Alise wrinkled a cute little nose with a dusting of freckles on it. “What kind of name is Octavia?” Her skin tone was a close match to Tae’s if a hair lighter, and Tae suspected the wave in her hair didn’t come from a flat iron. Tall with long shapely legs, shown off in a minidress, the woman made Tae the cheap knockoff to the original, but her snooty attitude left a lot to be desired.
“It’s the kind of name my father gave me,” Tae snapped. “It was my grandmother’s name.”
“Alise,” Daniel scolded.
“Oh, sorry,” she said with clear insincerity. “I get pissy when I’m hungry. Danny, you know I don’t like waiting.”
Tae looked from Alise to Daniel to Jax, whose expression held amusement. Was Daniel seriously going to marry this chick? Tae drew in a breath and blew it out. She decided to extend Alise the benefit of the doubt. Maybe this was just prewedding jitters. Yeah, that must be it.
“Well, it’s nice to meet you both,” Tae said between clenched teeth. “If you all will excuse me, I’m going to get settled in my room.”
Daniel grabbed Tae’s hand, saw the evil glare Alise gave him, and dropped it like a hot potato. “Tae, if you don’t have any plans for dinner, why don’t you join us?”
“I—”
Jax’s big hands settled on her arms. She’d forgotten he stood behind her and about his offer. “She’s agreed to have dinner with me.”
Tae gave him a break and didn’t call him out on the lie, but Daniel’s smile seemed forced. She noted the annoyance in his gaze. “The more the merrier. I made reservations at Nakato.”
“I thought you didn’t need reservations there,” Tae said.
Daniel smiled and took Alise’s hand in his. “I wanted to be sure everything worked out perfectly and there wasn’t a wait.
Of course, or she’d pitch a fit.
“Oh okay. Um, I don’t want to horn in on your time…”
“I’m not taking no for an answer, Tae, so put your stuff in your room. We’ll be in the lobby.”
She suppressed a sigh.
“I’ll help you,” Jax told her.
“I don’t need—”
He shuffled her down the hall, and the impatient Alise dragged Daniel toward the elevator. Tae recognized a losing battle and gave in. Twenty minutes later, she, Daniel, Jax, and Alise and her mother sat around a table with a hibachi grill in the middle of it, waiting for their personal chef to begin his show while preparing their food.
The chef began his routine tapping his fork and metal spatula on the grill in a smooth rhythm to capture all of their attention. He swung the utensils around, flipped them in the air, and ducked his head beneath them a few times. Tae and Jax clapped and cheered. Daniel smiled, and Alise appeared less than impressed while she clung to Daniel’s arm as if someone might steal him away. Tae wasn’t sure if Mrs. Harper was awake.
Piles of veggies were added to the grill, atop a generous amount of oil, then shrimp. Tae always enjoyed watching how the chef’s hands blurred as he prepared the shrimp. He sent the meat to one pile and flicked the tails in another direction. When he was done, he flipped the tails so they disappeared. She had no idea where they landed. Next, he carefully compiled a volcano made of onion. He poured vodka and olive oil into the center. Tae glanced at Alise, but the woman paid the chef no mind. The little volcano went up on fire, and Tae whooped.
“You’re like a little kid, easily entertained,” Jax whispered in her ear.
She punched his arm. “You liked it, too. Don’t lie.”
He shrugged. “I never pretended to be mature.”
“Idiot.” She laughed at him, and he grinned back. Tae noted how Alise placed a manicured nail beneath Daniel’s chin and directed his attention toward her. She said something too low to hear, and Daniel’s blue gaze flashed with interest. Tae looked down at her hands, barren of any rings. She’d taken them off that morning to wash a few dishes and forgot to put them back on. Three years ago when she told Daniel she couldn’t marry him, she had asked herself a million times if she made the right choice. Every so often, she reaffirmed, if only to herself, that the decision had been right for her.
“You’re missing the show,” Jax said.
