. In more ways than one. I’d just been released from hospital, and I was heartbroken over…you.”
“Me?”
“Let me finish. Jasmine danced—literally—into my life when I was feeling low. I convinced myself that I needed to get over you, move on, and she was there, willing. She didn’t care that my heart wasn’t in it, that I didn’t love her and never would. She just wanted someone to take care of her. Someone who could support her enough that she could finish her degree and quit stripping for good. So we got engaged. But I couldn’t do it. No matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t erase you from my thoughts, from my heart. I guess you were my bad habit too, and I knew without a doubt I’d never be able to quit you either. I called the whole thing off. And you should have seen my parents. I don’t think they’d ever been so happy about anything in their lives. It seemed no one thought Jasmine and I should get married, but no one wanted to tell me to my face.”
She was silent. I didn’t know if that was a good thing or a bad thing. Panic set in. What was she thinking? Did this change her feelings for me? What—
“You said you were in hospital. Why didn’t I know about that?”
“You didn’t?” She didn’t know I was unconscious for three days. She didn’t know she was the first person I asked for when I woke up, and the nurse stared at me blankly, not knowing what I was talking about.
“Of course not. If I had, I would have been there in a second. Sat beside you until you were allowed to go home. It wasn’t serious, was it?”
“I had a car accident. Lost control in the rain because I was driving so fast. Spent a week in hospital, three days of which I was out completely. But I was okay. I thought—” Dammit, everything I’d thought was wrong.
“What?” Indie sniffed.
“I thought you knew and you didn’t care that I was hurt. Every day I was in that hospital, I waited for you to come running through the doors. And every day you didn’t show up, it broke my heart, until I decided enough was enough and it was time to move on.”
Indie lifted her head and looked at me with tears in her eyes. “Linc, I’m so sorry. I never meant to hurt you. I really didn’t know.” She choked back a sob.
“Don’t cry. It’s okay. It’s all worked out now. It took us while, but we finally got our shit together.”
“How did I not know? Did Nate and my parents know?”
“Hospital called your mum first because they couldn’t reach my parents. They were there with me every day.”
“No one thought to tell me? I would have been right there, probably chained myself to your bed or something. Nothing would have made me leave without knowing you were okay.” Tears were streaming down her face.
“Come here,” I said and pulled her up until her nose brushed mine. “None of that matters now. It’s all in the past. What matters is us, here, now, and the future. I love you.” I brushed a strand of hair behind her ear and tilted my lips up to meet hers.
“I love you too, you stupid ass. Don’t get in any other car accidents. I couldn’t bear it.”
“Okay, I’ll try.” I chuckled. Her nickname was growing on me.
“No more speeding. Nothing is so important that you have to break the road rules and risk your life to get there, Lincoln,” she scolded.
“You were.”
“Me?”
“I was chasing after you. Remember you’d come home for a week because you had a break from classes, but we had a fight. I can’t even remember what the fight was about now, but you packed your bags and got the next flight out. I decided in that moment I couldn’t let you leave, not without telling you how I felt.”
“Stupid ass,” she said before kissing me again. And again. And again.
Chapter
Twenty-Three
Indie
The day flew by. There was so much to do before a wedding. My mother had us booked in for manicures and pedicures. Lavenia had hired someone to come and do our hair and makeup. We had to make sure the guests who were flying in today were settled in quickly. There was a photographer hovering around my mum’s suite, taking pictures of everything and everyone as they were getting ready. A steady supply of champagne, thanks to room service, kept us in high spirits.
It had been nine hours since I saw Linc, and I missed him. I didn’t know how I was going to get through the rest of the night without pulling him into a closet and kissing his beautiful face. It was like dangling a beer in front of an alcoholic and saying, “No, you can’t drink it.” Cruel. Torture. Awful.
The guys were doing guy things with my dad, which I was pretty sure meant they were having beers in the bar until it was time for the ceremony.
I helped my mum into her dress and almost cried. I’d never been to a wedding before, and seeing how beautiful and radiant my mum looked and how excited she was to be marrying my dad again made me wonder whether I’d have that. I loved Linc, and I’d be lying if I said I didn’t dream about marrying him too, one day in the future, but I was worried. Not because I didn’t think he would want to marry me—he did propose to Jasmine, and he didn’t even love her—but because I didn’t know how my family would react when they found out we were together.
We’d always been friends. My parents treated him as if he were one of the family. He was Nate’s best mate, and there were rules about things like that, some sort of bro code. Dating your best friend’s sister was high up on the “a bro shall not” list. The last thing I wanted to
do was ruin their friendship.
