“You can’t go falling into my arms or I might fall in love,” he teases, before adding in mock pain, “which would be terrible since you’re engaged.”
“Oh, please.” I roll my eyes, straightening. “Everyone knows you’re obsessed with a certain someone.” Or what we all refer to as the mysterious spitfire.
“A ghost,” he mutters low.
“What?”
“You shouldn’t listen to Dash. He’s spreading false rumors.” Winking, he boasts, “Women get obsessed with me, not the other way around.”
“Liar.”
“You wound me.”
“I find that hard to believe.”
“You look beautiful tonight.”
“You call every woman beautiful, Justin.” I swear it’s this man’s default setting. I sometimes think he just forgets their names.
“Not my fault I’m surrounded by them.”
I shake my head at his antics.
“So why are you hiding out here?” he teases with a tilt of his head.
“I could ask you the same.”
“Hmm, deflecting. Must be serious.”
“It’s nothing.”
He must sense something in my tone because he grabs my hand, putting it in the crook of his arm. Turning us away from the double doors, he softly says, “Until you decide to go back inside, you and I will take a walk.”
A lump forms in my throat at his sweet gesture. Leaning against him, I murmur, “Spitfire will be one lucky girl to have you, Justin.”
He sucks in a sharp breath. I expect him to joke like before. But all he says longingly is, “If I can find her first.”
“If she’s meant to be yours, you’ll both find your way to each other. Don’t give up hope.”
I had given up on Kian ever noticing me, but then fate put us in each other’s paths. I have to believe there’s a happily ever after written for us.
That there’s a silver lining to Nathan’s treachery.
I can’t lose hope either.
Chapter Sixteen
Iris
“Where were you?”
“Afraid I ran out on you?” I scoff at Nathan, whom I run into in the deserted hallway outside the ladies’ room.
“I was worried.”
“Oh, so now you give a shit about me.”
His lips curl at my snarky tone. “Just protecting my asset.”
