The Forever Girl (Wildstone, #6)(75)
“Always,” he said, getting a grip on her wrist, then turned to gather the other two. He had no problem being the rescue squad for the night. Or ever. It was something that he’d done a thousand times for both Caitlin and Heather and would do a thousand more without conscious thought, because they were family.
He’d never rescued Maze before. At least not in a way she’d recognize as such, because Maze hated needing help or rescue. Feeling those things made her feel trapped. Worthless.
And that was the last thing he wanted for her.
As for what he did want, well, his brain and his heart were not on the same page. Neither were certain body parts, which twitched as he watched her, still out there on the dance floor, moving with easy, sensual grace.
As if she felt him, she opened her eyes. She didn’t stop dancing, though, just kept swaying, watching him with those beautiful eyes of hers.
“Caitlin wants to call it a night,” he said. “Your chariot awaits.”
Heather and Caitlin both “Awwwwed” in sync and looked at him like he was the sweetest thing on the planet.
Shaking his head, he turned and eyed their booth. “Let’s get your stuff.” Since they all just kept dancing, he headed back to the booth and gathered three purses, which he slung over a shoulder. “What do you guys keep in here?” he asked, shocked at the weight.
“Stuff,” Heather said. “I bet you’d make the best husband on the planet. Isn’t that right, Maze?”
Maze pretended not to hear.
Walker reached for Caitlin’s hand because she was usually the most reasonable. “Come on, honey, let’s get you home.”
She clapped her hands to his cheeks. “I love you, Walk.”
“No, I love him,” Heather said, pushing her way in, cuddling into his side.
Maze rolled her eyes. “No getting mushy at a bachelorette party, it’s the rules.”
“Hey, it’s important to express your feelings,” Heather said. She looked at Walker. “She loves you too.”
He should be so lucky. “Yeah, yeah,” he said. “We all love each other, but I’ll love you more if you get outside and in the car.”
He managed to wrangle them halfway to the door, but then Heather had to go to the bathroom and Caitlin wanted to hug and kiss Boomer goodbye. Maze, suddenly a little quiet and broody, wanted to walk home.
Feeling like he was herding cats, he ended up standing on the sidewalk waiting for Heather and Caitlin to come outside. Maze sat on the curb, something definitely wrong. He had no idea if it was last night or something that had nothing to do with him, but his luck wasn’t that good so he figured that yeah, it was definitely last night. Aka him. “You okay?”
She lifted a shoulder.
Even he knew that was woman code for no. Taking off his sweatshirt, he wrapped it around her and sat at her side. “Is this about last night?”
“I don’t want to talk about last night.”
“Maybe we should.”
She sniffed, and his heart stopped. Shit. He knelt down in front of her and zipped up the sweatshirt before meeting her gaze. “Did I hurt you?”
She let out a watery laugh, then wiped her nose on his sleeve. “I think you know you didn’t. And it’s not about that. It’s about tonight.”
“Tonight,” he echoed.
“Yeah. It was . . . great.” She gave a teary smile. “Cat and Heather and I talked, like really talked.” A tear slipped out and she swiped it away. “Dammit. I always feel stupid weepy when I stupid drink too stupid much.”
“So this really isn’t about . . . me?” he asked cautiously.
“No! And seriously, dude, check your ego. You and I were last night.”
“And . . . you don’t want to talk about last night.”
She shook her head. “Absolutely not. Because—”
“Don’t say one and done,” he said.
“Of course I won’t. Because we’re not talking about it.”
Okaaay. He cupped her face, which was full of so much emotion, he felt his heart roll over. “You and the girls are really okay?”
She nodded and sniffed again. Her mascara had run and her nose was red. She was adorable.
“So these are . . . happy tears?” he asked, feeling like he needed to buy a vowel.
She nodded again.
“That’s good then, right?”
“Right.”
He nodded, but in truth, he was confused as hell. “But . . . you’re not happy with me.”
“Right.”
“Even though thirty minutes ago you danced with me like everything was okay,” he said, wondering if they were speaking the same language.
She shrugged. “I faked it.”
“You . . . faked it.”
“Yep,” she said, popping the P sound. “Like I faked all the orgasms with you last night.”
He stared at her and then laughed. Hard. When he got himself together, she was glaring at him.
“What’s so damn funny?” she demanded.
“You weren’t faking.”
“I was so.”
“Maze, your eyes rolled back in your head. You even passed out for a minute.”
“Hey, my eyes were tired, okay? And I did not pass out. I . . . took a quick catnap, that’s all.”
Jill Shalvis's Books
- The Summer Deal (Wildstone #5)
- Almost Just Friends (Wildstone #4)
- Wrapped Up in You (Heartbreaker Bay, #8)
- The Lemon Sisters (Wildstone #3)
- Playing for Keeps (Heartbreaker Bay #7)
- Hot Winter Nights (Heartbreaker Bay #6)
- The Good Luck Sister (Wildstone #1.5)
- Accidentally on Purpose (Heartbreaker Bay #3)
- One Snowy Night (Heartbreaker Bay #2.5)
- Jill Shalvis