“Anyway, Spencer isn’t my type. And if he were, I would never do that to Holly.”
T.J., Bella, and the bridesmaids stroll in then and head toward the groomsmen and the other group of ladies. Spencer watches them and scans the room, homing in on Tessa before his gaze lifts to me.
He narrows his eyes when I give a subtle chin lift in acknowledgment—he doesn’t like that she’s talking to me and not him—and something about that feels like a challenge. I’m not the type of guy who plays games, mostly because I’m too damn old for that shit, but if it gets him off Tessa’s back, why not?
I lift the beer the bartender sets it front of me and smirk across the bar. Tessa turns quickly to see what I’m grinning at and groans.
“Oh my god,” she mutters, spinning her stool back to me with her eyes pinched shut. “Did you really just do that?”
“What? You said he wasn’t your type. I thought I’d help out.”
“But now they’re going to think something’s going on with us.”
“So? Maybe there is.” I tip back the beer.
Her eyes snap open, and she glares up at me. “That’s just mean.”
“Why’s that, sweetness?”
She scoffs and reaches for her own beer. “Because that’s like danglinga carrot in front of a… a starving bunny.”
“Say what?” A low laugh rolls in my chest. This friggin’ girl, I swear.
“You’re too damn noble to let anything actually happen between us, though I’m fairly confident you’re as curious about me as I am about you.”
She’s not wrong there, but I wouldn’t credit nobility for anything. Hell, if I was noble, I wouldn’t have rubbed myself raw when she was at the Magnolia Blue for Christmas.
“There’s only one reason a girl like you would be interested in a guy like me, babe. It ain’t hard to figure out.”
She pulls back, her dark eyes widening. “And what reason would that be?”
“You want to prove a point to your brothers. Plain and simple.”
“Ha!” She tips her head back, dark hair cascading down her back as a sexy laugh bursts from her lips. “You seriously think that?”
I bring my bottle of beer to my mouth again before responding. “What else could it be?”
“I’m interested because you’re insanely attractive and you’re not full of yourself.” She blinks at me as if to add a silentduhto her statement.
While the sentiment is nice, she’s full of shit. She took one look at me the first time we met, and I could practically see the wheels turning in her head, especially after Holden stepped between us and wouldn’t let her so much as shake my hand.
“You don’t gotta pretend, sweetness. I’ve been used in this kind of ploy before. You ain’t my first rodeo.”
“Wow.” She sits back on her stool and crosses her arms over her chest, spite and sass burning in her gaze. “You really think I’m that shallow?”
I half laugh, half snort and try not to notice how the stance pushes her tits up all nice and plump. “I didn’t say that—”
“You might as well have,” she snaps, and something that looks an awful lot like hurt replaces the irritation in her expression.
“Tessa, I don’t think you’re shallow.” Truth be told, she’s as smart as she is sassy, and that’s intimidating as hell. Add in a body with the kind of curves that make men do stupid things, and she’s downright dangerous.
“Good. If I were, I would have gone out with Spencer and hurt Holly’s feelings a long time ago.” She tosses back another swig.
The movement pulls my focus to the creamy column of her neck as she swallows. I lift my hand and reach out before I can think better of it, dragging my knuckles down that pretty skin and watching it turn pink as our eyes lock once again.
Shifting closer, I lower my mouth to her ear. “I happen to think you’re sexy as fuck. And if you weren’t Holden’s sister, I’d be sharing a lot more than a drink with you.”
She gasps, and that simple raspy sound makes my dick twitch. “What does my brother have to do with any of this?”
