And he’d tell her.
He felt fucking lousy.
A part of him had to wonder if this had all been planned on her part. If she’d deliberately set out to seduce him, get him all hot and horny, and then walk away. But he couldn’t believe she could be so cruel and calculated. Not his Christine. He didn’t think she could fake the panic he’d seen in her eyes as she clung to the doorknob.
She’d looked as if she was about to cry, scream, or both.
He kicked off the covers and then padded barefoot into the bathroom to turn the shower on. He was still hard as a rock. His body wasn’t satisfied with the half-assed replacement of his hand—and neither was he. But he was ready to face the day again, and he had a lot to figure out.
He’d hurt Christine, and he owed her a hell of a lot of ass-kissing to make up for it. But he wasn’t walking away. Not this time. Hearing what he already knew, how much he affected her, had hurt him more than he expected. But she wanted him anyway. There was no denying that. Nothing would stop him from winning her over now.
They weren’t over.
After showering and dressing in a pair of shorts and a T-shirt, he picked up his wedding itinerary. When he got married, if he ever got married, it would be simple and low-key. No waltzes or scheduled meals or…what was today, anyway?
Ah, the scavenger hunt. Yeah, that wouldn’t work either.
He grabbed his gear and filled it with the few essentials he could scavenge from his hotel room. Maybe he would pack a sleeping bag and camp out under the stars tonight if the mood struck. Take a break from the incessant chattering and socializing and schmoozing. Just him and the stars. Hell, maybe he could even find a way to get Christine to camp out with him.
They could start over again.
Yeah, he had a better chance of seeing a pig fly wearing a purple fucking tutu than he did of convincing her that she should spend some quality one-on-one time with him. She’d made it pretty clear she wanted nothing to do with him after that come-and-run stunt she’d pulled last night.
Good thing he didn’t give up easily.
He threw in a bottle of vodka he’d bought at the store, collected his sleeping bag, and headed into the hallway. At this rate, he’d be lucky if he had enough time to grab a quick breakfast along the way. He would get to the meeting point, make certain he didn’t pair up with anyone besides Christine, and if that failed? Then he’d split on his own.
Drink. Think. Plan.
And by the time he was done, he’d know what to do with her. He walked in smooth, even strides and squared his shoulders, looking straight ahead for the first time in he didn’t even know how long. No more looking back for him.
The past was dead.
…
Once he grabbed a blueberry muffin and a black coffee from the coffee shop, he walked out into the bright sunlight and headed for the scavenger hunt. As Tyler bit into his meal, he studied the person walking in front of him. She looked familiar but he couldn’t quite…
Aw, hell no. She wasn’t that grown up, was she?
“Sophie?”
Sophie turned around and eyed him before smiling, walking backward. “If it isn’t my future brother-in-law himself, in the flesh. You’re late.”
“So are you,” he pointed out, taking another bite. “And you’re going to run into something if you don’t turn around.”
“Yes, father.” She rolled her eyes and spun around, walking beside him. “I lost track of time. You?”
He grinned. “I kind of slept in.”
She lit up her phone. “I’d say so. Rough night?”
“You could say that,” he muttered. “You enjoying yourself so far? Fitting in with the girls, causing trouble, and breaking hearts along the way?”
Sophie lifted a shoulder and gave him a small smile. “A girl never tells. How about you? Fitting in with the girls?”
He snorted. “Oh yeah. You know it.”
“Is that why you slept in? Were you fitting in with one a little bit too late?”
Tyler pointed his muffin at her. “That’s enough of that talk, little sister.”
“I’m not your little sister.”
He swallowed a bite. “Might as well be after this wedding.”
She laughed. “I think I’ll pass. I heard how protective of the girls you are.”
“Who told you that? Let me guess. Kady.”
She smiled, her eyes on the crowd in front of them. When she caught sight of Kady standing with the other bridesmaids, she waved good-bye to Tyler and headed toward the bride-to-be.
Alone, he scanned the crowd. He spotted Christine’s red hair instantly. She had her back to him, but he could tell by the way she stiffened that she knew he’d arrived, even if he hadn’t caught her watching. She laughed at something the tall, dark-haired Brock said, and he stiffened.
Oh, is that how she wanted to play? Did she think he would get jealous because she was flirting with another man—a man could take what she offered and thank her with the flawless Southern charm that only a man like Brock could pull off?
Well, shit. It was fucking working.
She belonged to him.
Maybe he should cut out even earlier than he’d been planning. Escape before Kady realized he’d shown up. He’d find a nice quiet spot, camp out, and relax. Christine stood across the group, talking to Kady, and he stood alone, standing on the edge of the crowd. He finished off his muffin and double-checked his bag for supplies. Being an Eagle Scout had ingrained some lifelong habits in him.
One of those? Never go on a hike unprepared for anything and everything to go wrong. He found his lighter, water bottles, vodka, a few protein bars, flashlights, and a sleeping bag. He dug deeper and snorted. So, he still had bunch of condoms from the last time he used this bag, but his compass was nowhere to be seen.
Eagle Scouts hadn’t taught him that one.
He heard a loud sigh and glanced up, squinting into the sun. Christine stood in front of him, tapping her foot impatiently. She looked as if she were ready to skin someone alive, and from the looks of it? That someone was him. “Yes?”
“According to your sister, we’re partners,” she said, hands on her hips. “I wouldn’t suppose you had anything to do with that, would you?”
“No. I’d been planning on sneaking off alone.” He looked down at his itinerary, determined to ignore her attitude. Looked like he was getting his wish without even having to try. Him and Christine off in the woods alone. “But I’m not exactly complaining about the change of events, either. I can’t wait to spend some more time reconnecting. Learning more about you. Last night was eye-opening for me. How about you?”
She opened her mouth and closed it; her cheeks flushing, she snatched the paper out of his hand. “There’s nothing more you need to know about me besides the fact that I’m not a big outdoors person. I hate bugs, especially spiders, and am terrified of being eaten by a bear.”
“I thought investigative journalists weren’t scared of anything,” he said, eyeing her. “Isn’t that a job requirement?”
“I’m not…except that stuff.” She shrugged and squinted down at the list. “Anything else? I’ll face it with nothing more than my fists.”
“Why did you decide to become a journalist anyway?” He seized the slip of paper back out of her hands and headed for the woods. “Last time we talked, you wanted to be a doctor.”
She pressed her lips together. “After my parents were killed by a drunk driver who was never caught, I decided I couldn’t live with other people going through that uncertainty. That pain. So I decided to do something about it.”
His chest tightened at how helpless she must have felt. “I’m sorry. I can’t even imagine how shitty that must have been for you.”
“It was very shitty.” Her lips twitched into a small smile, but she quickly dipped her head to hide it. But why? He loved her smile. She should stop hiding it from him all the damn time. “So I decided to become a journalist to help solve mysteries. I
briefly toyed with being a cop, but it wasn’t for me.”
Fuck no. He didn’t like the idea of her being shot at. “That’s quite the life change from a sorority girl.”
“I never wanted to be one in the first place.” She looked at him out of the corner of her eye. “I only joined because my mom wanted me to. After she died…well, there was no getting out of it without feeling as if I’d let her down. Plus, I had the girls.”
That was probably why she didn’t talk about it much. All the other girls had brought up their sisterhood numerous times, but he hadn’t heard Christine mention it even once. “So you’re not proud of your sorority sister status?”