by Mandy Baxter
Emily found Chance as the rest of the guests queued up in the buffet line. She grabbed his hand and twined her fingers with his. “I’m just warning you,” Emily said with a smile, “I plan to do some serious damage to this buffet.”
The one thing Chance loved about their relationship was being himself with her. And she could be herself with him. If this had been an awkward first date, Emily might have picked through the food, too embarrassed to eat around him. That she could pile her plate without even an ounce of embarrassment put a smile on Chance’s face. “They’ll be lucky if there’s any food left for anyone else by the time we’re done,” he added.
Emily brought her free hand up for a high-five. They were perfect together. Friends and lovers, wasn’t that everyone’s relationship goal? Chance reached over and slapped his hand to hers. He didn’t let go. Instead, he held that hand too, and pulled her in for a slow kiss.
“I love you,” he murmured against her mouth.
She pulled back and said with a nervous laugh, “We’re holding up the line.”
She hadn’t said she loved him back and though Chance tried not to let it bother him, his stomach twisted into an anxious knot. If he pressured Emily, it would push her away. He could give her time and a little space if that’s what she needed. He just hoped she wouldn’t leave him in this state of limbo for long.
They grabbed two plates and loaded them up. Brad looked around, wanting to sit at the emptiest of the three on the beach, but before he could lead Emily away, Brad waved them over. “Chance, Emily! We saved you guys seats.”
Great. The more he tried to put distance between Brad and Emily, the harder Brad tried to shorten the gap. “Isn’t your table for the wedding party?” Chance asked. “We don’t want to put anyone out.”
“Everyone’s seated,” Brad said with a wide smile. Amberly didn’t look quite as thrilled at the invite. “There’s plenty of room.”
Chance looked over at Emily who answered with a shrug. It would be rude to turn the bride and groom down, wouldn’t it? Ugh. He hated being the bigger man.
They settled down at the table. Tyler, Brad’s brother and the best man, stood and raised his beer into the air. “I know that I’m supposed to make my big speech tomorrow, but I’m sort of a grand-stander, so I’m going to do this twice.” Laughter rumbled through the group. “Anyway, I want to thank my brother and his gorgeous bride-to-be for dragging us all out to this island. Best vacation ever, brother.”
“Definitely!” Someone added from one of the other tables.
“You guys know how to do a wedding right,” Tyler continued. “I’m going to head home sunburned, hung over, and happy as hell. So, on behalf of everyone here, I want to say thanks for a great time. To Brad and Amberly!”
Chance brought up his bottle along with everyone else and echoed the sentiment, “To Brad and Amberly,” before taking another long pull.
Brad stood. He brought his champagne glass up. “I just wanted to say thanks to everyone for coming. You all mean a lot to us and we’re glad you don’t hate us for making you spend your vacation budgets to hang out with us.”
Another round of laughter followed. Chance glanced Emily’s way to find her attention on Brad. It was the polite thing to do, but it still bothered him every time she so much as glanced his way. At this rate, it was going to take more than a couple of beers to get him through the night, that was for sure.
“Anyway, I want to make a toast of my own,” Brad said. “We’ve got a real life hero at the table with us tonight. He’s too modest to brag, so I’m going to do it for him. Way to go yesterday, Chance. Not only did you save someone’s life, you saved me from having to swim out for that last scavenger hunt flag. Here’s to you, buddy!”
Emily beamed. Her smile was so bright Chance found it hard to look away. He tried not to read too much into Brad’s toast—because they weren’t “buddies” by any stretch of the imagination, and he suspected Brad would rather eat a bag of nails than give him kudos—and focused instead on the woman beside him. She held her champagne flute high before bringing it to her full lips to drink.
Beautiful.
Chance was more determined than ever to make Emily his. Forever.
Nine
Emily couldn’t remember the last time she’d enjoyed herself so much. Dinner was absolutely delicious, the company and conversation couldn’t be beat, and she was still blissfully content from the past twenty-four hours spent with Chance. He seemed to be enjoying himself as well. Maybe a little too much.
