Page 64 of Keeping Skylar
His hair is tousled, probably from running his hands through it all night, and though his icy blue eyes look tired, they still spark with life as he glances around the table at us. The sleeves of his jacket are pushed up, revealing those mouth-watering, sculpted forearms and the tattoos that snake along them. He’s pure sex on legs, and he damn well knows it.
“Nobody made her cry, loser. She just received my wedding invitation,” Hannah retorts.
Heath shakes his head at her. “Couldn’t even wait for me, huh.”
She shrugs. “I didn’t know when you’d come out of your dungeon, so, I decided to start without you. But if you must know ... Skylar accepted my invitation.”
“Did she now?” He looks at me and winks. “Skylar! You look ... sensational.” A spark of desire flickers in his eyes as they slowly trail down my body. My skin prickles with sudden warmth.
Nate lets out a snort, making the three of us glance in his direction. “What? Heath looks like he’s seconds away from ripping Skylar’s dress off,” he quips, earning him a growl from Heath, and a playful slap on the arm from his fiancée.
“Can you blame my brother? I mean look at her.” Hannah gestures to me. “Skylar’s a complete knockout.”
I’m pretty sure my cheeks are matching the shade of my dress. When I glance up at Heath, his intense gaze locks onto mine, making me feel all sorts of sheepish, as though he’s stripped me bare and I’m completely exposed to him.
“So, what’s on the menu tonight, brother? I’m starving,” Nate whines.
Heath finally looks away, and turns to his future brother-in-law. “Right. For your entrée, you will be served seared scallops with cauliflower puree, sprinkled with roasted walnuts and crispy prosciutto.” He looks over to Hannah. “For the main course, you’ll be having creamy spicy lobster and king prawn linguine.” Then, he looks at me, and grins. “And for dessert ... well ... that’s a surprise.” He winks at me.
I shift in my chair, attempting to ease the dull ache between my legs. How is it that Heath talking about dessert is turning me on right now?
We all nod and smile in appreciation, genuinely impressed with our menu for this evening. As Heath disappears into thekitchen to begin preparing our three-course meal, Hannah, Nate, and I order another round of drinks.
The dinner was exceptional, and the service was truly worth the five stars. We devoured our meals in no time, as if we hadn’t eaten in forever.
Heath outdid himself with both the entrée and main courses. By the time we finished, the three of us were leaning back, rubbing our bellies with huge, satisfied smiles across our faces. We’re now waiting for the final course for the evening, the dessert, which I’m sure is set to satisfy our palates once more.
Hannah and Nate have been the perfect dinner companions, entertaining me with stories about how they met—and the trouble Heath gave Nate when he found out his best friend was sleeping with his sister. Let’s just say Nate was lucky to walk away with both testicles still intact.
We talked about our families, Nate’s job as a landscape engineer, and my life in Sydney, careful to avoid any mention of Kaden—and I appreciated Hannah for doing the same.
I’m just about to stand up to use the restroom after a few too many drinks when the lights in the room slowly begin to dim. That’s when I hear it—the distinguished sound of several voices singingHappy Birthday.
I glance around the room, trying to pinpoint the source of the sound, and that’s when I finally catch sight of him. Heath has changed into a fitted navy button-down shirt and is carrying a stunning white cake with three sparklers on top.
He’s heading straight towards me, and my eyes widen in disbelief while my mouth falls open. Hannah and Nate look just as shocked, but they quickly jump in, singing along with the rest.
A short moment later, Heath and his crew finally reach our booth, surrounding us as they finish the song. I raise my hands to my mouth, desperately trying to hide the goofy grin that’s slowly taking over my face.
As soon as the song ends, Heath sets the cake down on the table, and slides into the seat next to me. “Make a wish, duchess,” he whispers into my ear.
I take a moment to admire the cake—rich, decadent, and almost too pretty to eat. As I close my eyes to wish for happiness, good health, and another year surrounded by the people I love, I feel Heath gently squeeze my knee, easing the flutter of nerves from being the centre of attention in a room full of people.
After making my wish, I open my eyes and try to blow out the sparklers, but those bloody things are impossible to extinguish. Heath notices my struggle and, without missing a beat, plucks them out one by one, dropping them into Nate’s glass of water. The sizzle is satisfying—Nate’s scowl, however, less so.
Just when I think nothing else could possibly surprise me tonight, Heath goes and does the unthinkable—he leans in and kisses me, right there in front of everyone. I hear Hannah let out a dramatic gasp, but we’re so caught up in each other, we barely register anyone else around us.
“Happy birthday, beautiful. I hope your wish comes true,” Heath murmurs into my mouth.
We break apart and Heath gently dismisses the staff with a nod and a ‘thank you’.
They quickly turn and walk away, going back to their usual work stations. A few minutes later, the lights return to normal and the room buzzes back to life. I still can’t believe that just happened.
“You did well, Heath,” Hannah praises, earning a playful wink from her brother. She lifts her phone and points it in ourdirection. “Here, let me get a photo of you two,” she says with a warm smile.
Not missing a beat, Heath wraps an arm around my shoulders and presses a soft kiss to my temple just as I smile at the camera.
Hannah flips her phone around to inspect the photo, her face lighting up with approval. “God, you two look ridiculously good together.” She spins the screen to show us, and I have to admit—we really do.
