Her eyes dance. “Of course. No tango this time. Mr. B is still upset from the last time.”
My mom teaches all kinds of dance, but her one true love is ballroom dancing. I know all of them, and believe me, I use them to my advantage.
“I guess I can understand that.”
Harry snorts. “Ballroom dancing.”
He gets a smack upside the head for that. “It would do you some good to learn how to do more than two-step, Harold.” Then she turns to us.
“I think the photographer wants you all back there for some intimate shots.”
“I was told there would be no nudity,” I say. “But I’ll oblige.”
She shakes her head at me. “Don’t make me text your mother. Go on,” she says shooing us away. “I have to go prepare Mr. B. Seeing his baby in that dress is going to make him cry like a baby himself.”
The time flies by as we have pictures taken with just the three of us, all of us with the Bradleys, Harry and his mom…all those family pics everyone wants. Before we know it, we’re standing up at the front of the congregation waiting on the women. Mrs. B walks down the aisle on Blue’s arm as he sees her to her seat up front. Savannah steps into view and my heart almost stops. Damn, the woman is stunning. Will I ever get used to seeing her like this? I don’t think so. In fact, it’s getting worse each time I see her. We lock eyes as she walks her way down the aisle, a small bouquet in her hands. I continue to stare at her as she takes her place
“Damn,” Harry whispers, and I look at him to tell him to mind his own business, but I realize he’s looking at EJ as she’s making her way down the aisle. Her dress is similar to Savannah’s, but it is a little lower cut in the front. The moment she takes her place, the music changes and the congregation rises.
Mr. B and Allison stand at the doorway. Damn. This is really happening. Mr. B does look teary-eyed, but Allison is smiling, her happiness contagious. She’s wearing her grandmother’s dress; the same one her mother wore when she got married. Harry elbows me and nods his head in Ed’s direction. The man is grinning, not a doubt in sight. I can’t stop my lips from curving up as I turn back around, Savannah catches my eye. We share a moment, the two of us happy for our friends. All the sudden, the congregation seems to fade away and the happiness morphs into desire. Something tickles me in the back of the throat, as heat moves through me. Her face flushes and…well, damn that is the sweetest thing I’ve ever seen. She breaks eye contact first, and I force myself to pay attention to the ceremony.
Watching one of my two best friends taking that final step to happiness leaves me feeling even a little more off centered. It’s the beginning of a life together, and I’m happy for him, except…
I look over at Savannah, who has to wipe away a tear. See, there is that softness that most people don’t see. How many times had she shown that to the world and I not noticed? Now that I’ve witnessed it, I find it hard to ignore. I know if I keep staring at her like a psycho, it will be noticed, so I force my attention away from her and watch the rest of the ceremony. Ed’s voice is clear and sure of himself, and Allison, well, she’s so damned happy she glows with it. Soon, they are pronounced husband and wife, and they are walking down the aisle, arm in arm. I wait for EJ and Harry to follow them, then I step forward. I hold out my arm and Savannah takes it. It isn’t intimate, I know that, but it feels that way. The need to be near her is growing and I have no idea why right now. I just know that I like it, and that’s enough.
Chapter Sixteen
Savannah
By the time we get to eat, the reception has been going on for close to an hour. We had so many pictures to take. The wedding party, the families, the friends. It was so much fun. I’ve never been in a wedding before, and I didn’t know how I would like it. While my headache is long gone, there is another ache starting in my chest.
I know my family is here. At least, my “parents” are. Since I don’t want to tell Allison about what happened with them, I’ve just been avoiding them. I refuse to have some kind of drama at her wedding; although, my family tends to just freeze each other out.
Instead, I have been people-watching and stuffing my face. I only had a little to eat throughout the day and for the first time in a long time, I’m famished. Not sure if it has to do with the low hum of arousal that is now beating through my blood. From the moment I saw Fritz outside before the wedding, I’ve been aware of him. Well, that sounds strange. What I meant was that my body seems to be in tune with him. We’re sitting beside each other for the meal at the head table. They just got finished with the cake—or I guess I should say cupcake cake—and I am now enjoying the strawberry lemonade treat. It’s the cupcake named for Allison.
