But she's only close with a few people. Dean and I are the only guys.
One of us must be Mr. Powers.
It's not me.
That leaves him.
"About your tits." He slurps his Jack and coke. "They look fantastic."
She adjusts her straps. "Thanks. I think."
"Your ass too." He winks at her.
She rolls her eyes, but she still smiles. Until her eyes catch mine, and her lips curl into a frown. "What do you want?"
"Why do you keep assuming I have complex motivations?" He takes another sip. "I have a drink. I have tits to ogle. I have a train wreck to anticipate."
"Fuck off," I say.
"Shit, it's gonna be good." Dean's voice gets bouncy. "You want to bet on yourself? I'm giving five to one odds on you not causing a scene."
"Don't be an asshole," Leighton says.
"He can't help himself." I pull my wallet from my back pocket, grab two twenties, hand them to Dean. "You're on."
He chuckles as he slides the money into the pocket of his slacks—he's wearing a suit. Navy. Like the one Leighton was pushing. "What do you say, Leigh—"
"Don't call me that." She slides her arm around my waist. "Wasn't it bad enough betting on Kaylee's virginity?"
"That was nothing compared to some of his shit," I say.
Her fingers dig into my sides, pressing the fabric of my shirt into my skin. "You jealous she's having better sex than you?"
"Those are fighting words, babe." He tugs at his belt. "Don't make me prove how good—"
"How would that prove you enjoy it?" She rolls her eyes.
"You'll know by the way I groan." He winks.
I'm not sure if I want to laugh or deck him. "He is loud."
She scrunches her nose in disgust. "Too vivid of a mental picture."
"That's sound," he says. "Not image."
"It's an expression." Leighton shakes her head. "I'm gonna take that whole thing as a yes."
He shrugs. "Nobody's having better sex than Kay."
"What about Iris?" she asks.
He laughs. "Yeah. She was really fucking loud at Walker's birthday." He turns to me. "Who's your money on?"
"You," I say.
"Me?" He raises a brow. "Shit. Blood is thicker than water—"
"You're that in love with fucking yourself," I say.
Leighton pulls her arm over her stomach, doubles over with laughter. Vodka sloshes over the sides of her glass. Lands on the carpet.
Dean chuckles. "That was good." He raises his drink to toast "Didn't think you had it in you."
He leaves with a smug grin. But it's his usual smug grin. It's his default expression.
Slowly, she straightens herself. "Oh my God." She licks her glass clean. "That was so good."
"Thanks." I unpeel her fingers from her glass. Take a long sip.
"You hate vodka."
"Yeah, but I'm not gonna hold your hair back while you unload a bottle of Belvedere."
"My hair is too short to get in the toilet." She laughs. "But point taken."
I take another sip. I don't know the subtlety of vodka the way she does, but I can tell this is good shit.
Her fingers brush mine as she steals her glass back. "He deserved that."
"Just speaking the truth."
She locks her arm with mine. "You want a drink?"
"Yeah." We move to the bar.
She wipes her glass. Refills it. Finds my favorite brand of bourbon—did Penny really buy this for me?—and pours.
I take my glass.
Leighton holds up hers. "To—"
"Masturbation?"
Her cheeks flush. "Sure."
We clink glasses.
Drink.
Her cheeks flush. Her lips curl into a smile.
The rest of the room fades away. I forget about Dean's flirting. About the possibility of another man. About the reason why we're here.
I forget until I hear her voice. "Ryan, hey." Penny's fingers brush my wrist. "You look great."
Leighton fights a glare.
I nod it's okay.
She rests her head on my shoulder. "Oh, Penny—"
"Penelope."
"Sorry, Penelope. Great party. You look nice." Leighton forces her frown into a smile. "Not as nice as Ryan though." She turns to me. Runs her fingers along my cheek. "You look amazing in that suit."
My eyelids flutter closed. I lean into her touch.
This is for Penny's benefit.
But it feels so fucking real.
Penny's laugh is soft. "It is something, seeing you in a suit, Ryan."
"Thanks." My fingers curl around Leighton's wrist. If she keeps touching me, I'm gonna have my lips on hers in two minutes flat. Then I'm gonna have that dress at her waist, and her panties at her knees and—
"Would you mind if we had a moment?" Penny asks.
Leighton shoots Penny a serene smile. "I'm not sure I'm ready to leave Ryan alone. Not when he looks this good."
"I can imagine." Penny's voice is impossible to read.
I nod to Leighton it's fine.
She bites her tongue. "I'm gonna find a snack."
"There's a tray in the kitchen." Penny's smile is soft. Sincere. She watches Leighton walk away with that same friendly expression.
Then it's the two of us.
Her in a short ivory dress that screams bride.
Me in the kind of suit I swore I'd never wear.
She looks like the woman I fell in love with.
Like she's prepping for our wedding.
But I don't want that.
Not anymore.
I'm not sure what the fuck I want, but I know it's not that.
Chapter Twenty-Five
Ryan
"She's protective of you." Penny's fingers curl around the stem of a champagne flute. "It's sweet."
"She doesn't trust you."
"I wouldn't either." She takes a small sip of bubbly.
"You think you have to tell me that?"
"I trusted you."
That's not how I remember it. Not the last few years. It didn't make sense then. I was always loyal to her.
But that didn't matter.
Cheating wears down your trust. If you see a cheater every time you look in the mirror, you start to look for them other places.
If you realize you've been sleeping next to a cheater for two years…
I want to be able to trust Leighton completely. But, fuck, it's hard.
"I didn't trust other women. I knew how they looked at you," she says.
"What are you getting at, Pen?"
"She's lucky to have you."
"I'm lucky to have her."
"Both can be true." She taps the bar with her French-manicured finger. "I thought about what you said."
"You're the one who said shit."
"Okay. About what I said. I was too harsh."