The chairs were already set up for the ceremony, and the wedding arbor was in place. It was a simple design—a rectangle arch made of thick birch branches and put together by Gordon and Tommy.
The reception tent was ready to go too. The illuminated bar was set up and stocked, save for the ice. The dance floor gleamed and the tables were set up with the seating chart right by the tent entrance. The linens were all in place—I’d made sure of it—and again, the only thing left to do was add the flowers to the centerpieces once the florist dropped the flowers off.
Even still, my mind raced with mental checklists. I wanted to make sure everything went off without a hitch so that Tessa could focus on enjoying her special day with Brock—I knew she’d do the same if the roles were reversed.
So occupied were my thoughts that I nearly jumped out of my skin when a hand pressed against the small of my back. “Are you ready?” Braden asked, arching a brow and gesturing to the wedding arbor. We were doing a trial run through the ceremony, and it was our turn to walk down the makeshift aisle. His hand fell away, taking all warmth with it, and he offered me his arm.
We walked at the proper pace, in time with the music. Once we’d reached the arch, we split off and Braden went to stand beside Brock while I stood beside Pastor Bruce—who was overseeing the rehearsal and giving instructions when needed.
Next came Becky and Travis. Neither of them looked very happy, and Pastor Bruce had to remind them to smile. Katie and Gordon came after them, and then Krista and Grady. Finally, Tessa made her descent with her father.
We ran through it once more before Pastor Bruce was satisfied. Then we all jumped into cars and drove to The Dock for dinner.
Ben, Tommy, my mom, Tessa’s cousin Cheyenne and her aunt and uncle also joined the wedding party for the rehearsal dinner. Our table took up practically the entire back half of the restaurant. Alex hadn’t been able to make it out to the dinner—he’d had to work, and would be coming out first thing in the morning.
I tried to focus on the fact that in a few short hours, my boyfriend would be back in town and my best friend would be getting married, but it was hard. So very hard. I couldn’t focus throughout the entire dinner, not with the converted looks Braden would send me when nobody else was paying attention.
I had to get away. I needed air. I needed to breathe air that wasn’t being breathed byhim. I slipped outside the first chance I could after telling Tessa that I needed a moment.
I hurried outside, breathing in the fresh air like I was starved oxygen—and stomped over to the alley. I wanted to be left alone. I was pissed off that Braden was looking at me like he wanted me—like he couldn’t wait to have me. I was pissed off that I was reacting, too. He was supposed to just want to be my friend, and I was supposed to accept that.
His intent was to toy with me. I was the mouse, and he was the cat. Braden didn’t like losing, and he probably felt like he was losing. He was trying to stake a claim in me again, because he couldn’t stand the fact that I was trying to move on.
Was I?I wondered to myself, closing my eyes against the gentle breeze. I’d barely given Alex a second thought since coming home—even when he was right next to me. My time was occupied with the wedding, and as much as I didn’t want to admit it…with Braden.
“Thought I’d find you out here.” I’d recognize his voice anywhere. I didn’t even have to open my eyes to know it was him.
“You’re something else, you know that?” I snapped, my anger swallowing me, driving me. I stared at him, anger seething from every pore. This was the man that had shattered me. Destroyed me, and here he was, back again and pushing all my buttons, driving me crazy and making me want him when I had someone else waiting for me.
“Oh, I know I’m something else,” he said, that arrogant half-smile playing against those lips that had once kissed every inch of my body, those lips I still dreamed about in my weaker moments—which happened to be all the time, apparently.
“Where do you get off, looking at me like that?” I demanded, the raw pain and hurt pulsing in my chest. “Why can’t you just leave me be, Braden?”
He edged closer towards me, backing me up against the brick wall of the restaurant. He put his hands on either side of me, caging me in. “I know it’s not over, Elle.”
“How do you know that?” I demanded haughtily, my eyes narrowing at his tragically handsome face and that chiselled jaw.Focus, Elle!
The heated look Braden gave me could melt panties, and to my dismay—I found my body was reacting to him. I pressed my thighs together, the throbbing heat building, and swallowed hard. I was hyper aware of every move he made. He slowly brought his hand up, catching a loose lock of my hair and toying with it. My skin burned at his nearness, remembering his touch and how it had once felt.
My chest rose and fell, my breathing becoming labored. My lids fluttered against my cheeks as he moved his lips closer to mine. I felt his warm breath against my mouth.
“That’s your answer, Elle,” he said, his voice deep with longing. “The way you react when you’re near me. The look in your eyes…that’s how I know it’s not over.” His eyes lingered on my lips for a moment, and then my hands went to his chest.
“Braden, please,” I begged, not knowing what I was asking for—him to leave me alone, or him to kiss me and never stop.
His expression was almost tormented as his eyes bore into mine. “As much as I’d love to take you in this alley, right here, right now. I won’t let you do this, Elle. I won’t let you hate yourself in the morning. If I’m what you want, you need to tellhimthat. Then come find me.”
My eyes snapped open, watching his face, intense with sincerity. My heart pounded in my chest as the gravity of the situation took over. Tears welled up in my eyes. I shoved him away from me. “You don’t get to tell me what to do, Braden.”
“Sure I do,” he smiled tightly, his eyes remaining serious. “This is about me just as much as it’s about you. I don’t want to fuck you once, Elle. I want to have you over and over again. I want to have you forever, and I don’t want there to be a shadow of a doubt in your mind that you want the same thing.”
I gaped at him, dumbfounded. My mouth opened and closed as I searched for something to say. I willed the words I knew I should say to come forth. I wanted to tell him it was over, that my reaction to him had everything to do with the champagne I’d had at dinner, but I couldn’t speak, and I was beginning to realize it was a lie, anyway.
Braden
Elle’s lips were parted, her breath coming out in short gasps and fanning my chin as I looked down at her. I stepped up to her again, leaving half an inch of space between us. My palms stung as I pressed them against the hard the brick wall. I could still feel the heat radiating off her body.
Her hands seemed to act on their own accord. They came up to press against my chest—but she didn’t push me away again. I wondered if she could hear my heart pounding in my chest.
