Page 24 of Waiting on You

I’m going to have a word with the bar manager about letting assholes hit on women who have been drinking. This isn’t a fucking club. It’s an upscale bar in a luxury five-star hotel.

Paige shakes her head and turns her body away from him, making it clear she doesn’t want whatever he’s selling. She downs another shot, and the guy says something else. Another shake of her head, and then she twists her body in the other direction, attempting to leave. Only her foot gets caught on the leg of the barstool to her right, and she trips, her high heel flyingoff her foot and under the bar.

I rush over to help her, and she looks up at me with glassy eyes. She’s drunk.

“Nate,” she slurs. “Are you here to save me?”

Her smile is wobbly, and my heart sinks. The rehearsal must’ve gone badly.

“I can’t seem to find my shoe,” she says, looking down at her bare foot. “It must be here somewhere.” She tries to bend down to find it, but in her drunken state, she almost falls over.

“C’mon,” I say, guiding her to a chair. “Sit right here, and I’ll get your heel.”

She plops down and smiles softly, and once I know she’s not going to tip over, I go back over to the bar and find her heel. I also notice she left her purse hanging on the back of the chair, so I grab that as well.

“Here you go,” I say, getting on one knee and lifting her foot so I can put it on her since she’s most likely too drunk to do it herself. I’d suggest she take the other one off, but with her luck, she’d step on something and cut her foot.

When I lift her foot to slide her heel on, Paige giggles loudly.

“My prince,” she says. “It’s just like in the fairy tale.”

When I give her a questioning look, she huffs. “Cinderella,” she clarifies. “She loses her glass slipper, and the prince finds it. He puts it back on her foot, and they live happily ever after.”

Her smile morphs into a frown. “Only you can’t bemy prince because we don’t get a happily ever after.” Tears prick her eyes, and my heart feels like it’s being clenched with barbwire.

“C’mon,” I say, standing, since there’s nothing I can say to make this better. “Let’s get you up to your room.”

She nods and tries to stand, but it’s not happening. She’s drunk too much, and tomorrow, I’ll be firing whoever served her this much alcohol.

Reaching down, I lift her into my arms and carry her through the hotel and up to her room.

On the way, she confirms my suspicions when she tells me that the dinner was horrible and she has nobody.

“I don’t wanna go to the wedding tomorrow,” she whispers, making my heart bleed. “Everyone has someone but me.”

The sadness in her voice damn near sends me to my knees.

I know her room number, so once we’re there, I find her key card in her purse and open the door. She’s half asleep by the time I lay her in her bed. I take her heels off so she’s comfortable, but I leave her clothes on, not wanting to do anything without her permission.

“I wish you were my prince,” she murmurs, tears sliding down her cheeks as I tuck the blanket around her.

“I do too,” I whisper, swiping my thumb along the apples of her cheeks as her eyes flutter shut. “Now, sleep, Princess. I’ve got you.”

Then, I get comfortable in the chair in the cornerof her room and watch her sleep until the sun begins to rise and I know she’ll be okay. I have Nolan bring me up two pain relievers, and I leave them on her nightstand with a bottle of water. I set the alarm on her phone for nine a.m., so she can sleep in and still have enough time to get ready for the wedding.

And then I go up to my room to get ready because I’ll be damned if Paige is going to spend another moment alone with those assholes. Paige doesn’t know it yet, but she now has a plus-one for the wedding.

chapter ten

PAIGE

The wedding venue is beautiful.The decorations are tasteful. The bridesmaid dresses complement the color palette—and surprisingly aren’t ugly. Because I came from out of town, I couldn’t try on my dress until last night at the rehearsal, but it fits perfectly.

Marina apologized profusely for me having to walk down the aisle with John, but because their wedding party consists of five couples, it would be rude to ask another couple not to walk down the aisle together.

So, I had no choice but to walk arm in arm with John while Phoebe guiltily stared at us from the sidelines. He tried to apologize again, but I told him to save it. After this is over, I have no intention of ever seeing any of these people again. London is no longer my home—and if I’m honest, it hasn’t been since my mom died. It’s time to move forward, and when I get on the plane on Monday morning, I plan to do just that.

Last night was hard, coming to the realization that I not only wasted years with John, but because of thedistance, Nate can’t be in my future either.

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