I hum as the tartness of the lemon and the sweetness of the strawberries dance over my taste buds.
Fritz leans closer to me and whispers, “Please don’t make those noises. I don’t want to embarrass myself.” His breath feathers out over my flesh and I shiver. I turn my head to look at him.
“What?”
I expect him to move away from me, but he stays right where he is. His gaze searching mine. “A woman should not make noises like that in public.”
I lick my lips and his gaze drops to my mouth and follows the motion. Okay, that’s weird. And arousing. Damn, that hum is now a chorus of crazy bitches screaming about how sexy Fritz is. I thank the lord I wore panties today, even if they are drenched.
I set aside the wrapper—which has Allison & Ed 4ever on it—and open my mouth to respond.
“We need Ed and Allison up here for their first dance,” the DJ announces. The first strains of the Luke Combs’ song Beautiful Crazy starts up. Our friends step onto the dance floor and Ed pulls Allison into his arms. They look amazing together. The dress Allison wears is one from her grandmother and mother. It’s a mermaid style, simple in its design. Ed, well, the man cleaned up nicely in his tux. But it isn’t what they are wearing. It’s the way he’s holding her hand against his chest, looking down at Allison as if she is the only person in the world. The love between them vibrates through the room, and I doubt there is a person here who doesn’t feel it.
Happiness lances through me and tears fill my eyes again. Dammit. I hate crying, but I especially hate doing it in public. I feel a nudge at my arm. Fritz holds out a hanky for me. It’s a sweet gesture…almost romantic.
Nope, Savannah. How many times do you need a reminder? Lock that shit down. Still, I take it and dab my eyes. He leans closer to me again.
“I won’t tell anyone.”
I look at him. “Tell them what?”
“You’re a softy.”
Dammit. I don’t need him spreading that shit around. “I am not.”
I’m not. Well, not really. But seeing Ed and Allison makes me so damned happy. Those two deserve it.
He smiles and I feel it all the way to the center of my soul. It’s insane how much my feelings about his smiles have changed in the last few weeks, but now…damn, they make me hot.
“You are, but that’s okay. I’ll keep it a secret if you promise to dance with me later.”
I sniff. “I don’t really dance.”
“I know you can dance the Latin dances.”
“How do you know that?”
“You told me the other night when you came home drunk.”
My face flushes in embarrassment. “Rude.”
“What?”
“Reminding me of my idiocy.”
“It was cute.”
I roll my eyes. “I doubt that is a description people use for me.”
“I do. So, about that dance…”
“Fine. If you can prove you know how to dance, I’ll do it.” We both start clapping as Ed and Allison finish their dance.
“Cool,” he says, then looks over my shoulder. I follow the direction of his attention. EJ is there staring at me. She motions with her head to follow.
“I have been summoned.”
He chuckles. “Remember, a dance or everyone will
know about your soft, gooey center.”
God, that would be horrible. I nod and rise up out of my chair and follow EJ through the reception area. I think we’re heading to the bathroom, but she grabs my hand and pulls me down the hall. Once we are out of earshot, she turns on me.
“Well?”
“Well what?” I ask, knowing exactly what she’s referring to. I need to keep her off the scent or everyone will join in the questioning. I love our friends, but they are a bunch of meddling jerks.
“Tell me.”
I blink. “Tell you what? You pulled me down here with you and right now I’m more worried you plan on killing me and stashing my body.”
She crosses her arms beneath her breasts and stares me down. “What the hell is going on with you and Fritz?”
I fight against my blush and shake my head. “Nothing.”
“That interaction was not nothing.”
“Your grammar is horrible. It’s Harry, right? Did he sex the grammar right out of you?”
She rolls her eyes. “Savannah.”
I sigh. “There is nothing, he’s just…nice to me.”
