Hot Finish (20 page)

Oh, my God. “That’s beautiful, Nikki.” And Suzanne had a serious lump in her throat. Why the hell couldn’t she and Ryder do that? Honestly? Just enjoy each other.

There was no other man whose chest she belonged on.

“Anyhoo,” Nikki said, waving her head. “Did I tell you I got my clit pierced as a wedding gift to Jonas? He’s going to be happily surprised tonight.” She giggled.

With that, the moment of sage Nikki passed as quickly as it had arrived, and the natural order was restored.

RYDER
stood at the front of the ballroom having a crisis. He was wearing a tux, the room was decorated in an explosion of flowers and tulle, and Suzanne was standing at the end of the aisle looking stunningly beautiful.

And it wasn’t their wedding. It should be their wedding. Hell, this should have been their wedding six years earlier. He should have given this to Suzanne, the whole pomp and circumstance, the huge party. Getting married was a big goddamn deal and he had never really asked Suzanne if she had been okay with eloping.

He was just standing there aching everywhere, wanting to be with her so bad he was sweating.

“Can you stop with the foot?” Ty murmured next to him.

“Huh?” Ryder watched Suzanne bustling back and forth, checking details and talking to the pianist. She was wearing pink, and even though the dress was a little loose, she looked amazing. As usual.

“Your foot. You’re tapping it. It’s distracting as hell.”

Ryder looked down at his feet. The right one was jiggling up and down. “Sorry.” He forced himself to stop.

Jonas said to his right, “Everything is changing, but nothing will be different.”

“What?” Ryder looked at him. Jonas looked nervous, his arms continually moving like his jacket was too tight, a sheen of sweat on his upper lip. The normal, black tux had been the right move. Jonas almost looked dapper, aside from the flapping arms and darting eyes.

“My vows. I’m practicing them. Everything is changing, but nothing will be different. I will love you today and tomorrow and always, no matter what obstacles come our way or what happens in our lives. Our life. Today starts our future, where two become one.”

Wow. Ryder was stunned, and hell, a little touched. He should have said that to Suzanne. He should have done that. Pledged his love, promised his steadfastness, and guaranteed that no matter what, he would be there for her. When things got tough, he should have forced her to open up to him and he should have tried to change, be a better husband. At the end of the day, it was love that mattered.

Just love.

“Does that sound stupid?” Jonas asked him. “I feel stupid. I look stupid. I sound stupid. God, why is she even marrying me?”

“No, man, it’s not stupid at all. It sounds great. And she’s marrying you because she loves you.” He clapped Jonas on the back. “Congratulations, by the way. I’m really happy for you.”

“Thanks.” Jonas gave one final tug on his tie. “Oh, shit, it’s starting.”

Ryder turned and watched the parade of seven hundred bridesmaids coming down the aisle one after the other like Barbie clones in ice-blue bandages. Glancing down the very long row of groomsmen lined up to his left, he thought the guys all looked like uncomfortable penguins waiting to take a dive. Suzanne had disappeared, which left him nothing to look at, so Ryder concentrated on just standing still and not thumping his foot until this was all over.

About an hour later, all the women were finally down the aisle and had been escorted to their seats by the groomsmen. Ryder could never figure out why every wedding seemed to do this process a little differently, he just knew he wasn’t digging that he had to stay standing the whole time per Suzanne’s instructions. The maid of honor had taken up position across from him, and the minister, or whoever he was, was standing serenely with his book in his hand, looking like he might drop off into a nap at any given second. His eyes drifted open and closed and he rocked a little on his feet.

Then Jonas made a strangled sound in the back of his throat and Ryder glanced over at him. The big guy had tears in his eyes and Ryder felt touched and awkward at the same time. No man wanted to see his buddy crying, even if it was at his own wedding. Nikki had appeared, and started to move down the aisle, a thin, beautiful girl, noodle arms and upper chest tanned to perfection in her strapless gown, the waist ballooning into the biggest skirt thing Ryder had ever seen in his life. Children could be living under that dress and no one would know.

“She’s so fucking beautiful,” Jonas choked out, wiping his tears and trying to pretend like he wasn’t.

“You’re a lucky man,” Ryder said, because he didn’t know what else to say. The only woman he thought was fucking beautiful was Suzanne, and this was all hitting a little too close to home. He was thinking about the night they’d met, about the instant chemistry they had shared. About the night she’d told him she was pregnant, and the night he’d suggested they run off and get married. But mostly he was thinking about all the ways he could have done better by her.

Then and now.

He should have called her again. He had texted her an apology for calling so late the night of the bachelor party and she’d just replied it was fine. He’d been too much of a wimp to call her again, and he was kicking himself. Jonas was right. When you loved someone, you loved them forever, no matter what, and he was going to do whatever he had to in the hope of convincing Suzanne they belonged together.