We decided to tell everyone tomorrow over breakfast. In a public restaurant. Lots of witnesses. And plenty of exits, should we need a quick escape. I hoped we didn’t. I’d like to think my parents would be happy for me…for us. They adored Linc and knew how much he cared and looked out for me.
“You ready?” Bailey asked, interrupting my thoughts. I was on the balcony getting some air. The ceremony was starting soon, so we had to get moving, otherwise the bride would be more than fashionably late.
“Yep.” I forced a smile and walked back inside to where my mum and Lavenia were waiting. Kenzie and Harper slid their shoes off, throwing them into the bag Lavenia was carrying for all of us. The wedding ceremony was on the beach, so we were walking down the aisle barefoot. I took a moment to look at my reflection in the mirror beside the elevators and fix my hair, which was curled to perfection and pinned over one shoulder. I couldn’t recreate the style if I tried.
We took the elevator down and made our way through the resort to the beach, catching people’s attention as we went. A bride tended to do that. Stepping onto the sand, I was blown away. It looked magical. The sun was just setting. A long white carpet formed the aisle between the rows of chairs and led to the front where there was an arbour covered in greenery.
Nate waited off to the side, hidden by a wall of tropical plants and white silk, looking handsome as ever in his grey suit with white shirt buttoned loosely. “Ladies, you look lovely.” He smiled at Bailey, Kenzie, and Harper. “Your seats are waiting for you.”
They thanked him and gave my mum a kiss before heading to the front to watch the wedding. There were so many people seated. I didn’t know she invited this many.
“Looking good, In,” Nate said before turning to kiss Mum on the cheek. “And you look beautiful. Ready to do this? You know, it’s not too late if you’re having second thoughts and want to back out.”
“Oh, Nathaniel, don’t be silly. I’ve wanted this my entire life.” She smiled up at him. “Now, let’s get this wedding started.” She linked her arm through Nate’s and prepared to go.
“Wait!”
“What, sweetie?”
“Where’s Linc? I can’t walk down there by myself.”
“Right here, Ace,” he called from behind me, making my heart beat a little harder and my breath catch in my throat. I turned cautiously to see him and froze. Nothing would work. Nothing would move. My chest tightened, and my lungs burned from lack of oxygen.
“Oh, Lincoln, don’t you look divine?” my mother gushed. “Doesn’t he look wonderful, Indie?”
Ummm…
My brain had short-circuited.
“Indie, you okay?” Linc looked entertained. “You’re turning blue.”
I was glad he was amused.
“Take a breath, Princess.” He reached out and brushed a curl behind my ear.
I gasped, sucking in as much air as I could and placing a hand over my heart to calm it down.
“There we go. Hi,” he said, smiling softly at me, his grey eyes sparkling.
“Hi,” I said a little too breathlessly. Had Mum and Nate noticed I was acting weird? I didn’t care, really. Not when Linc stood before me looking like that.
He was wearing the same pale grey suit as Nate, with the white shirt that was open at the top. But he rendered me speechless. There was something about him in a suit that drove me crazy. He’d kept the scruff on his face, but he had it trimmed, accentuating that jawline. His hair was pulled back into a ponytail at the back of his head, with a large grey band holding it in place. But it was his eyes that got me. They were solely focused on me.
“You look beautiful.” His hand was still in my hair as he leaned forward and brushed his lips against my cheek. I pouted and would have stomped my foot too had my brother and mum not been watching. I wanted to kiss him. I wanted to drag him into the bushes and rip the buttons off his shirt.
“You don’t look too bad yourself, stupid ass.” I tried to play it cool and act like I wasn’t undressing him with my eyes as I reached up and fixed his collar. It didn’t need fixing. It was just an excuse to touch him a little more.
“Indie. You did not just call Lincoln a stupid ass. That’s very immature. I’m so sorry, Lincoln,” Mum scolded.
“It’s fine, really.” He brushed it off with a smile. He liked it when I called him that. And in my own weird way, I guessed I was telling him I loved him without risking someone hearing. It was like our own secret code. Ace and stupid ass. We were so romantic.
“Okay, well, let’s get this wedding started,” Nate announced and clapped his hands twice.
A string quartet—she hired a freaking string quartet—started playing the Wedding March.
“Indie?” Linc held his elbow out for me, allowing me to wrap my arm around his.
We walked down the aisle toward my father, who rocked back and forth on the balls of his feet nervously, just like I did when I was nervous. Everyone rose to watch as my mother was escorted by Nate.
