“They look great together, don’t they?” Larissa asked with a sigh. “So much in love.”
So much in love it hurt, thought Chloe. She licked the cinnamon from the rim of her appletini and watched Delilah get twirled around the dance floor by her new husband. Their friend had two left feet. Every so often she would trip over her partner, the stumble sending both of them into giggles and kisses. They were perfect for one another.
They danced in the center of a lantern-lit floor. The Landmark Hotel ballroom had been bathed in white satin for the evening, the only color being the blue of the centerpiece flowers, which coordinated with the attendants’ dresses. Beautiful and perfectly matched. Like the couple on the dance floor.
One of the groomsmen approached the table. “Would one of you ladies like to dance?” he asked. Chloe sipped her drink and pretended not to hear him, leaving Larissa to smile and take his hand. Not, however, before shooting a quick glare in her direction.
She should probably feel bad about throwing La-roo under the bus, but honestly, she didn’t think her friend truly minded, and even if she did, she would still make a far better dance partner. While she might be heartbroken, Larissa still loved weddings, and was pouring her all into enjoying this one. Chloe, on the other hand, had all she could do to keep a smile on her face. It wasn’t that she didn’t wish her friends every happiness in the world. She did. It was that every time she looked at Simon and Delilah, she saw a happiness she’d never have. Seeing them was like sticking a knife in her heart.
Nearly five days had passed since she’d closed the door on Ian. Four days since she’d seen his face, heard his raspy voice. The sucker in her insisted on visiting the coffee shop every morning, looking for his ginger-scruffed face sitting at the front table, only to be disappointed. According to Aiden, Ian hadn’t returned from his “getaway.” She wondered if he wasn’t simply avoiding her.
Shouldn’t the pain hurt less by now? She licked more cinnamon and wondered. Granted, this level of heartache was new, but she hoped she’d be feeling better. That the emotions ripping her apart every time she thought of his name would begin to fade. No such luck. It appeared that when Ian went, he’d left behind a giant hole too big for filling.
“Why aren’t you dancing? You should be dancing.” A giddy Delilah, her eyes glittering manically, plopped down at the table. “That dress looks way too stunning to be stuck behind a table.”
“Larissa’s showing the dress off for us both,” Chloe replied. “I need to stay on alert in case important maid of honor business comes up.” It was the same excuse she’d been using for two days to avoid socializing.
Apparently Delilah had figured out her plan, because she waved off the excuse. “Your duties are officially over. I’m Simon’s problem now. Wait, that didn’t come out right.”
“How much champagne have you had to drink?”
“Not as much as you’d think. I’m simply really, really, really happy.” As if Chloe couldn’t tell. Delilah’s face glowed so brightly she could power Manhattan and half of Brooklyn, too.
“I’m glad,” she replied, meaning it sincerely. “You deserve happiness.”
“Thanks. I can’t help feeling a little guilty, though, what with you and Larissa having such rotten weeks.”
“Don’t you dare! No guilt allowed on your wedding day, Mrs. Cartwright. Larissa and I will be fine.” Chloe looked over at her fellow bridesmaid, who was chatting away with her dance partner. “In fact, I think La-roo will bounce back quite nicely.”
“What about you?”
She managed a smile for Delilah’s sake. “I’ll bounce back, too.” Eventually. She was nothing if not resilient.
“I hope so,” Delilah replied. Before Chloe could say another word, she gathered her in a tight hug. Wrapped tight, Chloe allowed the emotion to bubble to the surface. She squeezed her eyes and her friend.
“For the record,” Delilah whispered in her ear. “Ian Black’s an ass.”
Chloe sniffed back her tears. “Yes,” she said, “he is.”
The moment was interrupted by the band leader speaking into the microphone. “May I have your attention, please. It’s time for the bride to toss the bouquet.”
“Oh man,” Chloe groaned. “I thought you decided not to.”
“Larissa insisted.”
Of course she did. With luck her friend would catch the foolish thing, too. Chloe sat back to sip her drink.