She looked up, but the chef could no longer keep her focus. Determined to keep a positive outlook, she turned to Jax. His green eyes, which always held a sense of mystery, were trained on her. Right now, the knowing they reflected pissed her off, but she swallowed the emotion. “Is work ever dangerous?”
He hesitated, and at first she thought he’d call her on the attempt to distract herself and him, but he gave in. “Sometimes. Not long ago, I followed a guy whose wife believed he was having an affair.”
“Was he?”
“No, that’s the thing.” Jax frowned, remembering. “He had an addiction to gambling—illegal gambling—and I stumbled onto the people he owed money. A case of mistaken identity.”
The wince as if he recalled pain made her put her hand on his arm. “Oh wow, you didn’t get hurt too badly, did you? I guess you didn’t considering you look okay to me.”
Jax leaned in closer. “You like the way I look, Tae?”
“Does your mind ever leave the gutter?”
“Where’s the fun in that?”
She smirked and shook her head. “So what did they do?”
He shrugged. “Cracked a rib, a few bruises. Nothing I couldn’t handle.”
“Of course.”
They chatted some more, and then Daniel drew them into conversation, entertaining and charming all rolled into one. When she got her food, Tae shifted it around her plate, half listening to the conversation around her. Only when she couldn’t avoid it did she join in. Old emotions, insecurity, questions, all bubbled up inside her regarding Daniel, and what made it worse was he seemed so oblivious of how confused he made her. One minute he looked at Alise as if she were his world, and that was the way it should be. The next he said something Tae and no one else would know the meaning of, directing a devastating smile at her that she had to fight a reaction to with all her might.
After one such instance, Jax bumped her arm with his. “You okay?”
She made a small sound of dismissal and waved her fork. “Please, I’m having a great time.” Internally, she groaned. Why would I say that? It sounds stupid.
For once, Jax didn’t tease her, and she was grateful to him.
Halfway through the meal, several ladies called out to Alise from across the restaurant, and for the first time that evening, Alise perked up, a smile spreading over her face as she waved the three women—two white and one black—over to their table. “At last my friends are here,” Alise gushed. “This boring dinner will have some life.”
Tae’s mouth fell open, and her eyes widened. “She did not just—”
Jax grabbed Tae’s hand and drew it into his lap. “Let it go,” he murmured under his breath.
Tae frowned at him. “You’ve got to be kidding,” she whispered back while the others were talking. “She didn’t just diss us. She disrespected Daniel. If he’s that boring, why is she marrying him?”
“Tae.” His stern tone was enough to snap her out of her anger, and she shut her mouth so fast her teeth clicked, sending a sharp pain through her jaw.
She opened her purse and pulled out her wallet. “I think I’ve had enough for one evening. I’m going to go back to my room. You all enjoy yourselves. Daniel, this should be enough for my part of the check.”
Daniel leaned across the table and closed her fingers over the money she tried to hand him. A tingle of awareness raced from her fingertips, across her hand, and up her arm. “Don’t insult me offering to pay, and don’t leave. I was thinking we’d all go across to the hotel bar and have a few drinks.”
“I’m really tired,” she lied. “Thanks though. I’ll see you in the morning.”
Tae tugged her hand free of his and stood up. Jax started to rise, but she held him where he was. “Good night. Thank you for dinner, Daniel.”
Before anyone could say more, or for that matter before she could, she hightailed it out of the restaurant. With luck, the rest of the weekend would go better. She would wish Daniel all the happiness in the world and walk away.
* * * *
Tae checked the minifridge in her room and then realized she’d need to go to the ice machine. On the way, she could grab a cola and some chips from the snack machine. Tomorrow, no next week, I’m going to get healthy and start exercising.
She rifled through her purse and found change, but it probably wasn’t enough, so she pealed off a few dollar bills from the thin stack in her wallet.
Standing in front of the vending machine, balancing the ice bucket on her hip, she debated between Cheetos, her favorite, and Doritos, her second best.
“Still a snack junkie, I see.”
Tae jumped, and Daniel squeezed her shoulder. Her heartbeat skidded out of control. “Daniel, I didn’t hear you behind me.”
