Forever Too Far (15 page)

She shook her head. “No, thank you. I think I’ll just take a nap. We left so early and I didn’t sleep any on the plane.”

Nodding, I took that as my cue to leave her alone.

***

the rehearsal and the party that followed. We were having a wedding party in the ballroom at the

Club. I hadn’t wanted a bachelorette party and Rush hadn’t wanted me to have one either. He’d been

worried about where Bethy might take me. Then when Grant had brought up the bachelor party he had

quickly shot that idea down. This was our alternative. We decided to party together with all of our

friends. Woods had gladly supplied the ballroom for us and had his kitchen staff catering it.

The rehearsal was in thirty minutes and people would start arriving soon. Rush walked down the

stairs in a pair of tan slacks and a white linen shirt and my heart missed more than one beat. He was

beautiful. His hair was styled in a messy look. The white shirt made his silver eyes look brighter and

his skin darker.

“You’re gorgeous,” I breathed as he came to a stop at the bottom of the steps.

“Hey, that’s my line,” he teased pulling me to him and pressing a kiss to my lips. “You’re

breathtaking,” he replied.

“Mmmm, so are you,” I murmured against his lips.

GRANT (yes, you read that correctly)

My brother was actually getting married. I knew it would happen the first time I saw him go ape-shit

crazy over Blaire but damn, actually seeing them rehearse it had been real. Too damn real. I felt like I was losing him a little. It wasn’t that I wasn’t happy for him because I was. It was just that he’d been my partner in crime for as long as I could remember. Now he would be Blaire’s.

I took a glass of champagne from the tray as a server walked by me. I might as well take the bubbly

shit until I could get something real at the bar in a few minutes. Scanning the crowd I thought about

Nan and how fucked up I’d let shit get. I needed something to help me forget her. Not that I wasn’t

over her because I was. She’d made sure of it. Crazy bitch.

A pair of the sexiest eyes I’d ever seen locked with mine and I froze and studied her. I hadn’t seen her before. Ever. I’d never forget those fucking eyes. It wasn’t the color that drew me in because from

here I couldn’t tell what the color was. It was the slant to them and the heavy eyelashes that fanned

over them. Women paid good money for false eyelashes that could never look that good. I trailed my

eyes down her face until I landed on one big ass mouth. SHIT. My cock stirred to life. It was wide

and her lips were so damn full. A girl with a mouth like that was every man’s fantasy.

I was almost afraid to let my gaze travel any further. If it kept getting better I was going to fucking

unload in my damn pants. I didn’t have time to think about it though because she turned and like a

wisp of air she was gone. Long brown hair swayed as she moved, brushing just above of her waist.

Holy mother of Jesus her hair was all the way to her perfect little ass. I took off after her. I didn’t

know who the hell she was but she wasn’t getting away from me. I needed to have a taste of that

mouth and see her eyes light up with pleasure as I pulled that long hair back and pounded into her.

Talk about a fucking distraction. She was the only damn distraction any man needed for anything.

Hell, she could make me forget my own damn name. She slipped out of the ballroom and into the hall.

She walked quickly but so quietly that no one around her seemed to notice. How did people not notice

her? Was I hallucinating? What man with a cock didn’t lock eyes on her and not drink her every move

in?

I stepped into the hall seconds after her and glanced around. At first I thought I’d lost her but then I noticed movement to the right and the long brown hair was peeking around the corner. She didn’t see

me but I sure as hell saw that hair. I walked as quietly as I could in her direction.

“Calm down. It was just a guy. A really, really hot one but just a guy,” I heard her voice saying softly as I got closer to her. What the fuck?

“Deep breaths. You’re a big girl. You can handle a guy looking at you,” she said in the same whisper.

I stopped before I got close enough for her to see me. She was talking to herself. I’d made her

nervous. How? When a female looked like that she had to be used to guys eye fucking her from across

the room. She started chanting that I was just a guy again and I couldn’t keep the grin off my face. That was just all kinds of adorable.

