Page 16 of Best Man
She spotted him in an instant. All the Dallas Devils were built like athletes, some more so than others, but Niko had the incredible physique of someonebornto be a star. Tall and sturdy, Niko’s broad shoulders and powerful arms were plainly visible under his baby blue dress shirt. His navy slacks stretched to their limit, struggling to contain his muscular thighs.
Come to think of it, she was shocked she hadn’t noticed him earlier. Piper had said that Niko was the “life of the party” and, sure enough, he was entertaining a circle of his buddies and had them laughing nonstop. Even Paulina found herself smiling and wanting to laugh, though she had no idea what it was they were joking about. The superstar radiated with a larger-than-life inner light that seemingly everyone wanted to be a part of and bask in.
The other thing she noticed? Mom was right—Niko, with his high cheekbones, strong jaw, and broad nose, was a very handsome and manly-looking man. In fact, with such prominent features, Paulina decided he could easily betoomasculine looking—if not for a lovely heart-shaped face that softened those harder traits and made him look, well, kinda cute.
Really,reallycute, actually.
So cute, you didn’t want to look away. So cute, in fact, you might even call himgorgeous.
Paulina didn’t even realize she was staring untilthe inevitable happened:Niko glanced her way. He caught her staring, and their eyes met.
SHOOT!
Paulina quickly forced herself to look elsewhere, but instantly regretted it because that only made itmoreobvious she’d been staring. Instead, she looked up at him again and acknowledged him with a small and slightly embarrassed smile.
Niko must’ve taken that smile as an invite—though Paulina couldn’t say itwasn’tan invite,really—because he said something to his pals and broke away from the group.
Her speeding heart jumped into her throat as he approached. She didn’t know why she’d be so nervous to meet Niko— maybe it was simply because of the suspicions her mom had aired earlier—but she felt her throat go chalky and the palms of her hand slicken.
Ah God,she thought as he neared, wiping her palms on her jeans.Here we go.
His perfect smile dimpled his cheeks. “Hello, maid of honor.” He spoke with a thick Russian accent, but Paulina had no problem understanding him. His voice, a comforting and fuzzy rumble, helped put her at ease.
She greeted him in kind. “Hello, best man.”
“Looks like we will walk aisle together.” He spoke softly and slowly, as if each word were deliberately and thoughtfully chosen—probably because theywere,since English wasn’t his first language.
“Looks like it, yeah,” she answered.
He stuck out his hand. “I’m Niko.” They shook and his big hockey hand easily swallowed hers up, and once he had her mitt entirely in his grasp, he gave her a gentle little squeeze.
“I’m Paulina,” she said, quickly adding, “Piper’s sister.”
He chuckled softly. “Yeah. I can tell.”
“Is it that obvious?” she asked, breaking into a smile.
“Pretty obvious, yeah,” he said. She felt like his golden, honey brown eyes could see right through her.
Veronica intervened, reminding Paulina that she and Niko weren’t alone out here. “Okay, best man and maid of honor, you two are on deck. Hold tight.”
They stood side by side and watched as Veronica sent the next-to-last couple walk down the aisle.
Niko leaned in to share something. “Everyone else is married couple but us.” The way he spoke was quickly growing on her. His accent and slightly imperfect grammar were completely endearing. “Little strange, yes?”
“Yeah, I guess it is a little strange.” She tittered. “I think we’ll manage alright, though.”
He agreed. “Yes. We will be fine.”
Then it was their turn to walk the aisle. Veronica repeated her orders: smile, look around, don’t walk too fast, but don’t walk too slow, either.
Niko stuck out his elbow and offered his arm. The cuffs of his Oxford were rolled as high as his bulging forearms would allow. Paulina took the crook of his arm and instinctively wrapped her fingers around his bicep.She wasn’ttryingto feel him up, but it was sort of impossible not to—his muscle was justthere,a swollen mound of taut goodness.
Okay, that’s nice,she thought.
Slowly, with her arm in his, they began down the aisle. Aware that her mom might be watching—not to mention countless other eyes—Paulina was content to let their walk look as sterile and platonic as possible.
But Niko leaned closer. “Hope your boyfriend won’t get jealous,” he whispered, his breath warm against her ear.
