Ember In The Heart

“Colt won’t mind,” Jade said and I realized she’d read my thoughts when she continued, “If Celeste and Luna get a little wild later.”

“Let’s just hope there’s no stripping involved,” I muttered, taking another sip of my drink.

Jade winced at the reminder Luna had stripped at my thirtieth birthday party. An event that sparked one of the darker periods in our relationship.

“Sorry, shouldn’t have mentioned it.”

“Did I tell you how gorgeous you look?” Jade smiled, changing the subject.

“Thank you.” While I was sure all the ladies would wear dresses of a similar ilk to my sister, I couldn’t help but be myself. Though I did pay careful attention to Jade’s wedding colors when I chose it. I was her Maid of Honor after all. My dress was a blush/rose gold colored silk-georgette gown, fitted at the waist with a full skirt. The sleeves were sheer and billowy but tight at the wrists. All of that was pretty demure. Except for the plunging neckline and tie-opening back. And I had boobs so it was pretty daring. There was a lot of tape holding me into it. “Not too much?”

My sister grinned. “Just enough. You look hot. Who knows, maybe you’ll meet someone.”

I tried not to roll my eyes. Ever since Jade had fallen in love, she’d become determined that there was still hope for me too. I wasn’t sure about it anymore and, honestly, I was okay with that. My life was great. I no longer needed romance to be fulfilled.

Suddenly guests began streaming into the suite and Colt turned toward us, gesturing to Jade.

“I better go.”

“Have fun,” I reminded her.

* * *

Around twenty minutes later I stood chatting with Celeste, Moon, Linzi and Luna. It was rare for us all to be in the same room at the same time these days so I enjoyed our random chatter about everything and nothing while Jade circled the room with her fiancé.

“Oh my God, you can’t let me drink too much of this stuff,” Luna said, grabbing another glass of champagne as a waiter passed by. Her eyes popped out of her head, expression sheepish. “I’m not used to alcohol anymore. It’ll go straight to my head.”

“Loosen up.” Celeste clinked her glass against Luna’s. “Girl, you spend twenty-four seven looking after three kids. I think you can let loose for a night.”

“So true.”

“Hey sisters.” Jade bumped my elbow and I turned to greet her. She wasn’t alone. “Cole and I wanted to introduce you to Cole’s business partner and best man. Guys, this is Foster. Foster, these are my sisters.”

Colt stood next to an extremely tall, extremely handsome young man, who nodded at each of my sisters with his lips pressed tightly together. Then he got to me, our dark eyes connected, and the breath whooshed out of my body. His lips parted as if I’d surprised him, and he searched my face, perusing my body, slowly, hotly, before returning to meet my gaze.

I shivered.

He had an angular jaw, just a hint of scruff on his cheeks, full lips and beautiful brown eyes as dark as my own. Foster’s dark brown hair was almost black and he wore it short but a little longer on top, swept back off his forehead. He was the kind of good-looking that was so perfect I usually found it a turn-off … but something about those glittering, brooding eyes of his held me utterly captive.

Which was ridiculous because I knew from what Jade had told me, the guy was eleven years my junior. I was absolutely not into younger men. They weren’t done maturing yet and ‘yet’ in that sentence was often optimistic.

Tell that to your body.

“Hi.” I held out my hand to break our tension-filled staring contest.

To my shock, the heat I’d thought I’d seen in his eyes turned ice cold. He eyed my offering like I’d just offered him a glass of pee. Politeness dictated he take my hand but it was like shaking a limp noodle and he let me go so fast my arm dropped like a dead weight at my side.

Foster avoided my gaze and said to Colt, “I need to find my date.”

Jade caught my eye, her brows pulled together in confusion. I shrugged, because I didn’t know what had happened either.

Still, for some bizarre reason, I found myself looking for the weirdo as the night progressed. At dinner I spotted him at a table three over from us Bonet Sisters, sitting next to a stunning, age-appropriate red-head. She was dressed in a conservative pencil dress.

Throughout the evening I wasn’t short of dance partners which was great because I loved to dance. To my pleasant surprise, Colt’s circle of friends and business associates weren’t the stuffy, pretentious types I’d prejudged them to be. A lot of them were fun and hilarious and I had a good time. While I danced a slow dance with a man old enough to be my father but was also a perfect gentleman who kept his attention on my face (couldn’t say the same for some of my other dance partners!), I looked over his shoulder and my gaze got tangled in Foster Darwin’s.