Page 66 of House of Desire

“That’s not how I heard it, but either way, I agree with her and you’re my friend. It’s my brother’s wedding and I need someone to dance with and pretty much everyone else will be taken. I would go with you to Dom’s wedding last minute if you needed a date.”

That, paired with the single perfect tear running down her cheek, and I know she’s got me. Whenever Dom gets married, I would want someone to dance and eat cake with too.

I sigh heavily and wonder how much I’m going to regret this decision.

“Okay, I’ll go. But only if my dad can watch the shop. And I can find something to wear. When do we leave?”

“Five a.m.” she says with a worried look, but I just roll my eyes at her.

“I guess I need to call Dad. And go shopping before everything closes,” I say. My mind begins running a mile a minute, thinking of all the things I need to get done before we can leave.

“I know it’s super last minute and I might have taken it on myself to buy you some new clothes, including a dress to wear before coming here.”

“Sounds like you were very confident I was going to agree. I think I might need to reevaluate our friendship.” I pause, sitting up straighter. “Wait, were those tears to guilt me into saying yes?”

Her beaming smile is all the answer I get as a mixture of anticipation and nerves settles in.

Our private jet descends toward the runway, the blue water glittering like the ring on Charlie’s finger. Between Alec’s directorial debut being a smash hit at some festivals and making him the person to get, and Charlie’s book being a bestseller for months, they decided to treat the small guest list to our own flight.

Charlie’s dad snaps pictures through the window, his camera strap around his neck.

“I have a surprise for you at the resort when we get there,” Charlie says, dropping down in the open seat next to me as we taxi to the area where we’ll deplane. She’s dressed in a soft cream dress, which I’m assuming is going to be a theme throughout the weekend.

“Isn’t this your wedding? Where people give you gifts?”

“Societal norms aren’t the boss of me.”

“How could I forget. What is the gift?”

“Now where’s the fun if I tell you?” she huffs.

“I can still be excited even if I know what it is.”

“Mmm, maybe on other things, but not this one. Just trust me. Do you have your speech written, best man?”

“Do you have your vows written?” I ask, smirking at her.

“You should know I expect magic, so get it done.” I give her a sarcastic salute as she gets up and moves back to her seat in the front next to Alec.

Shifting down into my seat, I close my eyes as we taxi to the gate where five black sedans are waiting for us.

“Damn, girl. Got that white glove treatment going on,” Courtney says.

“We just wanted to make sure everyone was taken care of,” Alec tells her.

The drivers help us all with our bags and the moment we are situated, our caravan takes off. Lush greenery surrounds us as we make our way to the resort, but I hardly notice with my cramped position in the furthest back seat of the car.

“Now, Parker. How was filming House of Desire?” Charlie’s mom, Deborah, asks, turning to look back at me.

“It was great. The ladies were amazing and we had a really fun time,” I tell her with my interview voice firmly in place.

“The girl who fell out of the limo is very beautiful. And funny, too! When they were in the cars on the first night, they would show these clips of them inside the cars and all the others were really boring, just talking about the house. But she was talking to the girls in her limo. She just seemed really nice.”

“She was a stand out in the group, that’s for sure.” I still need to apologize, but after I got her number from Lorelei, every time I pick up the phone to do it, I almost end up in a ball on the floor in a panic.

“Are you still single?” she asks, a hint of intrigue in her voice.

“You know he can’t tell you that, Deb,” Charlie’s dad says. “Stop pestering the boy.”

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