by Jillian Dodd
“So, how’s it going? What have you been up to?” she asks.
I raise an eyebrow, watching him. Yes, what has he been up to?
“Not much lately. Work. You know how it is. So, she’s your date for the wedding?”
“Yep. She’s my plus-one,” Hayley explains. “Single as they come.”
Oh, thank you so much, Hayley.
“I see.” He smirks a little. “Me too.”
“I can’t imagine why.”
Hayley shoots me a look of unadulterated horror. Sure, anybody who doesn’t know me might’ve taken that at face value. Because, at face value, the guy’s a catch. Handsome, probably successful in his work. Everything that makes somebody attractive on paper.
But she knows me, and she knows how I sound when I’m being sarcastic.
He smirks even more than before. “I invited a girl I was casually dating for a while. She seemed excited about coming but never showed up for the flight today.”
Once again, I can’t imagine why.
Hayley’s face falls. “Oh, that sucks. Well, it’s her loss. And, hey”—she looks at me and then back at him—“with me being busy with family stuff all week, maybe you and Kitty could spend time together. I know I won’t get out of at least one family dinner—and no offense, Kitty, but I think it’s just parents and kids.”
She’s so full of it. I have to kick her a little under the table. Her parents are amazing, and they’d never tell me not to come to dinner.
But she’s working overtime to get me and Mr. Foul Mouth to spend one-on-one time together.
“I don’t know.” Kellen shrugs. “I might have a bunch of best-man stuff to do.”
“I know the job must be difficult.”
This time, Hayley kicks me. I kick out again, but she moves her leg out of the way in time.
“I’m gonna get a drink,” she announces. “Do either of you want one?”
“I’m still good on this one.” I hold up my pineapple, which is half-full and quite delicious.
“I’m okay.” Kellen’s smile drops off his face the second he’s out of Hayley’s line of sight. He glowers at me from across the table while she waves her arms behind him and mimes smiling and being friendly.
I cannot stand her right now.
“So what was that all about?”
“She’s just trying to help me meet a man.”
“Help you? What, are you desperate? Can you not find a man on your own?”
I have to swallow back the rush of absolute indignation at this. If he were Matt, I would’ve thrown something at him by now. The creep.
I might still throw something. Anybody who heard that little exchange on the phone would understand why.
“You know I’m a writer. I’m supposed to write about dating a best man for my next book. It was her idea. She thought we would—”
“So, what?” he asks because, apparently, I’m not allowed to finish a sentence without him interrupting me. “You write memoirs? Based on what you do?”
“No. Romance novels. Fiction based in reality.”
“You don’t have an imagination?” He taps a finger to his head. “You can’t make things up? I thought that was what writers did.”
“They do. It’s a long story, and I don’t feel like explaining myself to you when you’re so obviously determined to be a jerk.”
“You’re the one who got mouthy before.”
“Mouthy?” I laugh. “That is so something I’d expect to hear you say. I bet you don’t like it much when women get mouthy, do you? And I bet they get mouthy on you a lot. Whenever one of them says something you don’t like, they’re mouthy.”
“You don’t know the first thing about me.”
“Don’t I? I heard enough from you before. Maybe if you’d kept your conversation private instead of yelling in front of the whole pool—”
“I didn’t know she was going to call when she did—”
“If you interrupt me one more time, I swear, you’ll end up with bits of pineapple all over you. Try me if you think I’m kidding.”
He rolls his eyes but keeps his mouth shut this time.
“You came off like a bully. And the way you stormed over here was the way a bully would storm over. I’m sorry if you don’t like my perception, but that’s how it was.”
He sighs, staring at the table with his lips pursed. “I’m not usually like that. I do apologize for coming off that way. Nobody wants to be told they’re acting like a jackass when they’re already mad enough to kill somebody.” His eyes dart up to meet mine before flickering away again. “Just a turn of phrase. Not literal.”
“You were talking to the girl who was supposed to come with you?”
“She’s a gold digger. Hot, fun to be with, but a gold digger. Not that I have that much gold. But she got all excited when I offered to bring her with me. Let me pay for it. Kept me thinking she was coming along, even when I reminded her the refund period was coming to a close. Didn’t tell me she never planned on actually showing up at the airport.”
He shrugs. “Oldest story in the world. She’s dating somebody else. Not that we were ever serious. It was one of those things. We’d meet up, remember why we liked each other. Though who knows? She could’ve been cheating on her boyfriend with me, and I wouldn’t have known it. I doubt I’d ever get a straight answer out of her.”
“I see. Well, I’m sorry, for what it’s worth.”
“Thanks. For what it’s worth.” But he smiles for a split second.
He then looks around, and I follow his gaze, realizing Hayley is not at the bar.
“Where’s Hayley?” he asks.
“Oh, she’s not coming back. Knowing her, it’s her way of making sure we’re together with nothing to do but get to know each other.”
“I see.”
“She actually rigged it, so I’d end up writing about a best man for my next book.” He looks hopelessly confused. “Like I said, long story,” I add.
His mouth twitches, his eyes crinkling a little at the corners, hinting at him maybe having a decent personality when he’s not in the middle of getting stood up by a girl and making a scene. “So, she’s determined to get us together during this whole thing, huh?”
