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Reid’s interest in me was cooling every day. Sometimes it seemed to be by the hour.
I started to cross the room to meet up with him when I caught him staring at another woman. My stomach plummeted and my chest tightened—again.
Following his gaze, my eyes stung. Of course it was Maple Douglas. Not many people knew her full name or that she was Ransom’s youngest sister. She’d distanced herself from the name and had become her own brand. Maple was plastered on magazines and billboards and walking runways in Paris and Milan.
I was pretty sure half the men and eighty percent of the women in the room were staring at her.
However, this felt different. Not just the admiration of a stunning woman.
Then his gaze swung to me as if he felt mine on him. His smile was charming and somehow cool at the same time. As if a mask clicked into place for my benefit. He quickly walked to me, extending one hand to me.
“Helena, where have you been?”
I gave him a stiff smile and let him clasp my hand in his to tuck into the crook of his arm. “Just needed a moment alone.”
“Whatever for?”
The calculation in his gaze made me swallow back the acidic retort that bubbled up. Did he really not know or was he being deliberately obtuse? I never knew with him.
Thankfully, the mass exodus into the gardens provided a distraction. Reid craned his neck to see what was going on. My fingers flexed into a fist at my side as I noticed he was looking at Maple again.
What the hell was going on there?
Beyond the fact that she was far too young for Reid, she was Ransom’s sister. Not to mention that he used to be engaged to Marigold, Ransom’s other sister.
The engagement that had demolished their friendships.
Was he insane?
I nearly stumbled as he dragged me forward to follow the rest of guests as they emptied into the May sunshine. It was a warm day, but the apple blossom scented breeze was a relief. It cleared my head and pushed aside the hateful thoughts brewing.
My heels sunk into the soft grass as he tried to circumvent the bottlenecked crowd. “Reid, slow down.”
My shoulder slammed into a man. He turned and frowned down at me, and I suddenly recognized him from the rehearsal party the night before. “Are you all right, Miss Danbury?”
“Yes, thanks. I’m so sorry, Mr. Manning.”
“Beckett,” he corrected me.
Reid swore under his breath and craned his neck to look over the sea of guests. I released his arm and sighed when he left me in the dust.
“What’s going on?” It was very annoying to be so short.
Beckett frowned after Reid then gazed back down at me. “Let’s get you out of the line of fire.” He settled his hand along my lower back.
When his calloused fingers met my skin, I barely managed to stifle the quick gasp.
“I’m fine. Don’t worry about me.”
He didn’t move away. My breath hitched at the firm way he held me against him. Almost protective.
We were jostled by another couple, and he grasped my hip to move me closer. The scent of leather and citrus rolled through me. It wasn’t unpleasant—more earthy than I was used to. Not the moneyed blends of cologne I generally associated with the men around me.
While most men were wearing suits, Beckett wore dark jeans, a pearl gray dress shirt rolled up at the forearms, and a deep navy vest. I found my hand on his middle as he urged me along the edges of the crush of people.
As if I was weightless, he lifted me up and out of the way as a dog raced through and clipped me at the ankle.
“Dammit, Casey,” he muttered. “Sorry about that. My dumb dog gets excited when there’s too many people.”