The drinks had been flowing since dinner. After the sun went down, a bonfire was built on the beach where everyone continued to drink, talk, and enjoy the warm, humid night. Chance stood with a group of guys who’d begun to discuss the upcoming college football season. Emily’s eyes began to glaze over somewhere around BSU’s starting lineup and she wandered off to dip her toes into the surf.
She’d never get over how warm the water was as it glided between her toes and slid over the tops of her feet. The sound of the waves rolling in lulled her. For the first time in months, Emily truly felt at peace.
She had Chance to thank for that.
“Hey. Are you okay?”
Emily started at the sound of Brad’s voice. He came up behind her—so close she could feel the heat from his body—and she tensed. “Brad, you shouldn’t stand so close to me.” Funny, a few days ago, she would have jumped at the chance for a few minutes alone with Brad. Now, she just wanted him to put some distance between them. “You don’t want Amberly to get upset.”
“She’s busy with her friends,” Brad said. “You should be over there with them.”
Maybe in another life. One where their friendship hadn’t been tarnished over a guy. “No. I don’t think we’ll ever hang out in the same circles again.”
“That’s my fault.”
Sort of, but Emily wasn’t going to rub Brad’s nose in it. “It is what it is,” she said. “I think everything worked out for the best.”
Brad leaned down so that his mouth rested near her ear. “Did it?”
A nervous tremor shot through her bloodstream. “Sure.” Emily gave a nervous laugh. “You’re marrying Amberly…”
“And you’re marrying Chance.”
Guilt tightened Emily’s chest. She’d concocted a lie in order to make Brad jealous. To make him see that dumping her had been a huge mistake. What had seemed like such a tiny white lie had turned her entire world on its head in a matter of days.
“Yep.” She struggled to get the word past her lips.
“Is that what you want, Emily? To marry him?”
Brad put his hands on her shoulders and slowly turned Emily to face him. She couldn’t have planned this moment any better. Brad seeking her out in the dark, the warm surf washing over their feet. The intensity of his stare as he searched her face for any hint of the truth as he waited for her answer. She’d played this moment over a hundred times in her mind. Each and every time she’d confessed her love to Brad and he’d taken her in his arms.
“I want to be happy,” she said after a moment. “And I want to be with a man who isn’t going to break my heart.”
“I hurt you,” Brad said. “I know you don’t believe me, but I really am sorry for that.”
His words were sincere and for months she’d longed for an honest apology from him. The funny thing was, it didn’t feel the way she thought it would. She appreciated the gesture, but it didn’t have the impact she’d expected. Was that because she’d finally moved on? Because that hurt didn’t matter anymore?
“Like I said, it is what it is. Over and done with. You shouldn’t feel bad about it anymore, Brad. I don’t.”
He reached up and smoothed a lock of hair away from her face. “I meant what I said yesterday. I miss you.”
Emily’s heart rocketed up into her throat. Her plans, this entire trip, had backfired. “You don’t miss me,” she said. “You miss the idea of me.”
“I miss us.” Brad closed the
distance between them. Emily cast a furtive glance behind her shoulder but the party was in full swing and no one paid them any attention. “We were good together, weren’t we?”
Were they? At one point Emily had thought so. But her relationship with Brad couldn’t hold a candle to the one she had with Chance. Just the intimacy of their friendship surpassed anything she’d ever had with Brad. And after last night, she knew that nothing could match the chemistry they had in the bedroom, either.
“I think you might have a little case of cold feet.” Emily reached up to ease Brad away but he misinterpreted the action and took her hand in his.
“What if it’s not cold feet? What if marrying Amberly is a mistake?”
Not cold feet? Please. This was textbook. He brought her hand to his lips and Emily jerked herself free. It was dark outside and they stood outside the perimeter of light cast by the bonfire. But that didn’t mean she was about to take any chances. “Brad, don’t.” Emily had made a huge mistake by coming to this wedding. She wasn’t going to let Brad make an even bigger one by calling it off. “We both know that you and Amberly are perfect together. Way better than we ever were. It’s normal to have last minute nerves. But I know that deep down, you love her.”
