Faint cologne filled the space between us, instantly transporting me to all the moments when I’d been lost and drowning in him. I flickered back to reality. “No. It’s not fixable. You can’t just swoop in and fix everything all the time.”
“What’s the problem?” he insisted, his tone heavy with warning.
I drew my lips into a line and looked away.
“Olivia.”
“You, David! You’re the problem!” I snapped. “What happened between us is eating me from the inside; it’s all I can think about. It haunts me day and night. It consumes me!” Brown, melancholy eyes searched mine until I pulled my arm from his grip. “I have to go, I can’t do this,” I said, dropping his gaze.
“I’m surprised you’re still here,” he countered.
“Don’t.” I raised my eyes to his again, and my heart wilted slightly at the way his expression had hardened and closed. “This has been harder than you could ever know. You have no idea what I’ve been through.”
A burst of air left his mouth, and he scoffed. “That’s where you’re wrong. Don’t forget that you walked out on me. You have no idea what I have been through. Me. Fuck, I shouldn’t even be talking to you,” he muttered. “I promised myself I wouldn’t.”
I blinked at him. “You promised . . . What?”
“I only came here tonight because . . . because I needed to see you, to just see that you’re all right. I promised to leave you alone, I just needed to see you, even from a distance.”
“But it’s been so long, and . . . I thought you’d be over – ”
“Everything okay, Liv?” Gretchen’s brother approached us, puffed up and obviously ruffled as he took in the scene.
“Yes, it’s fine,” I hastened to reassure him. “Thanks, John.”
David looked warily at John and then back at me before stalking away.
“Where’ve you been, you handsome devil? You owe me a dance,” I said before he could ask.
He looked after David for one short second before turning his attention to me. “I’m afraid I’ll snap you in half,” he joked.
“Oh really? You think I’m that weak?” I asked, surprising him with a punch in the upper arm.
“Ow!” he wailed.
“Don’t be a baby. Come on, escort me to the dance floor.”
I stowed my conversation with David for later and followed John from the house. We were almost to the tent when we spotted Lucy and Gretchen flailing on the dance floor.
“They must be drunk.”
“Aren’t you?” he asked, tugging me along with him. We joined them for the rest of the song, dancing and laughing carelessly. Seeing Lucy so happy made me feel lighter.
“Remind me to tell you when you’re sober what horrible dancers you are,” I called out as the song ended. I squealed when Gretchen pinched me. Andrew’s dad appeared at Lucy’s side and held out his hand to her as the next song started.
“A dance?” John asked me. I agreed and let him draw me into his arms.
“Well, you’re a shitty date,” Gretchen muttered, and we laughed as she sulked off alone.
“So, little Liv, what’s new with you? Gretchen says you’re cranky.”
I smiled a little and looked down between us. “Maybe.”
“So what’s up?”
“I’m just overloaded at work, and that’s enough to make anyone a little testy.”
He regarded me thoughtfully while we danced. “Okay. You’d tell me if something was wrong, wouldn’t you?”
I looked up at him from under my lashes. “Yes.”
“You know you’re like a sister to me. An extremely hot sister, but a sister all the same. If I were here in Chicago, I’d volunteer as your bodyguard.”
At that I laughed loudly. “Oh, John, I love you.”
“Hey, Bill,” he said suddenly. “Guess you want to cut in with your lady?”
“No, no,” Bill said, giving John a wary glance before turning to me. “I just came to tell you that I’m running up to the house to have a cigar with Andrew and the guys.”
“Okay,” I said. “I’ll save you a dance.”
“Sounds good.” He leaned over John’s arm and pecked me on the cheek.
John whirled me around dramatically and dipped me so my hair almost touched the floor. “Hi,” he said from above, grinning.
“John, damn it, let me up. Everyone can see down my dress.”
“Oh, then I’m on the wrong side,” he jested.
When he lifted me back up, my gaze locked with David’s. His smooth voice slathered over me. “May I cut in?”
“Get lost, dude,” John said. “She’s married.”
My skin prickled at the thought of those big arms around me. David shifted his focus to John, and they sized each other up. When I noticed David’s jaw set, I quickly cut in. “It’s okay, John. He’s a friend.”
John stepped back and bowed. “As you wish,” he said. “I’ll be over there if you need me.”
The first notes of panty-dropping, sex-infused “Wicked Game” came through the speakers. My legs quivered as David wrapped an arm around my waist and took my hand in his. I secretly thanked Lucy for picking a backless dress that allowed us the intimacy of skin-on-skin contact. A cologne and whiskey infusion washed over me, and I closed my eyes to remember the heady combination of him; I could taste the whiskey on my tongue now, I could feel the soft cashmere of his sweater warming me that night.
“I can’t stop thinking about you,” he whispered.
“Don’t,” I objected. He slipped the tip of one finger inside the loose dress and skimmed it lightly along my back.
“Look at me,” he urged as he had once before. I could only feel that fingertip, possessing me with its feather touch. He pulled me closer, and I opened my eyes slowly for him. His eyes were blazing, and he was unmistakably hard against my silken thigh. My teeth bit into my bottom lip. He groaned softly in response and slid his finger down the length of the dress, repositioning his hand lower. “You never finished your sentence.”
“Hmm?”
“Earlier. You said you thought I was over . . . What? Over you?”
I glanced around to find that each couple was engrossed in their own dance. It was as if Chris Isaak had cast a four-minute-long spell on the tent. I nodded fractionally.
“I’m not,” he said softly. “I’m so under you, it’s ridiculous.”
I was near mad pressed against his erec
tion, and I squeezed the hand that held mine. I drew a deep breath. I had no words, but even if I did, what could I say? I closed my eyes to take in the moment, to memorize its every detail.
“Stay,” he breathed when the song began to fade.
When my eyes opened, I saw Gretchen staring at us. She shook her head slowly so that nobody else would notice. With a great sigh, I pulled away from him.
“Not yet,” he instructed, holding me in place.
“I can’t. It’s agonizing being this close to you. And everyone I know is here . . . . I have to go.”
I didn’t give him a chance to respond, but just walked toward Gretchen, who never took her eyes off of me. Warmth receded, as though I were in a comfortably hot shower that was quickly turning cold.
“We need to talk,” she stated as I approached.
“I know. Not tonight though, k? Just not tonight.”
~
“This’s been the best night of my life,” Lucy slurred, draping a heavy arm over me.
“Well, it’s not over yet.” I pulsed my brows and jabbed my elbow at Andrew. “Time to make it official.”
“Oh, yes, official,” she repeated. “I have to wait for everyone to leave though, don’t I? I think I have to.”
“You probably should,” I agreed. We waited by the exit as the remaining guests filtered out. Bill’s hands kneaded my shoulders while Lucy dealt overexcited good-byes.
“I don’t know about you, but I’m ready to hit the sack,” Bill said into my ear.
“So glad we don’t have to drive home. I’m exhausted.”
“Daaav-idddd,” Lucy called, and every hair on my body bristled. I pinched myself in hopes of waking up from the ensuing nightmare.
“Thank you for inviting me, Lucy,” David said as he approached.
“I’m so, so glad you could make it. Did you know he flew back early from work to attend?” she asked, swinging around and looking directly at Bill.
“I did not know that,” Bill said. I didn’t have to see him to know he was smiling at her. “Bill Wilson,” he said, sticking his hand out over my shoulder. “And my wife, Olivia.” My stomach dropped as David flashed me an uneasy look.