Page 18 of Any Cowboy of Mine
“To tonight,” Sophie countered, and he lifted his shot glass in agreement.
“To tonight.”
They tossed the shots back, and Sophie dove into a long tirade about what she’d learned in law school that had surprised her—namely the amount of antiquated laws that no one adhered to anymore—which then led to a list of crime novels she’d enjoyed most, followed by authors she wished she could meet for coffee in real life. It was the most random compilation of conversational topics Brad had heard.
He had no idea how long he sat there mesmerized by her, but he was wrapped up like a Christmas gift, hanging on every word. As much as her words moved him, he couldn’t help but watch the way she spoke with her whole body. When she was serious about something, her teeth would bite her bottom lip, and her hands would fidget, calling attention to her manicured nails. Her polish was a cherry red, which made his pulse race for some reason he couldn’t explain but didn’t mind in the least.
He drifted out of the conversation for a moment picturing those nails trailing down his back, rubbing his neck at the end of a long day… He shook his head hoping to shove off the visceral feelings of lust for a woman he hardly knew but felt attached to at the same time, tried instead to watch, listen to her.
Her back would arch when she laughed, her head thrown back. He tried to be a gentleman and not gaze at her perfect breasts, the tops of which were peeking out from under black lace. He couldn’t believe she was in her thirties, that when he’d met her in college she had somehow escaped his attention. Not for the first time he wished he hadn’t been so Julia-blind for so long. No matter, though—he could see clearly now.
When he wasn’t painfully distracted by her body and the way it woke him up from a year’s long slumber, Brad enjoyed listening to her circular train of thought that somehow brought them back to what they’d been talking about to begin with. She wove her stories together like some of his favorite authors, braiding politics with a song that had moved her on the radio in a way that made perfect sense to him.
Out of the blue, she stopped, laughed, and without skipping a beat told him she had to pee. She skipped off, giggling, and a rush of emotion passed through him. Jesus, he’d better be careful with this one.
When people started leaving the bar in groups, he looked at his phone for the first time that night to check the time. He saw two things. One, that it was four forty, time to head down the hall to the ceremony venue, and two, that he had two missed texts from Julia.
The first read,Are you here? Come to room233. We need to talk.
It was over an hour old. Brad’s throat constricted, and he swallowed hard. It was like he’d ingested sandpaper, his throat was so dry. He was glad he had missed the text for a few reasons, chiefly that he probably would have gone to see her, and who knows how that would have ended up.
The second text said simply,I’m sorry. I miss you.
Brad choked back a familiar feeling of agitation that arose like bile. Somehow, just when he was getting his bearings, she sank her teeth in and dragged him back into the depths. What the hell was she thinking, texting him right before she married his ex-best friend? She’d crossed a line by inviting him to the wedding in the first place, but that was child’s play considering the texts. He looked down at his phone and read the texts again, trying to find clues in them.
Nothing.Per usual he couldn’t read between her lines. Just vague words thrown out like bait seeing if he’d bite back.
Well, not this time. She was too late.
He straightened his shoulders, took a deep breath and looked up. Sophie was walking back, her eyes on the television in the corner where a college football game was playing. Ohio and Iowa maybe? He couldn’t tell. A shudder ran down his spine, the last of his frustration about the texts sliding off his shoulders, and he walked to meet Sophie.
“We should go,” Brad told her, trying his best to put on a smile for her.
“Is everything okay?” She seemed to pick up on his anxiety, her brows furrowed and her mouth in a straight line. God, she already knew his cues better than Julia ever did.
“Yeah, just some stuff came up that I wasn’t expecting.” He cleared his throat. “Plus, this party kicks off in about fifteen minutes. We’d hate to be late—I don’t think the bride’s parents would approve,” he teased. Sophie’s eyes relaxed. “Would you like to sit with us? I don’t think we’ll be able to separate those two if we tried,” Brad added, nodding towards Steve and Jackie.
To emphasize his point, he tapped Steve on his shoulder.
“Time to go, bud,” Brad said.
Steve only half-turned to face him. His eyes never left Sophie’s friend, though.
“Yeah, got it. Why don’t you head over and we’ll meet you?” Steve asked. Julia and her texts sank to the back of his mind as he realized his wingman, the one who was supposed to deflect him from Julia’s periphery, wasn’t coming along. A fat lot of good Steve was.
Sophie whispered something to Jackie, who seemed to agree with Steve.
“Looks like the love birds are going to hang back here for a while,” she told him. “Would you care to be my date?”
“I’d be honored,” Brad said. He held out his arm for her to take and his whole right side tingled as she fell into step beside him. She gazed up at him and bit her lip, allowing her smile to break through, revealing perfectly straight, white teeth. His heart dropped to his stomach already warm with lust.
This woman was trouble.
They walked that way until they hit the door to the ceremony hall, a large banquet room in the back of the hotel. Brad held open the door for Sophie and all eyes turned to watch them walk in together. For the first time since he’d gotten the invitation, he didn’t dread what was about to happen, nor did he care what anyone in town thought of him, with the exception of the stunning woman on his right arm.
His parents were seated toward the front next to Julia’s aunt and uncle. Brad was aware they kept in touch with Julia’s family, but that had never bothered him. It was too small a town, and their lives were too inextricably tied for them to go their separate ways just because Brad and Julia had broken up. He often wondered, though, if her family knew the whole story about Julia’s infidelity or if they somehow figured she and Brad had just faded away from each other. Truth be told, both had happened, but he wasn’t sure which had led to the other. The whole “chicken before the egg” thing. If only his mom could see past Julia’s family to listen to Brad about the truth as well. Someday he’d have to explain everything.
Not tonight, though.