Her face softens. “Yeah, Fritz is nice.”
I look down at the hankie I’m still holding. “And I’ve seen him in his underwear.”
“Yeah, he’s always been kind of a…wait, what?”
I laugh. “Yesterday morning I saw him. He was sleeping on the couch, remember?”
“He was in his underwear?”
I nod.
“I bet that was a pretty sight.”
I smile. “Yeah, it was. That boy knows how to wear cotton knit boxers.”
“Ohh, Harry wears those. So sexy. What did he say?”
“He doesn’t know.”
“Ohhh, my. That is too delicious.” She claps her hands together. “I can’t wait to tell Harry.”
“No. You tell him, and I’ll tell him you tried to pick up my brother Austin.”
“That was a year ago, before Harry and I were dating.”
It was the night that we went out to celebrate Allison’s staycation and she and Ed ended up in bed together.
“So?”
“Gah, okay. But there’s nothing else going on with you two? Because, let me tell you, there is some crazy vibe between y’all right now.”
“You have a wedding on the brain. It’s the romance of it all.”
Her eyes narrow. “What were you two talking about before I pulled you away?”
“He made me promise him a dance—a Latin dance at that. Like I need to worry about that.”
“I wouldn’t be so sure of yourself.”
“Why?”
“There you two are. I thought you ran off together,” Allison says, walking toward us.
“We did. EJ is sick of your brother’s dick and has professed her love for me and my vagina. We’re going to live in sin.”
Allison laughs, the sound of it drawing a smile from both of us. “Come on. EJ would drive you crazy. You’re too much of a neat freak,” she says pointing at me.
“You and Ed looked so sweet out there.”
Her eyes turn dreamy. “Isn’t he the best?”
“I think Savannah would disagree with that,” EJ says. “You didn’t see her and Fritz getting all cozy.”
“What?” Allison says, settling her hands on her hips giving me a mock frown. “Why am I the last to know everything?”
“She saw him in his undies too.”
“Elliana!” I shout.
“When?” Allison demands.
I refuse to answer so apparently EJ decides to take care of that too.
“Yesterday morning.”
“You said nothing happened.”
I sigh. “Nothing did happen. He slept on his couch and I saw him before he put on his jeans. He has no idea.”
Allison chuckles. “From the way you’re blushing, I would say that you liked what you saw.”
I roll my eyes. “Is there a woman alive who wouldn’t? I mean…that man has an ass on him.”
We share a laugh.
“There’s more,” EJ says.
“There isn’t,” I refute.
“You should have seen them when you two were dancing. Our cranky chef got a little teary-eyed watching you.”
“Lies,” I spit out.
“And Fritz gave her a hankie.”
Allison’s eyes go wide. “Wow.”
I cross my arms beneath my breasts. “It’s a freaking hankie. Get over it.”
“He made her promise to dance with him, too.” EJ looks so damned proud of herself, like she had anything to do with what happened.
“Oh, damn. You’re in trouble”
My two friends are sharing a knowing look, as if they know more than I do. “What?”
“He knows all the dances. Ed talks about how Fritz would use it on the women when they would all go out together. Salsa, merengue, you name it, and he knows it,” Allison says.
Oh, no.
“How do we know for sure?” I ask.
“His mom teaches dance,” EJ says with a laugh.
“Well, crap.”
“Come on, let’s go back in. We need some more champagne,” EJ says.
We make our way back to the reception, my nerves getting a little out of whack. Maybe I can talk him into a waltz or something. That will look normal. I can two-step but it’s not one of my favorites. I just can’t do any of those Latin dances with him. They are too…sexy.
As we near the doors, I see my brother Diego. I didn’t know he was coming, but apparently from Allison’s reaction, he had RSVP’d.
“Hey, Diego,” she says accepting the kiss on the check he gives her.
“Congratulations. You make a beautiful bride.”
Allison blushes. “Thank you. We were just going to get some more champagne. Do you want to come with?”