“She’s a determined sort of person. She once convinced me to get bangs. It was not a good look for me, but she’d talked me into it.”
“That’s pretty persuasive.” He’s fighting back a grin now.
“Yeah, she’ll kill it in the courtroom. Nobody will have a chance against her.”
“Look”—he finally relaxes, his shoulders lowering to a regular height instead of being up around his ears—“I’m not the guy you met back there. Really, I’m not. I let my anger get the better of me, and I shouldn’t have. Especially out in public. I really am sorry for how I acted.”
I mean, I did threaten to throw pineapple at him. “I understand. I saw you at your worst—at least, I hope that was your worst.”
“You’ve never seen me when my college bracket falls apart.”
“Ugh, you like college basketball?” I wrinkle my nose and roll my eyes. “No way we can even be friends.”
“I played back at school. I was on a basketball scholarship actually.”
“No kidding. Couldn’t cut the pros?”
“Oof.” He winces. “Low blow. Actually, I blew my ACL and just wasn’t the same after that.”
“Oh. I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have joked.”
“It’s okay. I wasn’t pro material. And I’m good with money and numbers, so …”
“So, it worked out the way it was meant to work out.”
“Seems that way. I guess everything does. Either that or it’s what we tell ourselves to make up for having no control over our existence.”
Hmm. He’s an interesting person. A little dark maybe. A pessimist. I’m hardly a ray of sunshine most of the time myself.
But he’s smart. I have to give him that.
And gorgeous—when he isn’t
ready to strangle somebody.
Though I’m still not completely sure about him. Whether we’ll be a fit or not. But I can at least get to know him better over the week. It seems like we’ll get along fairly well.
“Do you really have a ton of best-man things to do this week?” I have to ask.
“Nah. We’ll drink the night before the wedding, but that’s it. We already had the bachelor party—what there was of it. Zack didn’t wanna do anything he’d end up feeling guilty over.” He chuckles. “A few of the guys were disappointed. Zack told them to get lives. They told him to stop being so p—I mean, so whipped.”
I know what he was about to say and appreciate that he held back. Okay, so he’s a decent enough guy. “How did you feel about it?”
“I didn’t care. We played pool and drank scotch and went back to my place to watch a game. I’m fine with that. I got all the partying out of my system back in school.”
I’ll have to keep an eye on him this week and see if that’s really true. It’s all well and good for a person to pretend like they don’t party.
But a guy like him? On an island resort? With bridesmaids probably ready to fall into his bed?
We’ll see.
“If you want,” he offers, “maybe we could grab dinner whenever Hayley’s busy with the family. Knowing Kylie, she’ll have her jumping through hoops and opening doors and pulling out chairs for her.”
“I’d love to see her try,” I admit with a laugh. “Nobody gets Hayley to do anything she doesn’t feel like doing.”
“Then, you’ve never seen Kylie in action. Don’t get me wrong; she’s a great girl, and I think she’s perfect for Zack. But she’s Type A if there ever was one. And this is her show.” He spreads his arms in a shrug. “We’re just the supporting cast.”
“I hope you know I’m going to use that line in a book someday.”
He winks with a killer smile that lights up his whole face and makes him handsomer than ever. “So long as I get a cut of the royalties and a glowing thank-you in the notes.”
CHAPTER SIX
“So, you’re the famous Kitty Valentine.” Hayley’s godmother gives me the once-over without bothering to make it look like she’s doing anything else.
All I can do is shrug with a goofy smile since what’s a girl supposed to do when she hears that? She made it sound like there’d been reports of me, like killing and eating men foolish enough to wander into my den.
“That’s me. I guess it’s better than having you call me infamous,” I offer.
She sniffs, swirling her wine. “I was going to but thought it would be rude.”
Oh. Well then.
She smiles in a way that reminds me of Grandmother’s so-called friends. I wonder if the two of them have ever crossed paths.
“Hayley raves about you all the time,” she explains. “She’s very proud.”
“I’m proud of her too. She’s going to have an amazing career.”
“I am certain she will, though I wonder if she’ll ever manage to eclipse her brother and sister.” She raises her glass of wine in Kylie’s direction.
Kylie gives her a distracted smile. I hope the girl will be able to enjoy her own wedding at this rate. She’s wound so tight. Will she even remember any of this, or will it be nothing more than a few brief flashes of memory and a lot of disappointment at her plans not going right?
I really hope that’s not the case.
Rather than remind Hayley’s godmother that there shouldn’t be any competition between Hayley and her siblings, I manage to make an escape.
I can see why Hayley wasn’t looking forward to tonight. Actually, I can see why she wasn’t looking forward to coming on this trip.
Not that it isn’t nice. Not that Kylie and her bridesmaids didn’t put a ton of work into it.
It’s just feels so … forced. Like, manufactured fun.
Kylie taps a fork against her wineglass, signaling for us to be quiet. I’m waiting at the bar in the small banquet room while everybody else mingles.
“Thank you all so much for being here. We know it’s not easy to take time out of your busy schedules to celebrate with us this way, and it means the world. It truly does.” She mimes applauding all of us, and most of the room follows suit.
