“I can’t. I promised … Hold up.” She wags her finger at me. “How come it’s okay for you to ask questions about my love life but I can’t ask about yours?”
“Because I can obviously solve all your problems. Now, tell Suzie all about it.”
To my surprise, my tactic works.
“Ryker wants a wedding. I want to elope.”
“The man who just left this office would give you the world. I’m sure he’ll agree to elope if you give him the right incentive.” I wiggle my eyebrows.
“But I love him, and I want to give him everything he wants.”
“And he wants a wedding?” I’m surprised. I wouldn’t expect the big, bad bounty hunter to care one way or another as long as Phoebe is his in the end – his to protect, his to love.
“What’s wrong with having a wedding? You looked like you had a good time at Hailey’s wedding.”
“She had a fruit and bubbly bar. What’s not to love?”
I can’t argue with her there. I don’t drink champagne, but I couldn’t help but be impressed with the setup. Of course, the fact she also had cases of my beer didn’t hurt.
I refuse to be distracted. I drum my fingers on my desk and wait Phoebe out.
“Fine. I wasn’t allowed to give any input into my first wedding, okay? I have no idea how to put together a wedding.”
Is she serious? Ms. Always Perfectly Put Together is worried about planning a wedding? “Do you think Hailey knew how to plan a wedding before she started planning hers?”
“Please. Hailey has been dreaming of her wedding to Aiden since she first caught sight of the man. She knew exactly what she wanted.”
Ah, now we’re getting to the heart of the matter.
“You don’t know what you want at a wedding, do you?”
Her arms flail. “How could I? I don’t have any idea what my clothing style is, how am I supposed to figure out a wedding.”
I frown. Now she’s looking for excuses. The woman has a very distinct clothing style. I don’t argue with her, though. Nope. I said I would solve her problems. And solve her problems I will.
“You don’t figure it out.”
“What? Is a wedding going to magically appear in one of those packages from the uncles?”
“Although that would be cool, it’s not what I meant. Hire a wedding planner. It’s not like you can’t afford it.”
Phoebe is rich with a capital R. I don’t know precisely how much money she has, but she comes from a wealthy pharmaceutical family. Although they disowned her, she still has a ton of stocks and investments. Why she works is beyond me. I certainly wouldn’t if a pot of gold landed on my lap.
“Isn’t hiring a wedding planner cheating?”
“Cheating? Who are you cheating on? Is Ryker insisting you put the wedding together on your own?”
“No?”
“There you have it. Pick a date and hire a wedding planner.” I tap the bottle of vodka. “Oh, and maybe you can stop tormenting the uncles.”
She giggles. “But it’s fun.”
I knew it! She’s already picked out who she wants to walk her down the aisle.
“Who did you pick?”
She mimics a zipper fastening her lips closed.
“Fine. But I’m stealing your vodka, and I refuse to attend another game show set up by the uncles.”
“Oh, come on. It was hilarious.”
It was a blast, but I’m not admitting to anything.
“Now, it’s your turn. What’s going on with you and Grayson?”
My phone rings and I practically dive on it. Phoebe tries to get there first but I’m seriously motivated.
“You Cheat, We Eat, Suzie speaking. I’m here to make your life better today.”
She narrows her eyes on me, but she doesn’t linger. Good thing since I don’t know how long I can pretend to have a conversation with a man who admitted he dialed the wrong number and hung up on me.
Chapter 31
Every loaf of bread is a tragic story of a group of grains that could have become beer but didn’t.
Pack a bag.
Pack a bag? Why does Grayson want me to pack a bag? Confession – I’ve kind of sort of been avoiding Grayson since we decided to start our relationship. Not at Hailey’s wedding. No, Hailey’s wedding was awesome. Except for the bouquet toss stunt. Grrr. But after? It’s been the avoidance game all day, every day.
I’m not trying to be a bitch. That shit happens all on its own. No, I need time to wrap my head around the idea of being in a romantic relationship with a man again. Apparently, my silence is not deterring pushy man Grayson.