It was a beautiful moment. I hoped one day my dad would walk me down the aisle and proudly hand me over to Linc, whose eyes still had not left me, not even for a second.
The ceremony was short, but it didn’t need to be long. They said their vows and exchanged new rings, and that was it. Once all the guests had left the beach for the ballroom, the photographer wanted to get some photos of my parents, so we were excused and allowed to go up to the reception.
“You look gorgeous, baby cakes.” Jack came over and gave me a kiss on the cheek, much to the annoyance of Linc, if his growl was anything to go by.
“Man, I can’t wait to get out of this suit,” Nate complained, tugging on his collar as though he were wearing a tie.
As we passed the doors to the main foyer, Linc nudged my ribs with his elbow and tilted his head toward the door while discreetly pointing to Nate.
“Oh, damn. You know what? I think I left my room key upstairs. If I don’t get it, I won’t be able to get back in later. Think you can let me in so I can get it?” I asked Linc, stopping by the doors.
“Yeah, I guess,” he said casually.
“Want us to wait?” Nate asked.
“I’m sure they can find the ballroom on their own,” Kenzie said. “They’re grown-ups, after all.”
“You sure?” Nate asked again.
“Yeah, go. It’s fine. We won’t be long.”
Nate nodded and walked off with Jack and Kenzie. Everyone else had already gone to the reception, so we were alone.
“Come with me.” Linc grabbed my hand and dragged me over to the corner, mostly out of sight from passers-by.
Pressing me against the wall, his mouth came down on mine. His fingers dug into my hips while mine slipped inside his shirt and traced along his collarbone. I really did like that bone. I sighed into his mouth, allowing him to slide his tongue against mine. I’d been wanting to do this all day.
“This is driving me crazy,” he hissed against my lips. “It’s been one day, and all I can think about is you. Talking to you, touching you, kissing you. I don’t like this hiding, Indie.”
“Neither do I. Tomorrow. We’ll tell them tomorrow.” I leaned forward and pulled his lip between my teeth, making him groan.
“You better not have learned that from Jack,” he said, pressing his forehead against mine.
“Way to ruin the moment, stupid ass.” I slapped his chest and pushed him away, and he laughed.
“Yeah, I love you too.” He chuckled as we turned around and came face to face with my parents.
Oops.
Chapter
Twenty-Four
Linc
The entire night was tense. I could barely dance with Indie when I was supposed to. I couldn’t look at her. And I sure as hell couldn’t look at her parents. They busted us kissing in a dark corner, and it immediately made me feel like I was back in high school. The look on the Kellermans’ faces nearly killed me. Shock. Anger. Disappointment. I never w
anted them to be disappointed in me, let alone Indie. Was it really that bad if we were together? The idea that they thought so little of me, that they wouldn’t approve of Indie and me, was devastating.
I spent as much time with my parents as I possibly could. They’d flown in that morning and were flying back tonight because my dad had a big case he was working on and couldn’t afford to take the time off. I was surprised they even made the trip, but I was grateful to them for doing so. Having them here gave me a reason to avoid everyone else, when all I wanted to do was speak to Indie.
“Something’s wrong, honey.” My mum patted my cheek in that caring way she did and gave me a half smile the moment Dad excused himself to the bathroom. “Did you and Indie have a fight?”
“What? No. Of course not. Nothing’s wrong. Why would you even ask that?” She had always been perceptive. Even growing up, she always knew when I’d done something I didn’t want her to know about. Like the time I snuck Indie into my room when she was seventeen because she’d had too much to drink, and I couldn’t risk her parents finding out. Mum knew.
Like each and every time I scared off one of the losers who wanted to date her, give her flowers, touch her ass. Mum knew.
Like the time I got engaged to Jasmine because I was trying to get over a broken heart. Mum knew.
“I’m not stupid, Lincoln. I have eyes, and that girl over there,” she pointed at Indie making her way around the room, talking to guests with a forced smile, “has not stopped looking at you since you both walked in here, but this time she doesn’t look happy like she usually is when she sees you. This time she looks like she wants to cry.”
Dammit. I clenched my jaw. I didn’t want her to cry. There was nothing I hated more than Indie feeling sad. But I couldn’t have this discussion with my mother right now without speaking to Indie’s parents first.
“Everything is fine.” Yeah, that sounded believable. I rolled my eyes at myself.
“Lincoln Andrews, don’t you dare lie to me,” my mother scolded. She hadn’t used that voice on me since I dragged mud through the house after getting caught in the rain while helping Nate and his dad build a shed in the back yard.
