“Yes. We ended it a few months before the wedding.”
“Why?” The question slips out of me of its own accord.
Isaac takes a moment to respond. “My brother saw her with someone else.”
The words hit me like a weight of bricks, a realization and an understanding. He’s gone through the same thing I have.I made his check-out hell,he’d said about Percy. It all makes sense now.
“Oh,” I whisper.
Isaac sighs. I’ve never seen him run his hand through his hair in agitation, but he does it now. “It was a long time ago.”
“Do you miss her?”
“No,” he says. “I haven’t for years.”
“And she’s here?” Irritation burns in my chest. “Your family invited her and her parents despite what happened?”
“Just her parents. They’re… well, the Jacobs own golf courses and a few smaller hotels.”
Several things flash through my mind at once.It was a marriage for the business,I think. He chose a partner who he thought could help the company.And his family still considers them more important for networking purposes than their son’s feelings.
He watches me process his words, eyes unreadable.
“Have you dated since?” I ask. My voice comes out heated. “Has she seen you with someone else?”
He shakes his head. “Not that I know of.”
I grip his wrist and pull him toward the archway, ensuring we’re in full view of the crowd. Slowly, giving him time to pull away, I reach up and grip the lapels of his suit jacket.
“Look out over the crowd,” I say. “Do you see her?”
Isaac frowns at me, but does what I’ve asked him. He’s close enough that I can make out those golden flecks in his eyes again. “Yes,” he says. “She’s spotted us.”
“Good. I hope you meant what you said earlier,” I whisper, and then I press my lips to his.
They’re soft and still under mine. I get the distinct impression that I’ve shocked him, and the only thing stopping me from pulling away is the knowledge that his ex is watching.
Damn, I’ve messed—
But then, he kisses me back. The hand resting on my waist grips me tight, and then he tugs me against the length of his body. Our heights are a perfect fit.
Neither of us has to bend.
He tastes good, like warmth and champagne and determination, and I shiver when his fingers dig into the soft flesh at my hip. I’d forgotten how nice, how heartbreakingly lovely, it is to be kissed like this.
Isaac lifts his mouth from mine, but I’m not ready to let go quite yet. My hands tighten on the lapels of his suit jacket, and he stays close, brushing his lips over my cheek.
“What,” he murmurs, “was that?”
“You’ve helped me with Percy,” I whisper. “It’s only fair I help you get some payback on your ex, too.”
It’s the truth and the reason I’d pulled him here, indignation like a second heartbeat beneath my skin. That he’d experienced what I’d experienced and had to face the person who did it at his own family’s parties over and over again.
But I’d forgotten about that the second he kissed me back.
Isaac’s hand loosens its tight, comforting grip on my waist. “Well…” he murmurs, his eyes darker than usual. “That’s considerate.”
“Yeah. That’s me.”