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But it couldn’t be…
It wasn’t possible…
“Bri?” The words struggled to flow past my lips in a hushed plea. A plea that what I was witnessing wasn’t an apparition. That she was physically here with me again.
She looked down at my hands, thumbs still tucked into the waist of my boxers, and let out a soft gasp. “Oh my gosh, I’m so sorry! I figured with everything going on in the other room, no one would notice I was hiding out in here.”
She quickly scrambled off of the bed, her long blonde hair whipp
ing around as she searched the floor for what I could only assume were her shoes. Her bare feet padded across the room until we were mere inches away from one another, and with her head tipped down, gaze still locked on the floor, I reached out and tucked my finger beneath her chin. I didn’t need to look into her eyes to know because just the simple touch alone let me know it wasn’t her. She wasn’t my Brielle.
“I-I’ll just grab my shoes and get out of your hair.” Knees buckling, she stumbled and practically forced herself into my arms. Her skin brushed against me, so soft and inviting, and I could smell the mixture of strawberries and cream wafting from her silky, golden hair. Everything about her awakened my senses, and I welcomed the onslaught of unfamiliarity.
“Hey. It’s all right.” I steadied her before grabbing another glass off of the counter and poured us each a shot of whiskey, sliding one closer to her. “Stay and have a drink with me.”
She slowly lifted her gaze up, cocking a brow at me as though she were surprised by my invitation. “A drink? Shouldn’t you be out there entertaining…” she trailed off.
I shook my head, amused by the nervous inflection in her voice, because here I was hiding out right along with her like a fucking coward. “Trust me. I don’t want to be out there any more than you do.”
“I don’t think…” I gently slipped her hand into mine and led her over to the bed, essentially cutting her off.
“Exactly…don’t think.” As soon as the back of her legs made contact with the mattress, she sank down on the edge, and I watched her hands fidget in her lap. Extending a glass in her direction, I couldn’t help the smile that crept up one side of my face. She looked so flustered and out of place in this tiny hotel room, and it only made me want to break her out of her comfort zone that much more. “Just one drink. It looks like you could use one more than me right about now.”
She stared down at the liquor sloshing around her glass, but paused with her brows drawn together before bringing up to her lips. “What should we drink to?”
“The bride to be?” I smirked. She rolled her eyes, but managed to crack a smile as she bit down on her lip. The light from the bathroom illuminated the blush that crept up her neck, staining her cheeks crimson, and my hand reached out of its own accord, begging to touch her. Her eyes grew wide, panic quickly setting in, but as I ran my thumb down her cheek and across her bottom lip, essentially tugging it free, her gaze softened. “Then to us, the hidden loners of the party.”
I lowered my hand, allowing her to toss the glass back and let the liquor flow freely down her throat. Her eyes never left mine until the very last second, at which point she squeezed them shut and released a hoarse cough.
“I take it you’re not used to shooting whiskey?” I crouched down in front of her, taking the glass from her hand.
“No.” She tried to stifle the cough, but based on the moisture pooling in her eyes, the burn had been more intense than she’d anticipated. “I’m more of a mixed drink kinda girl.”
“Ah.” I slowly stood, pulling her up with me. “Well, what do you say we head down to the bar and grab a drink? I promise we’ll start off easy before diving right into the hard stuff.” I traced a cross over my heart, eliciting a gorgeous smile from her pouty pink lips. A smile that in a matter of seconds I had grown to love and selfishly laid claim to. But she didn’t need to know that just yet.
Looking back towards the door, I chuckled under my breath. “I doubt they’ll miss us anyway. They seem a bit…occupied at the moment.”
“I guess you’re right. One more couldn’t hurt.” She shrugged indifferently.
I opened the door a crack and held my arm out in front of me. “Ladies first.”
She sat there unmoving, her eyes running up and down the length of me with an eyebrow raised. A playful smile graced her lips, and she let a soft giggle escape. “Um, aren’t you forgetting something?”
I quickly scanned the room and shook my head. “Other than your beautiful self? No.”
Her blush deepened, but it seemed that one shot of whiskey had given her a boost of confidence. She stepped closer, running her finger down my bare chest, and fluttered her long, dark lashes up at me. “Looks like you’re missing a few articles of clothing there, hon.”
She trailed her finger back up my chest, and in the wake of goose bumps scattering across my skin, I could feel my blood pumping through my veins and moving further south. It wasn’t until the erection I was currently sporting brushed up against her belly, that I realized I was still standing there half naked in front of her. Fuck.
“Well…that would’ve caused a few awkward stares.” I smirked and began collecting my clothes that were strewn about the floor.
Her hand flew up, covering her mouth as soft laughter filtered through. I didn’t know what it was, but something about her caused this warmth that I hadn’t experienced in such a long time to spread throughout my chest like wildfire. What had caused it, I couldn’t say, but being there with her in that very moment felt...right.
I finished buttoning my shirt and slipped my shoes on before placing my hand on her lower back and ushering her out of the bedroom.
“Are you sure we should leave before the party is over? Don’t you think you should be out here helping him?” She looked over at Bryce and the bride to be still going at it before turning her attention back to me with a look of disgust on her face. “On second thought…”
I nudged her forward as her words trailed off, and dipped down close to her ear. “I think he’s handling things just fine on his own. C’mon.”
