by Casey Hagen
“I’d be happy to sit with her for a few minutes,” Jack offered.
“Maybe just a few, but we need to be making a formal announcement soon and introduce you to the guests.”
Edie waved a dismissive hand. “There’s plenty of time for that. Leave us!”
Annette cast an uneasy glance between Edie and Jack, but once Bradford arrived with the water, she allowed him to lead her away to a group of friends congregating around the open bar.
“Can I get you a drink, Jack?” Lathan asked.
“Yeah, a beer would be great.”
“Coming right up!”
“Get me one, too,” Edie called out.
“Hell no, Aunt Eddie.”
Lathan headed for the bar and Jack leaned over to Edie. “No worries, you can steal a few sips of mine.”
Edie patted Jack’s hand and took another puff of her cigar. “I knew I liked you the minute I saw you. So, what’s a great girl like you doing here, slumming it with the rich and dull?”
“You’re not dull.”
“I’m the only one who’s not dull. See that guy over there?” Edie pointed to a middle-aged guy staring into the bottom of his whiskey glass.
“His wife will only let him touch her once a year. On his birthday.” She swung her arm in the opposite direction. “That’s his wife. The reason she only gives it to him on his birthday is because she’s screwing her yoga instructor on the side.”
Jack leaned back and regarded the shrewd old lady. “You’re not drunk at all, are you? And remind me to stay on your good side.”
She shook her head. “Not drunk at all, but let them have their fun fussing.”
Lathan arrived with two beers, still in the bottles. She had to give him credit for that. “So, are you two getting along over here?”
“Of course we are. Don’t know where you found this one, Lathan, but you’ve done good,” Edie praised. She grinned at Jack and bumped a shoulder against hers.
“High praise!” he said, and clinked his bottle with Jack’s.
Edie looked back between the two and narrowed her eyes. “I sense something going on here. You haven’t done the horizontal mambo yet, have you?”
“Jesus,” Lathan sputtered, choking on his beer.
“You’re going have to teach me how you do that, Eddie,” Jack said, grinning as she handed the rambunctious lady her beer.
“Bless you, child,” Edie said, and then guzzled back half of the contents.
“Christ. I step away for a minute and you’ve bonded. I don’t know whether to be proud or terrified,” Lathan said.
“Be proud. I like this one, and you, boy, have always been my favorite. Black sheep, just like me. Now, don’t be an idiot; get this one down the aisle before she realizes she’s too good for all of us. I need a kindred spirit in this family. Jack will do nicely!”
5
A seed of resentment sat like lead in Lathan’s gut. This wasn’t his world. This wasn’t the future he had planned for himself, but with Liam gone he was stuck. He glanced down to Jack who stood tucked under his shoulder, her arm wrapped around his back. She would be his bright spot, but that meant pulling her into this shit world. There was still time to call it off. He could forgo the shares and call in a favor with Jessica and Alex.
“Ladies and gentlemen, friends, family, it is our pleasure to introduce Lathan’s fiancée, Ja-ack Price,” Annette announced to the crowd of mostly suits that had been soaking up the free booze for the past hour.
Guests glanced at each other questioningly before bursting into applause. Jack didn’t even acknowledge the awkward pause and instead gave him that quick grin, then, Christ Almighty, she winked. She did notice. She just didn’t care. He wanted to learn how to do that, how to be unaffected.
He itched to get her out of there, to take her somewhere they could be alone. He had limited time to get to know this fascinating creature before he married her, and he was feeling a bit selfish where she was concerned.
Wait staff descended upon the crowd to disburse flutes of Champagne. His dad raised his flute in the air, “To a long and successful union. May you be as blessed in your marriage as I have been in mine.” His mother ducked her head and blushed. As much as he hated the expectations they thrust upon him…he had loving parents who meant well.
He raised his glass and glanced down to Jack. “You didn’t get Champagne.”
