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I walked down the beach to where everyone was gathered, stopping right next to Kennedy. I stood closer than I should have but fuck it. I needed to be near her. The scent of her had me hard already. Vanilla, lavender, and amber. The trifecta of sensuality.Jesus.
Everyone’s eyes focused on me, including Kennedy’s big blue ones. She held a clear clipboard with our names written in a dry-erase marker in one hand and a pencil in the other. What the pencil was for, I had no clue. Probably to stab anyone who didn’t do as they were told. She damn sure wasn’t writing on that clipboard with it. This was Kennedy in her element. She was great at managing everyone else’s life. Horrible at figuring out her own shit.
I took one look at our group and did a mental inventory myself. There was me, Kennedy, Holmes, and Dallas in this circle. Ashton, Kacey, and Lexi were talking to one of Ashton’s business partners whom I’d only met once or twice at the bar after work. Kacey’s parents sat in the front row of chairs talking to Ashton’s parents. I gave Kacey’s dad a nod and a smile because that guy intimidated the shit out of me. If I were Ashton, I would have been sweating bullets at the thought of marrying that man’s daughter. Kennedy’s dad, on the other hand, was more like Phil fromModern Family. He was thedo no harm but take no shitkind of guy you sat on the porch and had a beer with on a Sunday afternoon. And I had—more than once.
“Ashton, you stand there.” Kennedy took the pencil and pointed to a wooden ‘x’ nestled in the sand. “The rest of you, come this way.” She led us to a big white tent set up near where the smooth sand faded into dunes of beachgrass.
“You think you can keep your dick in your pants ‘til the end of my sister’s wedding?” Dallas whispered in my ear as we followed her.
Dallas and Holmes made the perfect pair. Neither one of them held back for shit.
“I would never disrespect Kacey like that.”
He straightened up but kept his voice low. “Good. I’d hate to kick your ass.”
“You fucking wish.” I laughed but knew if I ever found myself on his shit list, he would kick my ass.
Kennedy cleared her throat. “If you two are ready, the rest of us would like to get started.”
I didn’t realize we’d made it to the tent. And that it was completely quiet in here.
I held back a laugh, and Kennedy nudged me with her elbow.
There she is. There’s my girl.
I sucked in a breath because bony elbows and ribs didn’t mix.
“Sorry,” she whispered. “I didn’t mean to hurt you.” She looked up at me, so fucking worried, so sad, so broken, and goddammit if it didn’t make me feel like she’d punched me in the gut.
She couldn’t even imagine how fucking wrong she was. She didn’t hurt me. I hurt me. I hurt us.
“You don’t have to apologize.” My voice caught in my throat, but I smiled anyway. “It doesn’t hurt anymore.”
* * *
During the rehearsal dinner, she sat next to me. Her hand squeezed my knee under the table. Her touch was electric, fucking fire against my flesh. We both inhaled a deep breath at the same time. I wanted to throw my hand in the air and screamfuck yeahwith a fist pump. It felt like we were finally finding our way back to one another. My whole body ached with the need to grab her and hold her, spew sonnets and poetry, and do all the cheesy shit that normal guys did in those fucking movies she liked to watch. But I needed to be smart this time. No way was I crossing that line again. I would go home and jack off until I got carpal fucking tunnel, but I would. Not. Cross. That. Line.
I put my hand on top of hers. Yes. God, yes. I’d missed her so much it hurt.
Lines or no lines, boundaries or no boundaries,nottouching her right now would have been like depriving myself of the very air I breathed.
She looked over at me and smiled.
I leaned into her ear and growled. “Keep touching me like that and I’ll have you screaming my name before you finish your wine.”
She swallowed, then squeezed my knee again.
I grinned.Atta girl.
Atta fucking girl.
KENNEDY
The wedding turned out as beautiful as I’d imagined. We’d placed rows of white chairs on the beach. Lanterns and flower petals lined both sides of the aisle. The backdrop for the ceremony was a simple arch with draped fabric and a classic rose spray across the top. Kacey was the kind of bride that set the bar high for all other brides. Her gown was strapless, showing off her flawless skin. The bodice was covered in rhinestones and pearl beads, fitting her curves like a glove. Pretty sure I saw her dad cry when he “gave” her to Ashton. Pretty sureIcried when they both said their vows. And every time I looked over at Hendrix to see his reaction, he was watching me.
When the ceremony was over, I hooked my arm around his as we walked past the rows of white chairs filled with excited guests.
The reception was every bit as beautiful as the ceremony. We opened two sides of the large white tent, letting the breeze from the ocean pass through. On one side of the tent, we laid white mats over the sand but left the other side to nature. On the mat side, round tables were covered in white linen topped with candles and centerpieces of white roses. We’d hung crystal chandeliers and strings of bulb lights throughout. On the sand side, people threw off their shoes and danced barefoot. That was where Kacey, Ashton, Holmes, and Dallas were all in a line doing the Bunny Hop. Holmes kept waving her hand at me to join them, and I kept shaking my head and holding up my glass of champagne as an excuse.