Why?
Do as your told.
Do as I’m told? Has he not met me?
I’ll make it worth your while.
Little Susan wakes up from her weeklong slumber and cheers. Make it worth our while! Make it worth our while! Good grief, she got the pompoms out. I tell her to put the damn pompoms away and go pack a bag.
Gee. I hope he cleaned his place. I am not staying there unless he’s learned what a vacuum cleaner is since the last time I visited. Oh, stop your judging. I’m not a complete clean freak. Just in case, I pack an additional bag with some cleaning supplies and equipment. Huh. I really proved my point there, didn’t I?
The doorbell rings thirty minutes later. I saunter to the door. Oh, who am I kidding? I skip to the door and fling it open.
“Hey, stud muffin.”
Grayson shakes his head before leaning down to gently brush his lips with mine. I chase him when he pulls away all too quickly. “Sorry, Munchkin. We’ve got somewhere to be.”
“We do?”
He doesn’t respond and instead picks up my bags from the spot next to the door where I left them. He grunts when he lifts them. “What did you pack? The kitchen sink.”
“Just some cleaning supplies. In case…”
He drops the heaviest bag. “You won’t be needing them. Come on. You ready?”
I eye the bag with my cleaning supplies as I walk to the door. Is he saying he cleaned his apartment? I know military men are supposed to be disciplined with cleaning, but my experience at his place says otherwise.
Grayson takes my hand and leads me outside. “Stop dillydallying.”
“Dillydallying? What are you? My grandpa? Who says the word dillydallying anymore?”
He doesn’t respond as he escorts me to his truck. Once we’re settled, he starts up the vehicle and we’re off.
“Where are we going?” I ask when I notice he’s headed for the highway.
“I’ll tell you where we’re going if you tell me why you’ve been ghosting me all week.”
“I haven’t been ghosting you all week.” I am such a liar.
“I guess I won’t tell you where we’re going then.”
I switch the radio on and fiddle with the station for a few minutes in the lamest attempt ever to stop myself from asking him where we’re going. It doesn’t take long before I’m begging. “Please, please, please. Tell me where we’re going.” I flutter my eyelashes and everything.
He snorts. “Are you trying to look innocent? Did you forget I know you’re anything but innocent?”
I collapse back in my seat. “Why won’t you tell me where we’re going?”
“Maybe it’s a surprise.”
I rub my hands together. “Oh goodie. Let me guess. We’re going on a safari.”
“It’s February in Wisconsin. What kind of safari could we be going on?”
“True. Plus, you didn’t tell me to pack my passport.”
I drum my fingers. Winter. Winter. Winter. “Are we going bobsledding?” I clap. I’ve always wanted to try bobsledding.
“You know those bobsleds go like 90 miles per hour.”
“I know! I feel the need, the need for speed!” I lift my hand to high-five Grayson, but he shakes his head at me.
“You’re harshing my buzz,” I tell him when he remains silent.
“All you have to do is
tell me why you ghosted me this week and I’ll tell you where we’re going.”
“You’re mean. Really mean. Like dirty snake mean.” And snakes are horrible. The absolute worst!
He hums like me calling him mean is no big deal. Ugh! Fine! “I wasn’t ghosting you. I needed time to think.”
He takes my hand and places it on his thigh. “Now, was that very hard?”
“I don’t want to talk about it.” I try to pull my hand away, but he places his over mine to capture it. And damn it, I like how much he wants to touch me. I am in deep doo-doo here.
“We’re going to the brewers’ conference.”
My mouth drops open as I momentarily forget how to speak. Naturally, it doesn’t last long. “The brewers’ conference. The conference with hops workshops, basic microbiology, quality workshops, and much much more!” I may be screaming by the time I finish.
Grayson hunches over. Yep. I was totally screaming.
“Oh my god. Oh my god.” I clap. “I’ve always wanted to go, but it’s not cheap and—” I narrow my eyes and look over at him. “Grayson, tell me you didn’t spend all your money on this.”
