He sat back, opting to let her off the hook. It wasn’t the time to push her on this—or any other—issue. When she realized that she’d dodged a bullet with Marty, maybe he could convince her that she deserved passion in her life. And damned if he didn’t want to give her the first taste.
Not tonight, though. She was still hurting, so he forced himself to steer things back to a safer path. “Your turn,” he said with what he hoped was an affable smile.
An hour later, the bottle between them was almost—he squinted and tried to bring it into focus—three-quarters of the way empty. They’d ceased any pretense of keeping up the game and had spent the last thirty minutes talking. Not about Lacey’s situation but about everything else. Her job as marketing director for her family’s law firm, his last fight, and what he planned to do when his boxing days were behind him. At some point as they talked, she’d made her way onto the couch next to him and had burrowed her bare feet under his thighs.
His cell phone vibrated in his pocket and he pulled it out to peer at the text.
Call me.
“I’ve got to call Cat. You want to talk?”
She shook her head. “Not right now.”
He hit the call button and his sister picked up after one ring. “Hey.”
“Where’d you end up taking her?”
“The cottage.”
“You drove her all the way to the cottage in her wedding dress?”
He paused, wondering how much he should say, and went for a half truth. “No, she, ah, took that off at the reception hall.” The buttons and the ripping and the creamy skin and his subsequent boner? Not relevant. “In fact, it’s probably still in the back parking lot.”#p#分页标题#e#
Cat cracked out a shocked laugh. “Woo-hoo! Good for her. I’m going to have to get her a plaque or something to celebrate her total kick-assery for doing that. Did you guys stop and get her a new phone before you dropped her off? I’m worried about her being alone.”
“I’m still with her.” Cat was quiet for so long, he wondered if the call had been dropped. “Hello?”
“I’m here.”
Her suspicious tone made him feel twitchy, so he hurried to explain. “You said it. She didn’t want to be alone, and I didn’t feel right leaving her.”
“You’re being nice, right?”
“Of course,” he grumbled. “What am I, a monster?”
“Well, should I come there? After dealing with the guests, all the details, and Lacey’s mother, I’m stone cold sober now, so I don’t mind driving up.”
She definitely sounded sober, but she also sounded exhausted. It couldn’t have been an easy night holding down the fort and keeping Lacey’s family at bay. From what he knew of her, Rowena Garrity was one tough bitch. “I don’t think you need to. We’re managing fine, and she’ll need you more tomorrow, I’m sure.”
“How is she holding up so far?”
He snuck a glance at Lacey. Her head had lolled to the side. Light snores trembled on her lips and he resisted the urge to run his thumb across the plump bottom one. “She’s good, considering.”
“Does she want to talk to me?”
“She’s sleeping right now. I’ll have her call you in the morning.”
“It’s only eight o’clock at night,” she protested. “Wait, are you guys drunk?”
“Her, totally. Me…mostly.”
She chuckled on the other end of the line. “Good. She’s so uptight sometimes, I was afraid she wouldn’t let herself have a day to break down a little. I was half thinking she’d be in a hotel somewhere writing apology letters to the wedding guests and re-mapping her future out on a spreadsheet or whatever.” She paused. “Listen, I’m sorry I doubted you. I’m sure you’re doing a great job, and I feel a lot better knowing she’s got someone there looking out for her.”
They said their good-byes and he disconnected, setting the phone on the coffee table.
Lacey stirred, opening her eyes. “Cat worried?”
He nodded. “Yeah, but I told her you were handling it like a champ.”
She used the arm of the couch to drag herself into a sitting position. “You really think so? Because it sure doesn’t feel that way.”
Her hair was sticking out in all directions and he reached out to pat it into place. “I do.”
When he pulled back, she clutched his hand to her cheek and murmured, “Thanks again for all of this.”
He allowed himself to stroke the soft skin with his finger for a second before pulling away. “No sweat. You ready to get some sleep?”