I followed dutifully, wanting to see Pen. The second I stepped outside, there she was in a long, light gold dress that showcased her curves with her hair up in an elegant twist.
I was standing in front of her within seconds. Taking her face in my hands as I stared down at her. “God, you’re beautiful. I feel like we’re getting married all over again.” I looked down at the jeans and t-shirt I had on, then at the suit Pen had me bring that was draped over my arm. “Now the monkey suit makes sense.”
Resting her hands on my waist, Pen grinned up at me. “You’re going to need it when you win a Grammy.”
“No, you’ve got to be kidding me, or are you serious?”
“Crimson Heat is going to the VMA’s, and I know that’s only the start. I don’t know about you, but I’ve been busy all day, and I can’t wait to eat before Lexie starts shooting you.” She looked down at her dress. “I should probably get something to cover my dress, so when we get our pictures later, it won’t have burger grease on it.”
Gripping my shirt at the neck, I pulled it over my head and handed it to Penelope. “Put this on, and you can give it back to me when you finish eating.”
Running her hands from my waistband up to my pecs, Pen licked her lips. “How am I supposed to eat with you sitting there without a shirt on?”
“Well, I don’t know how I’m going to be able to eat knowing how you look under my t-shirt.” Putting my arm around her waist, I walked us over to the grill, where everyone was standing around chatting.
Lexie took Pen in and laughed. “Well, that’s new. Maybe we should have kept you out of your dress until after lunch?”
“Oh my God, Pen,” Stella laughed. “All you need is a pair of combat boots, and you’re rocker chic.”
“I could get you a pair if you want to be in any pictures with the band,” Lexie added.
Pen laughed, shaking her head, and making a tendril of hair fall out of her bun. She started to tuck it back behind her ear until I intercepted it and twisted it around my finger. “I won’t be participating in that shoot. Only the one afterward.” Tucking her hair behind her ear, I ran my knuckles along her jaw.
Crossing his arms over his chest, Greer’s jaw ticked as he asked. “Why are you in that stupid dress?”
I wasn’t sure why he was upset she was in a dress unless he’d figured it out. Even if I was crazy enough to let Pen go, there was never going to be anything between the two of us, so he needed to get over me and stop taking everything out on my wife.
The man at the grill, who I hadn’t met yet, turned toward Greer with his blue eyes blazing. “We don’t talk to ladies like that. Especially not in my house.”
Greer looked him up and down, his nostrils flaring. “What are you going to do about?”
Lexie moved toward her husband with worried eyes and whispered his name.
Ryder pulled Lexie’s body against his, never once taking his eyes off Greer. “I’ll kick you out of my house for one. We opened our home up to you to do your shoot and to celebrate Pen and Walker. I won’t tolerate disrespect.”
Greer turned his gray eyes my way. A deep furrow between his brows. “What’s he talking about?”
“Dimples, you let the cat out of the bag about the wedding,” Lexie whispered, none too quietly.
“You’re… getting married today?” Greer stuttered out, looking back and forth between Pen and me. I didn’t like the way his eyes turned to slits as his gaze settled on her.
“Not today. We actually got married in Greece,” I informed him.
“What?” He shouted and started to pace in front of us.
“Is he going to become a loose cannon?” Ryder asked his wife.
“I don’t know, but I do not like this. This guy is an asshole and probably the one who ratted Pen and Walker out to her former boss.” Again, Lexie spoke quietly, like she was trying to whisper, but loud enough for us all to hear.
Greer gripped the strands of his hair and pulled as he walked away from us before he sank down on a lounger. Putting his elbows on his knees, he hung his head. “What the fuck is happening here?”
I moved to stand in front of him, ready to confront him about snitching to Cristiano about us.
Putting my hands behind my back so I didn’t punch Greer, I asked, “Why don’t you tell us what’s going on? When did you tell Cristiano about Pen and me?”
“Why?” He opened and closed his mouth a few times. “How did you know?”
My hands balled into fists. “Maybe because Cross and Kenton have known since Greece and have been supportive of us, unlike you.”
“Hey,” Pen whispered from behind me as she placed her hand on my back. She ran it up and down, trying to help my rising temper, but nothing was going to help me. Greer had been like a brother to me, and he had betrayed me all because he thought he liked me. I wasn’t sure if he was capable of liking anyone.
Greer shook his head and looked up at me with the saddest damn eyes that were filling up with tears. “Please tell me you didn’t get married.”
A low growl slipped from my lips as I stared down at him. “Why? I love Pen, and she loves me. It makes perfect sense for us to be married.”
“I can’t sit around and watch you two together. It’s wrong,” he gritted out between clenched teeth.
Widening my stance, I breathed in a harsh breath that did nothing to help my boiling blood. It wasn’t until Pen laced her fingers with mine and pressed her forehead to my back that I stopped seeing red. “Look, I don’t care that you're gay. I really don’t, but there’s never going to be anything between us. Ever. If you can’t accept that I’m married to Pen, and she’s not going anywhere, then you need to leave.”
Greer stood abruptly and was instantly in my face. A snarl came out of him as he said, “She’s using you. All she wants is your money.”
I felt Pen break away from me before I heard her. She pushed between us and glared up at Greer. “Are you fucking serious right now? I want his money? No,” she shook her head and laughed bitterly. “You need to open up your eyes before you’re a distant memory. Stop pushing everyone away by being an asshole. I can’t say I’m sorry Walker chose me over you because then I’d be without him, and without him, I’d be lost. I never expected any of this to happen. I just wanted to do my job, but day after day, Walker wormed his way into my heart.” Her voice quieted, and if I wasn’t standing at her back, I wouldn’t have been able to see that she was shaking. “I understand why you think you love Walker. He’s a great guy when he finally opens up and lets you in, and he’s drop-dead gorgeous. But I believe if you really think about it, you’ll realize it’s just an infatuation. Someday you’ll find your own dark Prince Charming.”
“You don’t know how I feel,” Greer hissed back at her.
My arm went around her shoulders and pulled her back a step. “No, we don’t know how you feel. All you’ve ever done was shut us out and be an asshole to us. We put up with it because you play damn good, but now…” I shook my head, hating what I was about to say. “I’m not sure…” My throat started to close up with emotion.