“I didn’t spend all my money,” he quips.
I slap his arm. “You know what I mean. This conference costs like over a thousand dollars. You shouldn’t be spending that kind of money on me.”
Grayson growls. “I will spend however much money I want on the woman I’m dating.” He holds up his hand when I start to argue. “No. I don’t want to hear it. You are my woman, Suzie, and I want to spoil you. It’s the least I can do.”
His woman? I am no one’s woman but my own. “I am not your woman.”
“You’re not?” he challenges. “Then, I guess I’m not your man.”
“Your…” I trail off. Damn it. I hate it when he makes sense!
“Fine. Tell me all about the conference.”
He smirks, and I narrow my eyes on him. If he starts to gloat, I’m jumping out of the truck. I don’t care if we’re currently driving 90 mph down the interstate. I’ll do it!
“The registration details are in the glove compartment. I didn’t know what add-on workshops you would want to go to, so I signed up for all of them.”
I bite my tongue before I yell at him – again! – for spending too much dang money on me. Does he not understand the whole easing into a relationship thing? I open the glove compartment and find the folder with all the details. My eyes grow wider and wider as I scan the papers.
“You seriously signed us up for everything. Beer styles workshop, draft beer workshop, sensory training.”
“Not everything. I didn’t figure we needed to know about human resources or pairing beer with food.”
Good call. “Hey wait. You said we. Are you doing all of the workshops with me?”
I watch as his cheeks darken to a dusty shade of pink. He looks adorable! “Um, I thought if I’m going to help you with the marketing, it would be helpful to know more about the brewing itself.”
My heart speeds up until it’s racing. Thumpity thump thump. I place my hands over my ribcage to stop the thing from beating its way clear out of my chest.
“I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have presumed.”
“No, no, no. You misunderstand me.” I swallow and dive in. “You know how my ex Toby and I were going to start a brewery together?”
“I know. I don’t mean to take his place.”
“Silly man. You could never take his place.” He looks over at me, and I see the flash of pain in his eyes before he blinks, and it disappears. I slap his thigh. “Don’t be stupid. You could never take his place because you are twenty gazillion million times better than him.”
“Twenty gazillion million? Is that the technical term?”
“Don’t make fun of me when I’m trying to be honest.”
He makes a motion with his hand as if to tell me to continue.
“Um…” I take a deep breath and try to sort through my thoughts. Why is this so danged hard?
“One of the reasons I felt betrayed when Toby … you know…” He nods in understanding and I force myself to continue. “He not only proposed after I found out about his pregnant girlfriend, which was after he told me he never wanted children.” Growl. “He also wanted to continue our brewery business together. He didn’t understand why I was upset. He said the business and our relationship were two different things. Total and utter bullshit since the whole brewery thing was his idea. I only learned brewing for him.”
Grayson wraps his hand around my thigh. “I want to say it’s not a big deal I’m learning all of this for you because I know you are freaking out right now.”
I am totally freaking out. We started a relationship a week ago. Seven measly days! I thought we would ease into this. But no, the Army man is jumping in combat boots first.
“But I’m not going to lie to you. I like my balls where they are, thank you very much.”
“The knife I have picked out wouldn’t be too painful.”
“How did I know you already had the knife picked out?” He chuckles as if he’s not afraid of my knife-wielding ways. “Precious, the truth is I am learning all of this for you. I know how busy you are between the PI business and your brewing. If learning about brewing allows me to spend more time with you, then that’s what I’ll do.”
Damn him. He knows exactly what to say to melt my reservations away. Toby never wanted to learn anything for me. Everything was about him, him, him.
Did I say I was in deep doo-doo? I was wrong. I am knee-deep in doo-doo and sinking fast.
Chapter 32
Today I was a hero. I rescued some beer trapped in a bottle.
“Today was the Best. Day. Ever,” I say as I collapse onto the bed in our hotel room.
