Page 27 of Ricochet

CHAPTER TWELVE

As weddings went, Adelia decided that Seven and Jax’s wedding was beautiful. But beyond that, it had been meaningful. Before it had started, the afternoon moved slowly with her mind on Colin. Then everything happened at once. Guests arrived quickly. She, Victoria, and Seven ducked into the side room. Then they were thrown out to the sound of a piano. Adelia didn’t trip walkingdown the aisle.

What was beautiful became amazing—and fun—because, of course, they had thought of party games, and there had been so many kids running around that it made the adults do the same and kick the gathering into a party.

Adelia spun her puzzle piece around her finger. A heart. She’d checked every person she could find, at one point going table to table and coming up empty. Maybe itturned out she was destined to be by herself tonight after all, even as it seemed everyone else had paired up. She didn’t even want to pair up! Hooking up wasn’t in the cards.

Actually, she’d wanted to find Colin, but she hadn’t seen him much after the wedding ceremony. Sophia and Javier weren’t anywhere to be seen either, and if Tex dropped dead, Adelia probably wouldn’t want to party either.

Where was everybody, anyway? Victoria and Ryder had wandered off, and Adelia needed table mates because Seven and Jax were making her gag.

“We’re on a mission,” Victoria said.

Behind her, Ryder stepped close with Colin, and Adelia felt as though she’d had one too many glasses of wine. She almost fell out of her chair trying not to react as Colin and Victoria tried in vain to connect their puzzlepieces.

“We can’t make these work.”

“These games were your idea,” Ryder said to Seven.

“Absolutely!” She beamed, looking perfect in her princess dress. “I wanted to make sure everyone talked to each other.”

“She’s going to sulk all night long that I didn’t unlock her heart.” Ryder pretended to give Seven an evil eye but cracked up.

“My key is heartless.” Colin held his key on the tip of hisfinger, and Adelia’s heart skipped a beat. The broken man from earlier was gone, and Adelia was glad that however he’d been able to forget, he’d done so.

She stared at Colin longer than she should. The trinket twirled on his index finger, and his eyes stayed on it like the toy was a treasure. The music shifted, breaking his concentration, and his chin tilted up. A deep ache hid in the shadowsof his unguarded face—until Ryder’s laughter brought Colin’s attention back to the moment.

Still, Colin dropped his gaze back to the mate-less puzzle. The silly game was ridiculous, yet give her a couple glasses of wine, and she suddenly had serious notions about grade-school party favors.

Ryder gagged. “I gave my heart to Hawke and look at the guy making out in the corner with someone halfhis age. I’d like to think I had something to do with that.”

“Did you just gag?” Victoria rolled her eyes. “He gagged.”

“That maybe a little gag-worthy.” Adelia laughed, having seen that disaster of Hawke-and-more-than-half-his-age more times than she could count.

The table bantered about who Hawke’s perfect woman might be until Victoria jumped up over a song and demanded Ryder dance withher—Jax and Seven too.

“She doesn’t want us to dance,” Adelia joked to Colin. “Didn’t even ask if we’re doing good.” Adelia straightened, smiling at her best friends. “I’m not good.” She held up her partner-less heart-puzzle piece. “And I’ve looked everywhere.”

Colin feigned heartbreaking disappointment, and Adelia wondered how much of his heart was still broken from the terrible news earlier.“Didn’t ask me, either, V.” He flipped his key in the air, acting a hundred percent calmer than a moment ago. Maybe he was faking all the heartache right now, and that was good. “The non-married crowd is feeling excluded.”

Victoria huffed as though annoyed, but her joking made Ryder chuckle as he wrapped his arms around her, dancing. “Oh, for goodness sake, you two. Did you even try your puzzlepieces together?”

That question had been in Adelia’s head. Why hadn’t she asked him?Because I never do those things first.There were consequences. It was one thing to always think someone was attractive. It was another to know something personal about him. For all the time they’d been acquainted, they’d never actually known anything about each other, but the time spent at the church earlierchanged him from this handsome man to a real person.

But mostly, every action had a consequence. That was Mayhem’s code, and it was also her Pops’. Tex had an odd idea of how a father figure should raise a daughter, and that led him to be over-protective. It stemmed from decades of life in a motorcycle club where there was less-than-savory behavior toward and from women.

Colin met her eyes asif he hadn’t realized they’d missed the obvious and held out his key. “Sometimes, I need to open my eyes.”

Adelia sucked in her lower lip as the music floated away into a swirling buzz of hope and adrenaline. This was a simple children’s game, but in her mind, she’d placed too much on it in the last few ticks of time.

The lightweight plastic heart weighted her palm to her skirt. The edge ofhis thumb rubbed over the top of his key, and Colin leaned toward her. His calm smile didn’t part his lips. Only the corners of his mouth turned up, but a sea of blue in his eyes compelled her to stop holding back. Adelia lifted her key to his heart. The plastic touched plastic. The pieces didn’t connect, but their fingers did, and she would gladly take the consolation prize of his warmth, how hedidn’t move away, and the way Colin’s eyes grew more brilliant.

“Oh well, it’s okay,” she whispered, even as silly disappointment registered.A silly game, anyway...But she would keep these butterflies.

His other hand clasped behind hers, holding her key in place and—click. Adelia straightened, surprised. Their eyes connected, and his mild smile changed into an effortless one.

“Oh, my goodness!”Nearly jumping out of her seat, she shook their connected pieces. “Colin! You had the key to my heart the whole time!”

---