Page 26 of Aisle Be The Groom
“Just heading back to the guest bedroom,” I mumbled, averting my eyes. Heat spread across my cheeks in damning evidence of what I’d done wrong.
Matty blocked my path. “Is that so?” he drawled, folding his arms over his broad chest. “What are you doing walking around”—he eyed the clothes folded in my arms—“in nothing but a blanket? Just what are you up to?”
“I went for a walk, since I ate late, got caught in the rain, and saw the barn, so I slept there.” I held out my wet clothes. “See? They’re all soaked.”
“Hmm.” He didn’t seem to believe me. Why was he so jaded at such a young age? He hadn’t even pretended to give me the benefit of the doubt at our first meeting. “I checked in on Dad last night and didn’t find him in his room. Did you happen to run across him?”
Thump! Thump! Thump! Could he hear my tumultuous heartbeat? My mouth went dry, and I swallowed. Gray and I hadn’t prepared for this question. “N-no…I didn’t see him.”
Was that the right answer? What if he ran into Gray later and asked him the same question? Oh god, we should have thought some more about keeping our stories straight.
“You’re lying.”
His accusation hung in the air, heavy and undeniable. Still, I shook my head. “Why would I lie about something like that? What exactly do you think I was doing?”
“I don’t know yet, but I’ll find out eventually. Nothing stays a secret forever, Ozzie.” He tipped his Stetson in a sarcastic gesture and brushed past me.
“Why do you hate me?” I burst out. “Before last night, we’ve never met.”
“I just can’t figure you out. You and Carter don’t go together well, and until I find out what the hell my brother’s got up his sleeve, I don’t trust you either.”
“Just what do you think I’m after?”
He slowly let his gaze travel over my blanket-wrapped body. “Whatever it is, let’s hope you didn’t get it last night.”
No, but I got it this morning.
Thank god he turned and descended the stairs. My face was burning. And I thought Carter knew how to anger me. He had nothing on his brother. How were they so different from their father? One was too casual and carefree and the other too rigid.
I’d better stay away from Matty.
I entered my bedroom, closed the door, and leaned heavily against it. When Carter had told me he had a brother, I’d been so excited to meet Matty. I was an only child who didn’t have many friends growing up. How naïve I’d been to think we’d become best friends.
“You need to stop daydreaming, Ozzie,” I whispered. All these fantasies I had rarely worked out the way I wanted. Only a few more weeks until the wedding, and I needed that to go perfectly.
I inhaled deeply and let out my breath slowly. What had happened with Gray was in the past. Okay, half an hour in the past, but still history. Concentrating on the wedding was best. I shook off the lingering sting from Matty’s words and went to the bathroom. I took a shower and almost made it through without thinking of Gray. Until my soapy hands touched my cock. Other men I’d been with were usually amused by how little I was. A stubby little cock that made them feel more like a man. But not Gray. He’d sucked me off and made me feel ten inches long.
“I was putting some distance between us so this wouldn’t happen.”
The hot water sluiced over my body, doing nothing to cool the sudden surge of desire whipping through me. Gray’s touch, his kiss, the feel of him on top of me, between my legs, taking my cock between his lips were way too vivid. I closed my eyes, dragging in sharp breaths to regain my self-control.
I had to stay focused. The wedding was around the corner. Carter was going to be my husband soon. I’d invested two years into that relationship, and I couldn’t let a small indiscretion jeopardize our happiness. Especially not a one-time thing with a man who hadn’t cared to be seen with me the next morning.
The thought sobered me up. I stepped out of the shower and hastily toweled off. Back in the bedroom, I put on another pair of lace underwear and a T-shirt and climbed back into bed. I took out my laptop but didn’t power it on. Sleeping in the barn on the hay bed hadn’t been comfortable, and I still felt exhausted.
Not sure what woke me up, I blinked and groaned at the light flooding into the bedroom. A glance at my phone showed it was some minutes after ten. I was tempted to roll over and continue sleeping, but I forced myself to sit up. I unlocked my phone and placed a video call to Carter. He answered on the third ring.
“Ozzie, baby, you’re still in bed?” he asked, sounding chirpy. His eyes shone, and his smile was bright. He seemed happy. Happier than he was with me.
“Hey.” I forced a smile. Just wedding jitters. All my doubts would go away once the wedding was over. “Have you booked a new flight yet?”
“We’re looking at some later. How’s the ranch?”
“It’s okay.”
He chuckled. “Not a fan either, are you? I hate that Dad insists on us getting married there, but since he controls the purse strings, we’ll have to go along with it for now. After we’re married, we don’t have to ask the old man for anything.”
Old man? Did he even know his father? Last night, I’d seen him naked briefly just before the flashlight died, and the only thing hinting at his age was the line of gray hair running down the center of his chest. Otherwise, that man was in excellent shape.