CHAPTER
NINETEEN

ASKING
Suzanne to dance to “Big Butts” at the reception was clearly not the best strategy to meet that goal, but Ryder was running out of options. Suzanne had been dodging him for hours. She’d ducked out of reach every time he’d approached her and had actually shoved a cracker in his mouth at one point when he’d tried to talk to her.

He was getting desperate.

So when Nikki, who had clearly been hitting the skinny bitches, grabbed the mic from the DJ and said everyone in the wedding party had to dance to her favorite party song, including the wedding planner, he had seized the moment.

“Suzanne, you heard what Nikki said.” Ryder caught her arm as Suzanne tried to slink off behind the chocolate fountain. “Everyone out there.”

“Come on, girls! Show off your booties!” Nikki turned around and shook her nonexistent ass while a cheer went up from the crowd.

“Do you think I should cut her off?” Suzanne asked, shooting a worried glance at her bridal charge.

“Are you kidding? Nikki’s been smiling all day long. She’s clearly enjoying herself. Which is what you should be doing, too.” Ryder tugged her hand again. “Come on, dance with me.”

“You’re a nutjob,” she said, but she let him drag her onto the dance floor.

To his total amazement, after a few seconds, she relaxed and started to break it down.

“Hot mama, look at you, girl,” he told her, enjoying seeing her loosening it.

That earned him a smack on the arm. “At least I can dance. You look like a chicken running from the ax.”

“Watch out, or I’ll do you like Jonas is doing Nikki.” Ryder tipped his head in the bride and groom’s direction, where Jonas was pretending to spank Nikki’s butt.

Suzanne let out a crack of laughter. “Lordy be. Now that’s funny. Let’s hope that makes it on the video.”

“Better than the hokey pokey, that’s for damn sure.” It was also a good sign that Suzanne was bantering with him. After she’d kicked him out of her house, he wasn’t sure they’d be on speaking terms for weeks. Months. Years.

Which would make it a little difficult to raise a child together.

“Oh, my God, I need to go stop her,” Suzanne said, panic mingling with amusement in her voice.

“Why?” Ryder turned to look at the bride. “Holy . . .”

Nikki’s breast had popped out of her gown when she’d put her arms up in the air.

“Oh, no, you’re good, Jonas has it.” The groom danced in front of his wife, shielding her, and whispered in her ear.

Nikki took a second to process his words, but then she looked down and started laughing before shoving her breast back in the dress. They kissed and Jonas took the opportunity to fake spank her again.

“Now that’s just beautiful,” Suzanne said. “It does a wedding planner proud.”

“Love,” Ryder agreed.

“I have to say, the ballroom looks damn good.” Suzanne glanced around and assessed her work with a smile. “It looks like a fairy-tale wedding, just like Nikki wanted.”

Ryder had barely noticed anything other than a high volume of flowers, fluffy bows, and the color blue coming at him in all directions, but what did he know? “You did a great job. With all of this. Who else could have pulled this off?” He meant that sincerely. It took a special talent to put up with Nikki.

The DJ cut the song into a slow song Ryder didn’t recognize. “This one’s for all those married couples out there. Come on out and dance with the bride and groom.”

Suzanne got a stricken look on her face, and when she would have bolted, Ryder grabbed her and pulled her close against him. He was not letting this woman run away from him again.

Glancing around nervously, Suzanne tried to discreetly pull herself out of Ryder’s arms, but he had a grip on her like gorilla glue. “Let me go,” she hissed, covering her words with a smile in case anyone was looking.

“No.”

“What do you mean, no? You’re making a mockery out of this dance.” Which Suzanne immediately realized was such a prissy-ass thing to say, but she felt embarrassed, like a total fraud. Everyone knew they weren’t married.

Or weren’t supposed to be married anyway.

“Just dance with me, Suzanne,” Ryder murmured, and something about the way he spoke to her stopped her struggling.

Oh, God. His eyes were soft and deep and she suddenly felt like she was drowning in them as Ryder twirled her around. Nikki’s words rolled around in her head and her heart started beating double time.

“Why?” she whispered. “Why should I dance with you?”

They weren’t talking about dancing and they both knew it.

And then he said it. The words she’d longed to hear even when she hadn’t known she’d needed them, the words she’d only heard twice in the last two years, one of which was in a drunken voice mail. “Because I love you. Because I love you so much I’m willing to do whatever it takes to make it go differently this time.”

Suzanne swallowed hard, unable to speak.

“Because we should be a married couple, because I never wanted to not be married to you. Because all these men out here dancing with their wives can’t possibly love them as much as I love you. Because for me, there is only one woman, and I’m sorry to break it to you, but you’re it.”

