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Maybe he had.
When she pulled back, smiled up at him with eyes that were a bit glassy, he grinned down at her.
“Miss me much?”
“Bunches. Couldn’t you tell?”
He leaned in so the others couldn’t hear. “How much champagne have you had?”
“Not nearly enough,” she answered, smiling at him as if she thought he was the greatest thing ever.
He knew it was pretend, but her look was getting to him. Did she ever realize what she was doing? That she was on the rebound and that messed with her emotions? Made her more vulnerable?
“But I did have a couple glasses of champagne while getting my nails done.”
She held her fingers out for his inspection.
Knowing they were still the center of attention, that all the women had paused on their way into the house to watch them instead, Ryder took her hand in his and lifted it to his mouth, placing a kiss on each fingertip.
“You’re good,” McKenzie praised, a bit breathy.
“I’m just getting started.”
Which was the truth. For whatever reason McKenzie felt the need to be part of a couple in front of her family and wanted him to act crazy about her.
Kissing her, looking into her eyes, did make him crazy. He was playing a dangerous game. One where he was liable to get burned if he wasn’t careful.
Because he wanted McKenzie and feeling her desire during their kiss, as she looked up at him, was playing havoc with his resolve to protect himself.
“I can’t wait to see how you finish.”
Havoc.
“Are you flirting with me, McKenzie?”
Her cheeks flushed. “Is that not okay?”
The vulnerability in her question about undid him, about made him forget his need to protect himself and instead dive headfirst into wiping away all her self-doubts. He’d like to get a hold of Paul and every other man who’d ever hurt her.
“Okay, that’s enough of that,” Reva interrupted them, having obviously been ignored for as long as she was willing. “Introduce me to your fellow, Kenz.”
McKenzie’s cousin was a beautiful woman and had a smile that drew a person in. But Ryder’s gaze quickly returned to McKenzie, saw that she was watching him closely for his reaction to her cousin.
“I’ve heard a lot about you today, Dr. Andrews,” the bride-to-be claimed, her smile genuine, as was the hug she surprised him with. “We’re all glad you’re here.”
When Ryder’s gaze cut back to McKenzie’s she was no longer smiling, or even looking at him. Instead, she seemed bored with the conversation, and mumbled something about finding lunch.
* * *
From the lush trees along the edge of where the wedding would take place, Ryder watched the groom and his men line up in front of the wooden archway that would be further decorated with fresh flowers prior to the wedding the following day.
The women, including McKenzie, were to the back of the garden area set up to seat around two hundred people. The trees lining the area provided natural shade and a sense of privacy from the outside world.
A wedding coordinator with a clipboard was instructing and positioning everyone in the wedding party where sh
e wanted them to stand during the ceremony.
Reva was getting married at an old plantation house that had been converted into a wedding venue. The sprawling white farmhouse with its white columns in front and wraparound porch were impressive, but it truly was the scenery around the house and rustic-looking barn that had been built as a reception hall that made the place. Rolling green hills dotted with sprawling oaks, the bluest sky he could recall ever seeing, flowers of all varieties, and a flowing stream that ran along one side of the property.
