Dangerous Temptations(34)

"Do you want to talk? I know we aren't close on that level, but if you  ever need an ear … " she started and I looked up at the hopeful face in  front of me. She was sweet, only a couple years younger than I was. "I'm  here if you need it," she finished, and I nodded a thank you back. I  wasn't ready to talk about this to anyone besides Staci and even then, I  wasn't even really making sense.

Hell, nothing was making sense to me anymore.





"TO GIRL'S NIGHT out!" Staci shouted over the music.

"To one of my last nights out as a single woman!" Brittainy added,  clinking our glasses together. I smiled as we all took our shots,  squirming in our seats as the alcohol burned down our throats.

"I can't believe you're getting married soon!" I said, pouting my lower  lip out. Brittainy was a great friend and she deserved all the happiness  coming her way, but I was going to miss our routine girl nights out.  After their honeymoon, they were moving out of the city and into a more  ‘family friendly neighborhood,' which meant our nights out would be  limited.

"I know!" she smiled wide. "I feel like nothing is ready."

Staci grabbed her hand and squeezed it. "It'll be perfect, Britt! Everything is going to be fine. The flowers were re-ordered … "

"And I'll call Henri first thing in the morning. I'm sure he can fill the spot."

"Yes, we'll figure this out!" Staci promised. Brittainy slowly exhaled  in relief. One of her caterers had a family emergency and flew out of  state. He wasn't sure when he would be returning, so they were going to  be short staffed. But I knew Henri would help me out in a heartbeat.  I've hired him for several of my other events in the past year.         

     



 

"I don't know what I'd do without you ladies!" Brittainy was almost in  tears, the stress evident on her face as everything was becoming  overwhelming.

I tried to picture myself in her shoes a year from now when William and I  were supposed to be exchanging our vows. The thought used to excite me  and now I was feeling terrified-terrified I was making a horrible  decision and feeling I'd regret it the second we walked down the aisle.  And that thought alone made me sick.

"So, Mac, how's the wedding planning going for you?" Brittainy asked,  interrupting my thoughts. I hadn't told her anything about Alex or  William. I wasn't sure what there was to say considering my own head was  a train wreck.

"It's going smoothly so far," I said, pulling the straw from my vodka  cranberry into my mouth. Staci had ordered another round of drinks and I  was more than willing to accept. "I meet with the wedding coordinator  about once a month."

"Ah, you're so lucky you have a planner! Jason wouldn't let me, so I've  had to deal with his bossy, demanding mother for the past nine months."  She scowled, making me burst out in laughter. It wasn't necessarily a  funny situation, but her expression, when she talked about her future  mother-in-law, was never a pleasant one.

"Honestly," I began. "I would've been content with something small and  intimate. The whole big, white wedding was William's idea."

"After planning a whole big ordeal, I can't say I blame you! I'm never  getting married again! This marriage will have to work or I'm eloping  next time," she said with a giggle. She was sucking down the drinks  faster than I was.

We laughed and gossiped the rest of the night. It was great catching up  with them and clearing my head. Alex was still on my mind, but the  alcohol flowing through my blood was making me not care. And right now, I  didn't want to care about anything.





AS I STUMBLED in just after midnight, I was seriously regretting that  last round of shots. Staci had insisted, and I gave myself a mental note  to kick her ass next time I see her.

The apartment was dark except for a hallway light. I tiptoed as quietly  as I could so I wouldn't wake Alex, but as soon as I rounded the corner  toward the living room, I bumped straight into the side table and  knocked the lamp over.

"Shit!" I whispered to myself. I grabbed the lamp and set it back on the  table, but then the table fell again and I couldn't see straight so I  said fuck it.

I tossed the lamp on the empty couch and continued my way toward the  bedroom. I flicked the light on and kicked my shoes off. I needed to get  in bed and sleep it off. Not to mention I had to be up in six hours for  work.

"What the fuck?" I heard Alex growl from behind me. Oh, shit.