“What if I told you I was still in love with you?”
He was doing everything in his power to self-sabotage. Short of giving him a nice, crisp slap across the face, Emily didn’t know what to do to snap him out of it. “You’re not in love with me,” she said. “Not even a little bit.”
“Seeing you with Chance tears me up.” Brad took a step toward her and Emily took a step back. “I wouldn’t feel that way if I wasn’t still in love with you.”
Oh boy.
How many times had she daydreamed about hearing those words from him? Granted, in her imagination, they’d been a lot less wishy-washy. She thought about the way Chance had admitted his love to her. There hadn’t been a single ounce of doubt in his voice. It had been a declaration that he’d all but dared her to challenge.
“Go find Amberly, Brad.” Never in a million years would Emily ever think she’d be the one rejecting Brad. The realization hit her that she wasn’t in love with Brad. She might not have ever been in love with him. “She’s in love with you. She wants to marry you. You guys are going to be happy. Tell her you love her and you’re so glad she’s going to be your wife. Believe me, she’s the one you’re supposed to be with.”
Brad reached out to cup Emily’s cheeks in his palms. He leaned in and put his mouth to hers. The kiss was soft, and slow, and tender. But it did absolutely nothing for her. It carried none of the heat, none of the raw emotion of Chance’s kisses.
“Are you sure?” Brad asked against her lips.
“I’m sure.”
“I hope he’s smart enough not to hurt you like I did,” Brad said as he walked away.
Emily smiled into the darkness. Chance would never hurt her. He was in love with her. And it was time she told him that she was in love with him, too.
#
Chance felt the bottle of Corona slip from his grip. It landed in the sand at his feet with a muted thud. A butter knife to the chest wouldn’t have hurt as much as watching Brad kiss Emily. She didn’t pull away. Didn’t shove at him. Didn’t slap his face. It was too dark to tell if she’d kissed him back. If there was an ounce of passion in the act. But that didn’t matter. After everything that had happened between her and Chance over the past few days, she still wanted Brad.
And apparently, he still wanted her too.
Chance turned and headed away from the beach. His stubborn pride wouldn’t let him stay here for another second and be humiliated. Never in a million years would he have thought Emily capable of breaking up a wedding the day before the actual ceremony. She wasn’t the type of person who delivered low blows. He guessed there was a first time for everything, though. Maybe she wasn’t the woman he thought she was.
He needed to get out of here. Now. Before the hole in his chest opened so wide that he fell to his knees and let everyone on the beach know how badly his heart had been broken.
“Hey Chance. Have you seen Brad?”
Could this night get any worse? Chance turned at the sound of Amberly’s slightly tipsy voice. The last thing he wanted to do was find himself in the middle of any more drama. “No, I haven’t,” he replied. “I’m sure he’s wandering around here somewhere.”
Amberly fixed him with a suspicious glance. “Where’s Emily?”
Yeah, it’s not like he didn’t expect that follow-up. “Oh, um.” Was he seriously going to cover for Emily, after what he’d just seen? No matter what she’d done, he couldn’t bring himself to throw her under the bus. “She mentioned earlier that she had a headache. I think she went back up to the villa.”
Amberly smirked. “Not even married and she’s already throwing out the headache excuse, huh?”
Despite his broken heart, Chance couldn’t bear to see Emily disparaged. “I don’t know what sorts of excuses you give to Brad, but Emily isn’t like that.”
Amberly gave him a look as though to say, “Sure.”
“Why did you invite her?” Morbid curiosity demanded that he know the truth. “Really, Amberly. You haven’t said a word to her since you and Brad hooked up. Why even bother?”
Her lips formed into a petulant pucker. “I didn’t want to invite her. Brad sent the invitation.”
Figured. Well, Chance had asked for it, hadn’t he? He’d wanted to know the sordid truth and it was as good as a punch to the gut. “Oh.” For the life of him, he couldn’t muster more than the one word in response.