“Sorry about that.” He smiled, taking her breath away. “I didn’t mean to scare you.”
“No worries.” She forced her gaze back to the chips, but with him beside her, she didn’t want to buy anything. “Alise not with you? I thought you two were joined at the hip.” The bucket clattered to the floor and she slapped a hand over her lip, bending to retrieve it. “Damn, I didn’t mean—”
“You don’t like her.” His words were a statement, but she heard his disappointment.
“What I think doesn’t matter. Besides, I shouldn’t have said anything. This is your weekend, and I’m not going to get in the way of that.”
He took the crumpled dollars from her clammy fingers, smoothed them, and fed them into the machine. While she said nothing, he made the selection for her, choosing the Cheetos. “You’re my friend, Tae. I care about what you think.”
She took the offered snack and her change, biting her lip. Warning bells went off in her head. Keep your mouth shut, Tae. Wish him well. That’s it. Then get your butt back to your room where it’s safe. “Are you sure about her, Daniel? Marriage is a big commitment, and she doesn’t seem… Well, she seems selfish. Does she love you? Do you love her?”
“Love,” he repeated.
She had said too much. Why couldn’t she mind her own business?
He frowned, his eyes flashing anger. “You talk to me about love, Tae? You turned me down when I asked you to marry me. No, you didn’t just say no or tell me you weren’t ready. You dumped me completely, without warning. Now what are you after? Why are you here? To stop me from being happy? Maybe you want to get back together after all this time.”
She retreated a step. “Excuse me? You invited me!”
He reached for her. “Tae—”
She held up a hand. “I’m sorry. I made a mistake.” She spun on her heel and hurried away, leaving her ice bucket. Let him keep it. Why oh why had she thought this was a good idea? Then to be accused of trying to break Daniel and Alise up because she wanted him back. That was absurd, and she hated knowing he thought that way. His anger was uncalled for, too. He suspected how she felt. Hell, he’d have to be blind and an idiot to think anyone in their right might would like that self-centered bitch he intended to marry.
Tae swiped her key card five times and jiggled the doorknob at her room. Each instance, the stupid light flashed red. She heard steps around the corner, and her heart raced, dread tightening the muscles in her stomach. She didn’t want to face him again and have him see the tears in her eyes. Stupid, stupid, stupid!
She tried the card again and this time threw the Cheetos on the floor along with the cola. Now the stupid drink would explode when she opened it. She sniffed and swiped a hand across her face. The door swung inward, and she pitched forward and banged her mouth on a hard chest. Squeaking in pain, she tried to right herself, when hands came up to her waist to steady her.
“You want to tell me why you’re crying and trying to break into my room, Tae?”
She glanced up in to Jax’s face, then at the number on the door and realized too late she’d stopped at the wrong door. “Um, my bad.”
She spun to walk away, but he moved in front of her and stooped to gather her snacks. When he had them in hand, he placed fingers at her lower back to guide her farther into his room. The door shut, the automatic lock clicking into place.
Chapter Three
“Here.” Jax pressed a glass into her hand, filled with ice and an amber liquid. “Drink it.”
Tae sniffed the beverage and wrinkled her nose. “I only drink vodka.”
In answer he placed a finger on the bottom of the glass and tilted it toward her lips. Tae took a small sip, and the alcohol burned its way down her throat. Even though the taste was horrible, the effect was immediate. She felt light-headed but a little more relaxed. Another sip warmed her belly, and she walked over to take a seat at the table. Jax’s room matched hers, but where she’d folded her things into the dresser, from the looks of it, he’d left his in his suitcase. At least he’d hung a garment bag in the open closet, which she assumed carried his clothes for the wedding. The jacket and shirt he’d worn earlier that evening had been slung over a chair, and he stood bare-chested and barefoot.
“Aren’t you going to put some clothes on?” she questioned him, casting her gaze away from him.
“You’re the one who invaded my room.”
“I believe you abducted me.”
He grinned, and she matched it with one of her own. “That’s better. No more tears but tell me. Why were you crying?”
