“I hope she doesn’t,” Lyrica revealed with a heavy sigh. “We’ve been keeping the wedding gown Piper finished for her a secret for years. Eve and I both agreed Zoey deserved the only gown Piper would have time to dedicate herself to. And it is a fairy-tale dream. A fairy tale Zoey painted years ago. I’d cry if she didn’t get to wear it.”
The Mackay sisters were hopeless romantics, Graham knew. He just hoped the man Zoey eventually fell in love with would be just as romantic.
Maybe he should have a talk with Billy Ray and his stepbrother, which would effectively keep Eli from Zoey’s vengeance. Billy and Jack Clay were Zoey’s co-conspirators. They gave her a chance to hit that adrenaline high and kept her from getting hurt while she did it. Not that she’d hurt Eli if he told, but she was damned picky about loyalty; Lyrica wasn’t lying about that. Zoey would expect Graham to poke his nose in, though.
“Don’t do it, Graham.” His wife watched him with a knowing, somber gaze. “Don’t put that between me and my sister. If you find out anything and she learns you told anyone but me, then that will always be there between us. If Dawg destroys a relationship that means something to her, she will never forgive her brother. Please, let it go.”
Please.
He let out a hard breath and gave her a slow, accepting nod.
“But.” She grinned. “If you find out who it is by accident before I do, you can tell me. I’ll keep your secrets, hot stuff. You can trust me.”
That was his wife.
God, he loved her . . .
SEVEN
Zoey was in the front garage when Lyrica drove up to the open bay doors. Stepping from her pickup, her sister shot her a chiding smile.
“I want to grow up and be you,” Lyrica laughed as they headed for the steps leading to the second floor of the converted warehouse. “Especially after seeing how totally scared you have Eli of you. I swear, he’s like a grumpy rattler.”
“Eli’s having issues,” Zoey snorted. “And he better keep his mouth shut.”
“Oh, he’ll keep it shut,” Lyrica promised without turning back. “But it’s killing him.” The second Lyrica actually got a look straight at her, Zoey knew there would be no evading her sister’s questions. The bite mark she was sporting at the base of her neck was rivaled only by the one she’d left on Doogan’s neck.
She’d glimpsed the one she left on Doogan before exhaustion dragged her into sleep the night before. The one he’d left on her was just as bad.
Reaching the door, Lyrica stepped through ahead of Zoey, then came to a hard, shocked stop, nearly causing Zoey to plow into her back.
Not that she blamed her sister; Zoey was suddenly rather speechless herself.
Doogan stood in the middle of her kitchen with nothing but a towel secured at his lean hips and the hickey from hell marring the right side of his neck, incredibly close to his jugular vein. He was obviously headed back to her bedroom with a cup of coffee.
His dark hair was damp; sunlight gleamed across the dark strands, picking up lighter highlights that she hadn’t noticed the night before. Tight, taut abs tightened above the towel while the light mat of hair on his chest looked far too inviting.
“Well, hell.” He frowned, his brown eyes cool as his gaze slid from Lyrica to Zoey, regret flickering in his gaze. “I thought you were alone, Zoey. I’m sorry.”
“Oh my God. Oh my God,” Lyrica whispered, waving her hands in front of her face as she stared at him, eyes wide. “Dawg’s gonna have pups when he finds out about this. Doogan, you can’t . . .”
“Lyrica,” Zoey said softly, warningly.
“I’ll just get dressed.” Doogan gave his head a little shake and strode to her bedroom. “Sorry, Zoey.”
They watched him disappear, the door closing quietly behind him.
Zoey bit her lips and lifted her gaze to the skylights above them. No way Lyrica missed that hickey on his neck.
“Oh God. You slept with him . . .” her sister wheezed.
Zoey cleared her throat uncomfortably. “Well, we didn’t sleep much.”
Lyrica’s smothered squeal had Zoey’s gaze jerking to her in shock at the sound. Her sister was staring at her, hands pressed against her flushed cheeks, her green eyes dancing with sheer disbelief.
“Oh my God,” she choked.
“You said that already, Lyrica.” Zoey glared back at her. “What’s wrong with him?” Hell, Zoey thought, she hadn’t found a damned thing wrong with him.