The Inconvenient Bride (2 page)

Dylan McCray just wasn't one of the most attractive eligible men in Charleston, South Carolina, he was also heir to the entire McCray Construction empire. An empire that was founded by his great grandfather, then run by his father. Once Dylan turned thirty, the nearly billion dollar company would be in his complete control. It was a position he had been groomed for his entire life, and every single, money hungry, southern socialite was trying take a bite out of Dylan McCray. This fact concerned Carrie, because she didn’t know how far some of these woman would go to stake their claim in the McCray fortune. Over the years, some meddlesome people had even questioned her loyalty and motives, but for Carrie it was never about the money. It was always about the little inquisitive boy she met nearly twenty years prior when her mother took the lead housekeeping position at the McCray's southern mansion. A job that would change their lives forever.

Dylan's dad, John McCray, was generous man. So generous in fact, that when it came to Carrie’s education, Mr. McCray provided the same opportunities for her as he did for his twins. Without hesitation, he paid full tuition for Carrie to attend the most prestigious private schools in Charleston. They all graduated with honors. Although Carrie didn’t have the elite McCray blood pumping through her veins, she was afforded all the same societal advantages as a McCray. To the McCray’s, she was family and it didn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out that this made them all inseparable. Especially Dylan and Carrie.

That nearly inseparable bond remained even during college. No matter what, he would always make time to see her at least once a month. Dylan attended Columbia University in New York and earned a Bachelors degree in Business Administration. Then, he earned his MBA from Harvard. He wasn't just an attractive man, he was an intelligent one. Carrie and Katie both earned degrees in Early Childhood Education from Boston University. After college, the trio all settled in their hometown of Charleston. It was their plan, a pact of sorts, which they all had sworn to when they were kids. However, nowadays, Carrie was seriously considering leaving Charleston and returning to Boston. She needed to find her own way.
A way without Dylan
.

Carrie took a quick check of the time and realized Dylan had been waiting nearly an hour. She felt horrible about avoiding him, but she had no choice. Especially in her current condition.
She needed some space and time.

Taking one last look in the mirror, she opened her bedroom door and slowly walked down the narrow hallway. Her hands, her face, her entire body began to drip in perspiration the moment she reached the den and saw him. She took a deep breath then spoke, “Sorry, I took so long Dylan. I just wasn't feeling well, today."

***

Bullshit.

Dylan
didn't have a clue what the hell was going on, but whatever it was, he was going to get to the bottom of it for once and for all. For the past few months, his best friend had put up an enormous, fucking skyscraper of a brick wall around herself. Every time he tried to get close to her she pushed him away.
Far away.

On several occasions, he questioned his twin sister about Carrie's recent distance, but she would always say, "Don't push her. She'll talk to you when she's ready." What the hell did that mean? Tell him what? Whatever it was, it was distracting the shit out of him and he needed it to stop. He couldn't even concentrate at work because Carrie was always on his mind.
But why?

Dylan quickly stood, then moved slowly towards her. The moment their eyes met, they both looked away. Something felt awkward, but Dylan ignored the feeling.

One step. Two steps. Three…

The closer he got to her, the more flushed Carrie became. “Why does he have to look so fucking good?” she mumbled to herself as her knees went weak. She took a deep breath and tried to speak, but not a word exited her mouth.
Shit, only Dylan could render her speechless.

“What’s wrong Carrie?” he questioned as he continued to stroll towards her with all the confidence and sexiness in the world. With each step he took, her thunderous heartbeat became louder. So loud, Carrie wondered if he could hear the deafening sound.

"Talk to me. What’s going on?" he questioned, with a deep, southern erotic drawl, as he stood in her personal space. Just as she was about to speak, Dylan’s rich oak scent drifted into her nostrils and immediately sent shockwaves throughout her system, rendering her
paralyzed from head to toe
.
First, her mouth became parched, then her dark eyes become heavy, while her pulse quickened.
Get control of your emotions, Carrie Heights! Don’t let him see you sweat.

But, it was too late. She was already a willing victim in his sexual game.

