Page 2 of Unforgettable

And even given my best attempts to leave it in the past and forget the entire hot summer night, I had been chasing a similar connection at every turn. But everyone, and I seriously meant everyone, had come up not just short but miles from what I’d felt that one drunken and chaotic night.

But when I met Justin, there was more than nothing, which was better than what I’d become accustomed to.

The bartender slid the new drink to me and watched me carefully for a moment, probably curious if he’d have to make the same drink three times in a row. But I knew better, and if I downed another double, I’d be feeling rough in the morning. So, I pulled a few bucks out of my bra stash and put it in the tip jar, much to the bartender’s delight, before I continued my search for my date by weaving in and out through the crowd.

Everyone appeared more than content with the food, drinks, and music, which made me smile since I’d put in so much time and effort to ensure the evening went smoothly.

“Amanda!” I heard my name shouted over the music by an out-of-breath voice and immediately knew who it was. I turned to my right and, sure enough, spotted a heavily pregnant Delilah waddling toward me. She gave one of Luke’s old friends a death glare when he almost ran her over, so I met her halfway in a quieter corner of the room.

“Bridget’s looking for you,” she said, leaning against the white shiplap wall and rubbing her swollen stomach. She was nearly eight months pregnant but wasn’t going to miss her sister’s wedding for anything.

My mood immediately soured at the mention of Bridget, and my face dropped. “Are you serious? I was just with her counting those damn menus for the millionth time. I swear she has—”

A cruel, delightful smile crossed Delilah’s face, and I muttered a few choice words under my breath. “You’re kidding, aren’t you?”

She smiled wider and threw her head back, laughing. “Yeah, I’m kidding.”

I playfully slapped her arm and scoffed before taking a long sip of my drink, enjoying the way the liquor burned the back of my throat.

“That’s seriously not anything to joke about. You better be glad you’re pregnant. If I never have to speak to that woman again, it would be too soon.”

“You’re right, I’m a little sorry. But I can’t drink, so I need some form of entertainment. Anyway, who were you looking for?” she asked but then sucked in a deep breath because that was a lot of words all in a row for someone who could hardly breathe anyway.

“I was looking for my date.”

“Oh, I saw him walk into the main hallway through those doors. Probably looking for the bathroom?”

The hallway she was referring to led out into the larger wedding venue. If you followed it all the way to the end, then you’d run into the grand room Hazel and Luke had chosen for their wedding reception the following day. And even farther beyond that room and out several pairs of French doors was the outdoor space that overlooked a lake where they’d have their sunset ceremony.

It was all very elegant but had touches of each of their personalities, and it was obvious that Hazel’s parents spared no expense. As Hazel’s mom had explained, they were over the moon about the love their youngest daughter had found and wanted to celebrate it.

It was a sweet sentiment, while it also made me want to gag.

“Okay, thanks. Now, sit down, and I’ll see you later.”

Begrudgingly, Delilah allowed me to lead her to a table nearby where our friends, James and Devon, were talking with Hazel’s previous coworker. “Watch the pregnant woman, please,” I asked them, and they both welcomed her into their conversation. I knew if Delilah didn’t sit as much as she could during the dinner and the following morning, there was no way she was going to stand the entire ceremony.

With Delilah left in the best possible hands, I followed the perimeter of the room and slipped out of the side door without anyone spotting me.

The hallway was dark and quiet, but the music beating behind the door echoed through the large space. The dark wood floors that ran the length of the hallway and the white-painted wainscotting didn’t do much to absorb the sound. Without the liquor warming my insides, the silent and faintly lit corridor may have been slightly eerie.

If Justin had been looking for the bathroom as Delilah suggested, it wasn’t that hard to find, only two doors down from the room we’d been using and with a large sign just above the door. I headed in that direction, taking another long swig of my drink and contemplating whether I should push the door open to see if he was actually in there or be patient and wait for him to come out.

I decided on the latter until a thought crossed my mind, which involved pushing the door open and jumping his very tall bones for a quickie before we had to get back. We’d slept together once on our third date, and while it was… decent, there were still things that could be improved upon with a little practice. Hopefully. Actually, he’d likely need an intensive boot camp to get up to par.

I knew what I liked in the bedroom, and after doing a lot of exploring, I craved someone who could keep up. But finding a partner that met most, if not all, of my needs was a tiresome task.

Without my consent, a memory of Josh beneath me and Reed at my back overwhelmed me. It was one of my favorite positions my two best friends had put me in that night, and the desire I’d felt only seconds before was suddenly roaring through me.

I quickened my steps, hoping like hell that Justin was in the bathroom, when a door closing farther down the hall caught my attention. My brain said it was nothing, just someone who worked at the venue, maybe, but my gut told me to follow the sound.

I decided to investigate further and stop back by the bathroom if it turned out to be nothing.

My heels clicked loudly on the wood floor and echoed off the walls as I hurried down the hallway and farther from the thumping music I’d left behind. The grand doors leading into the reception space with its exquisite chandeliers and already perfectly decorated tables were directly in front of me, but around the corner and to my right, through a door that led to a smaller room, were hushed voices and the faint sounds of laughter.

For such a beautifully built building, the walls were oddly thin, and the wooden door didn’t do much to muffle the sounds either.

I stopped before I rounded the corner, so if anyone were to appear from around it, I could feign surprise. There was more laughing and then the sound of something large—likely a table—being moved. I inched a hair closer to the corner and strained to hear any further sounds.

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