“All of what?”
“That I can’t have my dessert first ... and that I can’t call you Mrs. Alexander.”
“Ah, well, you will soon. You’re just going to have to be patient.”
“We’ve been over that,” I say, leaving a trail of kisses from behind her ear to her mouth.
I capture her lips with mine. She sighs into my mouth and then runs her fingers through my hair like it’s hers to do with what she wants.I love it.I’m ready to call off dinner whether she likes it or not. She’s saved by a knock on the door.
“It’s probably Kari and Max,” she whispers.
“Fuck them.”
“Cane! We can’t bail on dinner the first night here.”
“Why not? They’re grown-ups. They can eat without us.”
She twists her head away from me toward the door. “Come in.”
“Y’all ready?”
I groan at the Southern drawl and lift my head to see Max and Kari standing in the doorway. Max grins, knowing he’s interrupted me and enjoying my frustration.
Bastard.
“We are.” Jada smiles. “Let me grab my purse.”
FIFTY-TWO
Jada
The server refillsmy glass of moscato. The liquid seems to flow slowly, yet the glass is full before I realize it. I try to remember how many glasses this has been.
Two? Three? Four?
Six?
I shrug and thank her, lifting it to my lips again. It’s delicious and smooth, the pink color making me smile. It’s the color of the flowers I showed Kari. Or maybe it’s the alcohol making me smile.
Who cares?
I giggle and nearly choke on the drink.
“You better eat more,” Cane warns, patting me on the back until I stop coughing. “You’ve drunk a lot and barely eaten anything.”
“I’m fine.” I compose myself the best I can and smile at my fiancé. The haze sitting over my mind is thick, but even a touch inebriated, I know it’s true.
I am fine.
No, I’m more than fine.
I’m happy.
Who would’ve thought Sin City with Cane Alexander, the one man who embodied everything I was avoiding, would’ve made me this deliriously happy?
I watch him try to decide how to respond. It’s his nature to protect me, to be overbearing sometimes. I know he’s having a hard time not jerking the drink out of my hand, and secretly, I love it. I love looking into his eyes and see him try to balance making me happyandhim happy. Because I know better than most how easy it is for someone to only think about themselves.
Cane’s tanned skin contrasts with his white dress shirt, and his blue eyes glimmer under the restaurant lights. He has his shirtsleeves rolled up to his elbows. His toned forearms make me wish they were wrapped around me, holding me against the abs I know to be rock solid beneath his shirt.
