Decoy Date

by Mira Lyn Kelly

  Her words hit Brody like a blow to the gut, knocking him back a step. “So you guys are…” He tried to make himself say the rest, to ask if they were together. But he couldn’t force the words onto his tongue, let alone past his lips. He cleared his throat and shook his head. “He’s taking you home.”

  A small stitch pulled between her brows, the corner of the mouth he’d tasted only hours ago turned down. “He’s walking me back to my place. And then tomorrow, we’ll head back home to Dobson.”

  Home. The place that they’d been sharing since before they were born. The connection that would never be severed. The history he wasn’t a part of. Couldn’t compete with. Didn’t have a place in.

  He understood. He straightened his shoulders, then giving Gwen’s hands one last squeeze, he leaned down and kissed her cheek.

  “Hey, Merry Christmas. I’ll see you at the bar when you get back.”

  That bit of strain left her face, softening her smile. She nodded. “Merry Christmas.”

  And then she was gone. Leaving him with a house full of friends, feeling as alone as he could remember feeling since he had moved out on his own.

  The last guest left a little after one thirty. He wasn’t worried about the mess, about cleaning up, or the mysterious single boot or stray glove that had been left behind. He didn’t want to think about anything, least of all what might have happened when Ted got Gwen to her door. Whether he’d looked at her beneath the falling snow and found himself caught up in that same pull Brody hadn’t had the strength or sense to pull himself out of.

  Throwing the dead bolt and turning off the lights, Brody headed back through the open space to the liquor cabinet. Ignoring the open wine and eggnog, he went straight for the whiskey. Hell, it wasn’t like he had anything else to do tomorrow. The first shot was down before he hit the stairs.

  If Ted tried to kiss her, would Gwen let him?

  Reaching the second floor, Brody leaned against the rough wooden railing, looking over the living space below.

  “Do you ever get lonely?”

  Yeah, gorgeous. Looked like he did.

  Flipping off the light so he wouldn’t see the vast expanse of his empty home, he followed the hall down to his room where he stopped and stared at the silver-wrapped gift about the size of a shoebox in the center of his bed. It was beautiful, the bow a pile of shimmering coils tied around paper with glitter-encrusted snowflakes pressed into the pattern. It was so Gwen. He could practically imagine her running her fingers over it and making that little hum of appreciation that drove him wild.

  She’d left his present for him.

  He sat and took the gift into his lap, carefully running his thumb beneath one fold and then the other to preserve the paper. When he opened the box, all he could do was reach for the bottle he’d set by the table and take another long swallow.

  Chapter 10

  “New scarf?” Molly asked, walking up to him Monday morning outside Belfast. Then being Molly, she reached for it like she was about to take it off his neck. “Ooh, so soft. This is gorgeous. Let me try it on.”

  But before she had a chance, he batted her little hand away, pointing his index finger in her face. “Don’t touch.”

  Shooting him one of her signature glowers, she crossed her arms over her ever-expanding belly. “Geez, I just wanted to feel it for a second.”

  Brody did a double take, laughing, his brows raised as he looked down at her, because…really?

  He’d lost more than his share of T-shirts to this girl, and as a rule, he didn’t mind. She was a sweetheart, and he enjoyed making her smile, even if it was only because of some stupid saying on a T-shirt that would probably still be too big for her if she were nine months pregnant with triplets. But this was different.

  “Hurry up. I’m freezing out here. And I don’t have a scarf,” she added with a good-natured jab. “What’s so special about it?” she asked, following him back to his office to leave their coats. “The scarf, I mean. Aside from it being completely gorgeous and all.”

  “Christmas present.”

  Apparently not in any hurry to leave his office, she ran her fingers over the pattern.

  “It even matches your eyes.”

  “Molly, I’m opening the kitchen an hour early because you called me up begging. You want this burger or not?”

  For a second, her eyes glazed, and he could practically see the drool pooling in her mouth. “God, yes, I want the burger.”

  “Then come on.”

  Once they were situated in the kitchen and he had the grill going and the ingredients out, Molly pulled a chair over to crawl up on the counter. “So who’s it from?”

  No sense in playing dumb, but he didn’t have to give Molly any more than she was asking for. At least that’s what he was thinking until he heard that menacing little growl from behind him. With a big breath, he turned around and held out his hands. “Fine, it’s from Gwen. It was a Christmas present. She knitted it for me, and I fucking love it, so no, you can’t have it. Good?”

  Leaning back on one hand, she slowly rubbed her belly with the other.

  “She knit it for you? That’s awfully sweet. And time-consuming.”

  He turned back to her burger. “It was very thoughtful.”

  He only wished he’d had the opportunity to thank her for it with more than a text he never got a response back from.

  “Mmm-hmm. Very.” Then, “You guys still pretending to date?”

  The spatula clattered against the grill. He could hear her smiling.

  “No. We’re done with that.”

  “Did it work?”

  “Yes.” Too well.

  He set the finished burger next to Molly, who promptly sank her teeth into an enormous bite and then, still chewing, demanded, “Eggsplng.”