I don’t. I mean, I’m not family, and I get the feeling she isn’t talking to me. Not that she’d be rude, but I’m just a guest. Practically a freeloader really.
My gaze travels over the room, and I notice Kellen isn’t smiling or clapping either.
He’s looking at me.
Granted, I wish he were smiling, but still. It seems like we’re of the same mind on this.
“Everybody, have a nice time tonight, but don’t stay up too late,” Kylie urges. “We have so much planned this week; you’ll need every ounce of energy if you want to keep up.”
Kellen joins me a moment later. “Gee, I sure do want to keep up.”
I have to hide a giggle, both because I don’t want anybody to think I’m laughing at Kylie and because he doesn’t need to know yet that I think he’s funny. Let him work for my laughter, I say.
“Have you seen the itinerary?” he murmurs while signaling for a drink.
He looks good. Smells good too. Good enough that I can’t resist the urge to joke with him a little.
So, I lift a shoulder. “You mean, the schedule of events that happens to be completely up to us whether we want to join or not, but we all know there’s no option?”
He chuckles. “I thought you seemed like you might be cool, if given the chance.”
“Wow. That’s a backhanded compliment if ever I heard one. I’m cool all the time.”
“Really?” He fixes me with a wry look from under his brows.
“Okay, okay, I’m a total nerd. If Hayley ever talked about me, I’m sure she could confirm that.”
“She already did. Ages ago. Her friend Kitty, the nerdy writer.”
“She would never say that.”
“So you would think.” He’s laughing as he looks around the room. “I swear, if Kylie makes it to the wedding without the top of her head blowing off, it’ll be a miracle. At least this place is nice.”
“It’s very nice. And you should know how nice since you paid for somebody else to join you.”
He covers his chest with one hand like I wounded him. “Ouch! Damn, you’re tough.”
“That was a risk,” I admit. “I didn’t know how you’d take it. I guess the wine has me feeling more confident. Or snarky. Either way.”
“I guess I have a thing for snark since that should’ve pissed me off, but it only makes me kinda like you. I lift an eyebrow. “I said kinda,” he adds.
“You like snark? I can give you snark. I can snark along with the best of them. All day long.”
“Okay, there’s a limit.”
“Suit yourself.” I shrug.
“At least there’s somebody else here who sees this the way I do. Between you and me …”
He leans in a little closer, though he doesn’t strictly need to. There isn’t a ton of noise in here, and I can hear him clearly.
I don’t mind.
He smiles before backing away toward where Zack and a couple of the groomsmen are doing shots. “I’m glad there’s somebody I can relate to. Somebody who isn’t a giggly airhead.”
And I’m glad his would-be guest never showed.
Maybe Hayley was onto something. Why does she always have to be right?
I excuse myself and find her in a corner, talking with her brother. Brandon is pretty much the male version of his sisters—gorgeous and blond with a dazzling smile and perfect bone structure.
He’s prettier than me, in other words.
I’d hate him if he wasn’t such a nice guy.
“Hey!” he greets me with a big, tight hug. “How are you? It’s been so long.”
“I know, right? My editor pretty much keeps me chained to my desk most of the time.”
“I try to get her out
into the world every once in a while,” Hayley tells him, elbowing me.
“Yeah, but she’s not much better. Always working.”
“You were made for each other.” He blows out a sigh, his cheeks puffing out. “This is really something, isn’t it?”
I can tell he’s trying to be generous. He doesn’t seem all that interested in appearances.
“It is. I think it’s very, very nice,” I whisper in a chiding way. “Don’t give Kylie a hard time. This is her dream. She deserves it. Every girl does.”
“Spoken like a true romantic.” He kisses the top of my head and then winks. “I need alcohol.”
We watch him walk away, and for Hayley’s benefit, I let out a low whistle. “I swear, if he wasn’t your brother …”
“Watch your mouth, woman.”
“He’s hot. Your brother is certifiably hot. Get used to it.”
“I refuse to hear this.” Then, she nudges me. “What about Briggs, huh?”
“Can we please refer to him as Kellen? I refuse to use his last name if I’m supposed to take him seriously as a human being.”
“If you walk around, calling him Kellen, nobody’s going to know who you’re talking about.”
“Fine, I’ll call him Briggs when we’re exchanging vows someday, just so nobody’s confused.”
It’s good to see and hear her genuinely laugh even if it’s sort of at my expense. “Kitty Briggs. I don’t like it.”
“I’ll always be Kitty Valentine. It’s my brand.”
“Damn straight. Besides, yelling at you and reminding you you’re Kitty fucking Briggs doesn’t have the same ring to it.”
I have to shush her since, hello, there are people around who know who she’s talking about. “Okay, let’s not get any rumors started. It’s bad enough he knows why you wanted us to hook up in the first place.”
“Which you didn’t have to tell him.”
“I needed to tell him something. We didn’t exactly get off to the best start, you know. It was the icebreaker. After what I heard from him earlier, if I wrote about him without him knowing, I’d half-expect him to accuse me of trying to steal from his life or something.”
