Page 47 of Dangerous Love

The girl smiled before she gave me a quick hug. “I love Grace and Avery. They’re awesome.”

I chuckled. “How do you know my brother?”

“Through April.” Raven kissed her guy’s hand and nodded before he left to hang out with the other male attendees. “I was doing her social media and online marketing. Then she introduced me to Grace and Nutrify. And before I knew it, I was doing Youth Legacy, Nutrify, andBello A&G Italiano…”

“And the rest is history,” April crooned. “Raven and Jamie are part of the family now.”

“How come I’ve never met you?” I blurted out. When both women’s mouths gaped, my cheeks boiled, and I squeezed my eyes shut. “OMG, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean it the way it sounded.”You freaking moron…I’d never had great social skills, but even for me, that was pretty stupid. I’d been ghosting them all for years. Of course, I hadn’t met Raven and her partner before.

April grinned. “I’m guessing I don’t need to answer that?”

“Actually, I was wondering the same thing. I’ve never seen you around, and I’m there all the time.” Raven’s head went from April to me, a quizzical look on her face.

I rolled my eyes and took a deep breath. “What April means is I’ve been MIA for a while, but I’m back now.”

At the end of the room, Riley bear-hugged Avery, the two guys laughing as they each sipped on a beer. Sweet feelings shook me as my heart wanted nothing more than to run over there and nestle against the man who’d brought me back from the dead.

He won’t be with you.My inner monologue cackled in my head until it cracked my soul like a weakened ice-skating rink in the middle of spring.

Raven gave me an awkward smile. “Well, hopefully, I’ll see you around now.”

“You definitely will.” April nodded in my direction, the mother in her screaming from the rooftops.

Slow music began to play around us. Like the universe had shifted, warmth and love floated in the air as couples met on the dance floor and swayed to the lyrics. I lifted my gaze, my eyes meeting Riley’s from across the room. Something glimmered in the way he studied me. Like nothing else mattered, I crossed the distance.

“Hey,” I murmured. My fingers wiggled behind my back as I worked the tension out of my body.

He took a step closer. “Hey.”

My feet shuffled forward some more. The smell of rainforest filled my nostrils as I stood right in front of him. He lifted his hand and waited for me to offer mine. Soothing comfort spread as his skin sent electrical currents through me. I closed my eyes, visions of his lips on my neck, his hands on my body, and our lovemaking the only things I wanted to remember. Not the dark cloud hanging over our heads, and definitely not the overwhelming feeling that I was losing him all over again.

“Would you give me this dance?” Riley whispered against the crook of my neck, his hand at the small of my back. Relief filled me instantly when I landed against his chest. He closed me in, pulling me tighter as our bodies moved to the sounds of the slow beat.

“Are you okay?” I asked, my throat clenched. Riley didn’t answer. Instead, he hummed the song in my ear, his angelic tone soothing me. “Why do I feel like something bad’s going to happen?”

“Baby girl, just stay with me.” His forehead rested on mine, a soft smile curling his lips. “I don’t want to think of tomorrow. Right now, right here, we’re happy.”

Tears choked me at the unspoken words. “Tomorrow everything will change, won’t it?”

His hand gripped me until my chest was one with his. “I love you, Sienna. I really do.”

When a couple of family friends danced past us, Riley allowed some distance between our bodies, the cold air prickling my skin when his warmth left me. “I know you’re not telling me everything.”

His mouth tickled the soft spot behind my ear. “Shhh.”

I sighed. My muscles relaxed against him again. “I love you too, Riley.”

In silence, our bodies swayed to the music, my heart overflowing with dread like a free fall without a parachute. I didn’t care what he said, or wasn’t saying, something was going on with Riley. And for some reason, he didn’t want me to know about it.

CHAPTER24

Riley

The banging on the door jolting me from my sleep, I jerked up, my mind foggy from the night prior and a few too many drinks. I stumbled by the bedside cupboard until the time flashed on my phone—09:27.

Shit.I grabbed the shirt tossed on the floor and yanked it above my head as I rushed to the door in my boxers. I didn’t need to open it to know it’d be Jarryd on the other side. He’d already drilled into me last night that as soon as the wedding was over, we had to fill in Avery on Cooper’s updates, and there was no discussion about getting the whole family on board. The only thing I’d got him to agree to was leaving Sienna out of it.

“Coming.” The door creaked as it opened, and as predicted, a tired-looking Jarryd greeted me on the threshold.

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