Page 10 of Always a Bridesmaid

“Your body is saying different.”

She pushed away with force and looked down and, indeed, her nipples were hard with excitement. She crossed her arms and with a final glare, turned her back to him, taking the phone from Sarah. “I’ll get this to the check-in counter for you,” she said, all chipper and perky.

Henry watched her walk off, and was so busy watching that ass sway he didn’t notice his sister gawking at him until she said, “What was that?”

“What?” he asked casually, not feeling casual in the slightest.

“The hug.”

“You asked me to make an effort. That was me making an effort. I figured all Americans like hugs, so I went for the hug.”

Sarah scrutinized him for a long moment, so he slung his arm around her shoulder. “I was just being welcoming.”

He wanted to ask more about Elle, but his sister was already too suspicious. Which meant Henry would have to solve the mystery of Elle himself. With a kiss to his sister’s forehead, he said, “I’m going to make the rounds. Check in to see if everyone is having a good time.”

Sarah leaned into his side. “You’re the best.”

With that he walked into the crowd and as soon as he was in the middle of the pack, he changed directions and headed toward the check-in table. It took him less than a second to zero in on Elle. She was standing with a hip resting against a barstool talking to one of Henry’s cousins, Philip.

Philip was still wet behind the ears, had just started uni last year and didn’t know how to read when a woman wasn’t interested. And Elle was giving off every sign in the book that she wasn’t interested. That didn’t stop him from putting his hand on her arm every time he told a joke.

Henry moved until he was in Philip’s direct line of sight and then stared until the kid met his gaze. Henry slid him a long,hard look that saidI will rip your arm off in one go if you don’t remove it yourself.

For a stupid kid, Philip quickly got the message. He removed his hand like Elle was made of toxic material and excused himself. Henry took the opportunity to slide into his space.

“A little young for you, isn’t he?”

She didn’t even look up from her martini. “You’re going to go there,Hank?”

“You should be thanking me. Philip’s balls haven’t even dropped.”

“Maybe I like them high and tight.” This time she met his gaze over the rim of her glass and two brilliant green pools hit him so hard in the gut he nearly forgot how to breathe.

It took him a minute to pull himself together. “He isn’t your type. Trust me.”

“How do you know my type?”

“I don’t, but it isn’t him. He’s an octopus when he’s drunk.”

“How do you know I’m not looking for an octopus?”

“Great. Then how about a date to the aquarium to see an actual octopus?”

“I’d rather take my chances with the human kind.”

“So that’s a no to a date?”

She eyeballed him as if to see if he were being serious and he was shocked to realize that he was. “I’ll pass. My father warned me about men who play with their dipstick for a living.”

Still unsure who Elle was, he took a shot. “After meeting your dad, I’m not surprised. He thinks NASCAR is racing after all.”

“First, my dad isn’t here. And why am I not surprised that you’d be offended that someone would get confused with driving in circles compared to figure eights.”

“It’s more complicated than that.” He stopped. “Wait. So you do know who I am?”

“Not really. I’ve heard your name whispered around here like you’re Gandhi. Besides that, I don’t know much.”

Wasn’t this refreshing. “It seems I’m at a disadvantage, I don’t know anything about you.”

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