Page 21 of Until Then

“And I’m sure each pair in the wedding party will need to dance,” Vienna says.

Briar’s smile looks a little devious. “Naturally.”

Before I realize what they’re doing, the group scatters, all with different mumbled excuses. Rees is the only one who looks back, and it’s all to laugh and give me a rather rude gesture because my brother sucks.

I keep my attention forward and take another drink, sensing Hayley standing at my shoulder. “You know they did this on purpose, right?”

“They’d never be able to commit a crime. They’d be caught instantly.”

I grind my teeth to keep from smiling. “Then, we need to play their game. For Briar and Tyrell.” I cast a quick look at her. She’s staring at her iridescent fingernails and I want to slip my fingers through hers. “I’m not going to ruin their wedding.”

“I’d be the last one to ruin their wedding.”

“Debatable.

She shakes her head. “Are you capable of being palatable for a day?”

“I’m an actor, it’s my job to pretend.”

For a moment I think I went too far, for a moment I swear there’s a slight wash of hurt on her features.

She quickly schools her face into something hard. “Good. I guess pretend you never met me.”

“Oh, no. That’s not so simple, Wildfire,” I say, leaning close to whisper next to her ear. “That would take a lot of rehearsal.” I don’t know what causes me to keep words going, I have a proclivity to ramble when nerves take hold. “I didn’t tell you about the show because maybe, for a second, you wanted to eat a scone with me because you thought I was a normal guy. Not because of my connections.”

Her sea blue eyes turn to glass when she looks up at me. “But you took a choice from me by not telling me everything. You let me believe you were someone you weren’t. I didn’t know who I was with. Not really.”

“Would you have chosen differently?”

She hesitates. “I understand men with your level of clout and lifestyle, more than you know. I never wanted to be a notch for a celebrity who would never settle for a simple life with a simple woman like me. Connections should mean more—to me, they do—than that.”

There is hurt in her voice. I go out on a limb and guess she felt more than she’s letting on tonight.

She’s right. In a way, I let her believe a ruse. She enjoyed a café and sorbet and a night with a guy she thought was someone else.

Shame, hot and potent, tightens my chest. “I should’ve told you. I’ve just had experiences with—no, it doesn’t matter. No excuse, I should’ve told you.”

Hayley blinks once, twice. “Thank you.”

I take a step back, my own hurt slipping over my lips. “But I don’t think you know men like me as well as you say. If you know celebrities so well, do you think I’d ever give mypersonalphone number to a woman I planned to make a one-night stand? Or do you think I would’ve slapped you with an NDA instead?”

Her face falls and she bites her bottom lip, like the truth is finally hitting her.

I down the rest of my drink and turn away as I say, “Stew on that for a bit, Wildfire. Let me know what you think when we see each other again. Until then, I guess”

I don’t look back as I turn into the crowd, and this time, I walk away.

I groan when a hand slaps my shoulder. White, blinding sunlight scorches my eyes. I flip onto my back, heels of my palms digging into my eyes. “Regina! Shut my damn blinds.”

Rees chuckles and keeps fiddling with the remote that closes my blackout shades. “It’s a good thing your nephew doesn’t hear his uncle’s bad mouth.”

I snap up in bed. “Jude!” My palms wave in an excited sort of applause.

My nephew with his static white-blond hair claps his cute little hands and reaches for me, then pats Rees’s face.

We take that to mean Jude is a little baffled why his dad is two people.

It’s a good thing Rees likes to ink his skin or the poor kid wouldn’t know who’s who.

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