Page 10 of Homewrecker

Glaring at her brother, Aunt Jeanine leaned over and whispered something to her husband who waved his hand at her. He was too busy watching the wedding party being introduced and coming into the room to pay his wife much mind. That was par for the course for Uncle Michael.

Smiling sweetly at her aunt, Ashley downed the whole glass in one gulp.

6

Lincoln

Ashley Vaughn was still drinking. Why watching her get completely wasted bothered him, he wasn’t sure. Maybe because she was the only true innocent in all of this. Her harsh words had gotten under his skin and stuck there.

He had tried to speak up about Rebecca’s relationship once he’d found out about it, but by then, it had basically been a done deal. Rebecca had introduced Wiley to Janet first because she said she knew Lincoln wouldn’t approve. He hadn’t. But he’d also not liked the idea of her hiding things from him for that reason, so he’d been determined to prove her wrong.

Nothing matters except that she’s happy.

The thought was becoming more bitter every time it flitted through his head, especially when he couldn’t escapehowRebecca’s choices had affected someone else. He also couldn’t escape the way his own daughter seemed intent on rubbing the marriage in Ashley’s face.

So, what did all of that say about how well he’d done as a parent? Sure, he could place the blame on Janet for overindulging Rebecca and undermining his rules, but thatignored the fact he let both of them get away with it. That he gave up and gave in instead of pushing for what he knew was right.

He wasn’t blameless.

Which definitely contributed to why he kept his eye on Ashley Vaughn.

The other part was that… well, fuck. His wife was cheating on him. His daughter had just married a man older than him. And Ashley Vaughn was a beautiful young woman. There was a fucked-up part of his brain that kept thinking he should let Wiley know what it felt like to have his daughter seduced by a man nearly twice her age.

What was good for the gander was good for the… other gander.

He also might have had a few too many drinks, though he wasn’t anywhere near to Ashley’s level. She looked pretty sober right now, sitting in her chair, but he’d seen her chugging champagne long before the toasts. A server had come by to refill the glass for her, and no one stopped him, even though one of the women at the table looked disapproving.

Wasn’t anyone looking out for her?

Anger at Wiley was brewing in the center of his chest. He knew it was partly anger at Janet. Just sitting next to her while she made all sorts of comments about their wedding and marriage, making it sound like they were a happy couple, even though she was cheating on him, made him want to punch something. But a good chunk of his anger was directed at Wiley.

What the hell was the man thinking, getting married the day after his divorce? Insisting his daughter be there without actually keeping an eye on her during what had to be an incredibly difficult day?

Instead, he was all over his new wife.

They were being incredibly handsy, all through the first dance and through their welcome speech, and now they wereplaying kissy face at the table for two that was directly in front of the dance floor. It was an overly effusive display of affection, even for a wedding, and Lincoln couldn’t help but cynically think it seemed more of a performance than anything else.

Then again, weren’t most people at weddings? Janet was certainly putting on a hell of a performance right now. Lincoln could barely stand to be next to her. At least he wasn’t being expected to perform, other than pretending that he was happily married to Janet.

Wiley and Rebecca had decided to skip the Father-Daughter dance, Rebecca stating that since Wiley’s mother was unable to dance with him, she would give up her dance with Lincoln. Honestly, Lincoln hadn’t minded when she told him. He’d seen it as a kindness on her part, both for Wiley and because Lincoln hated dancing in front of people.

Now, he wondered if it was because her dance with Wiley already looked a little too much like a Father-Daughter dance, and the happy couple had been worried about the comparisons people might make.

“Lincoln, are you listening to me?” Janet’s voice grated in his ear, and it was all he could do not to wince away from her.

“No, sorry, I missed that. What were you saying?”

She rolled her eyes, looking at the rest of their family members around the table.

“Men. They never listen, do they? It’s amazing we can put up with them at all.”

His jaw clenched against any retort he might have made. This wasn’t the time or the place. She remained blissfully unaware that he knew about her infidelity. No one else knew about it, either, which meant erupting at her would seem like a severe overreaction on his part.

Definitely not what he would want people to remember about his daughter’s wedding day.

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Ashley Vaughn get to her feet, and he tensed for an entirely different reason. Rebecca and Wiley were out on the dance floor, dancingveryclose, and constantly lip-locked, regardless of what music was playing. Was she going to make a scene?

No, it looked like she was leaving.

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