Love and Other Surprises (7 page)

He was only halfway across the room when he spotted her in the foyer, flanked by her fellow bridesmaids. All three girls were wearing identical pink dresses, but only Ali managed to make it look provocative.

As he’d figured, he hadn’t been the only man to notice. Derrick Atchison and the other two male attendants were hovering around her as if she were a queen bee and they were her drones.

Matt tightened his jaw and began working his way through the crowd toward her. He lost sight of her for a moment, and when he spotted her again, he stopped dead in his tracks.

“Damn,” he muttered, watching Derrick lead her by the hand to the dance floor. Matt was suddenly aware that the music had shifted to a sultry love song. He felt his chest constrict as Derrick placed his hand on her waist and pulled her close—far closer, Matt was certain, than was necessary.

Matt did a slow burn, his body tensing all over. Why was she even bothering to give the jerk the time of day? From their conversation earlier in the week, he knew she was aware of the creep’s reputation. He had half a mind to cut in on the cozy couple.

Hey, slow down,
the other half of his mind warned him.
She’s not marrying the guy—she’s just dancing with him. What’s it to you?

Matt watched Derrick lean down and whisper something in her ear. As they turned to the music, he caught a glimpse of Ali’s face as she looked up and laughed. You’d think the bum was a world-class comedian, the way she was carrying on.

“Are you having fun?” asked a familiar voice.

Matt turned to see the newlywed couple. “Lauren— you make a beautiful bride.” Smiling, Matt kissed her proffered cheek, then shook Justin’s hand and forced himself to exchange pleasantries, resisting the urge to turn around and keep an eye on the dance floor. He was relieved when the band struck up another tune and the couple excused themselves to head to the dance floor. When he turned around, Ali and Derrick had vanished.

Matt edged his way to the foyer, where two bridesmaids were huddled in a conversation. They glanced up to give him coy smiles. Matt nodded abruptly and kept on moving, intent on avoiding being corralled into a conversation.

He re-entered the ballroom and worked his way around its perimeter, scanning the crowd. There was no sign of Ali or Derrick. An unaccustomed anxiety gripped him. Where the devil
were
they?

Matt was on his third lap around the room when he finally spotted Ali in the foyer. Thank goodness she was alone—but why was her face so flushed and pink? His suspicions made him clench his fists as he strode toward her.

“Matt! I’m glad you came.” Ali smiled and started toward him, holding out both her hands.

Matt took them in his. Her fingers were like ice. “You’re freezing,” he observed.

“I was just outside with Derrick.”

“I thought I told you to stay away from that worthless piece of trash,” Matt said harshly, dropping her fingers.

The moment the words were uttered, he knew he’d overstepped his bounds. But it was too late; the statement lay between them like a gauntlet.

She arched her eyebrows. “And I thought I told you I don’t need another big brother.”

Matt couldn’t suppress a scowl. “Looks to me like you do.”

Ali’s eyes flashed with indignation. “You have no right to tell me what to do.”

Back off, Jordan. She’s right.
Matt drew a deep breath and struggled to regain his composure. He didn’t want this to escalate into a scene. “Maybe not,” he said, controlling his tone with an effort, “but I’d hate to see Robert’s little sister get mixed up with a lowlife like that.”

Ali placed her hands on her hips and fixed him with an exasperated glare. “I have half a mind to leave you to your sordid delusions,” she said stiffly, “but the fact of the matter is that Derrick and the other groomsmen are decorating Justin’s car. I went to show them where it was parked. Someone had already pulled it around front, so I came back in.”

“Oh.” Matt’s immediate sense of relief was extinguished by the realization he’d just made a fool of himself for no reason. He seemed to have developed a habit of doing that every time he got anywhere near Ali, he realized with chagrin.

She was gazing up at him, her gray eyes bright and questioning. “What’s going on here?”

Matt stared down at her.
I only wish I knew,
he thought.

“Come on, Matt,” she prodded. “What’s the story behind your obsession with Derrick?”

Matt shoved his hands into his pockets and shifted his stance. “I’ve already explained his reputation to you.”

