“I’m Tristan Hayes,” he says, rising and holding out his hand for her to shake.
When she takes it, he flips her hand over and kisses the back in a move that makes me roll my eyes.
He’s such a flirt.
“The best man?” she asks, and I’m not surprised she recognizes the name since she helped handle the wedding programs.
“Yes, ma’am,” he says with the most polite wording.
My mother smiles, her eyes shifting to me. “Oh, I like him, Kay.”
Me too, Mom. Me too.I merely smile.
“So, is this your boyfriend?” she asks.
The only thing more humiliating than being here alone would be getting caught lying about having a date, but I wouldn’t lie to my mom for my own sake. If I don’t keep up the pretense, however, I’ll humiliate myself and Tristan. And he’s gone out of his way to make this weekend easier for me.
“We’re new,” I say, not exactly answering her question, therefore not completely lying, either.
Tristan leans back, placing an arm along the back of my chair. “We’ve known each other through mutual friends, but we’ve just started getting to know one another better.” His words, like mine, aren’t exactly a lie, either.
For the next five minutes, my mom peppers Tristan with questions about himself. His hobbies, his job, his favorite football team. None of it gets very deep, and he’s a good sport, answering her questions and making small talk like it’s his job.
Finally, my dad comes over to get her for dinner, shakes Tristan’s hand, and leads her away.
Then, we eat, and the conversation around us flows easily. I ignore Mark and Shannon across the table, and it doesn’t take long before I’m relaxed and enjoying myself. Tristan plays the doting boyfriend so effortlessly I find myself falling into my own role of smitten girlfriend. The chemistry between us grows stronger with each flirty interaction, to the point where it’s overwhelming. I can’t seem to stop thinking about that potential kiss from earlier and hope there’s a chance for a real one later.
But my fantasy doesn’t stop there. Desire settles low in my belly, and my thighs clench as I imagine where that kiss might lead. Would the spark between us rage out of control? Would he grind against me? Touch my body with a senseless hunger that turns me into a puddle of satisfied goo? Or is he a slow lover who takes his time to savor each moment?
Gah! I can’t do this. My body is tingling and sensitive and I reach for my glass of water, nearly knocking it over in the process.
“Are you okay?” Tristan asks.
I nod and take a long sip of cold water, hoping it helps quell the need my thoughts inspired.
Finally, our meal ends, and Ashley and Eric stand. Where my cousin is petite and thin with platinum blonde hair, light blue eyes, and fair skin, Eric is tall and solidly built with black hair and dark brown eyes. Despite those differences, theyfittogether in a way I’ve always been envious of. Not in a mean or negative way, but in a lesson learned type of way.
In fact, their engagement is part of the reason I ended things with Mark last year. Seeing how excited they were to start their lives together shined a harsh light on the fact that there were issues. Mark was utterly unwilling to commit, not even to live together after a two-year relationship. I’d always known he had issues, but I thought over time he’d come around.
It had taken the ease and softness of Ash and Eric’s relationship to show me I was too willing to settle. I wasn’t taking into account the red flags with Mark. His criticism. His temper, not that he’d ever taken his anger out on me physically. But I didn’t want to walk on eggshells any longer, either. Not to mention Mark is a workaholic. He hated getting emotional and wouldn’t share his feelings. For a variety of reasons, he wasn’t the man I wanted to settle down with.
As Ashley gives a speech thanking all of us for traveling here for the wedding, I barely register what she’s saying. I’m watching the way Eric looks at her; it’s like she hung the moon.I want that.I want a man that not only feels deeply about me but isn’t afraid to show it to everyone. I want a love like the one that Ashley and Eric share.
“To show our appreciation to the entire wedding party, Eric and I got gifts for our bridesmaids and groomsmen,” Ashley says.
Gifts are passed out, watches for the men and necklaces for the women. The necklace is a delicate silver chain with a pink, heart-shaped pendant. It’s simple but beautiful. I lift it out of the box, and Tristan reaches for it.
“Let me,” he says, opening the necklace with surprisingly deft fingers.
I only hesitate for a moment before turning and lifting my hair off my neck. Tristan drapes the jewelry around me, and I feel his fingertips brush against my skin as he clasps the necklace. My pulse races and goosebumps break out over my arms. The magnetic pull I feel toward him is a hum beneath my skin.
“So, Tristan,” Mark says as I turn back around in my chair. His voice is slurred and I wonder how many drinks he’s had. “What happened between you and that really hot model you dated earlier this year?”
My stomach drops. Annika was a model. Gorgeous in an ice-cold kind of way. If I were taking stock of the differences between us… I cut off those thoughts. Tristan isn’t my real boyfriend, and I’m good with who I am.
I glance at Tristan, who smiles at Mark as if he’s not getting to him, but there’s a slight tic of a muscle in his jaw that tells me he’s not happy with the turn in conversation.
“You mean Annika? We didn’t date for long.”
