The Unforgettable Ex (Captured by Love Book 5) (Volume 5) (17 page)

“Yeah,” she said with a smile.

She hadn’t been brave enough to ask Carter if he knew whether Amber was still staying at Gavin’s place. She wouldn’t be surprised if that was the case, although she’d really appreciate it if they’d keep that particular fact from her. There were certain things she wasn’t ready to know.

*****

“
Happy birthday, Jade,” Natasha said, giving her friend a hug and a kiss.

“Thanks, Tash. And I really love that dress on you. Doesn’t Tash look great, honey?” Jade asked Lucas.

Lucas grinned as he greeted Natasha with a peck on the cheek. “Absolutely. The guys will be all over you tonight. But not me, of course, ’cause I only have eyes for my stunning wife,” he said, winking at Jade.

Jade beamed at her husband.

“Thanks, guys,” Natasha said with a laugh.

She left the couple to greet their other guests, envy for Jade and Lucas’ relationship slamming in her chest. How long had she been wishing for something similar—with Gavin?

Evidently, that was the problem. She’d been trying to force Gavin into the role of her happily-ever-after when he obviously wasn’t the one. How could he when he didn’t want to be? So, yes, she was finally accepting that it was time to let go.

Her heart compressed at her thoughts, disagreeing at her decision, but she shut it up. Moving on was a matter of will. If she was strong enough, she could do it in no time. Besides, Gavin’s actions had helped. Being dropped for the same woman
twice
brought closure like no other act could.

She held her chin up and looked around. Jade did say there were a few single men at the party tonight. Well, she was a single woman looking to put her painful past behind her.

Lucas and Jade’s huge living room was already filling up with well-dressed men and women, sipping on various drinks and munching on delicious-looking canapés offered by hired servers walking around with trays. She spotted Erin and Lexie chatting with a couple of people she didn’t know and walked towards them.

“Natasha!” someone called from behind her.

“Hey, Tristan,” she said, stopping to greet Marilyn’s cousin.

“You look great. How are you?”

“I’m good, thanks. You?”

“Fine, thanks. Where’s Gavin?”

Her heart skipped at the mention of her ex’s name. “I don’t know.”

“You didn’t arrive together?”

“No. We’re no longer together.”

Tristan’s mouth slackened. “I’m sorry to hear that.”

She shrugged, giving him a small smile. “Has Marilyn arrived yet?”

“No. I was told she was called to an important business meeting at Port Douglas yesterday,” Tristan said, checking his watch. “But apparently, her flight’s due to land in about two hours, so she’ll be late coming to the party. She’ll make a grand entrance, I’m sure.”

“Oh, she sure will,” she said with a chuckle. “I happen to know that she’ll look absolutely stunning in the dress she’s chosen for tonight, so whether she likes it or not, she
will
make a grand entrance.”

“Yes, I did hear from Lucas that you girls had shopped together. Want a drink? I’m just about to get myself one.”

“Yes, please. White wine. And I’ll be over there with Lex and Erin.”

“Sure. Be back soon.”

She smiled her thanks and continued walking towards her friends, glancing around.

Had Gavin arrived yet? While she’d resigned herself to having to pretend that everything was okay, she’d rather they didn’t talk at all tonight. She still didn’t trust herself not to get emotional if Gavin started chatting with her like they were nothing more than good friends. Good thing the party was happening in multiple rooms of the big house. She could always move around and avoid him—

“Boo!”

She let out a loud gasp and turned around to see who’d scared her. “Carter!”

“Hey, sis— Whoa. You look...”

“Ugh. Don’t stare.”

“Ew. As if I would,” Carter said, making a face.

Cassie laughed out loud. “I didn’t get that reaction when you saw me in my dress,” she said to her fiancé.

“That’s because
this
was the reaction you got when I saw you.” Carter grabbed Cassie and kissed her passionately.

Natasha watched, amusement and sadness hitting her. Sure, she was thrilled to see happy couples showing their love and desire for each other. But did she have to witness them when she was so far from having the same thing?

Cassie pulled away, frowning. “Hey, behave.”

“I was just reminding you of my reaction earlier,” Carter said, eyes wide. “You seem to have forgotten.”

Cassie shook her head, wiping the lipstick off Carter’s mouth with her finger, before giving Natasha a hug and kiss hello. “Your brother can be so juvenile sometimes. But I suppose I don’t mind ’cause he’s so sweet.”

