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In the end, I couldn’t find her, and I swore to myself as I wandered the halls, wondering what I should do now. With my hands stuck in my pockets, I frowned as I rounded a corner—and as fate would have it, it was right then that I caught sight of her exiting the restroom, the first restroom I’d waited outside of.
She’d taken down her hair, the reason why she’d taken so damned long in there. Her hair was longer than I’d thought, its length far past her shoulders. As I clung to the wall, taking her in, she turned and headed in the opposite direction, away from the reception. Maybe she needed some air, too.
I followed her all the way to the doors that let out into the back, where a perfectly manicured garden sat. She walked, and I followed, the sky turning into one of night. Small lights hung on strings, pulled over the walkway of the garden, giving more than enough light to see. No one else was out; we were as alone as we could be.
Perfect, really.
Brianna found herself a bench and sat down, letting out a small, feminine sigh. I decided not to wait, and I strolled over to her, saying, “I think you’re supposed to be inside, enjoying your mother’s wedding.”
She turned her head to look at me, her lips parting just a bit as she studied me. I wondered what it was she saw. I had to be careful; I didn’t want to be so creepy that she told her mom about this. I didn’t want to know what Alistair would do if he heard I’d tried to warn her.
“I can only take so much celebration,” she spoke, sounding a little bored.
I hedged closer, careful to not seem too pushy about invading her space. “I feel that.” I took up the space beside her on the bench, slow to sit down next to her. “I’m Rick, by the way.” Hmm. Maybe I should’ve given her a fake name, in case she did talk about me to her mom or to Alistair.
Oh, well. Too late now.
“I’m—”
“Brianna,” I said. “Everyone knows you are. Nicole’s only child, the new Montgomery girl.”
She chuckled, but it wasn’t a happy sound. “I’m not a Montgomery. I never will be.” She shifted her weight, crossing her ankles. Her posture was straight; she held herself well, even though she didn’t come from money. I’d heard the whispers of Nicole’s possible gold-digging motives more than once tonight.
It didn’t sound like her daughter was on the same page, though—and that was good.
“Most people would be happy to become a Montgomery,” I told her. It was true enough. People would bend over backward and fuck themselves in the ass if it meant they’d get a big payday for it. “I’m surprised you’re not. Then again, you don’t strike me as a…”
“Gold digger?” Brianna offered up the word easily.
I chuckled, not expecting her bluntness. “You said it, not me.” As she stared at me, I wondered how to approach the subject, how I should warn her away from Gareth, tell her to be careful without sounding crazy myself.
She broke the silence by asking, “How do you know the Montgomerys?”
“Alistair is an old friend of mine,” I told her. She blinked at me, eyes widening and eyebrows lifting, appearing shocked, which made me laugh softly. “Why so surprised?”
“You just… you don’t seem—”
I laughed again. “Like I’m not one of them? You can tell so easily, huh?” That was good. I didn’t want to be like any of them. Alistair might have me wrapped around his finger, but it wasn’t because he was paying me.
Well, he was now when I helped him out, but that was beside the point.
I went on, “That’s all right. No offense taken. Guess you and I are the outcasts of this party, huh?”
“Yeah, I guess so.”
I wanted to get her guard down, so I could tell her what I had to say, but how could I do that? And then it hit me. “For a rich man’s wedding, you know what there’s not enough of? Booze. Good thing I brought my own.” I reached into the inner pocket of my suit and retrieved my small flask. Holding her stare, I unscrewed the lid and took a small sip, and her gaze fell to the tattoo on my hand.
I offered her the flask. “Want any?” I then lowered the flask in thought. “Wait. How old are you?”
“I’m eighteen,” she said, and though she wasn’t quite legal to drink, I wouldn’t feel too bad in offering her some.
“Oh, well, then I shouldn’t offer you anything,” I spoke. I looked around, checking for anyone walking along the path near us. We were alone still, and that was the only reason I offered her the flask. “I guess it can be our secret. I won’t tell if you won’t.”
Now her eyes fell to the flask, and I could see her weighing it in her head. If she accepted, what would happen? She didn’t know me. I was a stranger to her, and yet she was curious.
In the end, her curiosity won, and she took the flask from me and lifted it to her lips. The moment the stuff touched her lips, she fought back a gag, which had me grinning. Let’s just say it wasn’t watered down, at all. To someone not used to the taste, I supposed it would be overwhelming on the taste buds.
“Not that bad, huh?” I took another sip.