“What do you think you’re doing?” Delilah took the glass from her hand. “As maid of honor you’re required to be on the dance floor.”
“You said my duties were over!”
“I lied.”
Standing on a dance floor fighting over who caught a bunch of flowers was the last thing she felt like doing, but since Delilah and Larissa had their hearts set on it, she would go join the crowd. Someone else could do the catching, though, she decided, grabbing her drink. She made her way to the back of the area while a beaming Simon led his bride to the stage. Delilah grinned at the crowd, turned her back and tossed the flowers high. Too high, it turned out. The bouquet struck the chandelier and ricocheted straight down, landing at Chloe’s feet.
A tuxedo-clad arm reached down to retrieve the fallen blossoms. “What’s the matter, Curlilocks? Rebounding a little rusty?”
Silk over sandpaper ran down her spine, stilling her heart. Slowly she turned. This couldn’t be real. Ian was not standing there clutching a bunch of limp flowers.
He offered the bouquet with a cautious smile. “Thought maybe you could use a dance partner.”
She tossed the appletini in his face.
“Are you nuts?” Larissa and Delilah had cornered her in the ladies’ lounge.
“Three days!” she snapped at them. “Tells me I deserve better and then takes off for three solid days. Do you have any idea how miserable I was? Now he shows up acting like nothing ever happened. What did he think I would do—throw myself in his arms? Who does he think he is?”
She pressed her hands to the marble vanity, hoping the coolness beneath her palms would help sort the feelings swirling inside her. “What is he doing here?”
“My guess would be he’s here to see you,” Delilah replied.
“In a tuxedo,” Larissa added.
“Don’t go there.” Chloe should have known the blonde would find Ian’s appearance romantic. “Every man in the room is wearing one.”
“Every man in the room didn’t crash the wedding,” she shot back. “He came to see you. Maybe he wants to try again.”
For how long? Until she got her hopes high enough for him to dash again? “And what if I don’t want to?”
“What are you talking about?” Larissa’s reflection stared at her in disbelief. “You’re crazy about him. You told me so yourself.”
Maybe so, but she wasn’t crazy enough to have her heart stomped on a second time. She wouldn’t survive. “He should have acted while he had the chance. I don’t think I’m interested anymore.”
“That’s a crock and you know it. You’ve been going to that damn coffee shop twice a day, hoping to see him. Now he shows up and you say you’re not interested? Pul-leeze. I’m blonde, not stupid.”
“All right, fine!” Chloe should have known her indifference act wouldn’t work. “So I’m crazy about him. How do I know he’s going to stick around this time? That he isn’t going to make a whole bunch of promises and take off? Face it,” she said, staring down at the marble. “Men suck.”
“Not every guy leaves,” Larissa said.
“Tom did.”
“Simon didn’t.” Delilah appeared next to her. “Do you remember before Simon and I got engaged? When we were having problems, and the two of you helped him track me down to talk?”
“Of course I remember. But you and Simon were a completely different situation. The two of you were miserable without each other.”
“And you’ve been miserable all week.”
“Look,” Larissa said, “no one is saying you have to give Ian any kind of chance. He broke your heart, and if you want to kick him to the curb, then we’ll help. Before you do, though, aren’t you the least bit curious to know why he tracked you down?”
Chloe had to admit she was. Her friends had a point. She should hear him out. If for no other reason than to keep her hopes at bay. Then she’d kick him to the curb.
“He’s right outside, waiting,” Delilah told her. “He wanted to come in and corner you himself, but we convinced him it would be safer if we did.”
With her heart stuck somewhere between her chest and her throat, Chloe opened the lounge door. Ian stood across the corridor, wiping the front of his shirt with a napkin. “I forgot how lethal you were with a glass of liquid,” he remarked when he saw her.
“You caught me by surprise.”
“Clearly.”
No wonder Larissa had pointed out the tuxedo. Ian might be dressed like the other guests, but none of them wore the suit nearly as well.
“They told me at the coffee shop you were out of town?” Not the question she’d planned to ask, but the first one to pop out of her mouth nonetheless.