“I think there’s something more personal to it.” She eyed him challengingly for a moment. Matt’s thoughts flipped back to the highly personal feelings he’d experienced in her bathroom that afternoon and he swallowed hard. He couldn’t think of a coherent rebuttal to save his life.

But Ali was looking at him expectantly, waiting for a response. He cleared his throat and motioned to an upholstered bench along the foyer wall. She sat down and he lowered himself beside her.

“About a year ago, I ran into him at the Dew Drop Inn,” Matt began.

“That the dive out on the highway?”

Matt nodded. “We’d just finished the framework on a custom home we were building for a rancher, and I wanted to treat the carpentry crew to a round of burgers and beers. It was the only place near the job site.” Matt tried to find a more comfortable position on the narrow seat and ended up angling his knees toward her. “Derrick was playing pool with a bunch of oilfield roughnecks, and he was losing. He had a woman with him who was obviously crazy about him. And he, uh…” Matt found it difficult to continue.

“What?” Ali was staring at him in open curiosity. Matt hesitated, and she tugged on his arm. “What did he do, Matt? You can’t start a story like this and then leave me hanging. It’s not polite.”

“Well, neither is the story.” Matt gazed at the carpet. “Derrick offered her, um,
services
as ante in the game. He used very graphic terms—gave a personal endorsement. She left the bar in tears. I haven’t been able to look at the man without wanting to deck him ever since.” No point in telling her that’s what he tried to do at the time—and would have, too, if his work crew hadn’t restrained him.

Ali’s hand flew to her mouth. “Oh, Matt. That’s horrible.”

“Yeah. It was.” Matt looked at Ali. “So now you know. I just can’t stomach the guy.”

“Did you know the girl?”

“No,” Matt said, “but it wouldn’t have made any difference. No one deserves to be demeaned like that.”

“What did you do?” Ali’s eyes were locked on his face.

“I was going to offer her a ride, but I figured she wouldn’t want to get in a car with a strange man who’d just heard Derrick’s rude endorsement. So I paid one of the waitresses to take her home.”

“That was kind of you,” Ali said softly.

The praise rippled through him like fine scotch, spreading a feeling of warmth and ease throughout his chest. Matt realized his response was all out of proportion to her simple remark. He shrugged in what he hoped was a normal fashion. “Any decent guy would have done the same thing.”

“No. Most people wouldn’t have gotten involved in someone else’s problems.”

Ali’s eyes were large and bright and admiring as she looked up at him. Her face was tilted at a kissable angle and her lips formed a soft, parted temptation.

What was he thinking? He was playing with fire. This was Robert’s little sister, for heaven’s sake—the scourge of calm and order and everything else he held dear.

Matt looked around, suddenly anxious for a way to end the discussion. He was no Fred Astaire, but the band was beginning a slow, familiar tune he thought he could handle. “Would you like to dance?” he asked.

“Sure.”

Matt took her hand and led her into the ballroom. The moment he turned toward her, he realized the enormity of his mistake. The soft lighting on the dance floor made her lips even more inviting and cast enticing shadows between her breasts. He pulled her to him, irrationally thinking his heart would slow down if he held her so close he was unable to see her.

Wrong! He drew a deep breath to calm himself, and once again inhaled the soft, herbal scent of her hair. It had driven him wild earlier and it hadn’t lost its impact.

Maybe if he turned his face away he wouldn’t feel so intoxicated by it, he thought. He angled his head so that his cheek rested against her temple.

But now he felt her breath on his neck. Prickles of pleasure ran down his spine, and he arched away from her so she wouldn’t feel the effect she was having on him.

Dadblast it! How could dancing with a woman in a crowded room get him in such a state? The blood was pounding so loudly in his ears that it threatened to drown out the music. Matt was glad they were close enough to the bandstand that conversation was impossible; he doubted he could talk, even if he’d been able to think of anything to say.

Concentrate on moving your feet, he told himself. Focus on your extremities. He suddenly became overly aware of his hands. One rested low on her back, so low he could feel the beginning curve of her derriere beneath his fingers. He recalled the view of her backside that had resulted in his fall that morning. The thought made him miss a step, and Ali stepped on his toe.

“Sorry,” she breathed. She adjusted her body against his, somehow managing to align herself in an even more provocative fashion.

