Page 11 of Homewrecker

How drunk was she? She wasn’t going to drive, was she?

No matter how she felt about his and Janet paying for this wedding, it wasn’t nearly as stupid as driving drunk would be.

Obviously, her own father wasn’t going to do shit to take care of.

Growling under his breath, Lincoln got to his feet.

“Lincoln! Where are you going?” Janet’s shrill question reminded him that she’d been trying to talk to him.

Oh, well. He’d just be giving her something else to complain about when it came to him. Maybe that would make her happy. It wasn’t like it mattered, anyway. Their marriage was over, even if he hadn’t announced it to her yet. She’d made the decision for them both when she’d decided to have an affair.

“I need some air,” he shot back, putting his hand on the back of a chair to help him keep on the right path. Half turning had upset his equilibrium.

Shit, how much had he had to drink?

And how much of his dinner had henoteaten?

A tiny voice in his head said he should turn around and sit back down, that he was in no state to be going after his new son-in-law’s daughter. That whatever she was going through, it wasn’t his business.

But hell. Wiley was taking care of Rebecca right now, so why shouldn’t Lincoln return the favor and take care of Ashley?

Exactly what ‘take care of’ meant, he wasn’t entirely sure, but he knew he couldn’t let her go get in a car and drive away. If he was feeling the alcohol this much, she would be even worse off.

He escaped not a moment too soon. As he went through the door, he could hear the DJ announcing that it was time for the toasts.

No, thank you.

He hadn’t been asked to make one and didn’t particularly want to sit around and listen to them.

Seeing Ashley turn the corner up ahead, stumbling drunkenly, he picked up his pace. Having something to focus on him made him feel a little more confident on his feet—not to mention his desire to get the fuck away from the reception just in case his daughter changed her mind about having him talk and sent someone looking for him.

Rounding the corner, he came to a halt when he found her a few feet away, leaning against the wall. She jumped as he appeared, nearly falling over, and he lurched forward to catch her again—which almost knocked him over because he wasn’t all that steady on his feet, either.

Twisting, he managed to keep from fallingandto keep her from falling, but he ended up leaning against the wall nearly where she had been, with her in his arms. Her body pressed against his, hands on his chest, as she stared up at him wide-eyed.

Fuck.

His body stirred in a way he hadn’t felt in far too long, his cock perking up with interest.

The urge to shove her away battled with the knowledge that his wife was cheating on him, so what did he owe her?

She’s half my age.

A twenty-year age difference. Wiley is twenty-three years older than Rebecca. If he can do it, why not me?

She’s my daughter’s daughter-in-law. Her former best friend.

“We have to stop meeting like this,” Ashley said breathlessly, still staring at him.

That was when he realized they’d both been staring at each other for a long minute, andneitherof them had moved. Considering he was leaning against the wall and she was basically on top of him, he couldn’t move without dislodging her, but she was still leaning all of her weight against him.

Not only that, but the way she was looking at him…

It didn’t matter how drunk he was. His cock understood what that look meant.

And responded accordingly.

7

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