Chapter Twenty
Rusty grabbed another glass of champagne from a passing waiter and took a sip. The restaurant Deke had booked for the evening was gorgeous. The food great, the alcohol flowing. She’d been working toward a good buzz and keeping it since she got here, but it wasn’t really happening, no matter how hard she tried.
Looking across the room, she spotted Deacon and Alex as they moved from guest to guest. Her brother was showing off his bride-to-be, couldn’t help himself. The guy was so damned ecstatic to finally have her where she belonged, at his side, that he hadn’t let her out of his sight.
Rusty understood it. God, she loved watching them together. The way her brother looked at Alex—the adoration, the I-can’t-fucking-believe-she’s-mine expression he often wore—made Rusty’s heart smile. If anyone deserved that, Alex did. But she missed her friend. Since she’d moved in with Deke, a lot of things had changed.
It was selfish, but Rusty needed her. Needed her and Pipe both, more than she wanted to admit. They were used to her getting on with things, getting over whatever upset her and shaking it off. This time wasn’t going to be quite so easy.
Alex laughed at something Deacon said. They were in a huddle with another pair of dudes in suits. God, she was doing great, holding her own with these people. She’d been nervous, but Deacon had been there for her the whole night, his hand possessively on her hip, making sure she knew he had her back, that he wouldn’t leave her hanging. Her big brother was one of the good ones, and she was glad they’d finally found their way to each other.
Checking out the other side of the room, she spotted her sister. Piper had arrived an hour ago but was acting kind of weird, had barely said two words to her. She seemed on a mission to have a good time, and Rusty smiled when she saw her talking to some guy, her head thrown back laughing at something he’d said. Perhaps she’d been more serious than Rusty had realized when she’d made the whole “no more waiting” speech the other week.
Some guy approached Rusty by the nibbles table, and she smiled to be polite, which turned out to be a stupid thing to do because the man opened his mouth and started yammering. She tuned him out, unable to even pretend to be sociable. Suddenly, being here, it was all too much, and just maintaining a neutral expression was work. Hopefully, he’d figure out she wasn’t in the talking mood and go bore someone else. Taking another sip of her drink, she scanned the rest of the party, discreetly checking out the clock above the main door. Maybe she could sneak away soon. She’d been here for a couple hours, and Alex was doing fine without her.
The door opened and her gaze automatically dropped to the man walking through. He wore a black suit, his shirt bright white and stark against his tanned skin. He wasn’t wearing a tie, the top button open, showing a dusting of dark hair. Lifting her gaze, she took in the grim set to his lips, his neatly trimmed beard, the strong crooked nose. Last, her gaze landed on his thick, darkly lashed brown eyes—that were locked on her.
Her stomach dropped, and she actually stumbled back a step. The guy beside her, who up until that point had still been flapping his jaw, grabbed her elbow to steady her. “Hey, are you okay?”
She straightened. “I’m fine.”
His forehead creased. “You’re sure?”
What the hell was Reid doing here?
Then she saw her sister watching from the sidelines, guilt plastered all over her traitorous face. It wasn’t hard to work out her errand had nothing to do with Alex and everything do with the man now heading straight for her.
Goddammit.
Heart hammering against her rib cage, she turned away and, tipping her glass up, downed the last few mouthfuls of champagne.
“Do you want another drink?” The yapper said from beside her.
She shook her head, about to decline, when she felt Reid approach, felt him move up behind her, close. So close, she could feel the heat of his body against her skin, the brush of his jacket on her bare back.
“Rusty.” The rasp of his voice skated over her flesh, causing her to shiver.
Why was he doing this to her?
“Look at me.”
She shook her head. “No. Just turn around and leave.”
“She’s fine,” Reid’s deep voice rumbled, so low it seemed to move through her. “I’ll take it from here.”
She realized he was talking to the yapper. She didn’t miss how the guy’s eyes widened fractionally before he gave a stiff nod, turned on his shiny dress shoes, and without a word strode off. Reid snorted.
“What was that?” She spun around to let him have it, but the words died in her throat when her eyes locked with his, the intensity, the hunger there plain to see.