Page 13 of Wild Pucker

"The first is that you play the part along with me. We can make whoever this fool is jealous together." That makes sense. If I want to sell this, I need to pretend I have it bad for Sam, and maybe my acting skills will be good enough to push Chase right over the edge of sanity and into my arms.

"And the second?"

"You let me take you out on a few dates—real ones—after we get back." I'm about to decline, but Sam holds up a hand to stop me. "I understand you're into this guy, but if he can't see what's right in front of him, maybe he doesn't deserve you. Maybe you deserve someone better."

I blush at his words and, despite myself, there is a flicker of something in my belly. Not butterflies—or indigestion—but something.

"And I promise that no matter what you decide after we go out a few times, we'll still be friends unless you decide you want something more."

I chew my bottom lip. People always say they'll be friends after crossing a line, and it never works out, but I'm in control here. I can go on a few dates with Sam and be platonic. I know I can. I'm just not sure he can.

"You promise we'll be friends no matter what I decide?"

"Scout's honour," he says solemnly, putting his hand over his heart. I laugh at the absurdity of the gesture.

"Okay then, we have a deal."

"No, Shortcake, we have a date."

I laugh again and gather my things so I can head home and finish packing. I give Sam directions to the resort and remind him to text me when he gets there so I can meet him in the lobby with his room key.

By the time I get home, I'm already second-guessing myself and wondering if I've made a colossal mistake. This is a risky move, but people always saybig risks, big rewards.

Operation Win Chase Wilder has commenced.

4

The Wedding Date

Chase

"You ready for this, man?" I ask Luke, clapping him on the back. We're out on a dock decked out in wedding decorations, making sure everything is perfect.

Luke has spent a fucking fortune on his wedding and planned this weekend-long event to the tits. Holly would have been happy with a simple ceremony in someone's backyard, but Luke wanted the wedding magazine centrefold experience. The entire resort has been overrun with Valentines and friends and family. No one without an invite is getting into this wedding, especially the press. Holly and Avery will be curating what goes out into the world via the team's social media accounts.

The ceremony is taking place on the waterfront of Lake Rosseau, and Luke and Holly couldn't have picked a better day. The weather is perfect. Not too hot, not too cold, and not a damn cloud in the sky. There is a small t-shaped floating dock with a wood-framed wedding arch covered in ferns, gardenias, and roses. I know the names of all the flowers because it was my job to tick everything off a checklist. It looks like something out of a fairy tale, which I guess is the point.

The dock is lined with white and blue rose bouquets leading down the aisle to an arch and small pedestal where Ollie will act as officiant. He joked that he may make a business of marrying people now that he's ordained. This is his second wedding this summer after he married his sister to Ryan in Turks and Caicos.

White chairs are set up in curved rows facing the water, with wireless speakers hidden throughout. Ollie will be mic'd up along with the bride and groom. There is a small boathouse where Holly and her bridesmaids will walk to the beach and down the dock aisle. Avery is her maid of honour and Taylor, Holly's sister, and Lily are her bridesmaids. I'm acting as best man, and Jake Owens and Hunter LaRoux are groomsmen.

Everything looks ready to go, including the groom.

"Are you kidding me?" Luke grins. "I can't wait."

It's true. Luke is crazy in love with Holly. We had dual bachelor and bachelorette parties in the Caribbean. It was an evening full of plastic penises and sex toys, where Luke absconded with his wife-to-be before midnight, and the newlyweds, Ryan and Avery, disappeared too. I spent the rest of the night watching Lily dance provocatively with Riley and rub up against half-dressed, oil-up men that I wanted to drown in the ocean.

Lily is driving me insane. She's a temptation that's becoming impossible to resist. It was easier when she was away at school and I was playing hockey in Florida, but now I have to see her every fucking day. I feel like I'm being punished. And watching my teammates drool over her and her food gives me the urge to put my fist through their faces.

Luke's already laid down the law around his sister. She's off-limits to any of the guys on our team, including me. I’m pretty sure he already suspects me of lusting after Lily, mainly because it's true and Lily hasn't exactly made a secret of pursuing me. That ship sailed when she charged ten-thousand dollars to her brother's credit card to buy me at a charity auction. It was the one and only night my resolve crumbled, and I kissed her.

I lost my mind. That's the only explanation I have for my slip in control. If someone hadn't knocked over a planter in the hallway, I probably would have fucked Luke's little sister up against a storage room wall. I was disgusted with myself, so I fled. But I'll never forget how I had her wrists pinned above her head, bruising her skin red.

I'll never touch Lily again. I won't demean her like that. If she knew all the shit I've done over the years, she'd be repulsed by me. Hell, I'm repulsed by me.

"Only a few more hours," Luke says, taking a deep breath and looking over the water. "Only a few more hours and Holly's mine forever."

"I'm happy for you, man. You deserve it."

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