Winning the Right Brother(50)

Holly gave him a look as she slid out of bed, taking the quilt with her. “I’m sure you do,” she said with dignity.

Alex looked at her in exasperation. “You can’t seriously—” He stopped himself, shaking his head. “No, I’m not going to bother.” He sighed and rolled onto his back. “It’s my fault, really,” he said to the ceiling. “I was the one who said we should save it till the morning.”

“Save what?” she asked suspiciously.

“This. The big dramatic scene where you hit the ground running and we forget this ever happened.” He turned his head to face her. “Only this time I’m not playing. I’m not going to lie or pretend, just to make things easier for you. I want us to be together, Holly. I want to see where this is going. If you don’t want that, fine. But I’d at least like to know why. I’ll respect any decision you make. I just want to understand why you’re making it.”

Holly replayed Alex’s words in her head, trying to focus.

“That’s fair,” she said after a moment. “That’s certainly fair.” She knew she sounded like a lawyer negotiating a settlement, but she couldn’t help that. She was torn right now between acute embarrassment and the desire to go back to that bed and beg Alex to make love to her again. Her thought processes were not at their best. She took a breath and spoke again. “I just want you to know…I’m not running away. Not necessarily, anyway. I just—”

“Need some time to think,” Alex finished for her, clasping his hands behind his head.

“Yes. I do.” She bit her lip as she looked at him, his bare torso unbelievably gorgeous in the golden sunlight that streaked across the bed, a blanket draped across his hips and just barely covering his…

She put a cool hand to her hot cheek. “Cold shower,” she said. “For me. Now. Then I’m going to the gym to work off some tension.”

He grinned evilly. “There are other ways to—”

She held up a palm. “Don’t bother finishing that sentence. I plan to carefully consider all the ramifications of our current situation without having my brain muddled by you.”

“Do you always approach your romantic relations like investment planning?”

She continued as if he hadn’t spoken. “After I shower, during which time you will go back to your own room, I am getting dressed and going to the gym. Then I’m going out to lunch, somewhere far from you and your body, which is screwing up my mental processes.”

“Who told you your mental processes were that hot to begin with?” he asked, grinning.

Holly chose to ignore him as she headed resolutely for the bathroom, her quilt trailing behind her like the robes of an empress. She could hear Alex chuckling from across the room until she slammed the bathroom door shut behind her.



Holly had never worked out so hard in her life. Her inner turmoil translated into raw adrenaline, and she went through her usual circuit with single-minded intensity. When she finished with the Nautilus machines and went over to the stationary bicycles, she was surprised to find Gina on one, pedaling away as if her life depended on it. Holly put a hand on her shoulder and she jumped.

“Holly! Don’t sneak up on me like that.”

“Gina, what in the world are you doing here? Aren’t you flying to Vegas tonight to get married?”

“Well, yes,” Gina acknowledged, wiping the back of her neck with a towel. “That’s why I’m here.”

Holly frowned at her friend. “I’m not following you.”

Gina sighed. “I’m scared out of my mind. The only thing that makes me feel better is this, so here I am. It’s almost a shame the wedding’s tomorrow morning. I’m on my way to having the thighs of Lance Armstrong. I could enter the Tour de France.”

Holly pulled her off the bike and marched her over to the juice bar. Sitting Gina firmly down on one of the stools, she ordered two Energy Smoothies and sat down herself.

“Okay, start talking,” she said sternly. “What are you afraid of? You’re crazy about Henry. You guys are perfect together. You can’t wait to marry him.”

“True. All true.”

“Well, then. What are you scared of?”

Gina rested her elbows on the counter and put her chin in her hands. “Everything. Nothing. Just the idea of being married, I guess.”

“You’re not going to…” She let it trail off, not certain exactly what she thought Gina might do.

Gina kept her chin in her hands but turned to look at her friend. “Run away? Leave him at the altar? No way. I love Henry, and, anyway, I don’t let my fears make my decisions for me.”