He shakes his head. “In a bit. I need a minute with Savannah.”
My friends share a look, and the gleam in EJ’s eye makes me think that she is going to cause a scene. She knows that Diego and I have a strained relationship. He isn’t happy working for the family, and he seems to think I’m to blame.
“Go on. Make sure to grab me a glass and I’ll meet you.”
EJ doesn’t want to, but Allison tugs her along. She’s known me longer and knows that my family are kind of assholes, but they wouldn’t do anything to ruin her day.
“What’s up?” I ask, once we are alone.
“Did you really leave Mom and Dad in a lurch this weekend?”
There’s no doubt by his tone that he is going to side with them. He always does. They might not agree with how I’m treated, but none of them want to rock the Martinez boat.
“No. I agreed to work a certain amount of time for them, but it was in the agreement that I would be off Wednesday through Sunday. They reneged on the deal. Mario was ready to handle it.”
“That’s not the story they gave me.”
I nod and look back into the reception. I see my parents talking to Allison’s parents. My stomach churns. The happy feelings seem to drain from me, and now I feel as if I ate too much earlier. The yummy cupcake I enjoyed is now leaving my stomach sour.
“Aren’t you going to defend yourself?”
I tear my gaze away from the scene and back to my brother. He’s the second oldest, and a lot of people probably thought he would take over the business with Austin. Not that Diego wants to do that. He’s always been in love with wine. He spends all his time off at the surrounding vineyards, and I know he’s taken classes on it. He took quite a few agriculture courses in college. Just like me, though, he didn’t get to choose what to do with his life. I’m just lucky that I love what I do. Or, I guess, what I did.
He used to be my hero. Actually, all my brothers were. I have so many memories with each of them, and Diego is no different. When I was barely six, I have a memory of him lifting me above his head, spinning me around as I laughed and laughed. Now, that memory is tainted because, if m
y mother was telling the truth, he’s not my brother.
“What do you want me to say, Diego? That I worked for fifteen fucking days straight, no break. And let’s be honest, it’s been years since I have had any time off. Then,” I swallow the bile, “your mother pops up on Tuesday and tells me I can’t have the time off. Stupid, right? Well, that’s what she did. I refused to work, and she fired me. So, fuck you for believing her over me.”
“Why would I believe you? You let the family down.”
“You know what? Fuck them and fuck you.”
With that I turn to go back into the reception area when he lays a hand on my arm.
“I wasn’t done discussing this.”
Before Diego can finish the sentence, I feel a presence appear to my right. Without looking, I know who it is. I can feel him, not just his presence, but it’s like my soul vibrates with some weird happy vibe when he’s near.
“Is there a problem here?” Fritz asks, his voice deceptively calm.
I glance at him. He’s ignoring Diego, his gaze on me. I can tell that he’s asking me permission to step into the fray, to tell my brother to get bent.
“Fritz, you know Diego, right?”
“Ah. Sure. Maybe you should let go of your sister’s arm.”
Anger simmers in Fritz’s gaze, and it’s a new look for him. At least, it’s one I’ve never seen before tonight. My heartbeat ratchets up a beat or two but not out of fear. The heat blazing through my blood tells me that it’s about arousal. There’s no doubt in my mind that Fritz is ready to beat the shit out of Diego, and I know he can do it. Diego is a big guy, but Fritz was trained by the Army. Diego’s fingers loosen their hold and I move away from him.
“Savannah, this isn’t over,” Diego says. I stop and look back at him.
“It is. At least now you can’t blame me for fucking up your life anymore. Now it’ll just be you fucking it up.”
Fritz and I turn and start back to our table. He settles his hand at the small of my back as we make our way through the reception. I zero in on my parents and anger boils in my chest. Those assholes. They thought they would try and get me back by lying about me. This shit has gone too far. I change direction so that I can talk to them.
Scrumptious: A Friends to Lovers Romantic Comedy (Camos and Cupcakes Book 3) Page 14