  This was a woman Brody had known longer and better than any other in his life. She’d been like a little sister to him when she moved into the quad he was sharing with her brother freshman year. She’d been the girl he’d thought he might love a little years later, until he realized she’d been in love with Sean from as far back as they’d all known each other. She’d been the only one he could trust with his business, and through all those years, she’d become one of his best friends.

  If he could talk to anyone about this, he could talk to her.

  Growling at him around another monstrous bite, she snapped her fingers impatiently.

  “She was at the party Saturday night, and I kissed her.”

  Molly nodded. “You’ve kissed her before though, right? Outside the bar or something?”

  “Yeah, but not like this. There was a misunderstanding, and I got carried away.”

  The chewing stopped, and Molly raised a brow. “How’d that work out?”

  “It made Gwen uncomfortable and Ted jealous. And now he wants her.”

  She nodded, taking another bite. “That’s good, right?”

  “Not good. Moll, this guy is so fucking blind and so unworthy, it makes me physically sick.” And a little violent. “And now I don’t fucking want him to have her, but I’m pretty sure that train has already left the station.”

  Molly stopped chewing and swallowed with a gulp that had him pulling his phone out to look up alternatives to the Heimlich maneuver for pregnant women when she asked, “You mean, left the station like the train is maybe already entering a tunnel?”

  Brody scowled, not entirely following until she brought her hands together, one finger pointing into—

  “Christ, Molly!” he coughed out, taking her hands and firmly pressing them back into her lap. But the damage was done, and now he could barely breathe, wondering if Ted was at Gwen’s place right now. If he was in her bed and getting to hear her laugh against his neck, feel her hair sifting through his fingers. If he knew how loud those sexy little sounds she had made when they’d kisse
d could get when they were more than kissing.

  “Well, yeah, that’s what I was asking,” she said. “I mean, I thought that was what you were saying, because yeah, the train definitely would have left the station then. But I can see it wasn’t what you were saying. Only now you’re thinking about it. So sorry about that.”

  She shifted in her spot on the counter, looked down at her half-eaten burger, and licked her lips.

  “Just eat it, Molly.”

  “I didn’t want to be rude…or insensitive.” The burger was in her hands and then her mouth in a flash. “Ju gnow whaght I meang?” she asked, chewing around her words and making him laugh. Because yeah, that was Molly.

  “I know what you mean.”

  The kitchen staff had started showing up by the time the burger was gone, so Brody helped Molly off the counter and walked her back into the bar. She poured herself an iced tea. “She love this guy?”

  He wanted to tell her no. That he didn’t believe it was possible to really love someone if you’d never had the chance to actually be with them. But they both knew better. Molly had married the guy she’d loved in secret for more than a decade.

  “I don’t know, Moll. I think he’s a dick, so I keep telling myself she isn’t seeing him for who he really is. Only I guess everyone else thinks he’s a pretty decent, stand-up guy too.”

  “That sucks.”

  “Tell me about it.”

  They stood there a moment longer, Molly straightening things that didn’t need to be straightened. “Any chance she’ll find another bar so you won’t have to see them all the time?”

  “Not really. I gave her a job. She starts tonight.”

  * * *

  Jill was showing Gwen the ropes when Brody came out of his office. She’d already been at work for an hour and was starting to wonder whether she would see him at all. And now, as he came up beside her, standing a polite distance away but still far too close, she wondered if maybe she’d been hoping he’d avoid her.

  He was dressed up tonight, wearing a pair of charcoal trousers with a black shirt that was open at the collar and fit him so well that she’d be willing to bet her favorite pair of boots it’d been custom-made. His hair was down, those wild waves framing his face like a tempest. For now. It was only a matter of time before he’d have it wrestled back into a tie, and then only a matter of time after that before it would be free again. But as it was, it was the kind of finger-tangling temptation she really needed to stop thinking about. Remembering. Wanting more of.

  “Hey, boss,” she offered, going for friendly, even though her stomach was still in knots. “How was Christmas?”

  There, she’d done it. Made some totally benign, completely appropriate comment, devoid of any innuendo or flirtation.

  “Really good, thanks. How about yours?” he asked, his eyes on his phone. The only real distance between them in his posture.

  She shouldn’t take it personally. It wasn’t personal.

  It was business. Even if every other time she’d walked into this place, he’d always had a few minutes for her. Even when she knew he was busy, he’d joke about needing a break and her smile being a sight for sore eyes.

  But now she worked for him. Now she’d be here a handful of days a week as an employee. Who he’d kissed as a favor, and she’d practically climbed him like a tree.

  “Gwen?”

  Oh geez, that’s when she realized she hadn’t answered his question. So much for playing it cool. Shaking her head with a laugh, she tried to cover. “It was good. Great.” More nervous laughter slipped past her lips as she desperately scrambled for something else to say. “Exhausting. I could probably sleep for a few days, just to catch up from vacation.”

  Brody seemed to have stopped midmotion, stalling in place. Probably wondering what the hell was wrong with her.

  Because seriously, what the hell was wrong with her?

  Straightening, he cleared his throat and looked out over the bar crowd.

  He was avoiding looking at her, and suddenly, she needed to see his face.