"Are you okay?" he questioned as he moved closer, staring at her unusually pale face.

She didn’t respond, so a concerned Dylan inched even closer. So close that Carrie thought she would pass out right in front of him.

"Carrie what is it? Come here," he whispered as he wrapped his strong masculine arms around her hourglass waistline. A waistline that she kept under lock and key. His embrace felt like a warm fire during a cold, blustery winter's night. It was intense and inviting.

Carrie purred as she nestled her face into his massive chest. Dylan could sense that she needed his affection so he squeezed tighter. Then tighter. Pressing his fingers into her flesh, he rested his face close to hers. The feeling was overwhelming. And, not just for Carrie. Dylan also felt a sense of peace as he was wrapped in her embrace. "Gosh, I've missed you so much. I missed my best friend.” And, he truly did.
He missed her desperately.

For the last few months, Dylan felt as if someone had ripped his heart out of his chest. He could hardly eat, think or sleep without her in his life. Shit, she was his rock. His one constant. And, ever since she pulled away from him, he was beginning to question everything. Tonight, he needed her to know that whatever was going on in her life he would be there for her, no matter what.

"Dylan, I really need to talk to you about something that's been on my mind," she managed to utter still holding tight to his warm flesh.

"Anything honey, you know that. Just tell me."

"I don't know how to. I really don't!”

"We've been best friends since we both were kids. If you can't talk to me, who can you talk to?" He stated still locked in a deep embrace.

"It’s not that easy," she managed to say between sobs.

Dylan quickly stepped back. He needed to see her face. What in the hell was eating away at her so badly? What was making his best friend shed tears?

"Don't cry. Is it work? Is it some guy? Do you need money?" The questions fell quickly from his lips, and she nodded "no" to them all.

"Fuck. What is it? This is tearing me apart," he growled as he placed both of his hands on her face. He planted a warm kiss on her forehead, then another. The intimacy of the situation was intense and although neither verbalized their desires, they both had crossed an invisible line. A line neither was prepared for in their vulnerable positions.
What in the hell was going on?

Carrie tried to control her needs, but his nearness was driving her sick with lust and desire.
Get control of yourself. This is your best friend. He doesn't see you that way
. But it was too late. Carrie was already swimming in the deep end of her sexual fantasies and she didn’t want to come up for air. She wanted to be suffocated in Dylan’s warm breath and strong arms. She wanted to be ravaged by his full desirable lips. "Dylan, please hold me for one more minute, okay?" She managed to utter as she tried to get control of her feelings. He immediately acknowledged her request by pulling her close.

"Alright Carrie, I'll hold you for a while longer. Then, you have to tell me everything,” he stated lovingly as he nestled his face close to her hers. His hands massaged the small of her back while he pressed tiny kisses to her face, hoping it would calm her down. Unbeknownst to him, it was doing the opposite.
The complete, fucking opposite.

Carrie tried to will the sexual stirrings away, but Dylan’s nearness caused her hungry and wet pussy to growl, which sparked a wave of desire in Carrie that she couldn’t control.

She panted.

She fidgeted.

She silently wished her long-standing, raw urges away, but then it happened…

Carrie’s traitorous nipples became hard as stones against Dylan's chest. The feeling was exhilarating. Instinctively, she rubbed her throbbing buds against his firm chest until a wave of heat shot through her core. The feeling was so sexually intense, she let out a deep throaty moan. A moan she knew he heard. A moan that was clearly sexual in nature. A moan that she wasn't prepared to talk about with anyone.
Especially him
.

Flushed with embarrassment, Carrie immediately jerked her body from his embrace.

"What was that, Carrie?" Dylan uttered with a puzzled look on his face.

She purposefully ignored him, but he wasn't going to give up that easily.

"Carrie, I'm talking to you. What was that?" He asked with concern in his voice, but still she didn't utter a word. Instead, she grabbed her purse and keys and headed towards the front door.

"Let's go, Dylan. I’m sure Katie is pissed at us both by now," she bashfully stated, looking down at the floor. Too ashamed to face him at the moment. Her bright, cherry red face clearly told Dylan the conversation wasn't up for discussion. Then, she swung her apartment door open and slipped outside.

