Big Easy Temptation (The Perfect Gentlemen #3)(2)

“Sexcapades,” Gabe corrected. “It was a massive article detailing our sexcapades, complete with a detailed relationship map that proves we’re all six sexual degrees away from Kevin Bacon. I blame Mad. He slept with the entire cast of that Little Women remake.”

“C’mon, wasn’t that fluff piece more tongue-in-cheek?” Dax argued hopefully.

“They managed to keep me out of it but, you guys . . . that was a double foldout.” Connor sighed. “Which is probably enough to make any woman think twice. Well, any sane one. Especially someone like Holland. She’s being recruited for NCIS. Another thing I heard her talking to Joy about.”

Connor apparently listened in a lot. Dax looked over the dance floor again. He’d caught glimpses of Holland during the ceremony, but he hadn’t seen her since. Instead, he’d been playing the good groomsman, ensuring all the parents were happy and comfortable. They’d all come except Connor’s mother. In that respect, not much had changed since their Creighton days.

He needed to show Holland that he’d matured. Yes, he’d had a somewhat salacious youth, but he was older now. Even his friends were starting to settle down. Except Gabe, who was still screwing every princess, model, or Hollywood starlet he could. And Mad, who would apparently do any woman with a skirt and a pulse.

But he, Connor, and Roman were discerning and mature. Mostly.

Damn, he wanted to dance with Holland, see if he could talk to her. “Even if she takes an NCIS job, she wouldn’t be under my command. She’s not enlisted so there’s no problem. You really think she’s turned off by the fact that I’ve dated a lot?”

“I think she’s turned off by your status as a major manwhore,” Gabe offered helpfully.

“Oooo, are we talking about who I think we are?” Maddox Crawford sauntered over with a smile. He’d already ditched his bow tie and looked as if he’d found the Scotch. He was carrying a crystal decanter of booze and several glasses. Mad was the very picture of decadence. “Because that girl is hot. That fine ass of hers nearly made the front seat of the Bentley smoke when I picked her up earlier.”

Dax froze. “You picked her up?”

Mad flashed him a grin full of teeth. “She’s my date.”

Connor shook his head. “Yeah, we weren’t going to tell him that.”

Dax had never actually seen red before, but a dark swath of crimson coated his vision now.

“Uh, Dax, I was joking.” Mad stepped back, his eyes wide. “She needed a ride. That’s all. Joy wanted her here early, so Zack called me. Dude, you look like you’re about to kill someone and I’m a little afraid it’s me.”

Dax took a deep breath. For a moment, he’d actually seen himself murdering one of his best friends over a woman, so maybe he had to accept that, to him, she was more. “If you touch her . . .”

Mad nodded. “I’ll die a really horrible death. Got it. You called dibs. I respect the dibs, man. I also did you a solid. She’s waiting downstairs in the lounge. I told her I had to talk to her about something important.”

The red haze was threatening to come back. “Why were you trying to get her alone?”

“For you, buddy. All for you. Why do you think I’m up here while she’s slipping into the library down there?” He pointed vaguely over the landing, to the first level below.

But Holland had agreed to meet Mad alone. That sat bitter in his gut. “She wants you.”

Gabe snorted. “Dax, I heard her call Mad a festering disease pit on two legs.”

“Walking syphilis is how I heard it,” Connor added.

Mad nodded. “Actually, she called me stuff even worse. So go down there and talk to her. I made you look good earlier today. Mostly by making myself look like a complete shit. It’s easy. I’ve got a lot of ammo in that gun, if you know what I mean. Gabe, my man, I’ve lined up twins for us. I’m going to warn you. They’re very open minded and free spirited, and their father might have access to nuclear weapons so if we have to run, we’re going to have to be fast.”

“I’m totally in.” Gabe grinned as he took a glass and looked down at the wedding. “God, I’m never getting married.”

“For the right woman, I might consider it.” Dax smiled in anticipation, then headed down the stairs before the elusive Holland could slip away again.

One shot. That’s all he really had. If he couldn’t convince her that he wasn’t the same sort of skirt chaser as Mad or Gabe, she might cut him cold for good.

He headed for the library and eased the door open, stepping inside. Clearly, the room belonged to Joy’s father. It was a masculine space and filled from floor to ceiling with books. The room was stunning, but nothing made his breath catch like the woman standing in the center.

The late afternoon light streamed through the windows, catching her honey-blond hair until it glowed. Her very tasteful bridesmaid dress showed off the curve of her breasts and her slender waist. Holland was fit and graceful and steely on the outside. But something about her seemed delicate under the surface. That vulnerability called to the protector in him.

At the sound of his footsteps, she turned. Her lips curled up in a wry grin. “So Mad betrayed me. Big shock. I should have known he didn’t have a huge surprise planned for Zack and Joy that he needed my help with.”