Carter Reed(86)

Amanda frowned. “Weren’t you friends with her, Emma? Didn’t she come out once with us...” And she faded because this was the awkward moment. Tamra had gone bowling with us. Ben, Mallory, and the current boyfriend had been there as well.

Theresa grimaced. “Speaking of the dead…”

“Theresa!”

“What?” She shrugged her shoulder and ignored her roommate. “You guys never talk about her. It’s been long enough. I don’t think Mallory would’ve wanted you to never talk about her. One night of bawling over her doesn’t cut it. It’s good to reminisce about old times. You’re honoring her memory.”

Amanda grew red in the face and she turned towards her window.

Theresa rolled her eyes. “I know what I’m talking about. My parents are dead, remember?”

Carter looked over then. He’d been content to be quiet and stay in the background, as much as possible for him. His eyes narrowed now. “Everyone grieves differently. I doubt you were laughing about your parents five months after they were ground into cement.”

“Carter,” I murmured.

Theresa paled. “That’s a horrible thing to say.”

“Their friend was gutted. The other was killed by Emma.” His wolf-like eyes grew in hostility. “Sometimes silence is being sensitive.” Then he turned away again. It was obvious the conversation was done.

Frowning, I watched Theresa to see how she would handle that efficient dressing-down. Her head went down and her hands folded together in her lap. Her shoulders drooped as well. I exhaled a soft breath. It wouldn’t help for my one of only two friends to remember her previous disdain for Carter.

But when we got to the party and stepped out, Theresa stopped both of us. She looked from Amanda to me. “I’m sorry, guys. Sometimes I speak before I think.”

Amanda threw her arms around her roommate. “Oh, we know!”

Both laughed and pulled me in for the hug.

“You guys are some hot mamas. Let’s party!”

Biting her lip, Amanda’s cheeks grew rosy again, but I caught the surprise in her gaze. I agreed with Theresa. My oldest friend was a serene vision. She wore a very soft pink dress. It was a strapless A-line, hanging down to her toes. She resembled a Greek goddess.

Remembering the cop who wanted to date her, I kissed her cheek and whispered, “It’s your turn.”

Her eyes held mine and a promise passed between us. It was her turn to be happy. She knew what I meant without another word of explanation. Theresa and Noah would eventually figure it out. They had to. They loved each other and I had Carter. It was Amanda’s time now.

The event was held in the largest banquet hall, but that wasn’t big enough. The lobbies surrounding were filled as well, with liquor and food stations every few feet. The party seemed in full swing when we arrived, but as we stepped inside, I sensed the attention. One by one they turned to us. It wasn’t like at Joe’s. It was more. That’s when I realized that I’d been secluded at work the past week. Theresa wanted me to work with her in a private conference room. She got the coffee for us. She paid for the food and had it delivered to her office. The times we ate out, she suggested a cafe a few blocks away. It was starting to make sense now.

I caught her gaze. “How bad was it at work?”

She grimaced. “It would’ve been too much for you.”

I sensed the avid attention and knew she was right. I wanted to hit myself in the forehead. I should’ve known. Carter was at Joe’s. They all saw and they had a week to comprehend it. The interest had been heavy that night, but it was more tonight.

With his hand in mine, he led us through the crowd until it opened to a group of tables that had been sectioned off from the main crowd.

“Ah!” Theresa grinned. “VIP. I like it.”

Recognizing a few of the security guards from Carter’s own group, I knew he had planned ahead. Mike even nodded to me with a friendly smile. Progress. Once we stepped past the divide, all bets were off. Older and distinguished-looking men approached Carter in waves. They wanted to shake his hand, talk about the hotel, and that was when I figured it out—they knew him from the board. These were my bosses, or my other bosses. Seeing that he would be busy, Theresa tapped my arm and pointed to a back table. She leaned close. “Let’s grab that one. Noah’s already here, but I’m sure he’ll want to sit with us.”

I nodded. Anything to get away from the prying eyes.

As we settled in, Theresa went to the bar and returned with three drinks. A waiter followed behind her with two bottles of wine. Another came over with a platter of food. We were munching on fancy hor d’oeuvres, and I wasn’t sure I wanted to know what was in them. It didn’t take many of them before I was full and left the rest on my plate. Theresa snagged them later on and Amanda nibbled at hers. That’s what she always did.

We were able to watch the crowd and they weren’t able to approach us. The other people in the VIP section were the older men and their dates, and those women knew each other. They cast shrewd looks at us, but no one approached. I was grateful. Theresa called them Snobby Social-nators. Again, I was grateful they remained away. After awhile, Theresa pointed to a few guys and asked Amanda to rate them. The conversation soon went in that direction. We were busy picking out the Mr. Amanda-To-Be the rest of the time. It was surprisingly fun.