Page 24 of No Limits

With a slight nod, he walks past me, kissing my temple on his way and bounding up the stairs. I hear him banging around, and within ten minutes, he’s changed into a pair of jeans and a long sleeve Henley. It hugs him in all the right places.

An earlier Shay would be worried about all the eyes on him, the women who will throw themselves at him and what his reaction would be, especially since things aren’t stellar. But I know he’d never do anything, drunk or not. Now I’m just jealous that they’ll get to see him, be in his vicinity, and I won’t.

After putting all the things back in his pockets, he comes over to me and takes my hand, placing it on his chest where I can feel his heart thumping below my palm. He pulls me to stand and presses his forehead against mine. It’s been such an absent action lately.

He sighs so heavily it shifts my hair. “I love you, Shay.”

“I love you too, Lochlyn.”

“I’ll be home as soon as I can. I’ll try not to be too late and to be quiet when I come in.” He’s trying to appease me, to make it seem like he has control over the time, which he surely doesn’t.

With a quick peck on the tip of my nose, he runs his hands up my arms and down to my hips, giving a quick squeeze before pulling away from me. His hand rests on the door to the garage as he turns around with a tight smile before disappearing through it.

Once I’m sure he’s gone, I head upstairs, crawling under the covers instead of eating. I couldn’t possibly right now; there’s no room in my stomach for food with all the angst living inside it.

Tears pour freely from my eyes. This ache, this longing—it’s dug its claws in and has burrowed in deep. The worst part? Lochlyn doesn't even see it. He’s always been so attuned to me, and now, I feel like he barely sees me.

He couldn’t tell I was upset tonight, accepting my answer of not feeling well. If he saw it, he completely ignored it. I’m not sure which is worse.

The one thing I know is that I can’t go on much longer like this.

Chapter 12

ThedaythatI’vebeen waiting for in terms of wedding planning is finally here. I’ve been looking forward to the food tasting for months. Everybody, Lochlyn included, has been talking about how excited he is to do this part of the planning with me.

I mean, Lochlyn’s usually involved where there’s food, but he seems to be looking forward to it.

He plans to meet me there after leaving work, which is understandable since it’s the middle of the day on a Thursday. That’s the day they reserve for wedding menu planning since they don’t have any weddings or events.

We’ve been told that the chef prepares everything for us to try. It’s a full tasting menu. Even the various cakes and frostings.

As I wait for Lochlyn at the venue, a giddiness overtakes me. He’ll find a way to make this fun, enjoyable, and we’ll get to spend time together, just the two of us.

I hear him before I see him, his voice loud and boisterous as he laughs and cajoles with someone. At first, I think it’s the wedding planner the venue provides us with. But then I hear a man’s voice instead of Linda’s.

“You have to go. She’s not going to be happy to see you.”

“She doesn’t even know me! And that’s where you’re wrong, everybody is happy to see me.”

“I’m supposed to be herealone.” I can hear the smile in Lochlyn’s voice before he turns the corner.

When his eyes lock on mine, the smile fades, and he clears his throat, smoothing down his open suit jacket before buttoning it.

In two quick strides, he crosses to where I stand on the opposite side of the table, my face drawn. My heart races. He brought somebody here? To do this with us? This was supposed to be our time to plan together, just the two of us. The one thing I’ve been asking for all along, the one thing I’ve wanted. And yet, he brought somebody.

“Hey, baby.” He rests his hand on my arm as he kisses my cheek and turns to stand next to me, his arm lightly around my waist.

A part of me wants to pull away, to push him from my side and ask him what the hell is going on, but that seems rude with company.

“Shay, this is Jessup. One of the band members of Rolling Thunder.” Lochlyn waves his hand in Jessup’s general direction.

Jessup then steps forward, extending his hand toward me as a crooked smile crosses his face and he shakes some dark hair from his forehead. “Hey, nice to meet you. This guy here can’t stop talking about his amazing fiancée, so I had to come see for myself.”

My face burns, and I turn away, but not in Lochlyn’s direction. With a quick clearing of my throat, I swallow down my nerves and turn back with a smile. “It’s nice to meet you, too. I’ve heard about the band. Congrats on signing with Lochlyn. He’s been excited about it.” I’m exaggerating a little, as I don’t know much about how he feels.

“Oh, he’s been great. A real treat to the band. I hope you don’t mind us keeping him out a lot. We certainly enjoy his company. He’s a great pong player.”

Lochlyn coughs behind me, and I turn to look up at him as he raises his eyebrows. But there’s no forgiveness in my eyes, my mouth a hard-set line.

---