Because I didn’t trust myself around him.
I kept replaying his words over and over again in my mind, instead of dismissing them, or laughing them off as a ludicrous proposition.
My future wife.
Did I want to wear his ring?
Did I want to call him my husband?
Did I want to come home to him every day? To sleep by his side every night? To wake up in his arms every morning?
There was only one word I thought of when I considered those questions.
Yes.
As if reading my mind, Pretty Boy shifted in his seat, spreading his legs wider. Then he patted his lap, inviting me to take a seat.
I arched an eyebrow and gave my head a little shake. He couldn’t summon me that easily. He had to work for it.
Turning my back on him, I moved to the buffet and grabbed a plate, selecting a slice of cake. Then Pretty Boy was at my side, offering a fork. I plucked it from his grip, carving a bite out of the cake.
“You’ve been avoiding me,” he said, leaning in close so I could hear him.
His breath brushed my neck and a jolt of electricity sizzled along every nerve, radiating all the way down to my toes. I waved my fork at him imperiously.
“Just because we hooked up once does not make you the center of my world.”
“True,” he admitted. “But I have a different theory.”
“Really? Enlighten me.”
Pretty Boy’s pupils darkened and his hazel eyes grew soft. He curved his hands around my hips, pulling me closer as he brought his mouth to my ear.
“I think you want to do it again so badly that you keep your distance so you don’t jump my bones.”
I sputtered a laugh.
“You’re lucky I don’t shove this entire slice of cake into your arrogant face.”
Pretty Boy’s eyes gleamed with amusement. He dipped his head and closed his mouth around my fork to take my bite of cake. My stomach flip-flopped as his tongue swept along his lower lip, licking away a drop of icing.
Fuck, I wanted that wicked tongue between my thighs so badly—
Then Dad raised his glass and tapped a fork against it with a high-pitched ringing to get everyone’s attention.
“I have an announcement to make,” he said.
Someone turned the jukebox down. The room went quiet, waiting for him to speak.
“As you all know by now, my old ticker threatened to give out on me. But I’m still alive and kicking. So, you can’t get rid of me yet.”
A chuckle rippled through the room.
Tarzan scooped Kenny onto his shoulders for a better view above the crowd. Keely stood beside him, one hand on her pregnant belly, the other rubbing Tarzan's back.
Hades scooped an arm around his ex-wife’s waist while she leaned against him.
Trooper and Shea were seated in a booth, with Shea’s shoes on the floor, and her feet in his lap.