“I wasn’t,” she lied, and then she sighed. Another sip of the drink, and he nabbed it from her hands. She frowned. “I wasn’t done with that.”
“I see it going to your head.”
She waved a hand. “I’m fine.” The slightest slur to her words made her wonder if he was right. “If you must know, I was falsely accused of trying to break up Daniel and Alise.”
Jax’s brows rose toward his hairline. “By who, Alise?”
She giggled. “That would have been drama, wouldn’t it? No, by Daniel.”
“Tae.” Jax’s voice held a warning.
She clenched her hands into fists. “Don’t ‘Tae’ me. I did not try to break them up! I would never do anything to hurt Daniel.”
“But you admit you still love him.”
She fell silent and looked away.
Jax strode over to the minifridge and rummaged inside. In a few minutes he’d made her another drink, this time just orange juice. Tae accepted it with her thanks. Jax made something for himself, downed it in a couple swallows, and poured another. He took the seat opposite her, and Tae put her glass up to her mouth. Over the edge, she took in his wide chest, noting the smooth and taut skin with no hair. She liked a hairless chest rather than the carpets some men sported.
“I’m your friend too,” Jax said. “Talk to me.”
“We’ve never had a confession type of relationship.”
“No reason we can’t start now.”
She kicked her sandals off and drew her feet up. Jax looked down at her toes, and she was thankful she’d gotten a pedicure before coming. “I do have unresolved feelings for him. That’s not a crime.” Damn, she sounded defensive, but Jax waited for her to continue. “He asked what I thought of her. I told him I didn’t see the love.”
“Fuck, tell me you didn’t say that, Tae.”
She couldn’t help the whimper. “I did. I’m such an idiot. I promise you, it wasn’t my intention to break them up. When I turned down Daniel’s proposal, I thought I was doing the right thing.”
A curious expression came on his countenance, one she couldn’t identify. He set his glass down and toyed with it. “So you feel you made a mistake?”
“I didn’t say that.”
“You’re not denying it.”
“He’s getting married, Jax. Whatever I feel doesn’t matter. Anyway, I don’t know why I’m telling you all this. You’re his best friend.”
His green gaze met hers
. “What you tell me tonight is between me and you.”
“Really?”
“Scout’s honor.”
“Boy, please. You were never a scout.”
He chuckled and winked. Her nerves settled a bit more.
“Since you shared with me, I’ll do the same.”
Tae tilted her head to the side, studying him. Jax had always seemed open about what he wanted. He didn’t bite his tongue or go along with the crowd. He had no shame even when others tried to judge him. One would wait an eternity for an apology for being what he was. “You have secrets? Don’t tell me you don’t like Alise either. No, wait. You do like her, and you’ve been keeping it from Daniel, heartbroken that you’ll never get to be with her.”
“Funny.”
She shrugged. “Anything’s possible.”
“Sure,” he agreed. “You’re right. The woman I’m interested in does belong to Daniel, in a sense.”
“I don’t get it. Is there some oth—” She froze. “Are you serious?”
“Is it so hard to believe? You’re incredibly beautiful and very sexy. Does my admission disgust you?” When he looked at her breasts, she resisted raising a hand to them, both turned on by his interest and confused by it. She and Jax had always flirted, but she’d never thought he was for real. Just because Daniel had dated black women didn’t mean Jax would find them attractive enough to take to bed.
She cast her gaze toward the floor, a tingle starting between her legs that she’d like to blame on the alcohol. “Not at all.”
Jax stood up to make her another drink, this time with vodka, and Tae accepted it. She took her feet out from under her and crossed one leg over the other. Jax downed another drink and stretched his arms over his head. The bastard knew what he did, she thought, amused as she watched the ripple of corded muscle.
“Have you been with anyone since Daniel?”
She choked on her drink and pounded her chest coughing. Jax rushed over and patted her back. He brushed close to her side, and she felt the heat from his body, but only concern registered in his expression. “Are you okay?”
His Best Man's Baby Page 2
