Page 76 of Burn

Glass

Lex

I feel so fuzzy around the edges after two, maybe three, glasses of champagne, and when Adrian smirks at me and grabs my glass, my mouth drops open in protest.

“That was mine!” I exclaim.

His eyes are the warmest color in the evening light, and when he laughs at my reaction, the edges crease. I think I love this look on him the most, genuine happiness. I’m lost in those smile lines when he leans in and softly kisses me. My head spins, and I lean into him, letting him support my weight. His tongue explores my mouth, and I sigh, forgetting where we are entirely.

Fireworks explode behind my closed eyes, and when he pulls away, I stay just like this, watching the colors dance. He chuckles again, and his voice is smooth like silk when he says, “Come on, Donnelly. Let’s go meet the sharks.” He wraps his hand around mine and urges me toward the doors.

Inside, I can hear the emcee. He announces the bridal party, and I realize we’re late. Loud music vibrates the floor as we step into the banquet hall. The lights are dimmed low enough that I’m sure we can sneak to our seats, wherever they are. I scan the room for open seats, and Adrian drags me to a stop.

“We’re at table four,” he says after a second, pulling me further into the room.

The temperature inside is low, and after spending the last few hours in the warm sun, a chill runs through me, causing me to shiver. Adrian clocks it as he pulls out my chair and shrugs off his jacket, setting it around my shoulders. His cologne momentarily blocks out the floral notes that hang in the air.Warmth washes over me, and I pull at the lapel, wrapping myself into his scent. There’s a sharp burst of feedback through the speakers, and every guest collectively flinches.

“Sorry about that, folks,” Charlie’s best man laughs into the microphone. “I am honored to have been asked to emcee my cousin’s wedding. We’ll get the first course out, and then we’ll go through speeches as we eat. I’ve been given carte blanche to get out the big hook if anyone goes over their allotted three minutes.” There’s a polite laugh through the room, and he continues, “Our goal is to wrap speeches before dinner so we can get to the good part; the party!” A few people hoot and cheer. “Sit back, enjoy the meal, and if you want the newlyweds to kiss, we’re not accepting clinking glasses. You gotta come tell everyone a story about either Blake or Charlie!”

He lifts a glass toward the room and turns to walk back to his seat. I turn to Adrian, intent on asking him to pass me the wine, but his expression stops me. He’s staring at the wedding party. I lean into him and ask, “Is everything okay?”

A smile tugs at the side of his mouth, but he doesn’t look at me when he says, “Yeah, I’m good, babe.” Plates of salad are set in front of us, but he doesn’t break his stare. I can see he’s intently thinking, so I reach for his jaw. He finally looks toward me.

I smile and ask, “What are you so interested in?”

His eyes study my face. “You want another glass of champagne?” he asks, avoiding my question.

“More than anything, please.”

He grazes my cheek with a kiss as he stands and heads to the bar. I watch him as he walks away, the way his ass fills out his pants. I can’t believe I avoided hockey players for so long when they have asses likethat.I’m daydreaming about touching him when I register someone stepping up behind me. I glancetoward them, but I’m too captivated by him, and I don’t realize who it is until they say, “Hi, Morgan.”

I spin to face her. Her once long blonde hair is cropped to her chin. She doesn’t appear to have grown much in height since I last saw her. She’s curvier, more mature looking, with her arms crossed, and a large diamond ring on her left hand. So different, but undoubtedly, she’s still Navaeh.

“Navaeh. Hi.” My voice is too high, too eager.

Her lips are curved into a saccharine smile that doesn’t reach her eyes. “It’s been a long time. It’s nice to see you.”

I’ve never been surer how not nice someone thinks it is to see me, but I force myself to smile and say, “Yeah, it’s been a long time. You look great.”

“I know,” she says, her tone curdled at the edges. “You look…” Her eyes roam over me. “You have a lot of tattoos.”

It’s judgment.

I laugh nervously, “Yeah, I have a few, huh?”

“Do you have a job?” Judgmentanddisgust.

“I…” I’m fifteen years old, staring at the class bully, floundering.

A thick hand, holding a full glass of bubbling champagne, cuts between Navaeh and me, and I shift my gaze to shift toward Adrian. There’s a smirk on his lips as he looks at me, but I see the vitriol in his eyes as he turns his attention to Navaeh. “Would you believe she’s the breadwinner? Crazy right. She makes more money than I could ever dream of.” I take the glass from him, and he offers his hand to Navaeh, “I’m Adrian,” his voice is deep and rough, “Lex’s boyfriend.”

Don’t react.

Don’t react.

Navaeh slides her hand into his at the same time she shifts, popping her hip, and tossing her hair over her shoulder. “Adrian,” she purrs. “Nice to meet you, ‘Lex’s Boyfriend.’ Who’s Lex?” She looks around like she’s trying to find his girlfriend.

Girlfriend.

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