Jaded (31 page)

You’re in love
, her inner voice whispered.
You’re...in love
.

The doorbell rang, jolting her from her thoughts.

She scurried to the door, once more taken aback by the newness of her surroundings. It was a pleasant surprise for her eyes to settle on the winding staircase, and the amount of sunlight that now flooded her kitchen on a daily basis, and the other touches and refinements that Luke and his workers had enacted with skill and precision.

She pulled the door open, suddenly nervous and giddy and thrilled and too many other emotions to count. She took a deep, shaky breath.

Luke stood before her, leaning casually against the doorframe, a small smile on his face as he looked her up and down.

“Hey, beautiful,” he said softly. He looked her up and down again, unmoving. “Wow.”

“Y-you’re early,” was all she could stammer. Luke looked sinfully gorgeous, as always. He was wearing tailored black pants and a crisp white shirt, unbuttoned at the top so as to let some of that tan chest tease her, with a sports jacket slung over one shoulder.

“Well, if you want me to leave, and come back in a little bit, I could...”

“No, no. It’s fine.” She stepped away from the door, gathering a fistful of her silky, silver skirt in her hand. “Please, don’t leave. I’m not quite ready yet, but it won’t be long.”

“You look ready to me,” he said, stepping inside the house.

“Just a few more things,” she said. “It’s hard being a bridesmaid. And a woman in general. So many stray details to tend to.” She tiptoed up the stairs, trying to avoid stepping on the hem of her skirt. She needed her necklace, a little bit more blush, maybe a retouch on the mascara, and then the final detail, shoes.

“You look nice,” she called over her shoulder in an offhand manner as she ascended the staircase. What she wanted to tell him was that just the sight of him made her knees weak and her heart palpitate dangerously behind her ribcage, and that she would give up a million different things in her life for the chance to continue looking at him and be near him for the rest of her life.

“Yeah, so do you.” He paused. “You look a little bit more than nice, actually. You look...stunning.”

She blushed, relieved that he couldn’t see her face as he followed her up the stairs. “Thanks.”

She went into her bathroom and gently picked up the thin, silvery necklace that she’d laid out in advance. She could feel Luke’s eyes burning a hole through her back and tried to ignore the shiver of excitement that thrilled up and down her spine.

“Let me help you,” Luke offered. He took the necklace from her hands before she could protest and delicately draped it across her bare neck. She shivered as the cold metal touched her warm skin. Luke leaned in closer to her, the front of his chest settling against her shoulder blades.

His breath came out in short spurts on her neck as he fiddled with the clasp, the tip of his tongue resolutely stuck out of his mouth. When he joined the hook and clasp, he took a small step back from her and admired her in the mirror.

“Damn, Bella,” he whispered, a melancholy edge to his voice.

She turned to face him. Her breath caught in her throat, but she forced the creeping feeling of longing firmly into the back of her mind before it could manifest itself in her every action.

And besides, she was sure that by the end of the night, her longing for Luke would take over her rational mind. It was best to keep it at bay for as long as possible, at least so she could take a little more time to assess the situation.

“A little more makeup,” she said, moving toward her vanity mirror. “Just the blush.”

“Would you be offended if I told you that you didn’t need it?”

She laughed. “Why would that offend me?”

“I don’t know. Sometimes girls don’t like hearing that they don’t need makeup. But you look good with it too.” He paused. “You look good every single way. Every day. All the time.”

“Thank you for your kind words, Luke, but I’m hardly the person to woo the world with my beauty secrets. I think you’re biased. You just have a crush on me.” She winked at him through the mirror as she applied a fine layer of blush to her cheekbones.

“Yeah, this boy’s got a crush on you,” he said, smiling and moving closer to her. “A pretty huge one, actually. We might get kicked out of class because of all the love letters I slip you.”

She laughed, loving how easy their banter was. “If you were slyer about it, we wouldn’t have this problem.”

He beamed at her in the mirror as she finished applying her makeup. “Maybe if we’re lucky, we’ll have detention together later.” He winked.

