Heartthrob (The Bennett Brothers 3)

The sting hits my eyes at the same time my throat begins to clog.

Dammit! Weepy wimpsters strike again.

I quietly excuse myself, motioning to the restroom, and escape the emotional scene. Mathis is coming out of the bedroom, and when he sees me, he freezes.

“What’s wrong?”

“It’s that problem I have. That one I can’t seem to stop. Grandpa did something incredibly touching, and now the waterworks are flowing. I think it’s contagious.”

“What can I do to cure this problem?” His lips are twitching again, finding humor in my predicament.

“Make it stop. Give me a pill or a shot. There has to be a medical diagnosis.”

He slides his arms around my waist, clasping them at my lower back and stepping close. “I’ve told you there is absolutely nothing wrong with you, but if you’re looking for a distraction, we can sneak into the guest room.” He thrusts his hips to mine.

“Normally, yes, but Carl and Sharon are staying there.”

“Hmmm, that is a problem. How about this then?” He shifts where I’m pressed close and my chin rests on his chest, my face tilted to his. His blue eyes grow warm, piercing into mine. “Our Vegas wedding is not going to be in a shady, hideously decorated roadside chapel with strangers as witnesses. There will be no Elvis marrying us, and it will be legal, valid, binding, and one-hundred percent legit.”

My knees wobble, and I grip the bottom on his shirt to remain standing. “No Elvis?”

“Not a chance.”

“Vegas?”

“Bizzy got the beach. Grace got the peach orchard. My woman is getting glitz, glamour, and fireworks that light the sky. Something so extravagant, so incredibly bright and wild, so one of kind—exactly like her.”

“Spectacular,” I repeat Bizzy’s words.

“Spectacular,” he agrees.

That damn stinging hits my eyes again, and I squeeze them to push it back.

“You have to stop because if Grandpa sees me in this state, I’ll definitely lose my badass credibility.”

“Roy’s enamored with you. He scared me more than your father. Shaw, Carl, and Nick took great enjoyment in his drilling me about my intentions. There’s no way you’d los

e credibility with him.”

I open my eyes and the expression of love on his face is overwhelming. “I love you.”

There’s a flash of surprise before he crashes his mouth to mine. Our tongues tangle together, and I slip my hands under his shirt and slide them up over the muscles of his back until I’m clutching his shoulders for support.

A throat clears behind us, and I break away to find Shaw glaring at us. “What’s your problem?” The question comes out hoarse.

“My babies are in that room, and the way you two were going at it could have gotten out of hand.”

“We weren’t going to sneak in there and have sex on the floor!” I protest.

He crooks an eyebrow and moves his gaze to Mathis who is lightly shaking against me, and I realize my hands are still gripping his shoulder, his shirt bunched up.

“Fine! We’ll behave.” I drop my arms and glare at Shaw.

He spins to leave then calls back over his shoulder, “In case you two need to release some of that sexual tension, the guest bathroom has a very sturdy vanity.”

Mathis’s head falls to my neck, and I burst into giggles. Then I make a note to remember that for next time.

I sit across from Lora, biting my tongue as she stares in horror across the cafeteria. Inside I’m seething, but I can’t do anything about it. She’s fighting back tears as she watches Clint shamelessly flirting with a nurse we know well. The woman is a hospital floater, filling in where necessary, and tonight, she happens to be on our floor. She’s red-headed, busty, and a complete bombshell.