Page 39 of An Inconvenient Marriage
“We would have loved to have you at the wedding, but you must have been so busy with your current tour?”
Natalie withdrew her hand, and I took it immediately—for appearances and all.
My brother smiled, but I didn’t miss the hint of hurt in it. Soon I’d be able to explain everything to him, and hopefully he’d forgive me.
“Ah yes, the tour keeps me busy,” he said to Natalie before glancing at me. “You’re lucky, brother. Your wife is…” He shook his head. “Too beautiful for you.”
Holding his gaze, I let go of Natalie’s hand to slip my arm around her waist and tug her against me. Thankfully, she didn’t react like she had in the elevator. “I know.”
Javier stared at me for a moment, then let out a chuckle. To anyone who didn’t know him like I did, the sound would have been a happy one. But it wasn’t. This was his I-know-you’re-up-to-something-and-I’m-going-to-find-out-what chuckle.
I had half a mind to turn around and march back to our suite. The only thing keeping me from doing that was the woman tucked in beside me. Because I knew, I fucking knew, I wouldn’t be able to stop myself the moment I was alone with her.
“I don’t know about you,” I said to him, “but I am starving. Shall we eat?”
We made our way to the restaurant on the premises, and naturally, because of my brother’s fame, we were seated in an almost private booth in the back of the establishment. Which would have been perfect if I wasn’t sitting so close to Natalie.
It was clear the setting was more for couples who wanted to get out of their rooms for a meal but still be out of sight and close to each other. There was no way I was going to be able to think about anything else other than the way my leg pressed up against hers or how easy it would be to put my hand on her thigh and trail my fingers up.
Shit. Shit. Shit.
This wasn’t going to work.
“I have an idea,” Javier piped up.
Is that idea for you to leave so I can devour my wife?
Fresh air. I needed air. I never got out of sorts like this. And maybe it was seeing my brother and feeling guilty over my actions combined with finally being so close to getting my revenge.
Or maybe it was just Natalie.
I didn’t know. I didn’t care. I just needed to get a fucking grip.
“… now before you say no, I must tell you the tapas there are the best I’ve ever had. And the atmosphere is just…” He pressed his fingers together and kissed the tips before lifting his hand to the sky. “What do you say?”
I didn’t know what the hell my brother was talking about, but if it meant getting out of this way-too-small booth, I was all for it.
“Let’s go.”
13
Zach
Whatfreshhellwasthis?
If only I’d paid attention, I would have told Javier there was no way we were going to a damn nightclub with him. But because I’d been lost in who knew what, I now sat in yet another booth.
Although this one was bigger, we’d still have to sit close to each other to have a conversation. And then there was the beat and the people.
The place already smelled like sex and sin. How could it not? So many couples clung to each other, hips gyrating and thrusting to the rhythm of the sensual beat.
Yeah, this was way worse than the restaurant.
“Oh my gosh,” Natalie exclaimed next to me. “I don’t know what I expected, but it wasn’t this.”
That confused me. Sure, the music and the vibe were different, but other than that, this place was like every other nightclub I’d been to before. You had your neon accent lights behind the bar and along the dance floor—purple and teal here. Then there were the tables and booths, all placed in such a way that you could make conversation and still keep an eye on the main floor. There were fancy drinks and servers wearing almost nothing.
All in all, very standard.