"Sorry," I said, cringing as I tried to hold myself up. "I didn't mean to wake you."

"I wasn't asleep." He sounded pissed but didn't continue.

"Oh … okay. Well, I'm fine." I unbuttoned my skirt and shimmied it down,  taking a step and tossing it off. I walked toward the bathroom, needing  to brush the taste of alcohol out of my mouth. "I just need to get to  bed. For sleep. I need sleep," I rambled, pulling at my top and yanking  it over my head. I threw it on the floor and walked to the sink,  grabbing my toothbrush in the process.

"Are you fucking wasted?" He followed me in and stupidly, I glanced and  looked at him. He leaned up against the doorframe, crossing his arms and  scowling at me.

"I may have had a bit too much." I shrugged, attempting to put the  toothpaste on my brush, but the damn tube was not cooperating. "It was  girl's night out," I explained.

"How the hell did you even get home?" he questioned in a harsh tone,  stepping toward me. He grabbed the tube and my brush, putting the paste  on for me. He rinsed it under the water before handing it back to me.

"I took a cab," I said just before putting the brush in my mouth. I  looked at him through the mirror, him glaring at me, obviously not happy  with my decision to drink tonight. Hell, I was not happy with it either  right now. I was definitely going to pay for it later, but I needed to  take the edge off. I needed to feel numb.         

     



 

"You're an idiot," he spat out, still burning his eyes into mine. "Something could've happened to you."

I rinsed the brush and spit before placing it back on the counter. I  grabbed a towel and wiped my mouth, all while his eyes followed me. I  finally looked at myself in the mirror and realized I had stripped down  to just my panties and bra.

Shit.

I watched him again and realized he hadn't taken his eyes off mine,  meaning he was trying really hard not to look down. The Alex I knew  would've used any excuse to embarrass me by looking. But his mouth  remained in a firm line and his face was expressionless.

"Okay, fine," I finally agreed, walking past him and back into my room.  "I shouldn't have drank that much, I know. But I'm home safe and  everything is fine. Can you stop scolding me now? Geez."

He followed me out and grabbed my elbow before I could reach the bed,  spinning me around and pressing me up against his chest. "No, it's not  all right, Mac. I was worried sick. William might not care that you're  out until midnight getting pissed, but I do. I fucking care, Mac."

His face turned soft just before going back to his  normal-Alex-pissed-off face. I didn't know how to respond. I wasn't  thinking straight, that was obvious, but I couldn't talk to Alex. Not  right now.

"Okay. I'm sorry, Alex. It was irresponsible, especially since you were  probably expecting me home much earlier. I'm truly sorry."

I didn't make any attempts to back away as he caged me in his arms. They  were warm and hard, and I loved the feeling of them. His lips finally  curled into a knowing grin as his eyes scanned down my bare body. "You  always strip down when you're drunk, or am I just lucky?" He winked.

I shrugged, playing along. "Right time, right place."

A laugh escaped deep from within his throat as he threw his head back in  amusement. "Jesus, you're feisty when you drink. Come on." He guided me  toward the bed and pulled the covers back. "Get in." I gladly did,  letting him pull the covers over me and tuck me in.

"Thanks, Alex," I mumbled. "You're sweet when you want to be."

I heard an amused chuckle and looked over at him. He was shaking his  head at me, fighting a smile. "Just what every guy wants to hear."

"You know what I mean." I laughed, adjusting myself beneath the covers,  my eyes heavy. "You're all wild sex god in bed, but on the surface,  you're a genuinely, good guy." I rested my hands under my head and  started to doze off.

"Wild sex god? Is that what Google's saying about me these days?" I heard the amusement in his tone.

I laughed into the pillow, shaking my head. "Nope … that's from pure experience."

He stilled next to me, the exchange of inhaling and exhaling the only  noise I could focus on. My eyelids were too heavy to see what he was  doing. I felt him brush a hand over my forehead before placing a quick  kiss.