What Matters Most: The Billionaire Bargains, Book 2 (2 page)

The next time Reese Sutherland fell head over heels, it would be with him.

He paced around the perimeter of the fountain four times, checked his watch three times and wondered about his taste in friends twice before finally heading back into the church. As the best friend and the best man, he probably needed to be inside when everything fell apart.

But has he walked the hallway from the garden to the prayer room, there were no sounds of crying or yelling—in fact, there were no people at all.

The only sound was the faint organ music coming from the sanctuary.

Almost as if everyone was inside, preparing for a wedding.

Tony’s temper spiked and he turned toward the front of the church.

He came up short a moment later.

There were no crying bridesmaids, no pissed-off fathers, no guests leaving.

In fact, the foyer was filled with Reese’s bridesmaids, the scent of perfume and hairspray filled the air, and a riot of colors. Each girl wore a different pastel shade and carried a multi-colored bouquet. And they all turned to look at him as he came to stop.

“Tony, there you are.” Melanie, Jeff’s sister, grabbed his arm. “Everyone’s waiting on you. You’re supposed to be up front with the guys.”

Tony glanced through the open doors into the church sanctuary. The pews were full and the groomsmen were lined up at the front. And who stood at the very end of the line of his friends but the groom himself.

Tony was going to kill him.

Or drink himself into a stupor, blow a bunch of money and find some pretty girls to help him get over the fact that Reese had, in fact, forgiven Jeff and they’d gotten married after all.

“Yeah, just a second.” Tony shrugged out of Melanie’s grasp. “I’ll be right there.” If they were already waiting on him, a few more minutes wouldn’t matter.

Without bothering to wait for a reaction, Tony started for the bride’s room. Reese would be in there alone now, and this was may be his last chance.

He knocked but didn’t wait for an answer before pushing it open, stepping inside, closing it behind him and leaning against it so none of her friends could get in.

“Tony. What are you doing here?”

Reese was, clearly and understandably, surprised to see him. But Tony couldn’t answer her at that exact moment.

His heart had slammed itself against the inside of his rib cage, his lungs had forgotten how to breathe and his mind would do nothing but repeat over and over
want, want, want.

She was so damned beautiful. The dress was gorgeous, but he barely registered the satin and sequins. His attention was riveted on her face, specifically her eyes. The big chocolate-brown eyes that had sucked him in the moment he’d met her. They shone with intelligence and humor and an underlying sweetness that had seemed to pull at his heart from minute one.

Her long dark hair was done up in a fancy twisty thing that made his fingers itch with the desire to displace it. She wore a simple silver chain at her neck with a single diamond pendant that twinkled in the sunlight that spilled in the window, but otherwise her long neck, her shoulders and her chest were bare. The dress was strapless and plunged deep in the front, giving nothing away but hinting at gorgeous, sweet curves and a lot more silky skin.

“Are you okay?” She came forward, obviously concerned and confused.

She never frowned like this at him. She always smiled. She had a big smile and a bigger heart. She treated everyone with equal respect and interest—from the bus boys to the millionaires.

Unless someone messed with her. Good looks and money didn’t matter to her. She didn’t kiss up and she would cut a guy off at the knees if he thought his wallet meant he could touch her or talk to her inappropriately.

She was sweet and sassy and had a dirty mind. His innuendos never got past her and she blushed and smiled every time. And returned them in kind.

Their flirting hadn’t changed since she’d met Jeff, and Tony knew that meant she thought of it as meaningless fun.

Well, he needed to change her mind about that. It was fun, but nothing between them had ever been meaningless.

“God, Reese, you’re gorgeous.”

Her eyes widened. Probably because he sounded like he wasn’t breathing well. Because he wasn’t.

“Thank you.” She sounded a little breathless too.

And his heart ached. There was something between them. There was. It was crazy and stupid but he wanted to see her in that wedding dress, saying I do to
him.

Then he wanted to see that wedding dress on the floor of the honeymoon suite he’d booked.

And he’d fucked it all up. By not telling her those things. By not telling her that he thought she was amazing. By assuming that this, like everything else in his life, would just work out.

Tony didn’t usually have to expend a lot of energy. He was laidback, didn’t get too worked up about things because they had a way of turning out for him. If he lost money in a poker game, he waited it out and made it up in an investment. If an investment tanked, another would do well.

If he grew tired of a relationship, he waited it out and the woman eventually ended it.

And if he was looking for a relationship, he waited it out and a woman eventually approached him.

That pattern—wait it out and it’ll work out—had repeated itself over and over for him.

No reason to change it up.

Until Reese had come along.

He’d noticed her the first night she’d worked at Club Suprema—the card and cigar club Tony frequented. He didn’t go for cigars, but he wanted big card games and that was where to find them.

He’d wanted her the moment he’d seen her, but it was her sense of humor and how she met the men’s eyes directly and how she made John Kettinger say please when he ordered scotch from her that made Tony like her too.

John had said, “Scotch.”

Reese had said, “If you look at me and say please you’re going to get good scotch with the perfect amount of ice and no random strands of hair. If you say scotch without even looking up from your cards, the ice will be melted into your mediocre scotch and I won’t put anything in that will
hurt
you, but that’s all I’ll promise.”

Tony was pretty sure he’d fallen for her then and there.