She raised her beer in the air and smiled. “I’m not a Champagne kind of girl.”
He laid a gentle kiss to her forehead. When he pulled back, her smile had slipped, replaced by a look of confusion. “I think that’s what I like best about you, Jack. You couldn’t give a shit about what they see.”
They mingled and accepted congratulations. The women bombarded Jack, surrounding her, asking questions, offering advice, and treating her as though she were an exotic creature. She took it all in stride, laughing, making small talk, feigning interest in one topic or another.
And just like that, his failed proposal from the night before had all but disappeared from his mind. Kim had done him a favor by turning him down, because Jack was a better fit. He could envision social events with her on his arm. He would finally have someone with whom he could share the ridiculousness of it all.
She didn’t know it, but he was like her, low-key. All of a sudden, she didn’t feel like a stranger, but like one of his own, someone who could understand him in ways that his family couldn’t. That was the biggest draw of all.
“What’s going on in that head of yours, Lathan?” Jack asked.
He pulled her in a bit closer and spoke quietly in her ear. “I want this party over. I have other ideas.”
She snorted. “Of course you do. All guys do. What makes you think I’m game?”
“Oh, I don’t want to get you into bed.”
She choked on her beer. “You’re a blunt one, Lathan, and a surprise.” She squared her shoulders and faced him. “So, if you don’t want me in bed, what are you looking for?”
“Romance.”
She narrowed her eyes. “Why?”
He dragged a finger over the delicate skin of her temple. The hum of the crowd faded in the background. “Because we’re going to be married and year is a long time. I don’t know about you, but I would rather spend it enjoying each other. There’s no reason we can’t have a little fun, right?”
“We need some ground rules before we have this “fun” you’re suggesting.” She held eye contact with him while she stood her ground.
He brushed his thumb over her bottom lip and grinned when she sucked in a breath. “Ground rules. Got it. Hit me with it.”
“This marriage is temporary. One year and it’s over.”
He kissed her cheek. “One year, check.”
“No children.”
Her husky voice gave away what he was doing to her, and damned if that didn’t provoke him to do more. “No procreating, got it. We get to practice though, right?”
She nodded. “Eventually, we’ll practice.”
He kissed the tip of her nose and delighted in the crimson stains that appeared on her cheeks. “Any more rules, Jack?”
She cleared her throat. “The most important one…no falling in love.”
He pressed a kiss to her forehead. Lingered there. Memorizing the feel of her warm skin under his lips. “I’ll do my best to balance my charm with a fair amount of annoying shit, so you don’t fall shamelessly in love with me.”
She slapped his arm playfully. “There’s no way I’m falling for you.”
Well, they would just see about that. One thing Lathan couldn’t resist was a challenge. Not when his friends dared him to climb into the window of the daughter of the chief of police. Not when Liam challenged him to a race the day he got his license, resulting in Lathan’s losing his license until he was eighteen. Not when Liam’s death thrust a multi-billion-dollar company into his unfit lap. And not when his parents hit him with a last-minute hoop to jump through to obtain what was ri
He framed her face with his hands and stared into those olive eyes, losing a piece of himself to the vulnerability in their depths. The hum of the guests faded away.
“Lingering touches and gazing into my eyes, also against the rules.”
“Too bad for you, I’ve never been good with rules.” He slanted his mouth over hers and sucked her bottom lip between his. When she sighed, he took the opportunity to tease her lips open with his tongue.
How had he gone his lifetime without this? Without her arms circling his waist? Without her soft sighs with every slide of his lips?
Not falling in love had just become impossible.
Okay, she could do this. She glanced at her skeptical face in the mirror. No, really, she had this. So Lathan kissed her in a way no other man had. So what? That didn’t mean anything other than he had had a lot of practice. She caught the hard glare on her face. No getting jealous over the women in his past. This is temporary.
She wished she believed it.