“I . . . I . . .” She had no goddamn clue what to say. For once in her life, Suzanne was well and truly speechless. She wanted to cry, wanted to laugh, wanted to tell Ryder she loved him, too, but her tongue was stuck to the roof of her mouth, and her throat was totally constricted.

“We don’t get along,” she managed to tell him.

“Yes, we do. That’s why we screw up. Because we get along and we’re meant to be together and we love each other and we know it. And we’re afraid. Afraid to fail.”

The music receded and the people around them disappeared as she stared up at him, hearing him, really hearing him. “That’s true,” she whispered.

“And the thing is, we can’t fail. We’ve already hit the bottom and come out of it. From here on out, if we just love and listen, we can’t go wrong, babe.”

“Love is all that matters,” she told him. “And I do love you. God, I do love you.”

His eyes darkened and he let out a shuddery sigh. “You don’t know how much I’ve wanted to hear you say that again.”

Then Ryder leaned in close as they swayed to the music and brushed his lips over her cheek. He whispered in her ear, “Would you do me the honor of becoming my wife? ’Til death do us part this time.”

Suzanne nodded, knowing that this was right. Her and Ryder. The way it was meant to be. Forever. “Yes,” she said, and promptly started crying. Fat, wet, obnoxious tears, her shoulders shaking.

Ryder held her close and let her cry. “Thank you. I’ll do better this time, I swear to you. And this time, I owe you a real wedding. What I should have given you the first go-around.”

Suzanne fought to get her tears under control and looked up at him. “And I swear to God I will stop being such a man and holding all my feelings in.”

“Does that mean you’re going to cry all the time?”

“Probably.”

“I can live with that.” Ryder kissed her forehead. “Did I mention how beautiful you look today? Nikki isn’t the only princess here.”

And maybe fairy tales did come true.

“Did I ever tell you the difference between a Northern fairy tale and a Southern one?” she asked him, indulging herself and letting her head rest on his shoulder. God, he felt good. Her man. Where her head was meant to lie, right there, on him.

“What’s the difference?”

“A Northern one starts ‘once upon a time,’ while a Southern one starts ‘y’all ain’t going to believe this shit.’ ”

Ryder laughed. Then he said, “Believe this.”

She shrieked when he startled the hell out of her by dropping her back into a dip straight out of
Dancing with the Stars
. “If you throw my legs over your head, Jefferson, I will kill you,” she told him from half upside down.

“That’s for later, when we’re in private.”

Suzanne laughed, breathless as he pulled her back up. “Did you notice everyone around us is doing a conga line? I think the slow dance is over.”

Ryder looked down at her with an expression so hot and sexy she feared it might incinerate her dress. “I didn’t notice, because there’s no one else in this room but you.” He placed his hand gently on her stomach. “I love you, Suzanne Jefferson.”

And as the Borden-Strickland wedding reception roared around them, Suzanne only had eyes for her husband.

EPILOGUE

TURN TWO FOR THE JEFFERSONS

by Tuesday Talladega

They may have quit the race early the first time around, but Ryder Jefferson and his ex-wife (well, not really ex-wife, we’ll get back to that in a sec) have hit the track together for a second time, tying the knot in Charlotte on Valentine’s Day (cue the “awww”) for two hundred guests. Sponsor- and media-free, details are sketchy, but sources say the bride wore an empire-waist gown, leading to rumors there’s a baby driver on board. The bride’s attendants were Tamara Briggs-Monroe, Imogen Wilson, and curiously enough, Nikki Strickland, a newlywed herself, whose Dolce and Gabbana-covered butt has been at every race this season since Daytona. Groomsmen were the Monroe brothers, Ty McCordle, and Jonas Strickland, leaving Evan Monroe without a partner. (Note to Evan: If you need a woman, call me, sweetums.)

While the wedding was a standard chic black tie affair with a string quartet and a litany of expensive beef dishes given French names, the groom’s cake raised a few eyebrows by being a dozen pies instead of an actual cake. Don’t you hate it when there’s an inside joke you don’t get?

But I can tell you this . . . turns out the Jeffersons never legally got divorced and were all set to finalize things just this past December twenty-third. Yet instead here they are throwing a wedding, so I guess somebody was naughty and nice this year. It’s enough to make even a hard-core cynic like me give love two thumbs up.

Well, I wish them all the best, blah, blah, blah, and won’t hold it against them that my invitation got lost in the mail.

Drop by tomorrow for the latest rumor on Evan Monroe, the partner-free cutie driver, who is facing rough waters with his team owner. On your feet, race fans, the season just got a whole lot more exciting . . .