Of course he hadn’t
done
anything about it. He’d waited it out.

And while he’d been waiting, she’d met, dated, fallen for and agreed to marry his best friend.

There were sparks between her and Tony though. She might be wearing Jeff’s ring, but Tony could make her drop things.

She was calm and cool and in control, unless he said something flirtatious. Then she was a mess.

That meant something.

And as soon as Jeff told her about his affair, Tony could make a move. He couldn’t
wait
anymore. He had to tell her how he felt. He just needed to figure out when and how to do it without being a complete asshole.

“Are you okay?” he asked her.

She wasn’t crying or throwing things. Maybe she wasn’t heartbroken…

“I’m fine. Why?”

Fine. That was one of those words that could actually mean a few different things.

“What did Jeff say?”

“Jeff?” Reese repeated. “I haven’t talked to him today. Yet,” she added with a little smile.

Yet. Okay…that didn’t really sound like “I never plan to speak to him again in this lifetime”.

“At all?” Tony asked.

Clearly, she hadn’t talked to Jeff about him sleeping with another woman.

“It’s our wedding day,” she said.

“Exactly. How could he wait?”

Her eyes widened again. “What do you mean?”

“I can’t imagine waiting until the wedding ceremony.”

“Waiting for the ceremony for what?” she asked, moving a step closer, her gaze riveted on his face.

“To thank you for making him the luckiest man in the world today.”

Her mouth fell open and Tony wondered if he’d stepped over the line.

Fuck it.
His best friend was about to break her heart. It was absolutely okay for her to know that another man found her attractive and amazing. In fact…

“If you were about to marry me…” He took a step forward. “I wouldn’t have called you on the morning of our wedding either.”

“You wouldn’t have?” she asked, in a near whisper.

There was something in the air. Something heavy and rich and sweet. Something he probably shouldn’t try too hard to name.

“I would have just rolled over in bed, pulled you close and told you in person.”

Reese’s mouth opened into an O again.

He’d said flirtatious—borderline inappropriate—things to her before but this was…different.

The wedding dress for another man was probably part of it.

“Wow,” she finally said. “That’s…”

Tony grinned. “True.”

“The night before the wedding?” she asked, having apparently recovered from the shock. “That’s naughty.”

“Not nearly as naughty as what I would have saved for the wedding night.”

She gave a mock gasp. But then mischief flashed in her eyes and she asked, “You would’ve held back before that?”

His whole body tightened. No way in hell. But he lightened his expression and tone. “Just enough to make that night memorable.”

Her expression softened. “Pretty sure being married to you would be memorable no matter what.”

Her words hit him in the gut and, as he saw her eyes widen again, he realized that she had just recognized her slip.
That
was a completely inappropriate thing to say to a man who wasn’t the one who’d put the diamond on her finger.

And Tony loved that she’d said it.

Which was also inappropriate.

But he wasn’t feeling particularly generous toward her fiancé at the moment. Jeff had been plenty inappropriate himself.

“Why Miss Reese, that’s a very nice thing to say.”

She blushed a little and he hid his smile.

“I just meant,” she said, lifting her chin. “That any wedding day should be memorable.”

And her wedding day was going to be memorable because his best friend was an ass.

“I thought we were talking about the wedding night.”

She blushed deeper. “Well…that too.”

And the fact that her wedding day, and night, were about to be ruined was kind of Tony’s fault.

After all, he’d introduced them.

Hell, he was the one who had offered Jeff a ride home from a party in college.

He could have left the drunk dumb ass sitting in the kitchen with the half-eaten package of Oreos, but he’d taken pity on Jeff and insisted he climb into Tony’s Porsche.

Where he’d puked all over the floor mats.

Tony should have known then that Jeff was going to be trouble.

But he hadn’t really been. He’d been a good friend. They’d had some great times. Jeff had been one of Tony’s biggest supporters when he’d started his own business five years before.

Reese was the first time Tony had felt anything but affection for his friend.

“Reese, do you have any idea—” Reese’s mother burst into the room and pulled up short when she saw Tony. “Tony. We’ve been looking all over for you.”

Tony gritted his teeth. Dammit. Now what? Jeff was up front, the church was full. If Tony wanted Reese to know about her fiancé’s dalliance, he was going to have to tell her.

And there was
no way
he was going to tell her.

“Reese, I really think you need to have a word with Jeff before you walk down the aisle,” Tony said.

But her mother stepped between them and turned Tony toward the door.

“Don’t be ridiculous,” she said. “They have their whole lives to talk. There’s a church full of people waiting.” She pushed Tony hard enough that he actually took a step forward. “All we need is a best man up front.”

Tony dug in his heels. “Reese, really. There’s something you need to know.”

Reese looked concerned. “Mom, maybe I—”

Mrs. Sutherland shoved Tony again and then turned to her daughter. “Reese, you are going to walk down that aisle, say I do and smile the entire time. You and Tony and Jeff can talk later. But the governor and his wife are out there, and I will
not
have any drama today.”

Reese blew out a frustrated breath. She looked up at Tony. “We’ll talk later, okay? Right after it’s over.”

Yep, they were going to talk. But it was going to be over a lot sooner than anyone was expecting.

Tony gritted his teeth and turned on his heel. He might be used to sitting around and waiting for things to work out, but he was Tony
Steele
. If he needed something done, he would get it done.