Page 89 of Stolen Kisses
She cocked her head. “Why thank you, Mr. Sawyer.” Her arms draped off his shoulders, aligning her body with his. His hands rested on her waist, pulling her as close as was acceptable in the presence of others.
“Have I told you how beautiful you are tonight?” he asked.
“If you have, I don’t mind hearing it again.”
“You’re beautiful,” he whispered. “It’s all I can do to keep my hands off you tonight.”
Her cheeks darkened and she gazed up through her lashes at him. Yep, he could stare into this woman’s eyes for eternity. He was sure of that.
“Krista, I want to tell you something. I think…” He shook his head. “I know that I—”
“Bridal emergency!” Abby said, interrupting them and grabbing Krista by the arm. “Sorry, Noah, but duty calls.”
Noah cleared his throat, those three little words lodged just behind his tongue.
“Oh. I’ll catch you a little later,” Krista said, an apologetic tilt to her eyes.
He was sorry, too. “Yeah. I’ll hold you to that.”
—
After fixing a minor bridal mishap, Krista stood crowded in a group of other single women as Grace turned her back to them and held up the bouquet. Grace glanced over her shoulder, nonchalantly targeting Krista as she’d told her she would.
“Ready, ladies?” Grace called.
The group cheered.
Krista didn’t cheer, though. She was suddenly feeling spent. And a little nauseous. What had she eaten today? Abby’s cooking never made her feel bad, but she was feeling pretty rotten right about now. Maybe it was because she’d woken early and had run as fast as her feet would carry her ever since. Maybe she was coming down with something. Not good timing for that. Calling in sick to work right now was not ideal.
“One…two…three!” Grace flung the bouquet backward in Krista’s general direction. All the women closed in around her trying to nab their golden ticket to forever. Instead of lifting her hands to catch the flowers, Krista covered her mouth with one hand and dodged the women. She ducked away and darted toward the ladies’ room. The ladies’ room was two rooms really. One that served as a powder room and one with toilets and sinks. Krista took the covered bench in the powder room and sat down. She was suddenly shivering and sweating at the same time.
Sick. She was sick.
Leaning forward over her knees, she let the nausea roll up over her like ocean waves. This was probably just due to something she’d eaten. Except she hadn’t really eaten much today. Maybe she’d caught a virus at the hospital. A little niggle of doubt wormed into her thoughts. The condom-breaking incident was front and center in her mind again. What if she was pregnant?
She sat on the bench for a few more minutes. When she felt slightly better, she checked the mirror and decided to find Noah. Her maid-of-honor duties were pretty much over and she needed to go home. She pushed out of the bathroom and scanned the dying crowd, spotting him with his brothers and cousin Gabe along the far wall. She hated to pull him from a family event, but she also didn’t want to throw up on the dance floor and make that the most memorable thing of the guests’ evening. Grace would kill her.
Weaving between couples, Krista made her way toward Noah. When she was standing just behind him, more nausea curled in her belly. Without thinking, she pressed her hand against her stomach, willing the contents there to stay put.
“You’re next, bro,” she heard Sam say.
“What are you talking about?” Noah’s voice said.
“You and Krista, man.”
Krista’s ears pricked when she heard her name. She edged into Noah’s shadow, waiting to feel better and eavesdropping unintentionally. Okay, intentionally.
“Just like I warned you the other day. Now that you’re together, things will roll fast,” Sam said. “Next will be wedding vows, then you’ll be talking baby names. Just be careful.”
Krista’s heart was beating forcefully in her chest, which only made the nausea worse. How awkward would it be if they turned around now and discovered her listening in? She should walk away, find someone else to take her home. That’s what she should do. She didn’t move a muscle, though. Didn’t breathe for fear of being discovered. Something told her she needed to hear this conversation. She needed to know where Noah stood on these topics.
“Jack is the one who just got hitched. Not me,” Noah said.
“Yeah, but Jack can handle whatever comes his way.”
“And I can’t?” Noah asked. The irritation lining his voice was clear. Krista could imagine the muscles in his jaw ticking the way they did when he was upset.
“You remember what happened with you and that girl you dated in college,” Sam said. “You thought you got her pregnant and completely freaked out. Once you realized you were off the hook, you dumped her and left school. Dropped them both like a bad habit.”
