Page 113 of One Touch

My jaw tightened. “Right. Well, if you wanted to move to New York, I’d obviously be fine with it,” I found myself saying, trying to sound nonchalant even as my heart clenched at the thought. “Things with us are just starting out. You wouldn’t want to sacrifice a whole career on the million-to-one chance that things work out for us.”

Lily’s brow furrowed. “Million to one?”

“I mean, it’s pretty unlikely, right? I’m no Chad McStudden.” The joke fell flat, even to my own ears. I took my hand away, not wanting to get caught, especially at such a shitty moment.

She laughed, but it was hollow. I knew that I’d touched a nerve. “Anyway,” she said, “we’re not trying to make things . . . work out. Are we?”

“No. Just a slip of the tongue.” I sighed. “I’m not doing so well, am I?”

“At what?”

“This whole dating thing. I’m out of practice.”

“It’s okay.”

“Let me make it up to you.”

Her eyes flashed. “How?”

I leaned in and whispered, “Well, tonight, I’m gonna make you come so hard you forget about the concept of New York entirely. Then, I’m going to talk to you, even though it’s going to be late. And this weekend, at the bachelorette party, I’m gonna find somewhere secret on that boat, and I’m gonna fuck your brains out.”

She looked at me for a few moments. At first, her eyes were cloudy with sadness, but then I saw something flicker and ignite in them. “Okay. I’m going to hold you to that.”

“I’m just going to hold you.”

Chapter 19

Lily

I’d only been toone bachelorette party before.

My own.

It had been a disaster. Elara wanted to organize it for me, but Vlad took over. He booked us a spa day, which sounded nice in theory, but he insisted on coming along.

Vlad turned what should have been a relaxing day into a nightmare. He complained about everything, from the temperature of the sauna to the scent of the massage oils. He even berated the staff for not treating him like a VIP. Instead of bonding with my friends, I spent the day trying to placate him, feeling more like his personal assistant than a bride-to-be.

As if that wasn’t enough, Vlad decided we should all go to a fancy restaurant afterward. He picked a place that was way out of our budget and then criticized everyone for not ordering the most expensive dishes—in spite of the fact thatIwas paying.

And then there was the stripper. Right in the middle of dessert, a skinny twenty-something came out and started miming all the words to Vlad’s greatest hits, while taking off allhis clothes except for a hideous purple thong. Mary-Beth tossed her jacket over him, trying to cover up his modesty, while Elara checked with Cole if we could go back to his place for a girls-only night of romcoms and ice cream.

Before we left, Vlad drunkenly lectured us on how useless we were at having fun. And once we were at Elara’s, he almost certainly hooked up with the young waitress he’d been ogling all night.

Tonight, the moment I stepped onto the dock in the harbor at Bluehaven Bay, I heard cheesy pop music pumping from a party boat decorated with pink and blue balloons and a sign that read “Elara and Cole’s Last Hurrah.” It was clear that this joint bachelor/bachelorette party was going to be done right.

As I approached the boat, the salty sea breeze carried the scent of fruity cocktails and the sound of laughter. I smoothed my hands over the skimpy black cocktail dress clinging to my curves. All I could think about was Ethan’s husky promise to sneak away for a secret rendezvous, his blue eyes smoldering with barely restrained desire.

I wondered if we’d be able to manage it. The thought of being caught in the act by any of the party attendees was terrifying. He’d probably been joking. He had to have been joking.

I spotted Elara waving from the deck, her smile as bright as the twinkling lights strung along the boat’s railing. Cole stood beside her, looking both excited and slightly overwhelmed by the pink feather boa draped around his neck. Their joy was infectious, and I found myself grinning as I climbed aboard.

“Ahoy there, maties!” I said, saluting them.

“Welcome to the party boat!” Elara squealed, pulling me into a tight hug. “No complaining allowed, no budget restrictions, and absolutely no surprise strippers. Unless, of course, you want one. No purple thongs though, that’s a hard limit.” She stepped back and looked at me. “You look freaking amazing, by the way.”

“So do you!” I squealed in reply. She was wearing a tight turquoise maxi dress that hugged her baby bump perfectly. She’d definitely popped. She didn’t just look a little bit pregnant. She lookedfullypregnant. And somehow, it looked hot on her.

“Second trimester, baby,” she said with a wink. Whispering in my ear she said, “I’m basically a sex machine right now.”

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