It was the third black dress I’d tried on in ten minutes. I pulled it over my head and threw it on the floor.
Nothing fit me anymore, but I was determined to squeeze into something I owned. And it had to be black.
Sweat was permeating my forehead when Rush walked right into the middle of my wardrobe crisis.
“What’s going on in here?”
“I should’ve bought a new outfit for tonight. None of my old stuff fits me. I’m at that weird point where I’m not really showing, but I just look fat and don’t fit into any of my clothes.”
Looking good tonight was imperative because I was going to be meeting Rush’s family. Granted, he didn’t get along with them, but that didn’t mean I didn’t want to look good.
It surprised me when Rush had asked me to accompany him to his estranged brother’s birthday party in the City. While I was curious to meet the bad apples—his father and brother—it made me really nervous. But he told me he’d promised his sister-in-law—the one I’d met at The Heights—that he would at least show up.
Rush had an extra collared shirt hanging around in my closet from one of the last times we’d gone out to a fancy restaurant. He took it down and said, “Humor me. Try on this shirt.”
“Are you kidding me?”
“No. It needs to be pressed, but put it on for a minute. I have an idea.”
Wrapping myself in the large black shirt, I laughed as I buttoned it up. It was actually long enough to wear as a dress but it was way too baggy.
Rush grabbed a thick, red patent belt that was hanging in my closet and placed it around my waist. He pushed up some of the material above the belt then rolled up my sleeves halfway and adjusted the collar.
I stood there speechless as he walked over to my jewelry box and grabbed a strand of pearls that had belonged to my father’s mother. He lifted my hair up and fastened it around my neck.
He then led me over to the mirror that was affixed to the wall.
Rush placed his hands on my shoulders from behind. “What do you think?”
The ensemble actually looked really good. I couldn’t believe he’d pulled this off—that this shirt could actually pass off as a dress and look stylish at that.
“I love it. It’s perfect. And it doesn’t make me feel fat at all. I would have never taken you for a fashionista.”
“I’m not. I’m just good at thinking on my feet during times of crisis.” He pointed to my shoes that were lined up on the closet floor. “Those red heels I love would go perfect with it, too.”
Flipping around, I wrapped my arms around his neck. “You’re like my hero tonight, you know that? I owe you big time later.”
“I’m sure I’m gonna love taking this off even more than I loved putting it on.”
Rush was strumming his fingers along the steering wheel during the car ride to the City. He definitely seemed tense, and that was understandable.
I placed my hand on his knee. “Are you sure you want to do this? We don’t have to go. We could just go out to eat somewhere else.”
“I told my brother’s wife I would show up. She’s been begging me for weeks. She’s delusional, because she thinks that somehow my relationship with him can be repaired. I’m only doing this for her. She’s always been nice to me. But honestly, a part of me wants to show up just to put a damper on his birthday because he’s such a dick. So, there’s that.”
“We don’t have to stay long if it’s going to upset you to be around them.”
“I’ll be fine. I’m a big boy. I deal with them all of the time in business meetings. A couple of hours at a party isn’t gonna kill me.”
The fact that he wasn’t smoking anymore wasn’t lost on me.
“I want you to know that I am so proud of you for not lighting up right now, because I know you really want to. You would normally be smoking one after the other in a situation like this.”
“Yeah. Let’s not even mention cigarettes, okay?”
I cringed. “Sorry.”
He glanced over at me. “Got any other ideas to relieve stress while I’m driving?”
“I would totally go down on you right now, you know. Don’t tempt me.”
“Nah. I won’t let you take your seatbelt off, not with my precious cargo. I might let you give me head in the bathroom at my brother’s house, though.”
“Anything to make you feel better.”
He cocked a brow. “You’ll do anything, huh?”
“Pretty much.”
“That’s one of the things I love about you, beautiful.”
Once in Manhattan, we parked near Rush’s brother’s place then walked a few blocks to the luxury building.
A doorman checked our names on a list and brought us to a private elevator that led right up to the penthouse suite.
As soon as the doors opened a wave of heat hit me as we entered the crowded room. Waiters passed around trays of hors d’oeuvres and champagne. The city lights lit up the space through the massive floor-to-ceiling windows. Someone was playing a grand piano at one end of the living room.
So many people were talking over each other, and that made everything sound muffled. I really wished I could have had a drink. Meeting new people always made me a bit nervous, but especially in this case, given the tension between Rush and his father and brother.
Rush went to fetch me a glass of water. He returned with one and a flute of champagne for himself.
The beautiful blonde woman I remembered from The Heights walked toward us with a big smile on her face. “Rush! I’m so glad you could make it.”
She was wearing a long, black gown that seemed way too formal for a birthday party, even one as ritzy as this.
“Good to see you, Lauren,” he said.
She turned to me. “Gia, right ? Nice to see you again.” She flashed her pearly whites before giving me a quick once over. I wondered if she figured out that I was wearing Rush’s shirt.
Lauren looked like she’d just gotten a fresh spray tan. It looked sparkly, like she had specks of glitter over her flawless skin. Her golden locks were done up in a twist.
“Nice to see you again, too.” I smiled.
“Please partake in some appetizers and drinks. We have Elliot’s favorite restaurant La Grenouille catering dinner later, so save some room.”
Someone came by and swept her away into another conversation.
Turning to Rush, I asked, “Where’s your brother?”
He downed the last of his champagne and surveyed the room. “I don’t see him yet.”
“Do you think he’ s going to be an asshole to you?”
“No. He’ll be fake and nice around other people. He’ll be nice around you, too, because he flirts with any woman who’s not his wife. He’s mainly a dick to me when no one’s watching.” Rush kissed my forehead. “You want me to grab you some pigs in a blanket or whatever the fuck they’re passing around?”
“Nah. I’m good. Feeling a little queasy, actually. Not that hungry.”
Rush grabbed a scallop wrapped in bacon off of one of the trays and popped it into his mouth.
I glanced around. “God, you can just smell the money, can’t you?”
“And the bullshit, too.” Rush looked toward the corner of the room. “Speaking of bullshit, there’s Richie Rich over there—my brother.”
When my eyes landed on the corner Rush was pointing to, my heart felt like it stopped for a moment. There were three men engaged in a conversation. The longer my eyes lingered on one of the guys, the more certain it became that I knew him.
He was wearing a bowtie.
With each passing second that I stared at his face, I became more and more nauseated.
I squinted, trying my best to see clearly—to be sure.
Oh God.
My throat felt like it was closing.
I was pretty sure it was—Harlan.
Harlan who I was never supposed to see again.
Harlan who gave me the wrong number after our one-night stand.
Harlan who had gotten me pregnant.
Memories of that night flashed through my brain like a movie on rewind. I kept staring at his face. The same eyes. The same square jaw. The same way he parted his hair to the side. The same perfect white teeth. The same charming smile. That laugh.
It was him.
Oh my God! It’s him!
My heart was pounding out of my chest, and it felt like the room was spinning.
I managed to get the words out. “Which…which one of those guys is your brother?”
Rush sucked on his toothpick, then pointed it over at him. “The one with the bowtie.”
The End…
For now…
Rush and Gia’s story continues in Rebel Heart, coming May 22, 2018
Pre-order is available now on all retailers: