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Chase
Holy fuck, this game was a killer. I thought I’d die of desire, watching Miranda’s mouth maneuver that damn chopstick. She’d pucker her lips and growl softly whenever a lifesaver fell off the end of it. She peeled her lips back to reveal her gleaming white teeth clenching down on that chopstick. Every time her lips came into my purview, my concentration was lost. Every time her lips puckered in frustration, my mind spun with all sorts of things I didn’t need to be thinking about my best friend’s sister.
“And, time!” Randa exclaimed.
I sighed as I took the chopstick out of my mouth. I looked down at the empty space in front of me and saw absolutely no lifesavers. I could have sworn I had some earlier, but now I didn’t have a one. Not a single fucking one. So, my eyes drifted over to Miranda’s empty space.
She had two, but the other people around us had piles of lifesavers sitting in front of them.
I didn’t even listen to their mother hand out the prize. One of their aunts won it with something insane, like twelve lifesavers caught and hauled out of the bowl. But, even between the two of us, I was the loser. Which meant my ass was on the line with this next game.
And it wasn’t pretty.
“Okay, everyone! The loser from each pairing needs to come and stand at the front of the room, please,” Randa said.
“Adios,” Miranda said, grinning.
I rolled my eyes and sighed as I made my way up to the front of the room. I stood beside everyone else, and the instructions were simple. As their mother handed out a roll of toilet paper to us all, she instructed us that we had to build a wedding dress out of the stuff. On the partner that beat us out in the lifesaver-ring-toss bullshit that happened.
Oh Lord.
I looked over at Miranda and crooked my finger, and watched her cheeks flushed.
Oh, that color was perfection on her.
She came up and stood in front of me, holding her arms out. Her curvy form was mine to manipulate and cover in toilet paper, so I’d make the most if it. Their mother blew the whistle and I got to wrapping it around her. First, just a base that wrapped around her entire body.
My arms floated around her as her chest lightly brushed against mine.
I started at the top, tucking the toilet paper into the top of her dress. And when my fingertips brushed against her skin, I heard her suck in a sharp breath. I felt myself overheating, being so close to her. And the more I inched down her body, the closer I got to her womanhood. I swore I could smell her. That woody, salted nirvana between her thighs. I rolled my lips in to keep myself from groaning out as people laughed and clapped their hands in enjoyment.
And because of my distraction, we ended up losing that game, too.
“You really are bad at these games,” Miranda said, giggling.
“Well, if you weren’t wiggling around so much, maybe I could have made you look like a princess instead of a mummy,” I said.
“Hey, I resent that comment. I bet I’m the hottest mummy ever created.”
Holy fuck, she hit that one right on the head.
While Miranda ripped herself out of the toilet paper, I slipped out the back door of the private room. I stepped out into the alleyway, then propped the door open. I needed some fresh air. Some privacy to breathe so I could get my fucking erection to go away. I felt it bulging against my pants, so I quickly dipped my hand beyond my belt to rearrange myself.
“Can I get a moment?”
I cleared my throat and ripped my hand out of my pants. Fucking hell, what did Patrick want? I cracked my neck and drew in a few short breaths, feeling the man approach my side in the alleyway. I didn’t hear the door close, so I knew it was still cracked. Which meant people were probably gathering to hear whatever it was this man had to say to me.
“Of course. Anytime,” I said.
“I hear you saw Melanie last night,” Patrick said.
I flickered my eyes over to him before I nodded.
“Yep. Got into town, checked into my hotel room, then went over there for the suit fitting.”
“You didn’t stay for dinner?” he asked.
“Mel had to run over and fix the catering problem, so no, I just went on to the fitting. I didn’t get a chance to have dinner with them.”
I tried not to enhance the word ‘family’ too much. Though, I wanted to. The man’s possessiveness and jealousy wreaked, and I didn’t want to ruffle any feathers at the damn wedding shower.
“How long are you going to be in town for after the wedding?” Patrick asked.
“I’m staying through next weekend, then it’ll be back to the city for me. I have to start work again a week from Monday,” I said.
He nodded. “Has Mel told you about our honeymoon at all?”
“Nope. Haven’t spoken with her much.”
“Well, I’m whisking her away for three weeks to Bora Bora. And the plan is to not bring cell phones or laptops with us.”
I nodded. “That’s good. That’s how I’d want to enjoy my honeymoon. No distractions or anything.”
“Exactly. No distractions.”
I felt him turn toward me, so I mocked his movements. I stood eye-to-eye with the man, and I saw the frustration in his stare. Oh, he was not happy I was here. And I had been put in an uncomfortable situation. I didn’t want to piss off my best friend’s future husband, but he was making it very hard for me to not call him out on what he was doing.
“Sounds great. Hope you have a great time,” I said, holding out my hand to shake his again, but he refused to take mine.
“I get that you and Mel are close. But, I’m the man in her life. I’m the one who provides the foundation she needs to keep her head on straight. And I want to make sure you play your role properly, even though you’re technically part of my wedding party,” Patrick said.
My hand slowly fell to my side. “I understand completely.”
“You’re the man who broke Mel’s heart. To me? You’re nothing more. And if you try to be more to her this week, there will be an uneven number of men to women up there in the wedding party. And she’ll just have to deal with it.”
“Deal with it. Have you met Mel?” I asked.
“Have you? You haven’t been around for years. She’s changed a great deal.”
“I’m very well aware of how much she’s changed.”
He licked his lips. “And you won’t become aware of much more this week. Or during our honeymoon. If you are the least bit confused about your place in her life, I’ve got no issues rescinding your invitation to the wedding.”
I frowned as Patrick’s eyes fell down my body.
“I hear you loud and clear, but I’m telling you. You’ve got nothing to worry about,” I said.
“I’ll be the judge of that.”
Watching him head inside, I began to wonder if my participation in this wedding was a mistake. I sighed heavily, my erection fully gone at that point.
Guess that’s one benefit to this conversation.
I stood outside for a long time, contemplating many things. I could leave. I could walk straight down the alleyway and flag down a taxi. I would simply tell Mel I wasn’t participating in the wedding because I didn’t feel comfortable with it. I could come down with the flu, or some shit like that.
Unable to settle on a course of action, I eventually went back inside.
I sat down next to Miranda while the bride and groom were opening their gifts. She looked over at me with a quizzical expression, my food cold on my plate. I watched the best man hand presents over to Patrick, while Mel’s maid of honor handed her all the small bags to open.
“Why aren’t you the maid of honor?” I asked.
I watched Miranda’s face tighten before her lips pursed. Ah, one of those topics. Great. I guess everyone else was having a splendid evening. But after I’d settled in for a bit, Miranda spoke up.
Something I didn’t think she would do.
“Mel has had a hard time balancing the groom’s choices with her own. Making you a groomsmen required a certain level of compromise on her part,” she said.
I snickered. Great. Just fucking grand. Miranda got bumped as the maid of honor in exchange for me being a groomsmen.
Patrick struck me as a hard-ass, but I would never have taken him to be someone that petty.
“Plus, Jacy and Mel have been close ever since their kindergarten years. She’s the only lifelong friend Mel has. Me and Mel, growing up, weren’t really that close. I mean, we’re sisters. But, not that kind of sisters, if you get what I’m saying.”
“Sure, I get it,” I said.
I got the fact that Patrick was an asshole.
“You missed the present Mom got for them,” Miranda said.
“What was it?” I asked.
“A gift card that doesn’t expire to the baby outlet store in town,” she said, giggling.
“Holy shit. I bet Mel just about died.”
“Patrick almost had a heart attack, that’s for sure.”
“Can you return gift cards?” I asked.
She shook her head. “Nope. But luckily you can return things like that hideous blanket Mel just opened. Which she will definitely be doing.”
“Why would you get a bridal couple some random patchwork blanket?” I asked.
“No clue, but that’ll be returned. No doubt.”
“But those crystal candle holders Patrick just opened? I think he’ll keep those. He strikes me as a man who likes scented candles.”
Miranda giggled, and the game devolved from there. As every gift was opened, we predicted whether or not it would be returned and why. I was drawn to Miranda’s sense of humor, to her laughter. Thankfully, the game helped to banish the interaction with Patrick from my mind.
Though, it did nothing to banish the salacious images of Miranda from my every thought.
If anything, it only made things worse.
