Page 43 of Dad Next Door

“He’s on our six. He just got in line with discount Tristan.”

I snickered to cover up the shiver of awareness dancing up my spine.

The wedding itself was over, and we were all in the reception hall. Kim and Brian had done their grand entrance, which included a choreographed dance, a flash mob with their bridal party and groomsmen, and a champagne toast.

Now we were doing the receiving line while the venue staff wandered around, passing out drinks and carrying trays laden with finger food.

We’d managed to avoid Simon and Jace during the ceremony, but I hadn’t missed how pretty much every person I knew had made a point of seeking us out so they could be introduced to Quinn.

“Pretend I’m saying something dirty,” Quinn whispered, the edges of his lips brushing my ear. I shivered at the sensation, my neck and cheeks heating. My ears were one of my hot spots. I didn’t need to pretend he was turning me on. “Yeah, like that. Really play it up.” He pressed his nose against my cheek, softly nuzzling my skin.

I swallowed hard when he pulled away. We’d talked about PDA during our planning, and I’d given Quinn the green light to do whatever he was comfortable with, but I’d forgotten he was, first and foremost, an actor.

I’d expected some light touches like a hand on my back or leg, even some handholding. That barely scraped the surface of his PDA. He was fully committed to the role of my doting and attentive date. I just had to keep my libido in check and remind my affection-starved body that he was in character and none of this was real.

The line moved forward as a crowd of people wandered away from where Kim and Brian stood, putting us next.

We waited as the bride and groom said hello and accepted the congratulations from the couple in front of us.

“Tris!” Kim’s eyes lit up as we stepped forward. “I’m so glad you came.” She threw her arms around my neck and hugged me tight. “Bravo on the date,” she whispered mid-hug. “He’s gorgeous.”

I hugged her back as Quinn shook hands with Brian and offered his congratulations. “You look beautiful. Everything about tonight is perfect.”

She beamed like the radiant bride she was. “Thanks. I’m never planning anything like this ever again, but it was worth it.” She smiled at Brian.

He looked utterly starstruck as he beamed back at her. Something in my gut twisted. No one had ever looked at me like that, not even my husband.

“Congratulations.” Quinn offered Kim his hand. “Your dress is stunning. Blush is such an underrated color.”

Kim’s grin widened as she shook his hand. “Thank you. I wanted something different, you know?”

“Absolutely. White is great, but you don’t want great. You want perfection. And you’ve achieved it.”

“Oh, you’re a charmer.” She giggled and flicked her gaze to me. “Tris is a lucky man.”

“I’m the lucky one.” Quinn wrapped his arm around my waist casually, like he wasn’t even aware he was touching me. “We’ll let you get to the rest of your line so you can finally enjoy your reception.”

Kim met my gaze as Brian and Quinn shook hands again. “Oh my god,” she mouthed and waved her hand like it was a fan. “So hot.” She nodded to Quinn, being about as subtle as a brick to the face.

He gave them both another gracious smile, then tugged me toward the bar. “I’d say that went well,” he said when we were out of earshot.

“I’d say so.” I let him sweep me along, not hating all the stares we were getting.

Usually people stared at me because I was doing something weird or being my awkward self, and not because I had a gorgeous man on my arm.

The positive attention was nice.

“Do you want a glass of wine or something from the bar?” he asked.

“The bar. Remember what happens when I drink wine? Sloppy Tristan isn’t allowed to come out and play tonight.”

He laughed and brought me up to the bar, squeezing us between people. Almost like he’d been summoned, one of the bartenders immediately looked up and came to stand in front of us to take our order.

Was this what pretty privilege felt like? I couldn’t remember the last time I’d gotten served at a bar without having to wait for ages to be noticed.

When we had our drinks in hand, Quinn steered me toward an open corner where small groups of people were congregating while we waited for the dinner to start.

We hadn’t even stopped walking when one of the paralegals at Simon’s firm, who hadn’t spoken a single word to me since my marriage ended, hurried over to say hello, her eyes wide as she stammered and giggled at everything Quinn said.

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