“Only for you,” Carter said, grinning at Cassie’s before enveloping Natasha in an embrace. “How are you doing, Tash?” he asked, suddenly serious.

“I’m good,” she said with a bright smile. “Ready and willing to meet eligible bachelors tonight with this dress.”

Carter’s lips curved, his smile not quite meeting his eyes. “Glad to hear. You’ll bowl them over. You look beautiful.”

“Why, thanks, bro,” she said, lightly punching his arm. She knew Carter was sad that things hadn’t worked out between her and Gavin, and would be feeling more than he was letting on. But she was grateful that their break-up hadn’t caused a rift between the two best friends. She would have hated it if it had.

“Hey, guys,” Tristan greeted Carter and Cassie as he handed her a glass of wine.

“Hey, dude,” Carter said. “Are you my sister’s escort tonight?”

Natasha raised her eyebrows at Carter.

“I can be if she wants me to,” Tristan said, grinning at her. “I don’t mind being the go-to man for the girls when they need a fake date. Remember, I did a good job of it for Erin a few months ago?”

“Thank you for the offer, but it’s not necessary,” she said with a chuckle. “I’m after a true prospective boyfriend and I doubt you’d want to apply for that part.”

Tristan pretended to shudder. “You’re very attractive, Natasha, but even you won’t be able to entice me to abandon the single life.”

She laughed. “I know you’re a lost cause.”

“Well, if you change your mind about wanting an escort for tonight, let me know,” Tristan said with a wink before walking away.

“So,” Carter said, his face a picture of contemplation. “You’re really planning on picking up a real date?

“Why not? If I’m going to move on, might as well do it sooner rather than later, right?”

“Right,” Carter said with a sigh. “Just pick a guy who’s not involved in anything shady, okay?”

“Hey, isn’t it your job to screen my dates?” she asked dryly.

“Aha! So I have explicit permission. Good!”

She rolled her eyes as they mingled with the other guests.

*

N
atasha sat with her friends at one of the round dining tables set up on the big outdoor entertainment deck. She sniffed the air, her mouth watering from the delicious smells coming from the long buffet table filled with sumptuous food. Thankfully, the transparent marquee covering the deck allowed them to enjoy views of a lit-up Sydney Harbour Bridge and cityscape while trapping the heat generated by the multiple patio heaters scattered about. It made the cold July night comfortable without a coat.

“Hello, Natasha.”

“Jarryd! Good to see you,” she said, smiling at the man who had fast become a friend.

“Is there a spare seat here?” Jarryd asked.

“This one is,” she said, patting the chair next to her.

“Oh, really? Mind if I take it?”

“Of course not,” she answered, then introduced him to the other people at their table.

“He’s hot,” Erin whispered from her other side.

“Uh-huh,” she answered.

“Is he single?”

She nodded.

“How do you know?”

“He tried to ask me out before, but we’ve since agreed to stay in the friendship zone.”

“Okay,” Erin said with a smile, squeezing her hand. “Don’t look now, but Gavin’s just arrived.”

Her head whipped towards the back entrance leading into the house. Ugh. Erin had just said don’t look, and what did she do? Good thing Gavin hadn’t noticed. He was busy greeting Jade, seemingly apologising for his tardiness.

Why was he so late anyway? Did Amber hold him up?

Ugh! Seriously, what was wrong with her? Why the hell couldn’t she stop thinking of Amber and Gavin being together?

She turned to Jarryd, determined to ignore Gavin for the rest of the night. “Want to get some food?”

“Sure,” Jarryd said, pulling out her chair for her as she stood up.

“How’s it going with the changes to the Esda plans?” she asked as they walked to the buffet table.

Jarryd groaned and launched into the complications brought about by the factory owners wanting to incorporate substantial changes to the plans at a late time.

Natasha listened sympathetically. “I’ll speak with our engineer and give him the heads-up with what’s happening. But it’ll be no problem to make the necessary changes.”

“Thanks. Appreciate that. By the way, do I get to meet your brother tonight?”

“Oh, yes. Carter will be sitting at our table. And he should know more about the technical aspects of the project than I do so you can ask him about some of your concerns.”

“And your boyfriend? Is he not here tonight?”

She flushed. “Gavin’s not my boyfriend anymore. We’ve broken up.”

