Page 25 of The Wedding Twist

He raised an eyebrow. “That would really be going above and beyond.”

Celeste shrugged. “That’s what customer service is, isn’t it? Just saying.”

She was leaving the door wide open for him, and he was happy to walk right on through. “I don’t have a date,” Jack said. “Know any beautiful clipboard-toting brunettes in the area who might be free tonight?”

Celeste grinned, and he lapped up the playful expression in her emerald green eyes. “Tonight I might have my hands full.” She glanced at her watch. “I should probably go in.”

He was almost tempted to join her, but he knew what that might lead to. He might actually have a really good time. And he might be tempted to call her again to see if she wanted to have dinner somewhere just the two of them, somewhere dim and kind of quiet, where he could sit across from her for hours and talk about real things, not just the businesses they were running but the things they did after-hours. What made her tick. What she wanted in life. What made her feel good. All the things that would mean he was sliding right back into his old patterns.

They were standing close enough to touch and far enough away from the window that no one would be able to see them. Knowing they had a moment of privacy emboldened Jack to reach out and take Celeste’s hand in his. She didn’t pull away. “Well, maybe another time then,” he said.

Her chin tipped up slightly, and without thinking, he moved even closer, looking for the permission he needed to kiss her.

But it was Celeste who made the first move, and as soon as her soft lips met his and the flowery smell of her flooded over him, he was a goner. With one hand holding hers and the other moving to the small of her back, he moved his lips hungrily over Celeste’s, reveling in the sweet taste of her, the warm smoothness of her skin that brushed against his cheek, the feeling of her breath.

She pulled back slightly, her eyes heavy with desire, her chest rising and falling. “I need to get inside,” she whispered. She leaned in and kissed him again. He would take as much as she could get. When she pulled back a second time, she lay a hand on his chest, further stoking the flame of desire.

As much as it pained him to rip himself away from Celeste, she had a job to do, and it was best to make his way home before he slid any further down this tunnel. If there was any doubt that Celeste had the power to completely undo him, it had vanished under the power of kissing her.

“All right, well, I’d better hit the road,” Jack said, his voice hoarse. For a second, he reconsidered staying for dinner, just to get more time with Celeste, but not only did he know she was busy hosting, there was a nagging feeling in his chest that indulging in this flirtation was leading him in a direction he knew he couldn’t go.

Celeste nodded, and he detected a flash of disappointment in her expression. “Thanks again for everything today,” she said. “See you in class on Monday?”

Right.Class. He’d see her again on Monday and maybe around town, but this business of whatever was hanging thick in the air between them, it needed cooling off. “Last class,” Jack said. “We’re doing a Jock Scott. Pack your patience. It’s a tricky one.”

“Ohh,” said Celeste. “The moment I’ve been waiting for.” She glanced over her shoulder. “I’d better go,” she said, her voice all smoky and caramel. “Take care, Jack.”

“Good luck tonight and tomorrow,” he said, descending the steps back to his truck, the magnetic pull of her fighting to keep him from leaving. “Oh, and watch out for that Kurt character,” Jack said. “He seemed to have taken a liking to you. Wouldn’t shut up about it out on the water, actually.” He liked Kurt. But the idea of him making any kind of move on Celeste made him picture clocking the guy.

“Is that right?” said Celeste. “Well, don’t worry about me. I can hold my own.” Her sly smile just about made his knees buckle.

“I don’t doubt it,” said Jack, sliding into the driver’s seat of his van. He didn’t doubt it one bit. “G’ night, Celeste.”

*

A few minutesafter midnight, Celeste dropped her clipboard onto the desk in the office. Her eyelids were heavy and her body buzzed with the exertion of the day, and she was considering just tumbling into bed in her dress with her makeup still on.

She was dying to sleep, but there was a good chance she’d be up, wide awake, with finally a moment to process what had happened on the porch earlier with Jack.

In the darkness of the office, she closed her eyes for a moment, recalling the involuntary reaction the moment he’d been close, close enough to see the dark flecks in his brown eyes, to hear his shallow breath and see the rise and fall of his chest. It wasn’t just his proximity that had stirred her senses. It was the certainty that he’d wanted exactly what she had, only she hadn’t hesitated. Kissing Jack hadn’t been a decision. It had been a fully instinctual urge, and when her lips had found his, that same drive had allowed her to silence any thought that she was making a mistake.

Each brush of Jack’s lips, coupled with the firmness of his hands as he’d pulled her close, had sent shivers tingling down her spine, and the rumbling grunt of pleasure that had escaped his mouth when she’d pulled back had been almost enough to make her ditch the rehearsal party and let them fend for themselves for the night.

The swiftness of the goodbye and the quick reentry to the bright lights of the lodge had made it seem like a dream. Kissing Jack had been surreal. And that image, burned in her brain, the feeling of him imprinted on her skin—no amount of exhaustion was going to keep that off her mind when she lay her head on the pillow.

She flicked the office light off. The lodge was quiet, and it seemed as though everyone was in bed, getting some sleep before what would be a big day.

The groom and his buddies had stayed up a little later than everyone else, playing poker in the great room, so Celeste went to check that there weren’t any glasses left behind, pillows astray, or books needing straightening.

Without turning on the light, she moved through the dim room to the cards table, which was lit up by moonlight, and picked up a beer bottle and two rocks glasses.

The sound of a gentle whimper made her start. “Hello?” Celeste said, scanning the room.

“Sorry,” came a quiet voice, barely audible from the puzzle room. “I didn’t mean to scare you.”

Celeste deposited the glasses back onto the table, then flicked on the standing Tiffany lamp beside the couch. Curled up in a big leather chair, in her hot-pink pajamas and fluffy slippers, was the bride, clutching a tissue, her deep brown eyes filled with tears.

“Kassie?” Celeste said. “Is everything okay?”

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