Chapter Twelve
The phone call from Chase niggled at Ellie the entire drive to the Lodge.
She hadn’t questioned Nate about it after he’d hung up the phone, she’d just continued getting ready, throwing on jeans and a tank top and piling her hair into a messy bun on the top of her head—she’d get hair and makeup done with the other bridesmaids later that afternoon. But she hadn’t been able to stop herself from puzzling over it.
She knew that there was more to Nate than his reputation. A good chunk of her fear for her heart stemmed from the fact that he didn’t seem to know it. But setting up a big, probably expensive, romantic send-off for his childhood best friend and that friend’s new bride?
That wasn’t exactly the action of a man who was clinging to his bachelor status. It didn’t reflect the thoughts of a man who was still determined to eschew marriage at all costs. And she was way over-thinking all of this, probably because of the vulnerability that Nate had shown her last night. Which didn’t mean anything beyond the fact that he’d needed someone and she’d been handy.
With a deep sigh, she thought longingly of the coffee that she’d spilled all over herself. She could really have used that caffeine pumping through her veins right about now.
“Hey.” Chase was waiting in the lobby when Ellie finally pushed through the front doors. He captured the garment bag with her bridesmaid dress just before it fell to the floor—Ellie was also balancing a large shopping bag and her makeup kit.
“Thanks.” She paused to readjust her load before reaching again for the dress, this time planning to throw it over her shoulder.
Chase held it back before she could take it. Having seen her brother after more than a few nights in which he’d had a bit too much to drink, Ellie could tell that he was feeling more than a little under the weather this morning, and when she took in the stern lines on his face she felt her stomach do a slow roll.
The men didn’t have anything planned right now, in comparison to the spa treatments that the ladies were getting. Chase could still be sleeping—and from the looks of it, he needed it. So why was he here, lying in wait for her, brotherly lecture incoming flashing all over his face?
“Do you have time for some coffee?” Chase gestured to the small main dining room where the tinkle of cutlery and water glasses told Ellie that breakfast was currently being served to the majority of the Lodge’s guests.
“Uh…” There was clearly something weighing on her brother’s mind. Normally she would put off her plans to make time for him, but right now she was torn. As Meredith’s bridesmaid, she had a responsibility to attend to the bride today.
And more than that, something told her that she didn’t want to have the conversation that Chase wanted to. At all.
“I actually have to dump this stuff off in the bridal suite, and then meet the rest of the girls at the spa.” Ellie smiled weakly as Chase narrowed his eyes at her. Damn it, did he know? How had he found out? “We’re getting mani-pedis before hair and makeup. There was talk of waxing.”
Chase winced, as she’d known he would. She took the chance to smile apologetically before turning back to the stairs.
“Hang on.” Her brother’s arm closed around her elbow.
Making a face, she turned back to him, this time not bothering to hide her annoyance. “You know that Meredith hates it when people are late,” she reminded him, tugging her elbow free. “I’ve got three minutes to get my butt to that spa.”
“I just wanted to know if you’re still bringing a date tonight.” Chase pinned her with that intense pale blue stare that had always made her squirm as a kid. “You replied yes on the card. Miles, wasn’t it? But I haven’t seen him anywhere. Is he driving in today?”
“Miles. Right.” Two days earlier, the mention of her ex would have made depression and anger swirl through her in a storm of despair. Right this moment, though? She could barely remember what he looked like. “No, actually. Miles and I broke up right before I left Seattle. I’ll be flying solo tonight. Sorry, I forgot to tell you that for your meal counts.”
She held her brother’s gaze, lifting her chin a bit in challenge, even though guilt swamped her, making it hard to breathe.
She’d spent the last two nights pressed skin-to-skin with her brother’s best friend. When she thought of it like that, it seemed so… wrong.
And once again she found herself wanting to spill.
But what was there to tell? That she was indulging in a weekend of kinky sex with a man that her parents had never really approved of, and that tomorrow she’d return to her practice in Seattle alone?
The reminder left a bitter taste in her mouth. Her expression must have shown it, because concern etched itself in fine lines over Chase’s face.
“Just… don’t ever settle, okay, El?” Chase reached for his ring finger, searching for the band that wasn’t there yet. “Don’t ever settle for someone who doesn’t give you everything you deserve.”
