“I second that!” Jessica and Mackenzie yelled in unison, and the crowd once again devolved into a fit of laughter.
She raised her glass in the air and said, “To a lifetime of love and happiness. To Brent and Berk.”
The crowd echoed her, and Mitch sat back in his chair, gaze trained on Brent and Berkley as they exchanged a kiss and whispered to each other.
Lexie was still out in the middle of the dance floor, where Berkley’s parents had approached her and wrapped her in a group hug.
“Damn, Lexie looks hot tonight,” Nate said conversationally from next to Mitch, lifting his beer to his lips and taking a swallow while watching Lexie conversing with the Daniels. Her deep red dress hugged all of the soft curves of her body and molded to her chest, falling to the ground in a swath of fabric that swished side to side when she moved.
“Yeah, she does,” Mitch said, the words clipped. Nate was right; Lexie was easily the hottest woman here tonight. But who the fuck did Nate think he was, commenting on his girl like that?
Then again, Lexie wasn’t exactly his girl.
Not yet anyway.
Nate turned his body so he was facing Mitch fully. “Look man, I just wanted to say I’m sorry for sleeping with her.”
Mitch’s eyebrows drew together. “Uhh…thanks?”
“I knew she was an emotional wreck when you left and I took advantage of that. I knew it was a bad idea but…I mean, you’ve seen her. You know how she is.”
Mitch did know how she was. “Yeah…” he said, voice unsteady with all of the emotions coursing through him.
“My brother already chewed my ass out for it, so I hope we’re cool. I happen to like my face the way it is and I’d really prefer it if you didn’t break my nose.”
Nate continued to ramble about how sorry he was and how truthfully, if he was going to be mad about it, he should be mad at both of them because Lexie used Nate, too, but Mitch stopped hearing any of it.
Lexie had slept withNate? What the actual fuck?
His memory snagged on something Nate had said during Brent’s bachelor weekend.
I was in Detroit when you got traded, and spent the evening with my brother and some of your other…friends. Everyone was distraught, almost like you had died.
And something Lexie had said the week after.
When you left, I was a mess. I drowned myself in booze and sex.
I did some things I’m not proud of.
The night he left.
She had slept with Natethe night he left.
He was out of his seat before he could think twice about it, stalking around the table and in Lexie’s direction. When he reached her, her face lit in a tentative smile, as though she was happy to see him but didn’t want to be. That smile quickly dimmed when he hooked a hand around her upper arm and towed her away from the crowd, ignoring her protests and the shocked expressions on Jay and Michelle Daniels’ faces.
Lexieknewshewasin trouble when Mitch had approached her on the dance floor moments ago, rudely interrupting her conversation with Berkley’s parents, that look in his eyes indicating the rage roiling under his skin.
The only problem was, she couldn’t figure out what had pissed him off.
It had been a long time since she’d seen him this riled up, and she was anxious and excited to find out what caused it.
His grip on her arm was loose enough not to hurt her but firm enough to warn her off from attempting to get away. He towed her out of the tent and around the side of the cabin, pulling the side door open so hard it nearly came off its hinges.
Seconds later, he pushed her through the first open door they came to—which happened to be a bathroom—slamming it shut and locking it behind them.
“What the fuck are you doing?” She asked, putting as much space between them as possible in the small powder room.
“Nate Jean ring any bells?”