I am exhausted with a capital E, and my feet are killing me. Shitkicker boots is not the way to go if you’re walking around a conference center all day. And I think my brain is about to burst from all of the information I learned at today’s workshop. I thought I knew all there is to know about the different beer styles. I was wrong.
But do I care? Not even a tiny bit. I had way too much fun to care about silly things like my feet no longer being able to support my body and my brain exploding.
Grayson plops down on the bed next to me. “There is a lot more to brewing than I thought. And I am not looking forward to the microbiology workshop tomorrow. I am not into science. Give me a weapon, tell me the current wind speed and direction, and I can calculate the change in trajectory to hit my target, but biology and chemistry?” He shivers.
I pat his leg. “Don’t worry. I’ll let you cheat off me.”
His stomach growls, and I groan. “I guess we have to move because someone needs to be fed.”
“I can order a pizza. I saw a take-out menu on the desk.”
“Oh, thank goodness. I don’t think I can move.” My eyes are already closing. Just a small nap and I’ll be ready to go.
“Not even for a meat lover’s double cheese pizza?”
My eyes snap open and now it’s my stomach’s turn to growl. I guess I’m hungry, too. “Sounds perfect.”
Grayson stands and slaps my thigh. “Why don’t you get showered while I order the pizza?”
Get showered? Is he out of his mind? I am not moving. I’m perfectly happy to sleep in my own filth tonight.
I startle awake when a weight lands on my chest. My eyes snap open to find Grayson smirking from above me. “What?”
He doesn’t answer. Instead, his lips trace my neck as he nibbles and bites his way to my ear. “Too tired?”
Tired? Who’s tired? “For some reason, I’m not feeling tired anymore.”
“Are you sure?” He bites my earlobe and I moan. “I can get up and take my shower.”
I wrap my legs around his hips. “Don’t you dare move.”
He presses his pelvis into mine and I can feel how hard he is. My stomach dips and tingles erupt in all the right places.
“Don’t mo
ve at all?” His hand squeezes my breast and even through several layers of clothing, it feels incredible. “I shouldn’t do this, then?” He pinches my nipple and my back arches of its own accord.
His hand drops and I open my eyes to glare at him. “Why did you stop?”
He crawls backward before standing. “I think you’re wearing too many clothes.”
I agree. Way too many clothes. “Race you,” I say as I jump to my feet.
I whip my sweatshirt over my head and rid myself of my bra. Then, I unsnap and unzip my jeans and push them down my legs together with my panties. Shit. My boots. I forgot all about them. Stupid boots. I try to kick them off without unlacing them to no avail. They are laced up tight. I move to sit on the bed, but I miss my mark and end up sliding down the side of the bed to end up flat on the floor on my naked ass.
“Shit.”
Grayson chuckles. “Need some help, Munchkin?”
I raise my head, ready to give him a piece of my mind for laughing at me, but when I notice he’s stark naked with his cock hard and pointed in my direction, any response I had is completely forgotten.
I rise to my knees, the jeans wrapped around my ankles and the boots I was desperately trying to rid myself of mere moments before completely forgotten, and inch closer to his mouth-watering cock. I lick my lips.
Grayson groans. “Don’t look at me like that if you want me to last until I’m inside you.”
I wink up at him. “Maybe I want you to be inside another part of me.”
In case there’s any confusion as to what I’m referring to, I grab hold of his length and dart my tongue out to lick him from base to tip. He growls and his hands land on my head.
“You don’t have to,” he pants.
I smirk up at him. “What if I want to?”
Before he can respond, I take his cock into my mouth as far as I can. Not all the way. I may have a big mouth but apparently, it’s not big enough for his cock. While my mouth moves up and down his length, I use one hand to cup his balls and the other to squeeze the base of his cock where my mouth can’t reach.
Grayson’s hands tighten on my head until I can feel his fingernails digging into my scalp. Being able to drive this man to the brink of his control makes me feel powerful and sexy. I squirm as I feel myself getting wet.
A Soldier for Suzie: A Military Romantic Comedy (Love will OUT Book 3) Page 17
