“I was procrastinating. I care about him, just...not romantically. Not enough to marry him.” She wondered if Gia would be this forgiving if she’d seen what Bran saw when he’d opened that closet door.
Spark City.
When Royce grabbed her up to kiss her for the second time, she’d been overcome. Laying one on him without any notice was one thing. Him reciprocating... That second kiss was heady. Consuming. Sparks zapped her like a free-swinging power line. They’d coursed through her bloodstream and lit up her brain like a neon sign. One that read Royce Knox can kiss. And boy, could he. She’d shared a few kisses with Bran over the course of their tepid dates, but none of them had measured up to the kiss in the closet with Royce.
That wasn’t due to Brannon’s lack of skill or personality. He was fun and made her laugh on a daily basis. He was distractingly handsome, with a dimple punctuating one cheek and a full, generous mouth. He had Royce’s hard angles but there was an approachability to Bran that couldn’t be denied. The Knox brothers came from good stock—both men were damned good-looking.
But. She’d never been attracted to Bran. He was an incredible friend. Or had been before she ruined their friendship with a spontaneous kiss.
If she could have a do-over, she’d have broken up with Bran a week ago—or maybe never would’ve said yes to that first dinner date. Hurting his pride at the beginning would have been better than at the end.
“I never saw that proposal coming,” Taylor told Gia. “I assumed he’d lost interest. We were pretty much back to normal until the gala. He asked me to go with him and I didn’t see the harm in it. You know how tedious these events can be.”
“Lord, do I. So you two weren’t...” Gia made a lewd gesture to indicate sex.
“No! God, no.” Taylor couldn’t help laughing.
“Hey, it’s harder for me to hear than you, ladybug. If you ask me, this sounds like a big misunderstanding.”
“I half expected him to politely break up with me by night’s end.” Though hoped might be a better word.
“And he would’ve been so nice about it,” Gia said, which only served to make Taylor feel worse. “I’m not saying you weren’t! Don’t look at me like that.”
“I panicked. I never in a million years thought he’d...” She shook her head, picturing the diamond ring in the box. Bran had been admiring the shimmer in the muted overhead light, his face... Wait. His face.
“He was looking at the ring right before I ran off. He... He wasn’t smiling, Gia. He didn’t look happy or excited. He looked... I don’t know. Resigned?” And definitely not like a man in love.
“It really makes me wonder...” Gia let her thought taper off before pasting on a slightly insincere smile. “Never mind. Speculation is never good. Who knows what men are thinking?”
Taylor couldn’t let her friend off the hook after that teaser. “What? What were you going to say?”
“Conjecture. And nothing that would help.”
“It’s not like you to be coy.”
Gia chewed on her lip before she said, “I wonder if the proposal had anything to do with Dad’s retirement. Pending retirement. Bran’s being engaged would make him appear better suited for the role of CEO than Royce.”
“He wouldn’t?” But the sentence came out like a question because... Would he?
Brannon had mentioned time and again that his father would be stepping down. That he could picture himself in the role of CEO. Their “dates,” for lack of a better word, had been consumed by talk of work and Bran’s future at the company.
“Dad will retire sooner than we think, Tay,” he’d told her one evening over a second glass of wine for each of them. He’d described Royce as his “competition.” Bran had also mentioned that he wanted it more, but deserved it less. She’d argued in his defense that he and Royce were equally suited to replace Jack. It was the truth. The Knox boys each had winning qualities and were as dedicated to this company as they were to each other.
“I’m not saying he was using you, Taylor. I don’t think he came up with an insidious plan to toy with you to get what he wanted.”
“No, no, neither do I.” Taylor had known Brannon practically her entire life. Ambition wouldn’t cause him to stoop that low.
“But maybe somewhere down deep he thought it’d help to show some stability. Bran is the fun-loving one, after all.”
“And president of the company. It’s not like he’s goofing around.”
“Right. And you’re COO. A match made in heaven, on paper.” Gia tilted her head, her lips compressing. “Your dad always liked Bran for you.”
He had.
“I couldn’t live with myself if I drove a wedge between Bran and Royce.” Taylor sighed.
“That’s on them. You weren’t the only one in that closet. Whatever amends need to be made, you’ll work it out. What’s done is done. There has to be a part of you that is glad you don’t have to pretend with Brannon any longer.”