She splashed cool water on her face and dried her flushed skin with a thick white towel. She had ducked into the house after the kiss. She absolutely wasn’t running away, at least, that’s what she told herself. When Lathan had pulled away, Jack grew self-conscious, something that never happened, when she spotted his parents watching them out of the corner of her eye. Annette had been kind enough to lead her into the house to collect herself.
Speaking of Annette, she needed to finish up before Annette guessed that Jack was avoiding her.
Shit.
She’d been with them for all of an hour and already she had been knocked off her axis. She hadn’t been prepared to like his family. Knowing he was ridiculously rich, she assumed his family to be snobby and judgmental. So far she had seen very little of that. Then there was Edie, hell on wheels, and Jack couldn’t wait to get more time with her.
Lathan’s parents had been polite, and a bit unsure. Well, she couldn’t blame them. She imagined they’d expected him to bring home someone from their social circle. They hadn’t been unkind, just knocked off-balance by her.
Francine, well, Jack didn’t know what to make of her. She seemed a bit cold, a bit judgmental, but then, having Edie as a sister had to be a hard act to follow.
A tentative knock sounded on the door. “Are you alright, dear?”
“I’m fine..” Jack opened the door and forced a smile.
“Feeling better?” Annette asked.
“Yes, thank you.”
Annette offered a small smile and linked an arm with Jack’s. “Walk with me for a minute.”
Jack nodded. “Sure.”
Annette led her through the kitchen white and stainless kitchen into a massive living area with tall windows and walnut furniture. Family photos covered the multiple tables at the ends of the couches and easy chairs.
Annette picked up the one nearest her, of two teenage boys, with their arms slung around each other. She held the frame out to Jack. “My boys were best friends, before.”
Jack took the frame and studied the boys. They were both tall, but Liam had a full head of almost black hair, while sun streaked Lathan’s brown hair. They shared those blue eyes. “Before what?” Jack asked.
“Before Liam died.”
“I’m sorry. I didn’t realize.”
“Lathan didn’t tell you?” Annette pulled back, surprised.
“Well, I guess it just never really came up.”
Annette assessed her, and for the first time in Jack’s life she struggle to not squirm under the scrutiny. “You and Lathan haven’t been together long, have you?”
She knew she should lie. She didn’t want to cause strife, but she just couldn’t do it. Annette had been kind, and Jack was grateful. “No, it hasn’t been long.”
“Do I want to know exactly how long?”
Jack laughed in relief at the mischievous smile on Annette’s face. “No, I don’t imagine you do.”
“Fair enough. Well, let me introduce you to Liam, our oldest.” She held out a picture of Liam dressed in a tux.
Jack ran her fingers over the glass. Women must have loved that square jaw of his. “How many years are between them?”
“Two.”
Jack replaced the picture to its spot. “There are three between my brother and me. He’s always been my best friend, too.”
“Where are you from?”
“I live in Placerville.”
“Hmmmm. So you plan to move to Brentwood?”
“Well, no. I have a business to run.”
“Placerville might be too far for Lathan.”
“There you two are,” Lathan interrupted from the doorway. Jack sighed in relief. She didn’t want to get into the logistics of their arrangement. She hadn’t even gotten into the details with Lathan.
“Your mom was just showing me some family photos.”
Lathan pointed to the picture in the front. “That was the day I made varsity. Liam was a senior, so for his final year of high school we played together on the varsity team.”
“Liam was such a talented boy. There was no limit to what he could do,” Annette said with a tone of wistfulness in her voice.
Lathan’s jaw flexed, the only sign that the comment bothered him, before he smiled down at her. It wasn’t the smile full of dimples and mischief she had seen thus far. It was a smile made to distract. He didn’t want to go there, and she would respect that. For now.
The party wound down. Guests drifted out the gates after saying their goodbyes. Jack decided she would make her exit while she could. “I guess I should get going soon.”
Lathan tightened his hold and brought her hand to his mouth. Goosebumps rose on her skin at the feel of his lips sliding over the skin on the back of her hand.
