With the way Dom was now grinning down at him, it was almost deafening.
It was Dom’s voice that finally cut through the noise. “Isn’t that right, Ry?”
“What?” I tried to catch up, but my brain was stuck on the fact that Dom’s fingers were toying with the edge of Mimic’s sleeve.
“I was just saying that Mimic’s welcome here tonight,” Dom said smoothly. “After all, this is what you wanted.”
What?My gaze snapped up to search Dom’s face. Anamused smile played on his lips as he waited for the realisation to unfold.
When it did, it took everything I had not to smack him in the face.
“That’s what you want? To see me move on?”
“Yes.”
Max cleared his throat.“Are you expecting Dad?”
“No.” I reluctantly dragged my eyes away from Dom and the man he was still touching. Much as I didn’t really want to engage with Max, he was the lesser of two evils right now. “He was invited, but I’m not expecting him. He didn’t RSVP to this or the wedding.”
He also hadn’t responded to any of the messages I’d sent over the years. He’d been checked out during our teen years, but since the divorce? He’d exited my life in every way possible.
Max exhaled slowly. “Fuck. Figured it was just me he ghosted.”
“Nope. It’s both of us.”
A beat of understanding passed between us. A recognition of the bond we’d once shared. That we should share now. I could have sworn there was regret in my twin’s eyes.
I broke the connection. It wasn’t my fault we didn’t share it now.
It was Max’s.
“He sounds like a cunt,” Mimic announced, his tone oddly chipper considering his words. “Want me to track him down and teach him a lesson?”
Dom gave that dark chuckle as he grinned down at the man in his arms. “Always ready to stir up trouble.”
My nails dug into my palms as my chest tightened.
“I need a word with you, Mimic,” Max said suddenly. He stepped between us, but for some reason, chose to faceme. I couldn’t read his expression. Didn’t really try to, either.
I was too busy counting the inches between the men behind him. How they seemed to be decreasing with every new second.
“Right now?” Mimic pouted, leaning his head against Dom. “But this is so much fun.”
Dom chuckled, continuing to toy with the edge of Mimic’s T-shirt sleeve. Red begun to beat at the edges of my vision. “You can wait, Max. We’re having a pleasant conversation.”
My knuckles cracked.
Max’s lips thinned as his eyes dropped to my fists. “Pinecone, Mimic.”
Pinecone?I frowned as I tried to puzzle it out. Whatever Max meant was lost on me.
But not on Mimic, or whatever his real name was. He immediately stepped away from Dom with a dramatic sigh. “Always spoiling my fun.”
“Bitch at me at the bar,” Max said, taking Mimic’s arm and turning them in that direction. Before they left, he gave me a small nod.
I stared after him, trying to work out Max’s intentions. Had he been looking out for me? Or for Dominic?
Without context, I would’ve assumed it was for Dominic. But given how he was now glaring at Max with an expression akin to a bulldog chewing a wasp, I suspected that wasn’t the case.
