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She snorted. “Somehow I don’t think you want to spend time in a fitting room with a bunch of girls drinking champagne. You realize that Tina will be there, right?”
He winked at her, and it was almost like he’d forgotten the strange quiet he’d allowed to pass between them only a few minutes ago. “I don’t know. Maybe it would be nice to see you all dressed up.”
Becca rolled her eyes, though she couldn’t deny secretly wishing their plan held a degree of truth to it. Even still, she couldn’t keep herself from mumbling, “Save your flirting for when it really matters.”
“Does that mean I can make an appearance? Show how much I like you?”
Her stomach fluttered wildly. “Fine. But the second I tell you that you should go?—”
“I leave. Got it.” He saluted her and nodded to her computer. “I’ll let you get to it. See you later.”
The womenin the bridal shop were already a little tipsy by the time Tina arrived—late, as usual. Becca had offered to be the designated driver for this particular outing. She’d thought they would get lucky and Tina would be a no-show.
Unfortunately, wishes weren’t meant to come true.
She sighed and took a sip of her lemon water. A few of the girls squealed as Tina entered the building, but almost immediately, the lights seemed to dim.
Becca straightened, peering harder at Tina. Had she been crying?
“Oh no! You’re kidding!” one of the girls said a little too loudly.
“He’s a jerk. You deserve so much better,” another offered.
Katrina pulled Tina into a tight hug, and that was when Becca knew something was up. She folded her arms, keeping her distance as Katrina led Tina to the middle of the seating area.
“I can’t believe it,” she was saying. “You were perfect for each other.”
“I know,” Tina moaned. “We were meant to be together. I don’t know what I did to make him break things off.”
Wait, break things off? Was Tina’s engagement ending? Becca stiffened. She was tempted to take a step closer to hear what was going on, but at that moment the door opened and Ethan appeared.
All eyes turned toward him, and Becca noticed immediately how Tina’s eyes locked onto him. Her body language screamed that all she wanted was his attention, and that was when a thought occurred to her.
All they needed to do was keep Tina occupied. If she was too busy to cause problems for the wedding, then Katrina and Simon would get their happily ever after. All at once, Becca’s chest tightened. She couldn’t sic Ethan on Tina. It didn’t feel right—not when they were supposed to be together.
Becca swung her focus over to Ethan only to find that he was staring at her. Ethan Boone was staring at her like they weren’t playing pretend, and just like that, she knew she couldn’t tell him her idea. It didn’t matter that Tina was suddenly single anddefinitely had a lot more time on her hands. Ethan couldn’t be the one to distract her.
His smile had a way of doing things to her that shouldn’t have been humanly possible. She was practically weak in the knees. Everyone had taken note—including Tina. And the second he moved across the room to stand beside her, Becca knew something had definitely changed between them.
It wasn’t in the way his stare made it hard to breathe. It wasn’t the way his smile made her think she would melt into the floor. It was the fact that when he stood beside her, all she craved was his touch.
Why was it that all she wanted was for him to behave like a boyfriend in this very moment? What would she even do if he pulled her close and stole a kiss?
Give in, that’s what.
He leaned in and she tilted her face toward him, eyes fluttering closed.
“Did I miss anything?” he murmured.
Her eyes flew wide. “What?”
Ethan jerked his chin toward the girls. “Tina doesn’t look happy.”
“Oh. That.” She turned her back to the others. “Apparently, her engagement is off. Today is officially all about her again.”
He wrapped his arm around her waist and pulled her against him. “Well, maybe we can take off some of that attention.” His voice was low and sent a wave of chills through her core.
This was it. He was going to kiss her.