“You couldn’t get so lucky,” she said. “I’m a good girl. I don’t get sent to detention.”

“I happen to know of a pretty naughty streak in Isabella Moreno,” he said. “And believe me, I love every second of it.”

She locked eyes with him through the mirror, the beginning of a smirk on her face. She saw his eyes flash and his jaw clench and she knew the games had begun.

“I need my shoes,” she said, brushing past him back into the bedroom.

Luke heaved a long sigh that turned into a groan and followed her, clenching his fists. He looked like he was fighting something strong inside him. She hoped it was the urge to throw her against the wall and make love to her. Actually, she figured it was exactly that. He watched her for a few moments as she rummaged through her closet, turning a coin between his fingertips. His gaze smoldered on her skin. Goose pimples erupted all over her body.

“So how long is...the wedding?”

She looked up at him guiltily, wondering if he could hear her thoughts of wanting him against her, lips all over, tongue reaching every corner of her body...

“Not long,” she blurted, casting her eyes to the ground. “The reception is right after the ceremony, and that will last for a couple hours at least.”

“Actually, what I meant to say was... How long am I supposed to be your date?”

Her heart sank and she was suddenly fearful. He was imposing a time limit. He had booked something for the night, or maybe he’d finally succeeded in getting over her and was just doing this as a favor.

“Until the reception is over. We don’t even have to stay the whole time, don’t worry.”

“I wasn’t worrying.” He stopped the coin between his fingers and looked at her.

She should have known.
Stop your silly thoughts,
she chided herself.

“Well, it shouldn’t be too painful, at least,” she said quickly. “Weddings can be a bore, but this one should be entertaining. My family is involved, after all.”

“Your mom is a trip,” he said. “I’d like to get to know her a little better tonight.”

Her cheeks flushed and she wasn’t sure why. “Well, if you’re planning on popping any big questions, you better talk to her first.” The words flew off her tongue and she’d only meant it as a joke, but once they hung in the air she realized exactly the heavy implication of the statement. Her cheeks burned harder.

“Hmm.” Luke narrowed his eyes as he thought about it. “I like where you’re going with that. Trust me, I’ll take care of it.”

She forced a laugh past her lips that sounded shaky and nervous. She slipped her shoes on and turned to him, aware that her cheeks were still burning. He watched her with a grin.

“Let’s go already.”

***

Luke was going crazy with desire.

He wasn’t sure how much longer he’d be able to successfully prevent his hand from making contact with any part of Isabella’s body. He was lucky she’d disappeared behind the large doors of the church, because his mind cleared for a moment. He looked around him—so many people he didn’t know, so many people in stiff, dowdy dresses, so many people crying
already
...was this how lasting marriages were supposed to begin?

He was thrilled to be here, absorbing this spectacle, meeting her family, taking in what felt to him to be an entirely new world. He had consciously thanked the heavens above every day since Isabella asked him to accompany her. Did she ever think he’d pass up the opportunity? And since the moment he knew he loved her, he’d been secretly entertaining the idea that they might have their own version of the ceremony unfolding before them.

The mere thought of it filled his heart with an excitement so uncontainable he felt like running up and down the aisles of the church and screaming into the turrets and jumping against the walls and screeching until his lungs burst. The idea of spending any time with Isabella was inspiring enough, but potentially a lifetime? He almost couldn’t think about it.
Don’t get your hopes up...

Love was beautiful, Luke now realized. Love was beautiful and precious. Just like all those crafty poets had been saying all those years. Luke had just been a little late to find out.

The telltale organ music blared through the church. The doors swung open and everyone in the church turned around to watch who would appear first. Luke couldn’t believe the way his heart twisted in his chest and the childish enthusiasm overtook him. What had happened to him? Jimmy’s wedding certainly hadn’t made him feel like a little girl admiring a pretty movie star.

A couple Luke didn’t recognize walked down the aisle. He strained his neck to peer behind the door, but couldn’t find Isabella.

Another couple entered the church and began their slow walk down the aisle. He watched with a calm eye, but was dying on the inside to get a glimpse of his girl.