“Yeah.” Bitterness crept into Amberly’s tone. “I figured she’d show up, sad and alone, giving Brad those sad puppy dog eyes of hers and he’d be completely turned off.” She let out a derisive snort. “Instead, she shows up looking better than ever and engaged. Certainly didn’t do me any favors. Wanting what he can’t have is sort of Brad’s M.O.”
The sadness that cut into Amberly’s words didn’t go unnoticed. Not that Chance felt sorry for her. Obviously it was that personality flaw that had made it so easy for Amberly to lure Brad away from Emily. “It sucks to feel like you’re getting passed over, doesn’t it?”
Amberly’s shoulders slumped. “I guess I deserve that.”
Chance let out a slow breath. He was angry and hurt and Amberly seemed like as good a target as any to take that anger out on. It wasn’t her fault, though. She was a shitty friend, there was no doubt about that. But if anyone was to blame, it was Brad.
“I’m sorry. That was out of line.”
“No,” Amberly said with a shrug. “You’re right. I didn’t treat Emily like a friend.”
Chance nodded. He didn’t really know what else to say.
“I’m glad she has you. I always thought you two would be good together.”
So had Chance. Apparently, Emily had changed her opinion on that since last night.
“Thanks. For the record, I agree.” Not that it mattered now.
Amberly gave him a wan smile. “I hope Emily feels better. I’m going to go see if I can find Brad.”
Chance’s stride lost a little of its purpose as he headed toward the villa. Damn it, he’d thought…Hell, he didn’t know what he’d thought. That one night had changed everything between him and Emily. That the words he’d spoken to her had somehow convinced her of his love. That he’d managed to work his way into her heart—not just as her friend—and she’d found a way to love him, too. He’d been so anxious for this wedding to be over. He’d thought that whatever magic they’d found here would carry over and they’d take it home with them.
Chance had thought…that everything would be perfect and end up just the way he’d wanted it to.
What a joke.
He walked into the villa and his gaze landed on the bed he and Emily had spent last night and most of today in. They’d sent housekeeping away and the bed linens were still tossed haphazardly across the mattress, tangled,
like their bodies had been only hours ago. He grabbed his duffel from the closet and tossed it on the couch. He didn’t bother to fold any of this clothes, didn’t separate the clean stuff from the dirty stuff. Instead, he shoved everything in the bag along with all of his toiletries and zipped it closed.
He hoped Emily got what she’d hoped for in coming to Brad’s wedding. Chance, on the other hand, had lost everything. Maybe it wasn’t too late to take that job in Seattle. It was obvious that he needed a new start. As far away from Emily Proctor as he could possibly manage.
The problem was, there wasn’t anywhere on the planet he could hide that would be far away from her. She’d ripped his heart out tonight, and Chance didn’t think the damage would heal anytime soon.
Ten
“I need a car to Naples. Right now.”
Emily didn’t care that she sounded like an absolute crazy person. He left! Packed up his stuff and walked away without even waiting to hear her side of the story. Emily knew how her kiss with Brad must have looked. She was thankful that Amberly—or anyone else in the wedding party—hadn’t seen, but if she could go back and change it all, she would.
Starting with the day she’d asked Chance to come here with her.
She didn’t love Brad. Not even close. It had taken coming here to realize that she hadn’t been in love with him for a long time. For almost a year she’d held on to the idea of Brad and her own heartbreak over being passed over for her friend. How could she have been so stupid? So blind to her own heart? And now, she’d managed to screw up what might be the best thing that had ever happened to her.
The prospect of a life without Chance was unbearable.
“I can have someone here in five minutes, Miss Proctor.”
Emily glanced up at the front desk clerk and gave a mechanical nod of her head. She had no idea how long Chance had been gone. Another five minutes might be too late.
“He left about ten minutes ago,” the woman said as though she’d read Emily’s mind. She gave her a sympathetic smile that did nothing for Emily’s tumultuous nerves. “I doubt he’ll make it to the airport and catch a flight before you get there.”