Ellie stared at her brother for a long moment, her heart pounding. He knew. He had to know.
But how could she tell him that the one man capable of giving her everything she needed was also the one man who would break her heart tomorrow?
“Someone’s sentimental today.” To lighten the mood, she shifted her bags, then reached out to give Chase a small peck on the cheek. “Don’t you worry about me, bro. I’m Ellie, remember? Everything’s under control.”
With that, she turned and headed up the stairs that would take her to the bridal suite and the spa. Her words echoed in the cavernous hall behind her, and to her ears the tone was mocking.
For the first time in her life, she’d handed the reins of her control over to someone else—to Nate. So why, when that made her so happy, did she feel so completely empty inside?
* * *
“I don’t care where you sit. Just… space yourselves out.” Nate paced in the front lobby of the Lodge, his cell glued to his ear. Harper, one of the other bridesmaids, cast him a curious glance as she slipped by, already dressed in her bridesmaid gown, but Nate turned away, trying to focus on the call with… was this the violinist? One of the musicians he’d hired for today. He’d been fielding calls from them all day, and he felt a definite headache brewing at the base of his skull.
Normally he wouldn’t have had a problem slipping into corporate mode and organizing everything, down to the most minute detail. Today, though? All he could focus on was Ellie.
To her way of thinking, this thing between them was over as soon as they went back to Seattle—which was tomorrow morning. He couldn’t let the best thing in his life walk away. Since he suspected she’d have a few choice protests to being kidnapped, that meant that he had some work to do today.
As he hung up the phone, he noted that traffic in the lobby was picking up, caterers and wait staff and people in fancy dress crisscrossing the golden hardwood floors. He craned his neck, looking for Gavin and Lucas. They were supposed to be pouring whiskey down Chase’s throat right now and delivering bracing your life isn’t over speeches, but he’d had to duck out to deal with a herd of neurotic musicians.
A laugh as bright as sunshine cut through the din, and Nate stilled. He’d know Ellie’s laughter anywhere. Drawn like a magnet to its other half, he followed the sound into the large hall where the ceremony was going to take place.
Ellie stood at the front of the room, doing something with a large swath of purple ribbons. Her hair was drawn up and away from her face in a neat style that made him want to pull out pins and mess it up. She was wearing far more makeup than usual, smoky shadows that made her eyes look even bluer, and something painted on her skin that made it smooth like ivory. She had her contacts in again, and as always, he missed the thick plastic frames that usually sat on the bridge of her nose.
The amethyst colored silk clung to her ample curves as she moved, and Nate stood, transfixed. She didn’t look quite like his Ellie, all glammed up like this, but she still looked lovely.
“If you’re good with doing the ribbons, I’ll go get the rest of the bouquets.” A man’s voice cut through Nate’s trance. His hands clenched into fists as Harry stepped into his line of sight, sleeves rolled up to his elbows as he hauled a large cardboard box.
“Sounds good.” Ellie smiled up at the other man, and they exchanged words that Nate couldn’t make out, though he could hear the rise and fall of voices. When Harry threw back his head and laughed, then touched Ellie flirtatiously on the shoulder, jealousy was an electric green flood that threatened to pull him under.
Before he could think it through, he’d entered the hall, loosening his tie. He must have made some sound, because both Harry and Ellie looked up at his approach.
“Right.” Harry looked from Ellie to Nate, then back to Ellie again, disapproval written in his slight frown. “I guess I’ll be going, then. If you’re sure you’re all right, Ellie?”
“I’ll be fine.” It should have felt good, the fact that all of Ellie’s attention had snapped straight to him the second he’d entered the room, but even at this distance he could detect a hint of wariness in her eyes.
She still wasn’t fully on board with this—with them. It crushed him even as it sent steel resolve into his spine.
He hadn’t become rich and successful by backing down when the going got rough. No, he always got what he wanted, and this time what he wanted was more important than anything else in the world.
“You look beautiful.” He closed the space between them, barely noticing when Harry banged through a side exit. Ellie shuddered, a deep breath that drew his attention to the exposed flesh of her breasts. He wanted to reach out and touch, but reminded himself of his mission for the day.
He had to prove to her that she meant something to him besides sex. Which, looking at her in that dress, just might be the death of him.