Isabella was part of the couple that followed and her radiant beauty pierced the church. He couldn’t breathe for a moment. She was picturesque and he thought she looked like the subject of some old oil painting, immortalized by the great artists of yore. As he watched her float down the aisle, he hardly took notice of the man whose arm she was on.

She made her way to the front line of bridesmaids and faced the back of the church. Luke couldn’t pry his eyes off her. He felt like the only person in the church that was facing the front.

The organ music nearly tripled in volume. The time had come. The bride was ready.

Everyone rose to their feet with a soft swooshing noise. Luke turned half-heartedly toward the aisle, not wanting to tear his gaze off Isabella. He watched as Kitty strode past, looking picture-perfect and stunning as usual. As soon as she had passed him, he turned back to the front, eyes riveted on Isabella.

He found her to be watching him already. They shared a shy smile, Luke feeling as though they were strangers trying to hit it off from two sides of a restaurant.

When Kitty finally reached the altar, Luke sat down, along with the rest of the church, and a collective thud was heard. There were a few coughs as silence settled and the priest began his sermon.

After a few words, the bridesmaids and groomsmen were excused to their seats and Luke’s insides clenched up. She was headed toward him, tears shimmering in her eyes.

She slid into the seat next to him—a pleasant cloud of her scent settled around him and he smiled.

Barely a minute into the priest’s description of Kitty and Kevin’s expected future life together, and Isabella’s mother was sobbing in an inconsolable heap a few seats down. Would his mom do that, he wondered? Would
he
do that?

The priest went on, and Luke absorbed it all. It was nothing like Jimmy’s wedding, which had been held in the backyard of the house he and his fiancé had been living in for a year followed by an unlimited beer and chips reception in the half-finished garage.

Kitty and Kevin read their vows to each other—Kitty’s was a little long and mumbled by her sobbing and sniffling. Kevin’s was short, but hard to understand because he muttered through his tears.

The couple took turns repeating the words laid out for them by the priest, and as the priest uttered the famous words—”to have and to hold”—Luke reached for Isabella’s hand. He hadn’t planned it, had forgotten that was even part of wedding ceremonies.

He grasped it firmly and brought it into his lap. There was no message more powerful than the one he was sending right now. She had to feel it. The very touch of her skin against his was enough to send him into paralytic fits of happiness.

She gently squeezed his hand, never breaking her gaze from Kitty and Kevin.

“You may now kiss the bride.”

Kitty and Kevin beamed at each other. Kevin took Kitty’s face in his hands and kissed her. The room erupted with applause and the organ music started up again. The husband and wife turned to the audience, smiled, and made their way down the aisle.

“You’re crying,” Isabella said, sniffling, as the organ made a rapid crescendo to a blaring triumphant level.

“I am not,” Luke said, wiping away a tear. “There was something in my eye...”

“Bullshit. You cried at my sister’s wedding.” She started to laugh, almost joyously. “Amazing.”

“I told you, I got something in my eye—”

She threw her head back and laughed. Luke stood and tried to encourage her to do the same. “Come on, it’s time to get out of the church.”

“I don’t know why, but I never pegged you for a guy to cry at a wedding.”

“Well, what can I say? I told you I’d changed.”

This stopped Isabella’s laughter. She faced him, a serious expression overtaking her features. Luke sensed a definitive moment approaching; she was going to say something about
them
, something about what they had shared and what could lie in their future...

“It’s our turn,” she said suddenly, pointing ahead of them. The members of the family and their dates or spouses were filing out of the church first, to join the welcome line and greet the rest of the wedding attendees. Luke quietly slipped into the aisle and held a hand out for her to follow.

“Do you change this easily for every girl that steals your heart?” Isabella’s voice was low and firm and she kept her eyes ahead of her.

Luke’s heart wrenched in his chest but it didn’t matter, she’d understand eventually. He had infinite patience in this matter. “I’ve never changed for anyone,” he said as they walked arm in arm down the aisle, hanging back a bit from the couple in front of them.