Page 97 of Lessons in Heartbreak

“I cannot control their social circles, mister.”

Griffin muttered something under his breath, then pinched his nose. A smile lifted the corner of my mouth. Sometimes there really was no other alternative for a moment of spiraling loss of control. It was kinda nice to see it be him every once in a while.

Marcus held up one of the bottles by his face, then snapped a picture with his free hand, tongue hanging out. “I’ll text Steven that right after the party starts.” After setting down the bottle, he put his hands on his hips and turned a shrewd eye in my direction. “You’re not wearing that for his birthday party, Ruby. We can do better.”

I huffed, smoothing my shirt self-consciously. “Well, I didn’t know I was coming to a party, Marcus. I came to work out.”

“Oh, you’ll get a workout,” he promised. “You should see his dance moves once he gets a few shots in him.” He tapped his wrist. “Clock’s a-ticking. You have a few hours before the party’s really going. Me and your man here will finish cleaning up, and I expect a full Cinderella moment when you come back.”

Griffin gave me a searching look. “Is this okay? It’ll be loud. And people-y.”

The idea of walking alone into a party full of football players was normally the kind of thing that would make me lock myself in my room. Itwouldbe loud. And not just people-y, but big, athletic, confident, attractive people.

A whimper threatened to claw up my throat. And not the good kind, like when he’d had his hand between my legs.

He took a step closer, effectively blocking Marcus. “I can tell him no,” he said, eyes on mine and voice low with intent. “We can watch the new version ofEmmainstead. I can’t imagine it topping the Gwyneth version, but ...”

Marcus, though he was out of my sight line, snorted loudly. “Yeah right. She was born for that role.”

Griffin rounded on his friend. “Go away. You hijacked my vacation, and now you’re stealing all my movies. Give me two fucking seconds to talk to her.”

Miraculously, the man listened, although he grumbled the entire way out of the room.

Even though my stomach was tight with the sudden, blistering onset of nerves, and I was effectively waving goodbye to one of our last quiet nights before he left, there was an undeniable pull to want to prove to myself how far I’d come.

The fact that he would tell Marcus no—for me—triggered a rush of anticipation so thick that my heart gave an uneven thump.

“I’ll be back later,” I told him. “Don’t have too much fun without me.”

Chapter Twenty-ThreeGriffin

What a dumbass I was.

In hindsight, everything was perfectly clear. That was the horrible part of being able to recognize our mistakes after we’d made them.

It was all cumulative, of course. Each day of the last couple weeks was a small, seemingly insignificant building block to this moment. The party was in full swing when Ruby walked back in, and even though I’d plotted Marcus’s demise several times while he helped me clean up the house, I couldn’t fault any of the steps that had led us here.

The music was good—loud and sexy and throbbing through the center of my chest. The drinks were delicious, the laughter easy, as was the conversation. A bunch of the players were new to me, but everyone was kind and friendly, and I felt myself settle into the rhythm of this unwanted celebration.

The doors opened, and I swear to every deity in existence, there was a fucking spotlight—thick bright light aimed at the entrance—when she walked in.

Her eyes skimmed the crowd, anxiously looking for me, and I ducked past one of our linemen, unable to tear my gaze off her, soaking in the last of the dresses I’d bought for her. The unbearable pressure on my ribs didn’t make any sense, but I decided I didn’t care.

It was a white lace number, molded to her upper body and flaring out at her waist, the hem stopping at her upper thighs. The tiny black bow at the top of the neck made her look so prim and proper that my mouth watered because I couldn’t help but wonder what she had on underneath. The base of the dress was a nude-colored slip, giving the illusion that she was naked under the white lace.

On her feet were wicked-looking black heels, and I blew out a slow breath as I eased through the crowd. The nerves on her face intensified when she couldn’t find me in the kitchen, and for a moment, I thought she might back out of the house ... but then she turned and saw me, a smile breaking open over her face as I approached.

A more polite man might have stopped at a respectable distance, but I wasn’t polite.

Wasn’t even close to anything of the sort. The ticking clock over our time left together, the music making my pulse throb, the sight of her in that dress, had me feeling something far more uncivilized.

I didn’t say a word, simply stepped up against her, my hands skating down the length of her arms until our fingers wove together, and I dropped my nose into the crown of her hair and inhaled—deep and greedy.

“Happy birthday to me,” I growled by her ear as I gathered her close against my chest. “You look incredible.”

Ruby lifted her head, eyes wide in her face. Fuck, why did they look like that? Bigger. Sparklier. Like she wanted to eat me alive.

The feeling was very, very mutual.

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