  Reaching for his arm, she said his name and waited until finally, those sea-green eyes met hers.

  Okay…and that…was a mistake.

  Because her heart was pounding hard, and her skin was hot. She couldn’t quite remember the right way to breathe or anything else, except how it had been when he’d kissed her. When his tongue pushed into her mouth and his hands tightened in her hair and… Stop, stop, stop!

  “I just want to say thank you for this,” she said in a rush, looking at her feet and then the ceiling. She tried his elbow, thinking it might be safe, but wrong again. How had she missed how incredibly hot that bend in his arm was?

  Focus! “The job means a lot to me, Brody. So I—I really appreciate it is all.”

  He let out a breath and nodded. He lifted his hand as though he were going to wrap it around her shoulders the way he always did, but at the last moment, he let it fall back to his side. “Hey, anything for a friend. Besides, you’re doing me a favor. I needed the help.”

  She didn’t know whether to believe him, but it didn’t really matter, because the man was already walking back toward his office.

  “So, that wasn’t awkward at all,” Jill muttered, reminding Gwen they hadn’t been alone.

  Eyes wide, she turned back to her. “I’m so sorry. I—”

  But Jill was already shaking her head, waving her off. “Don’t worry about it. Not like I’ve never seen it before. I’ve been working with that guy long enough to see more than my share of these things end.” Grabbing her tray, she added, “And don’t sweat it. Within a day or two, you guys will be back to normal. He’ll make sure of it.”

  Gwen nodded, wrapping her arms around her waist and wishing that somehow Jill’s assurance could make her feel better. But it didn’t.

  * * *

  Chickenshit that he was, Brody hung out in his office for most of the night. He told the staff that he was catching up on work, and he fully intended to do it. But the fact of the matter was, he hadn’t done dick. All he could think about was Gwen. The way she’d wanted him to know that the job was important to her. As if she had to remind him. As if she’d been worried that he wouldn’t want to keep her on.

  Why? Because after he kissed her, his ego couldn’t take the fact that she left?

  It rubbed him wrong to know she thought her job might be at risk, but even that was nothing compared to the way his head was working overtime replaying Gwen’s statement that she’d been tired. How great the holiday had been, but it had left her exhausted.

  Was that because she’d been staying up late with Ted?

  A sharp pain in his hand drew his attention back to the now, the present, the broken pen jabbing into his palm and bleeding ink all over his paperwork.

  It didn’t matter if Gwen was with Ted. No, that wasn’t right either. It did matter. It was exactly what they’d been working for, so if it had worked out and she’d gotten what she wanted, he was going to be fucking happy for her. Not some dick who holed up in his office licking the wounds he’d known better than to let himself get.

  Gwen was his friend, and that wasn’t going to change.

  Throwing out the ink-stained papers, he shoved up from his desk and headed into the men’s room to see if he could get his hands clean. But the minute he pushed through the door, he was confronted with reason number one for having wanted to stay in his office.

  Fucking. Ted. He was washing his hands at the sink before straightening to meet Brody with his smug smile.

  “Hey, man, you ready for the big event this weekend?”

  It took Brody a moment to remember that Bret and Claudia were getting married in a few days.

  “Oh yeah. Looking forward to it.”

  As if he didn’t have enough to feel guilty about. Now he’d forgotten about the we
dding. Not like he’d missed it, but he was the best man. And best men were supposed to have their heads in the game, be checking in with the groom and doing all the shit that needed to be done to keep the guy from freaking out. They weren’t supposed to be completely MIA because some girl had thrown them for a loop.

  But Gwen wasn’t just some girl.

  Brody frowned, checked his watch. It was eleven thirty on a Monday night. What the hell was this guy still doing here?

  “Pretty late for you, isn’t it?” he asked, hoping Ted would take a look at the time, freak out, and run right home. But he shook his head.

  “My company shuts down between Christmas and New Year’s. Besides, I’m here for Gwen.”

  Keep it together, man.

  “Gwen? So you’re—”

  “Killing time until her shift ends.”

  Right. Because then he’d be walking her home. And God damn, Brody didn’t want to think about what would happen after that. Already, he could feel his muscles tensing, the seams on his shirt straining. The pop of one knuckle after another as his hand tightened into a fist and a haze of red covered his eyes.

  Ted looked to the side and shrugged. “Well, I’ll let you get to it. See you around, man.”

  Brody should have gone back to his office and stayed there the rest of the night. But damned if he could do it.

  He’d known exactly what he was doing, parking himself on the stool closest to the door twenty minutes before Gwen got off. He was watching, like a stalker. Waiting, like the glutton he was, to see her leave. And sure enough, when the time came, Ted was right there by her side. Helping her with her coat and then wrapping his scrawny arm around her shoulders as they walked out together. Just like he was there the next day, dropping her off before her shift started. Nodding at Brody, who, yeah, sure as shit was sitting on the same fucking stool, as the guy pressed a quick kiss against her temple before letting her go with the parting assurance that he’d see her that night.

  Hell.

  Chapter 11

  Had they spent the night together? Had they slept in the same bed and lazed around through the morning?