Dylan immediately followed her out of small apartment, then locked the door behind them.

"Carrie, are you just going to leave without saying a word?" he barked as the chill of night sunk into his bones.

"Please Dylan, just let it go!" The pain in her voice forced him to drop the subject, but a million thoughts were swimming fast and free in his head
What in the hell just happened? Had his best friend just moaned in his ear? And, more importantly, why had he enjoyed the sweet sultry sound of her whimper?

"Fine, we don't have to discuss this now, but we will, later," he stated firmly.

Carrie didn’t utter a sound nor did she look his way. Her treasonous actions had already crippled her with fear. She wanted to hide. She wanted to scream. She wanted to jump into his arms and explain everything, but the steady stream of guilt pumping in her veins kept her speechless.

“Let’s go,” Dylan uttered nonchalantly as he unlocked the door. He thought about pressing the issue, demanding a response, but opted to remain quiet because he didn’t know what to say or do. Plus, there had to be another explanation.
There was no way Carrie Heights could be interested in him.

Absolutely, no fucking way!

Something else had be to going on, but what the hell was it?

CHAPTER TWO

The entire ride to the Lou's Pizza Parlor was done in silence. Dylan blasted Rihanna's new CD in his luxury two-door, limited edition, charcoal grey BMW convertible, hoping the melodic sounds of the artist would drown out the awkwardness of the situation. Unfortunately, neither one of them heard the music, because they were both lost in their own private thoughts. Several times during the ride Dylan thought about reaching over and rubbing Carrie's trembling hand to comfort her, but after her unexpected moan he didn't know what to do.

When they finally arrived at their favorite restaurant, they both breathed a sigh of relief. Seconds later, an overly-anxious, seven months pregnant Katie came wobbling to the car, with her husband Jeff. “What in the hell took you guys so long!” His sister joked as she swung open Dylan's car door.

Neither said a word, but the pale and distraught look on both of their faces told Katie something was wrong. “What's going on here?” She inquired, but her question was interrupted by the loud ring of her cell phone. She looked down and winced, then her eyes shot up to her twin brother. “Dylan, dad needs you to call him. He said he called you four times and you haven't answered your phone.”

“I know what he wants and so do you. I don't have time for that conversation right now, Katie,” Dylan barked as he rubbed his hand over his perfectly angular face.

“No. No. No. Don't do this, Dylan. This is what you've always wanted. It's only for a year. Make the deal.”

“Are you listening to yourself, Katie? I don’t want to do this.”

“What other choice do you have? Dylan, just make the deal.” An exhausted Katie pleaded.

“Deal? What deal? What is it? What's going on?” a concerned Carrie shouted, forgetting about their earlier incident. She quickly walked over to her best friend and grabbed his hand. She didn't like the worried look on his face.
What in the hell did Mr. McCray want? Had she been so consumed by her own feelings that she'd forgotten to be there for him?

Dylan tightened Carrie's comforting grip. "I guess we both have a lot to reveal," he stated, referencing the incident that had transpired earlier.

“Look, earlier was nothing. I'm on some new medicine that has my hormones all over the place. Don't over think it. Honestly, it was nothing,” she lied. “I'll call over my ex-boyfriend over tonight and have him take care of me, alright?” Carrie joked, but Dylan didn't laugh because the mere thought caused a sick feeling to bubble up in his core.
But why
? She was his best friend. Why did he care about who she spent time with?

A livid Katie was beside herself with anger listening to them both play a sick game of cat and mouse. Why were they both standing in a cold parking lot lying to one another? For months now, she wanted to sit down and talk to Carrie about her grandfather’s will, but she had promised Dylan that she wouldn’t intrude in his personal affairs. But, after receiving multiple calls from her father, over the last few months, Katie decided it was time to take matters into her own hands. Unfortunately, Carrie had refused to listen. Now, the situation was completely out of control and in her current condition, the extra stress was taking a toll on her.