Page 15 of Surprisingly Us

My eyes drop to the woman who’s put herself in my path. Long, dark hair styled in loose waves around her shoulders. Heart-shaped, bubble gum pink lips and the bluest eyes I’ve ever seen. Her fair skin stands out in a room full of bare-shouldered women with faux tans and sun-kissed skin from the height of summer.

She’s stepped between me and the redhead like a bodyguard blocking a bullet. And from the somewhat menacing look on her face, it appears I’m the bullet she’s trying to intercept.

Wait a minute…I know those eyes.

They’re as blue as the waters of Lake George that I used to swim in as a kid.

And the way that nose wrinkles when she’s determinedly set her mind on something.

That’s when it hits me.

The woman staring me down like she’s got a bone to pick is none other than Colette Davenport.

“Lettie spaghetti?” My lips twitch as the nickname falls from my lips.

Her jaw drops before she clears her throat and crosses her arms over her chest. “No one calls me that anymore.”

My grin widens at her defensive positioning. “That’s a shame.”

“Not really. No one wants to be referred to as a limp noodle.”

My eyes drop between us. Toned, lithe muscles shape her arms and her trim waist is accentuated by the A-line fit of her floor-length gown. She’s nothing like a limp noodle. Not that she was before. The name was mostly generated out of the fact that spaghetti rhymes with her nickname, Lettie, and she was extremely flexible. Her body, not her temperament.

No, Lettie has always had a streak of stubbornness and determination, as she’s demonstrating here by the stern look she’s fixing me with.

“You can call me Rhys’s pieces.” I smile down at her, loving the way her button nose wrinkles at my suggestion. “It’s still your favorite candy, right?”

“I don’t eat candy.”

“Hmm, that’s too bad.”

Lettie eyes me, suspicion darkening her gaze. “We need to have a little chat.”

I press my lips together. She’s so serious, it’s adorable. “Yeah, about what?”

She drops her arms to her sides and sighs. “I know what you’re up to eyeing the redhead over there.”

My smiles widens. I’m suddenly glad I came tonight. “Oh, yeah? What am I up to?”

She clears her throat. “All right, I’m going to be honest with you.”

My brows lift in amusement because this is Lettie and if there’s one thing I can count on from her, it’s the truth. She was never good at lying, whether it was about us sneaking cookies before dinner or admitting to the adults if we used the old rope swing that was off limits due to safety concerns.

“As if I expected you to lie to me?” I tease.

Glancing around, she draws closer like she’s going to share a secret. As she leans in, a soft, feminine scent, sweet yet sensual, surrounds me. It’s jasmine, I think.

I blink, momentarily sidetracked by her proximity.

What were we talking about?

“She’s James’s cousin and she just went through a terrible breakup.”

That’s right. The redhead, who I couldn’t care less about.

“The thing is, she’s in a very vulnerable emotional state right now. She thought she was going to marry the guy, so imagine how being at a wedding makes her feel?”

I blink. “Not following.”

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