“Oh, I’m sorry.”

“It’s okay. Anyway, look at all this delicious food!”

Jarryd smiled, getting that she wanted to change the subject.

She was grateful for Jarryd’s presence. If Gavin was watching, she was glad that he could see she wasn’t moping around, feeling sorry for herself. It was a matter of pride.

She filled her plate with her favourite dishes and went back to her seat.

“Do you like him?” Erin whispered.

“Jarryd? I’m enjoying his company.”

“Clearly,” Erin said, watching her face.

She shook her head. “It’s not like that. I feel comfortable with him and I think he’s attractive, but there’s nothing there apart from good rapport.”

“O-kay.”

Her eyes widened. “Did it look like I was flirting with him?”

“Are you trying to make Gavin jealous?”

“No,” she said with a frown just as she heard Carter talk to Jarryd from across the table.

“Oh, I was meaning to introduce you guys to each other,” she commented.

“Yes, you were so busy chatting that you didn’t even notice me trying to catch your eye,” Carter quipped.

“Sorry,” she said with a laugh. “Anyway, you should talk to Jarryd later about some technical stuff regarding changes to the electrical plans for Esda. I was telling him you’ll understand more of it than I do.”

“Sure,” Carter said. “Anything major?”

“Unfortunately,” Jarryd said with a sigh. “The owners—”

A hand on her shoulder distracted her from listening to Jarryd’s answer. She looked up and her heartbeat instantly spiked up.

“Hi,” Gavin said with a smile.

“Hi,” she said, then pretended to go back to listening to Carter and Jarryd’s conversation. Gosh, she didn’t mean to be rude, but Gavin had taken her by surprise and she wasn’t ready to face him.

“Do you have a minute, please?” Gavin asked, giving her shoulder a soft squeeze.

She pressed her lips together, then nodded. Might as well get it over and done with. She got up and let him lead her inside Lucas and Jade’s empty and private theatre room.

Gavin exhaled heavily while she glanced around, looking for something to focus on apart from him.

“Tash,” Gavin said softly.

“Yeah?” she asked nonchalantly, her arms crossing against her chest.

“We didn’t get a chance to talk properly the last time. I just want to make sure you’re okay.”

She smirked. “You could have asked me that outside, Gavin. I’m fine. Carter explained everything. I’m still a little angry at you for hiding things from me, but that’s a normal reaction. I’ll get over it soon.”

“I don’t want to lose you,” Gavin said, his voice pleading.

Her heart skipped before her brain quickly smothered the hope that dared to show its unwelcome head. “You mean you don’t want to lose me as a friend?”

Gavin’s chest heaved before he answered. “Yes.”

“Sure,” she said blithely, pushing away the instant pain evoked by his answer. “In time we’ll be back to normal. When that will be, I have no idea. It would help if you’d just leave me alone for a while.”

“I never meant to hurt you, Tash.”

She smiled without cheer.
But you did anyway.

“I’ll be fine,” she said dismissively. “Is there anything else? I don’t want my food to get cold. And Jarryd’s probably looking for me.”

Okay, she
did
want to make him jealous, even if it was only a tad.

“Did Lucas invite him, or did you?”

Her brows rose. “He’s Lucas’ friend,” she said vaguely. “Anyway, he’s a nice guy. I’ll introduce you to him.”

Gavin just stared at her, looking despondent.

“How’s Amber, by the way?” she asked, trying to remind herself not to be fooled by her emotions, which were suggesting that Gavin might indeed be getting upset because of Jarryd.

Gavin looked away, shifting from one foot to the next. “She’s okay,” he mumbled.

Well, wasn’t his body language telling? “We better go back,” she said coldly, hastening out of the room.

“Tash...”

She heard the anguish in his tone but she resisted glancing back. Gavin might be worried about their friendship, but she was worried about her heart. It was still too weak and too foolish when it came to him. Best thing she could do was avoid him until she had fallen out of love and completely healed. When that would be, she didn’t know. But damn it, she was going to do her utmost best to get there as soon as she could.

She was done pining for a man whose heart had always belonged to someone else.

G
avin stared at the closed door of the theatre room. He didn’t think it was possible for the pieces of his broken heart to splinter into tinier fragments, but they just did. And the only woman who could glue them back together again didn’t want to have anything to do with him anymore.