“Nuh-uh.” Ellie cast him that flirtatious grin, the one he’d realized she brought out when she wanted to distance herself from him, to bring things back to a simply sexual state. “No touching before the ceremony. I just paid a fortune to get my hair and makeup done. You’re not getting it all messed up.”
“Wasn’t planning on it.” Nate savoured the uncertainty that crept into her eyes at his words.
“What?” Ellie’s spine straightened, her fingers twisting nervously in the skirt of the dress. “I—don’t I—I mean, don’t you like the dress?”
“I’ve told you before, Ellie. I don’t care about the dress. I care about getting you out of it.” He moved a little bit closer, close enough that she could hear the words that he’d pitched low. She sucked in a breath when he dipped his head to whisper into her ear. “What I don’t like is the way other men are going to look at you tonight.”
Ellie trembled, turning her head to look over his shoulder. “That’s not fair. You can’t say things like that to me unless…”
Her voice trailed off, and Nate wanted to shout with frustration. Why couldn’t she just say it? Damn it, why couldn’t he?
“You’re the one who wanted this to be what it is,” he reminded her, shifting so that their bodies just barely brushed. He ground his teeth together when his suddenly solid cock brushed against the soft warmth of her belly. “But you also know that I’ll be stripping you out of this dress tonight. You know that I’m going to have you stretched across the bed, my mouth between your legs. And until that happens, I get to be protective of what’s mine.”
“Nate.”
Against him, Ellie stiffened, but the heat radiating from her skin told him that she was loving every minute of his dirty talk.
“How the hell am I supposed to go walk down the aisle now?” she asked on soft whisper.
“Not my problem, Blondie.” He grinned down at her, smirking at the sparks of temper flickering over her face. “Just know that with every step you take, I’ll be picturing you naked, on your knees and screaming my name.”
“You’re an asshole.” He’d pushed her, that was easy to see, but she was also aroused as hell. Her skin was flushed the pink of a seashell, and her chest trembled as she inhaled.
Well, in for a penny.
“You’ve got a dirty mouth for such a sweet looking girl.” He smiled again, slow, deliberate. Even a bit cruel. A sadistic streak inside of him enjoyed the fact that his expression sent her a step back. “Later tonight, I’ll find a better use for that mouth than swearing at me. But right now I think you need a lesson. You need to remember who you belong to.”
“Who I belong to?” The words came out on an indignant squeak. “Oh, I don’t think so—”
“You’re the one who assured me that this is what you want.” He felt his heart thump as he spoke. In that moment, with their eyes locked solely on each other, he craved nothing more than to bend her over the nearest chair, to take her hard and fast so that when she walked down that aisle she felt him with every step.
But this wasn’t all about sex. He needed to throw her off of her game. Even if that meant throwing him off of his own, in the process.
“Lift your skirt.” Ellie gaped at him, and he merely arched a brow. “Unless you have other plans for tonight, lift your skirt. I want to see what’s mine.”
Her mouth opened and closed like a fish out of water. He expected her to protest, even to storm out. If she had, it might have made things easier for them both.
Instead, she inhaled deeply, tangling her fingers in the skirt of her dress. Under his stare, he could almost see the submission soften her flesh, making her melt into his command.
He watched, transfixed, as she slowly inched the silk up, up the creamy expanse of her thighs. Finally the skirt was at her waist, revealing her centre, the place he wanted to live in.
A small triangle of lavender lace teased more than it covered. Thin ribbons ran from the cloth, over the creases that divided her legs from her stomach, to her hips where they were tied in neat little bows. A pretty present, just waiting for him to unwrap.
The thong was so skimpy that he became very painfully aware of the fact that sometime between this morning and now she’d been waxed. The smooth pink skin beckoned, made his fingers itch to touch.
“Mine.” He had so much he wanted to say, needed to say, but the words kept getting stuck inside. His gaze raked her face, praying that he would see some of the same intensity that he felt reflected there. “You’re mine.”
A shadow fell over her delicate features, and she let her skirt drop, hiding her centre once again. Her breath rasped in and out, or maybe that was his—standing this close to her, so wrapped up in her, he wanted to grab her and kiss her and never let her go.
He knew her well enough to read her expression, though, and the panic he saw there was a giant fist squeezing his heart. But she didn’t run, she didn’t cry, she simply looked him in the eye and inclined her chin—a princess acknowledging her power for the first time.