“Was it the blonde or the brunette with the tight curls and big ti—”
“Dad!” Rush snarled, stopping Dean before he could finish that sentence, too.
Thad’s grin only got bigger. “The blonde,” he clarified.
Dean gave him a smirk. “Try the brunette next. She leaves her friendliness in much better places.”
Gross. So not what I wanted to know.
“I swear to God, if you don’t shut the hell up, I’m going to throw your old ass out of here,” Rush warned his father.
Dean laughed and gave a shrug that had this badass rocker casualness to it. “Easy, boy,” he told Rush, and patted his leg.
“OK, you two. Let’s have fun,” Blaire told them as Nate climbed into her lap.
Unable to help myself, I glanced over at the table Tripp was now seated at. He was talking to some female sitting beside him whom I didn’t know. She hadn’t been at the rehearsal, and she wasn’t in the wedding party. The woman laughed at something Tripp said, and something in my stomach tightened up.
I would not acknowledge the feeling. I had no reason to care that Tripp was making some woman laugh. Even if she had really fabulous hair. It was golden and hung in long waves down her back. Who was she?
“Guess you haven’t met Braden’s cousin Charity,” Blaire said, snapping me out of my obvious staring.
“No, I haven’t,” I said, forcing a smile.
“Charity just went through an ugly divorce last year, and Braden wanted to bring her to get her away from things. Thad and you were matched up for the dinners and the wedding. To make things even, Della thought it would be nice to have someone for Tripp so he wasn’t the odd one out.”
A wedding date. Della had supplied Tripp with a wedding date. That wasn’t my business. I didn’t care. Really. I didn’t.
“Sweet,” Thad said, putting his arm on the back of my chair and leaning back as he rested his ankle on his knee. “Bethy’s my wedding date. Why didn’t someone tell me? I’d never have run off with the blonde.”
Rolling my eyes, I glanced back at Thad. “Because I’m not that friendly.”
He nodded. “True, but I figure I can get a few drinks in you and loosen you up.”
He was teasing me. I shook my head and reached for the glass of champagne that had been placed in front of me. “There isn’t enough alcohol in the world, Thad,” I informed him.
He slapped a hand over his heart. “Ouch. That’s painful.”
Taking a sip, I took one last glance at Tripp and Charity. Their heads were closer together now as they chatted away.
Awesome.
Tripp
This was not how I’d foreseen my night going. I couldn’t believe Della had provided a date for the weekend. Why would she think I wanted that? Did I look like I needed a fucking date? Hell no.
Charity was attractive. I’d give Della that much—she had good taste. But I wasn’t looking. I listened as Charity told me about the golden retriever puppy she’d just bought getting kicked out of doggy school for trying to hump a poodle. She laughed as she told me the story. If I weren’t in love with Bethy, I’d be totally into her. She had a good laugh. Her brown eyes danced with amusement.
Woods had forced me to sit when I’d tried to tell him I was switching with Thad. He’d whispered in my ear what I already knew about Charity. “She’s Braden’s cousin, and she’s had a bad divorce. She needs some attention. Do this for Della.” His tone meant it wasn’t a request.
I had sat reluctantly, glancing back at Bethy, who was once again being entertained by Nate. The kid knew a good-looking woman when he saw one. Thad’s sorry ass would get to be with Bethy tonight. He’d get to talk to her. Hear her laugh. He’d tell her stupid jokes that I knew she’d be amused by. Thad was good at charming females.
Damn player.
With his stupid pretty-boy looks.
I should have broken his nose years ago and evened the playing field. If I saw him touch Bethy tonight, I’d do more than break his nose.
I took a quick peek and saw Bethy listening to Dean Finlay. She seemed amused. At least it was the old man making her smile. Not Thad. Wait . . . No. Dean Finlay slept with women younger than me all the time. Maybe this wasn’t good. He was a fucking rock god. Shit.
“Stop looking at Bethy like she’s your last meal, dammit,” Woods growled in a low voice beside me.
I turned my attention back to my table and glared at him. He met my angry glare with his own. Della cleared her throat loudly enough to get the attention of both of us. I let Woods deal with his woman as I reached for my drink. I needed something more than pink fucking bubbles.
“Do you surf, too?” Charity asked beside me.
Were we talking about surfing now? Shit, I didn’t know. I was so checked out of this conversation. Focusing was an issue, with Dean Finlay and Thad both flirting with Bethy.
“Uh, yeah. I mean, I did back in the day. I haven’t in a while. We don’t get the waves in the Gulf to make it really worth it.”
“Didn’t you live in Myrtle Beach for a while?” she asked.
Had I told her that? “Yeah, I did. It was short-lived,” I replied.
I looked over at Della, who was watching me with her bottom lip between her teeth. She was concerned. I knew that look. I’d spent a lot of time with Della back when she and Woods were figuring things out. When you spend two solid weeks on the road with someone, you get to know each other well.