Out of Control(36)

“I’m going to freshen up.”

She could sense their eyes on her as she marched across the cabin to the small bathroom. Staring at herself in the mirror, she realized, with relief, that she looked the same. She washed up, splashed her face, and straightened her clothes. So much for keeping it strictly business between them. Zach had the ability to make her totally forget all her good resolutions.

A shiver of unease ran through her. It would be easier if she could go back to thinking of him as a lazy asshole. But she liked him and that scared her. Did she believe that they could be friends and enjoy each other? She didn’t have the experience to know. But he believed it. Zach didn’t do relationships. He wouldn’t ask for more than she was willing to give. Probably.

She wasn’t going to think about it until after the wedding. Then she’d talk to Jess, who was in charge while Jake was away, and she’d tell her to go find someone else to babysit Jake’s buddy.





Chapter Ten

“Ugh. You’ve got to be kidding—pink?” Dani held the dress up against her and scowled at herself in the mirror. “You know, I didn’t sign up for any pink dresses.”

Kim grinned. “It will suit you, and it’s hardly pink-pink.”

Dani supposed she was right; the dress was a dark dusky pink. But pink was pink.

“It was a sort of dare,” Kim said. “I told Jake I’d wear the whole long white dress thing if he told the two of you that you were wearing pink dresses.”

“I’m not sure he ever did tell me,” Dani said. “I might have run in the other direction.”

“You probably weren’t paying attention. He told me,” Jess said. “And I told him—do your worst. No pink dress is going to scare me.”

But then Jess would no doubt look gorgeous in the dress. She looked gorgeous in anything, with her perfect oval face, tall slim body, and fall of almost white, platinum-blond hair. The perfection was only made more obvious by the scar that ran down her right cheek to the corner of her mouth.

Kim was also tall and slender and beautiful, her dark brown hair streaked with various shades of red. Her honey-colored eyes glowed with happiness. Sandwiched between the two of them, Dani felt like a midget.

She was glad for Kim, but it made her feel alone somehow. Kim hadn’t believed in love, but obviously, Jake had convinced her. What would it be like to feel like that? To love someone and know he cared in return, to trust that he would always care. That he wouldn’t one day turn his back on you, abandon you when you needed him most. Or die.

She shook her head. It had been so long since she’d allowed herself to think of her family, and she really didn’t want to start now. This was Kim’s day and she would put on a big smiley face for it.

“I would have been happy with a registry office wedding, but Jake’s mother wanted to do this and…” Kim gave a resigned shrug. “She’s a nice lady.”

“God knows where Jake got his personality from then. Because I don’t think ‘nice’ comes into his makeup anywhere.”

“Hey, he’s…” Kim trailed off. “Okay, maybe not ‘nice,’ but he has his moments.”

“I bet he does,” Jess said drily. “Do any of those moments take place on his desk? I still can’t look at that desk and not see the two of you—”

“Shut up. More than shut up. Forget I ever told you that.”

“Can’t. I’ve tried but the image is indelibly imprinted on my mind.”

Dani grinned as she let the conversation wash over her. These two were her friends. She’d known Jess since they joined up together ten years ago and she’d known Kim for five years, ever since Kim had come to work for Jake’s security company as the receptionist. They were the closest she had to family now.

“Come on,” Kim said. “Let’s try this dress on and see if it fits.”

Dani lay the dress down and started to unbutton her shirt. She shrugged out of it and then out of her dark suit pants to stand in her bra and panties.

“The bra as well,” Jess said. “You won’t need it.”

“I won’t?” But she unhooked it and tossed it on top of her clothes.

“Let me see,” Jess said, crouching down in front of her and examining the scar. “It looks a hundred times better than last time I saw it.”

Dani glanced down. Her skin now had a golden tint from lying in the sun and the scar appeared far less livid, no longer angry and red, but darkened. “In fact, you look a whole lot better altogether. Spain obviously agrees with you. And you’ve put on weight.”