Matt gritted his teeth. There are limits to what a man can take, he thought desperately. He had to move his hand; he was dying to crush her to him, and to do so in his present condition would only embarrass them both.

Matt drew his hand around to the side of her waist. Now he could feel the swell of her rib cage above it and the swell of her hip below it, and it only incited him more. He again wondered if he could span her waist with his hands, and experimentally splayed his fingers. He guessed that they reached almost halfway around her.

Oh, mercy. He didn’t know where to put his hands, how to breathe, what to do with his feet—or how to control the adolescent response his body was having to this infuriating woman. He was trying to hold himself away from her, and he was developing a terrible crick in his back from the effort. With every passing second, he was in danger of losing his battle against nature. Every fiber of his being longed to pull her close, to breath her in, to taste her lips.

To make matters worse, she seemed completely oblivious to his struggle. She was snuggling against him as though dancing with him were the most natural, comfortable thing in the world. The longer they danced, the more relaxed she seemed to become. If the song went on much longer, she’d probably fall asleep!

When the
hell
was this infernal song going to end?

“Thank you,” Ali said as the last notes of the melody faded. She pulled away from Matt’s arms, feeling thoroughly shaken and a little unsteady on her feet. For a few minutes there, she could have sworn the room had disappeared and they’d drifted someplace else—someplace warm and dreamy and incredibly thrilling.

Oh, jeez, she thought despairingly. Why did she have to feel so attracted to Matt? He was one of the bossiest, most domineering men she’d ever met—exactly the type she considered pure poison. On top of that, he was Robert’s hand-picked selection—and her business partner to boot. A triple jeopardy selection!

Her feelings were just the result of the overly romantic atmosphere, she told herself. After all, what could be more sentimental than her best friend’s wedding? Given a little time and distance, her feelings for Matt were sure to normalize.

Besides, the attraction seemed to be completely one-sided. Matt had been stiff and silent during the dance, and he’d resisted every one of her attempts to snuggle closer.

Still, there had been a few moments when she’d sensed he might be interested. He’d rested his head against her hair for a few seconds and his hand had moved on her waist in a way that felt suspiciously like a caress.

“I’d better go find Lauren,” she said. “She’ll need help changing from her wedding gown into her going-away outfit.”

She turned and fled the dance floor, grateful to have a duty to perform.

She found Lauren already in the changing room, struggling with the tiny back buttons on her gown. A stab of guilt flashed through her; here she was, maid of honor at her best friend’s wedding, and she’d gotten so absorbed in Matt that she’d forgotten her responsibilities. “Why didn’t you come and get me?” Ali scolded gently. “I didn’t know you were ready to change. Here, turn around and let me help.”

“You looked like you were having too much fun on the dance floor,” Lauren said with a smile. “I didn’t want to interrupt.”

Ali quickly loosened the buttons and helped her friend step out of the gown, a flush heating her cheeks. Lauren turned and eyed her closely. “Aha! I knew it.” She wagged a finger at her. “Don’t try and deny that you find Matt attractive. It’s written all over your face.”

Ali carefully placed the gown on its padded hanger. “Well, of course he’s attractive,” she said defensively. “Anyone can see that. But he’s also impossibly overbearing. Would you believe he jumped my case about spending too much time with Derrick tonight?”

“Maybe he was jealous,” Lauren suggested.

“Fat chance! He thinks he’s replaced Robert as my big brother.”

Lauren gave a sly grin. “He didn’t look any too brotherly to me.”

“I don’t think you’re in any position to make objective observations about these things,” Ali retorted. “Those stars in your eyes are clouding your vision.”

“You’re probably right about that.” A radiant smile lit Lauren’s face. “Oh, Ali, I’m so happy!” She twirled around, holding out her hand and admiring her wedding ring.

“No one deserves it more,” Ali said warmly.

Lauren gave her a quick hug, then reached for the clothes-hanger holding her floral dress. “I’d better hurry and get dressed. I don’t want to keep my groom waiting—and I want to throw the bouquet before the guests start leaving.” She gave Ali a stern look. “I fully expect you to catch it, you know.”

Ali shook her head and laughed. “You don’t give up, do you?”