“He could be an alien from Krypton. Then you’d need to be worried. Maybe we should go check him

out and make sure,” I said casually. Her entire body tensed and she didn’t move a muscle. Nor did

she turn around and look at me. She kept her back pressed against the wall she’d been hiding behind.

The only thing that moved was her hand. It looked like she’d used it to cover her mouth. She just kept

getting cuter.

“Probably safe. Rush and Blaire don’t much care for the alien sort. They’re prejudiced that way,” I

continued, hoping my ridiculous conversation would make her smile and relax. Because I wanted her

relaxed. At least enough so that I could get a taste.

She still didn’t move. Her hand remained firmly over her mouth and she was frozen in place. I

stepped around the corner and into the small cubbyhole she’d found between two pillars in the wall.

Even with my back pressed against the other wall our bodies were almost touching. Her eyes went

wide with surprise as I slipped into her hiding spot with her.

“I’m guessing you can’t talk much with your hand over your mouth like that. How exactly do you plan

on talking to me?” I asked and smiled encouragingly. I didn’t want her to think I was dangerous.

She slowly moved her hand away and let it fall to her side but she remained plastered against the

other wall as if to get as far away from me as possible.

“That’s better. I like looking at that mouth of yours. You were hindering the view,” I said then

winked. She flattened herself further against the wall. This had to be the oddest experience I’d ever

had with a female. Most of them threw themselves at me and it was easy. I liked it. Less work. But

damned if I wasn’t enjoying this one and her skittish behavior. It was refreshing and unique.

“I’m Grant. Brother of the groom,” I explained, hoping that would calm her a little. It worked. She

frowned and a wrinkle between her eyebrows appeared, making her perfect face more human. More

accessible. I liked it. A lot. Maybe I could make her frown more.

“Rush doesn’t have a brother,” she replied matter of factly.

So she knew Rush. Interesting. I’d never seen her or I sure as hell would have remembered. I’d

assumed she was with a guest or knew Blaire somehow. There were a few people here I didn’t know.

“Well, that’s where you’re wrong, beautiful. Rush and I became stepbrothers when we were kids.

Just because our parents didn’t make it doesn’t mean we didn’t.”

Her eyes flickered with recognition. She knew who I was. Time for fair play. I wanted to know who

she was.

“Want to tell me who you are? Since you’ve obviously figured out who I am.”

Her eyes dropped from my gaze to study the floor. “I think I need to go back inside,” she whispered.

Her already soft voice was even softer when she whispered. I wondered if she was so quiet and

mannerly when she was coming. At the moment that was all I could think about. All I wanted to know.

“You can’t leave me now. If you go back in there I’m going to stalk you all night,” I warned, hoping it

didn’t make me sound like a psycho.

That mouth of hers made an “O” shape and my imagination went wild. I wasn’t one to be attracted to

the uptight female but this prim and proper attitude coming from a walking sexual fantasy was

working for me.

“Why?” she asked. The musical sound of her voice reminded me of the tinkling bells often

overlooked in songs because of their simple beauty.

“You want the truth?” I asked, leaning closer to her and invading the personal space she was trying so

hard to protect.

“Please,” she replied, so softly I almost didn’t hear her.

“Because all I can think about is the way those eyes of yours would look flashing with need and the

way your fucking amazing mouth would look as you cry out from pleasure. And this hair,” I replied

slipping my hands into it and tugging gently. “Fuck me baby, this hair should be illegal.” I’d gotten too close and her breathing was short and quick. And damn it all to hell, she smelled amazing. Like

strawberries and cream.

“Oh,” she replied, looking up at me with eyes that I could now tell were a clear hazel. Just as unique

as she was. There was also not one drop of mascara on her lashes. This was natural. Completely

natural.

“Who are you?” I asked in awe at the vision of perfection pressed against me.

She blinked several times as if she couldn’t understand my words. I was almost prepared to pick her

up and drag her outside to my truck with or without a name. “Harlow,” she replied.

