Page 14 of Revenge Honeymoon

Emily’s stomach dropped into her shoes, no, possibly past her shoes through the floor and into the deck below.

“I’m sorry,” she mumbled. “That was so ridiculously rude and awful and terrible.” Her weapon of choice, the fork, she gripped as if her life depended on it. The heavy silver plate dug into her hand, and her knuckles turned white.

Ruby casually pried apart Emily’s death grip until she dropped the fork. Without missing a beat, she said to the server, “I’ll have the Spinach Artichoke Dip, please. My wife will have the Shrimp Cocktail. Isn’t that right, darling?”

Right. They were supposed to be a loving, newly married couple. Lord, take her now. The rest of her life might as well end right here while the pianist playedHow Do You Solve a Problem Like Emily—ahem—Like Maria.

“Absolutely, Love.” Emily kissed her best friend on the cheek. “My dream. My Forever.”

Was that too much?

Ruby smiled a weird smile. “She’s the emotional one. You know how that goes.” She looked across the table at Max.

“Right.” He jerked down the cuffs of his blue dress shirt.

“Your wine, sir?” The sommelier had reached their table at the perfect time.

Emily nudged her glass toward Max’s. “Please?” she asked. She grabbed the fourth wine glass on the table and had the man fill it as well.

“Good idea.” Max dumped a half-full water glass into the potted plant next to their table. “Fill ‘er up.” He sat it next to Emily’s second wine glass.

A metaphorical fork stabbed her in the heart. Max was heartbroken over Penelope What’s-her-face. He’d been stood up. Maxwell Keeling. A man who should never be stood up ever.

She clinked her glass with his. “Here’s to staying positive and testing negative.”Oh, God. Did she just say that? Her stupid brother’s single guy toast?

Chapter5

Emily Overshares

Max stopped with his glass in mid-air. The newly poured wine sparkled under the crystal chandelier that hung above them. Then he burst out laughing.

“Good point,” he said with a smirk. “Can’t say I’m surprised she didn’t come. I should’ve broken up with her weeks ago. I guess I didn’t want to admit she was sleeping around on me.”

What woman in her right mind would reject this serious hunk of man for any other less hunky hunk? Emily leaned back in her chair. She opened her mouth with so many questions forming, and one of them would surely pop out at any moment.

Ruby eyed her friend, knew it was going to be ugly, and rushed in. “Not everyone is ready for commitment, I guess. I’m sorry that happened to you.”

Emily knew the minute the words came out of Ruby’s mouth that she’d been thinking about her own situation. How Tyler had disappeared before he could commit to her. “I agree.” She took a deep gulp of wine, hoping to strengthen her resolve to stay true to her role as lesbian newlywed and reject any fantasies she had about Max. “Women can be real bitches.”

Ruby took hold of the extra wine glass Emily had filled and sipped. Looked as if all three of them needed a bit of red wine therapy.

Max scratched his neck. “I met her at a photoshoot. Thought she’d make a great model. Hard to find a good one and get all the paperwork signed.”

Emily noticed Max taking in Ruby’s profile. She bit her lip. She needed to shut up and take it. So what if he found Ruby attractive and equal to his ex in terms of photography worthiness? It wasn’t anything new.

“Do you work cruise ships a lot?” Ruby asked.

“I’ve never done this kind of thing before. Couldn’t you tell downstairs?” He looked at both of them.

Ruby shook her head.

He sucked in a quick breath. “Really? Thank God. I thought it was obvious. Those ridiculous lights. The poses. I was winging it.”

God, his lack of self-assurance was so damned endearing. Could he be any more adorable?

“You were? But you said you were a photographer and that Penelope—” Oh, would he notice he’d never mentioned her name and that Emily had been listening in when he checked in down at the pier earlier? “That she was a model for you.”

“I am a photographer, but I don’t do portraits.” He pulled out his phone. “I had a gallery showing a few months ago.” After a few seconds of scrolling through his photo album, he handed it to Emily. “I like to shoot people, but interesting people doing the daily activities of life. Not this honeymoon nonsense.” His eyes opened wide. “I don’t mean that those kinds of photos aren’t important, only that it’s not my thing.”

---