Haddie’s throat burned. She knew what she was doing, and she hated every second of it. But she couldn’t let out her frustrations on Levi, so Emma would have to do. Granted, it hurt to see her best friend defend heralmostbrother-in-law ahead of Haddie. But the truth was, once Emma and Matteo were married, Levi and Emmawouldbe family, and Haddie would still be…well…Haddie.
“Hads…” Emma spoke more gently this time, and the sound of her voice made Haddie’s heart ache.
“I’m sorry,” Haddie replied coolly. “This is all about your big day, and I made it about me. It’s just been…” She glanced down at the remains of her dress. “A wardrobe malfunction kind of day, you know?”
Emma laughed, but Haddie could still sense the hint of worry in the sound of it.
“I’m not gonna break his heart, Ems. Okay? Because there’s nothing going on between us. Your perfect big day will be your perfect big day. I promise. I’ll even keep my dress on for it.”
Haddie’s best friend sighed, and despite Haddie still barely clothed and clinging to the emerald-green garment, Emma wrapped her arms around her and squeezed.
“I love you, you know,” Emma whispered.
“Yeah, yeah…” Haddie replied, finally relenting and leaninginto the hug, even if she couldn’t hug Emma back without exposing her nearly naked self beneath the dress.
Except Haddie realized that even if she wore nothing at all, Emma wouldn’t see all of her. It was true; the Haddie Emma knewmightbreak Levi’s heart. But if Emma could see everything, she’d know that Levi was in just as much danger of breakingherheart.
But that was only if Emma could see, which—of course—she couldn’t. Because even when it came to the person she loved most, Haddie still kept her friend just out of reach. It was how Haddie was made. For too long now, it had been what she was hardwired to do. It didn’t matter whether she wanted it this way anymore because she had no idea how to change nearly thirty years of programming.
Emma finally let her go.
“You’re going to say it one day,” Emma told her with a knowing grin.
Haddie scoffed. “I tell you I love you all the time.” Though, she did file a mental note that she hadn’t said it at this particular moment.
Emma shook her head. “You’re going to say it first one day, and then you’ll know.”
Haddie’s brows furrowed. “Know what, ya goof?”
Emma shrugged. “That I’ll stay.”
Chapter 20
“What is afingersandwich?” Levi mumbled to his brother as theywatched Haddie, Emma, and Emma’s mom load a cart with some three-tiered-plate contraption on it along with a silver teapot, teacups, and saucers.
Matteo elbowed him in the ribs. “Sandwiches you eat with yourfingers!” he whispered loudly.
“But what if I want to use my whole hand to eat a sandwich? Or both of my hands?” Levi argued.
He knew his irritation stemmed from somewhere deeper than sandwich etiquette or the fact that he’d never had afternoon tea before and didn’t want to look like an asshole in front of Haddie.
After the fitting room fiasco and their subsequent rescue, he’d let Haddie and Emma walk several paces ahead of him on their way to the inn. He used the termletloosely, considering the second they made it outside of Layla’s shop, Haddie hooked her arm in Emma’s and practically sprinted the first block, leaving him and his thoughts in the dust.
Do you or do you not want to have sex with me right now?
Never in his wildest imagination since he and Haddie becameroommates had he thought Haddie Martin would say those words to him. And never in his even wilder than wildest imagination did Levi think he would hesitate in order to have theWhere is this going?chat.
Levi had never been aWhere is this goingkind of guy. In high school, if you knew Levi Rourke, you knew the game came before everything. In college, he was too lost after losing his mom and career to be even remotely present in any relationship. And now that he was a grown-ass adult who should have figured this all out, he realized he was just repeating the same pattern. He’d replaced playing the game with coaching it. And he’d traded his guilt and apparently unprocessed grief for trophies to prove his worth.
But he wasn’t worthy, was he? Otherwise Haddie wouldn’t have freaked out when he tried to tell her he was crazy about her. Shit. How did he let that happen?
“The sandwiches are too small for your whole hand, dingus,” Matteo said, dragging Levi out of his spiral.
Levi glared at his younger brother. “What did you just call me?”
Matteo rolled his eyes. “I have called you several names in the past eleven to fifteen seconds, and that’s the one you hear? You are indeep, big bro.”
“What are you talking about?” Levi let out something between a cough and a laugh. “In what deep? Where? I mean, what?” He grabbed the pitcher of ice water that sat on the table and filled the glass in front of him. Then he drained it in one gigantic gulp. When he finished, his brother stared at him with a one smug-ass smile.