Slowly realization ran down over me like a bucket of ice-cold water. FUCK ME!
This
was Nan’s
sister.

I was watching as Blaire danced with her dad when I saw Grant stalk into the ballroom like a man

running from a demon. What the hell was wrong with him? I glanced back over at Blaire and she was

smiling happily up at her dad. So I left our table to go check on Grant. He was normally an even keel

kind of guy. This behavior wasn’t normal.

I found him as he picked up the straight shot of whiskey that the bartender set down in front of him. He slung it back then handed the cup to the bartender and demanded another. Something had definitely

crawled up his ass. “Why didn’t you fucking tell me?” Grant growled without looking at me.

“What are you talking about?” I asked, watching him down another drink and ask for more.

He turned his glare toward me. “Harlow. I met fucking Harlow. You could have mentioned that Nan’s

sister is a walking goddess. Mentally prepared me not to mind fuck her every way imaginable and

convince my dick it was going to get some of that action before it finds out that it’s impossible.” He

took another swig and slammed the glass down on the bar. “That’s better,” he sighed.

“So you met Harlow?” I asked, still not following him. Why was he so pissed? I’d told him about

Harlow.

“Yeah, I
met
Harlow. Jesus, Rush, you need to warn a man first.”

I was still completely confused. He had yet to make sense. “I’m gonna be honest. I don’t know what

the hell you’re upset about.”

Grant let out a hard laugh. “Fuck, you really are tied up tight by the balls,” he muttered. “Since you

can’t seem to remove your Blaire-colored glasses and see other females anymore, let me clue you in.

Harlow is fucking perfection. Damn Rush, her mouth,” he shivered and shook his head. “God, what

she could do with that mouth. And her eyes. I swear I’ve never seen anything like them.”

So he was going on and on about how Harlow looked? “Okay. And this has you pissed off why?” I

asked, thinking that maybe I needed a drink for this conversation.

“Because I can’t touch her and fuck me. I want to touch her so bad. In so many, many ways. I’ve never

been that turned on, that damn fast in my life. And then to find out I can’t ever touch that. Fucking

sucks,” he growled again.

Ah. So Harlow was the toy Grant couldn’t play with. Great. I was glad she was going home in two

days. I didn’t need this drama. Harlow was not Grant material. She was too innocent for the likes of

my brother. “Yeah, well that’s a good thing because Harlow isn’t your speed. You’d break her.”

Grant scowled at me. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“It means that she’s quiet and shy. She doesn’t date. She doesn’t do anything but go to school. Nothing

from Kiro’s world has touched her. She’s polite and never wants to ruffle feathers. Even with Nan

screaming at her and calling her names that aren’t true she quietly takes it and walks away. She just

isn’t your type. You might have a thing for her mouth but dude she wouldn’t know how to use it the

way you want her to. Nor would she ever want to. She just isn’t like that.”

Blaire finished her dance with her dad and her eyes instantly went to my empty seat. She was looking

for me. I had to go. I slapped Grant on the back. “Go find some pussy here tonight that isn’t more

virginal than a nun,” I ordered and headed back to Blaire.

She spotted me and smiled while I made my way to her. The music changed and Bruno Mars’ song “I

Will Wait For You” started playing over the speakers. I pulled her to me and grinned. I loved this

song. I understood every word of it because it was exactly how I felt. I’d never sung for Blaire before

and I was tempted to sing along in her ear but I wanted to wait. Not yet. I’d sing to her... but not yet.

“Did you enjoy dancing with your dad?” I asked her, just so I could hear her voice.

“Yes. We talked about Momma. She’d have loved to be here. She’d have loved you. She always told

me that Cain wasn’t the one for me. He was too weak. That one day someone would fight for me and

he’d want me more than anything else. You would have made her very happy.”

My chest felt tight. I’d never been told by a female that their mother would love me. To know that

Blaire felt like her mother would approve of me meant more than she knew. I remembered her mom.