AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“How long it’d take until you or Lori asked that. Jace thought you’d hold back until dessert. I gave you until the main course.”
Val laughed. “Bringing a date is purely a defensive mechanism. We can’t save you from Pippa.”
She wasn’t wrong. Weddings were an occasion for well-meaning members of our extended family to meddle, and my cousin Pippa loved to play matchmaker. She was good at it too... when it came to her own siblings. My Bennett cousins—all nine of them—had married within a couple of years of each other. Pippa liked to brag about having a hand in a few of those couples finding each other. Jace and I had barely escaped her plans during Landon’s wedding. I didn’t think lightning struck twice, but I was going alone. I dated plenty, but for months I’d been on a string of first dates, none of which led to a second one. I wasn’t interested in taking just anyone to my sister’s wedding.
Jace had other problems. “I can’t take anyone to the wedding, because it’ll be in all the papers. People might get the wrong impression.”
Val tapped her fingers, smiling sweetly. “You mean they might think that the soccer world’s sexiest player was off the market?”
Our brother had been awarded that title by GQ this year, and he was reaping the benefits.
“Exactly.”
“Now that would be a tragedy, wouldn’t it?” Lori asked with a grin.
“Girls, stop hazing your brothers,” Graham said. I liked him, though it was still strange to think about Lori, Milo, and Graham as one unit. For years, it had just been Lori and Milo, because his jackass biological father had taken off before he was born. I had tried to be not just an uncle to the boy but also a father figure, trying to pass on things I’d learned from my late dad. Now that Graham was in the picture, there was less need for me to play that role. I missed it, but I couldn’t deny it: being just the fun uncle had its perks.
“No can do,” Val answered. “They flex their overprotective brother muscles, we haze them. It’s a two-way street.”
Jace shook his head mockingly. “Thanks for trying, Graham.”
I enjoyed our family time immensely.
“Will, is your Lake Tahoe rental free the week after the wedding?” Lori asked. “We still haven’t decided where to go for our honeymoon, but I do love the lake and your cabin.”
“Let me check.” I pulled out my phone, looking over the spreadsheet I kept. While I was in college, I built a network of rentals in California, and the caretakers for each one filled the spreadsheet as the bookings came in.
“It’s free. I’ll tell my administrator not to take any bookings until you decide.”
Lori looked up at Graham, batting her eyelashes. He laughed and kissed her forehead, then informed me, “We’ll take it.”
We left the restaurant well after midnight. The route home took me by Paige’s inn. I figured if the lights were still on, I could talk to her about the alarm. With a property this large, she needed one of the more expensive options, with motion detectors on at least the windows on the ground floor.
When I arrived at the inn, all lights were off. I was surprised at how disappointed I was. Judging by their excitement, I figured they’d planned to party the whole night. My body reacted instantly to the memory of her curves. She was small enough that I could scoop her up with one arm. I bet those legs would feel amazing wrapped around me.
I laughed, shaking off the image. Damn, I hadn’t even asked for her phone number. But I planned to rectify that.
***
The next afternoon, I had a pleasant surprise. While I was discussing a case with my superior in his office, a familiar voice filtered in through the open door. Was I imagining it because Paige had been on my mind the whole night? Because I’d planned to stop by the inn today to ask for her number? I turned to look, and there she was. What was she doing here? Had something happened to her? She was half turned, talking to one of the officers. I couldn’t see any signs that she’d been in an accident or attacked.
“Will?”
“I apologize, sir. An... acquaintance just walked in. Can we table this conversation so I can check out the situation?”
I was out of my chair before he even nodded. I strode past the desks, straight to Paige. I got a better look at her as I came closer. She didn’t seem hurt or scared. She was talking to one of our youngest officers, Stan. He was eager to help. Too eager. He stood too close and smiled like an idiot.
“Paige, what are you doing here?”
She stopped midconversation, turning to face me. Those lips were even prettier than I remembered. Her hair was down, obscuring her neck, but the bit of skin that was showing looked kissable as fuck.
“Hi, Will. I looked through the inn like you suggested. Didn’t find any vandalism inside, but someone stole
the side mirrors of my car, which was parked in the backyard for a long time. I have pictures and I’d like to file a complaint. I need it for my insurance.”
“I’ll take it from here,” I declared.
“But this is in my job description,” Stan protested, clearly wanting to spend more time with Paige. My jaw ticked.