“Stay tonight,” he said.
“Probably not a good idea. I only just broke the news to Jeremy this morning. I’m sure he’s waiting to grill me.”
“He can grill you tomorrow. Come on. Everett and Corrine are spending the night. Totally innocent. I’ll even give you your own room.” He leaned in and pressed his lips to the spot just below her ear.
A shiver rolled through her. Low laughter rumbled up from his throat against her sensitive skin, telling her he felt it, too. “Do the doors have industrial locks?” she asked.
“Just the standard locks, but heavy furniture that can be slid in front of the door.”
“I have a feeling I’ll need something, with you lurking.”
He cupped her chin and kissed her. There was nothing polite about the way he brought her in, and held her there. His harsh breathing mingled with hers. His hands slid into her hair, holding her there as he devoured her. He nipped her upper lip, and she forgot everything and everyone around her. There was only this. This man who, in one day, had managed to turn her routine world upside down and excite her in ways that had her forgetting why this was a bad idea.
Just once she wanted to throw caution to the wind. She wanted to not worry about her dad, her business, her brother, and just do what felt good. Right now, Lathan fit the bill. The sadness in him called to her. She wanted to ease his pain. She wanted to be what made him forget what tormented him. She wanted to be the fun part of his day.
He pulled back, and those stormy blue eyes of his searched her face. She had a good idea of what he must be seeing there. No matter how she tried to calm the storm of attraction thundering through her, it was there.
Brewing…
“Lathan,” she whispered, rubbing her thumb over his bottom lip. He nipped her thumb, the sting making her squirm. “You may need to move some heavy furniture in front of your door, too.”
“I like to live dangerously,” he replied.
“Dangerous often leads to trouble.”
“Jack, you have trouble written all over you, and have since the minute you kicked open the door of your tow truck and gave me stink eye.”
“I didn’t give you stink eye.”
“Yeah, you did. I was just another rich guy with a ridiculously expensive toy.”
The things he said about himself, reducing himself to something ordinary, grated on her nerves. One thing was for sure: when she walked away in a year, Lathan would know his true worth.
She slid her palm over the hand the cupped her neck. Strong hands, capable, and hers for the next year. “You could never be just another rich guy. You’re in a class all your own.”
If the look on his face was any indication, it might just take the next year to make him believe it.
With the guests finally all gone, they congregated in the kitchen before taking off for the night.
Annette leaned on the marble kitchen island, sipping a glass of wine. “What do you have planned for tomorrow, Jack?”
“I planned to head home.”
“You must have so much to do to prepare for the wedding. I mean, there’s just over two weeks left.”
Jack felt the blood drain from her face. She had to plan a wedding? She never had any intention of planning a wedding, let alone the kind they would expect. She figured if she got married one day, it would be at a courthouse. No muss, no fuss, a few cold beers after.
“Ummm…” Jack hedged.
Annette straightened and smiled. “If you want help, just say the word. I would be happy to guide you.”
Jack rubbed her forehead with her thumb and forefinger. A throbbing had just started in the front of her skull at the thought of dresses, flowers, food, jewelry, hairdos, and, Jesus, a bridal party. “I think I’m going to need more than guidance.”
Annette clapped her hands together. “Really? I would love that! You just tell me what you need and I’ll take care of everything.”
Lathan stepped up behind Jack and circled his arms around her waist. “Mom, easy; I want Jack to have a wedding on her terms.”
Annette pulled a pad of paper and pen out of the drawer next to the stainless steel refrigerator. “Of course! She is the bride, after all. As a matter of fact, let’s do this…tomorrow, spa day, just the girls. My treat!”
A spa day. A freaking spa day. Jack didn’t do spa days. She needed an ally. Her eyes darted about the room, avoiding Annette, and landed on Corrine. “Do you mind if I bring someone?” Jack asked.
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