Total pages in book: 73
Estimated words: 69413 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 347(@200wpm)___ 278(@250wpm)___ 231(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 69413 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 347(@200wpm)___ 278(@250wpm)___ 231(@300wpm)
I cleared my throat, feeling my cheeks flush with heat.
What was I supposed to say?
We spent the whole night together, and it was one of the most magical nights of my life, and I’m pretty sure I’d fall for him if he wanted anything to do with real relationships?
The truth was too much. But I’d been caught, red-handed.
“What are you doing up here?” I asked, trying to deflect. “Didn’t the guys’ brunch start thirty minutes ago?”
“I just came up here to grab my phone charger,” Chase said, holding up a cord. “Got to give it some juice.”
I nodded slowly. “Right, right. Well, um, I got up earlier—way earlier, and took a shower this morning. In my own room. Obviously. But, I came up here, and then I was asking Landry for some help with the florist delivery.” I cleared my throat. “Figured I could use an extra hand.”
God, I was a terrible liar.
Nearly incapable of it, really.
I planned on having a good, long video call with Chase sometime long after the festivities had died down, and eventually I’d explain everything. My weird attraction to Landry. The strange little connection we’d had.
But today was Chase’s wedding day, and I wasn’t about to get into all of that now. After we’d all left the ski resort, and I’d been back home in California for a while, I was sure that all of my feelings about Landry would die down and be nothing but a distant memory. It could be a funny anecdote, one day.
“I gotcha,” Chase said. His expression looked different than usual, but I couldn’t figure out if it was because I’d come out of Landry’s room, or something else entirely.
“You ready for the big day?” I asked my brother as we shared the elevator down toward my own floor.
Chase was pulling at a thread on his pants, and chewing on the inside of his cheek.
Shit.
He was the nervous one.
Chase reached out to gently grab my arm. I turned back around to look at him, and now the look on his face was one of sheer terror.
“Tell me it’s going to go okay?” he asked, practically holding his breath.
My poor brother.
My sweet, social butterfly of a brother, who usually didn’t worry about a damned thing, was asking me for reassurance.
I’d never loved him more.
“Holy shit,” I said, turning to step back, standing so that the elevator wouldn’t close. I was shocked. “Chase, you’re going to absolutely fucking rock it.”
“Adam is the most amazing person I’ve ever known,” Chase said, in a rare moment of anxiety. “I want to do right by him. I really do want it to be forever, Jamie. And that’s as scary as it is incredible. He’s so out of my league, it’s not even funny.”
I looked at him like he was losing his mind. “Excuse me, is this the Chase Blau I’ve known and loved for years? Have you been replaced with an alien, or something? Adam isn’t out of your league, he’s perfect for you.”
He let out a breath, nodding once. “You really think so, huh?”
I puffed out a laugh. “Of course I do. If you want to talk about someone being out of somebody else’s league, look at me compared to Landry, or something. You and Adam are forever material.”
I was blabbing, but I really couldn’t believe he had anything to worry about. I’ve never really seen Chase get anxious, but I supposed wedding days could make even people with nerves of steel get a little shaky.
He nodded and reached out to squeeze my arm. “It means so much to me that you’re here today. And no one’s out of your league either, by the way.”
I cracked a smile. “You’re too generous.”
“Landry doesn’t do relationships, but if he did? I bet you two would hit it off and be riding off into the sunset by tomorrow night.”
I puffed out a laugh. “Now I know you’re either criminally insane or have been replaced with an evil clone version of yourself.”
“Is the clone going to be able to get through this wedding without bawling on Adam’s shoulder, at least?” Chase asked me.
“No question,” I told him. “You definitely might cry, but I think it’ll be tears of joy.”
He took a deep breath. “I’ve got to get down there before they think I’ve run off. Thank you, Jamie.”
“Knock ‘em dead,” I said. “I’ve got to shower and change before I go meet with the florist.”
Chase turned his head to one side. “Shower? Didn’t you say you already washed up before you went up to Landry’s room?”
Fuck. Shit.
Caught red-handed, again.
I just gave him what I hoped was a convincing, breezy laugh as the elevator slid shut behind me and I made my way over to my room.
My heart was pounding faster than usual in my chest, but the truth was that it had given me the type of thrill I hadn’t had in years. Probably since high school, when I’d first realized I was fully, definitely attracted to men, and I’d kissed my first boy behind a lifeguard tower on Stellara Beach at night.