Robyn starts laughing; she’s nodding.
“No…” Cath shakes her head. “I definitely do not want to be there.” She takes a swig of champagne right out of the bottle.
We all laugh after that.
The limo hoots again.
“Shit!” Robyn says. “We need to go. I don’t want to be late.”
We gather everything – the veil, the small clutch – and file out to the front door. The limo sits at the curb, long and black and gleaming in the midday sun, the driver already out and holding the back door open for us.
I reach for Robyn’s hand before she climbs in, and she takes mine, squeezing hard.
“This is it,” I tell her.
“This is it,” she says back. Her smile is enormous. If I didn’t love her so darned much, I’d be jealous as anything.
43
Magma
The Seaview Hotel lobby smells like fresh flowers and salty sea air. It’s nice inside.
The female behind the reception desk smiles at me again, and I nod in her direction. I go over to the large windows that overlook a terrace restaurant and take a look at the view. Gulls fly over the ocean. It’s quite tranquil and at complete odds with the churning in my gut.
This is it.
The elevator chimes, and I glance up. The doors slide open, and Brook steps out.
She’s wearing a sexy gold dress that highlights her bronzed skin. Her dark hair is down, loose around her shoulders, and there’s gold at her ears and her throat. She’s truly beautiful. I can’t understand why I don’t feel anything.
I should.
I don’t!
She smiles at me and gives a little wave. I smile back.
Her arms are bare. Her tattoos run from her shoulder down past her elbow, swirling lines of red ink that run across her back, which looks like it might be bare.
A male near the concierge desk elbows the female next to him. Her eyes track straight to Brook’s arm.
“That’s a Red,” someone says, not quite low enough.
Brook frowns, her eyes darting in that direction.
“What the heck?” It’s a different voice. “A Red, here at the Seaview?”
I start toward her, giving the couple a glare that shuts them up.
The whispering from the other side of the lobby dies down when I glare at them as well.
Brook hasn’t slowed down. Her smile returns as I get to her.
I close the distance and kiss her cheek, my hand finding her arm.
“You look beautiful,” I tell her.
“Thank you.” She smooths a hand down her dress. “I think I might be showing a little too much skin.”
