LITMIR.BIZ

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my beautiful niece. May you two live and love like there is no tomorrow. And may the smile that starts on your wedding night never fade.”

      Looping his arm around Annie’s, Grant gulped down his embarrassment and tasted the champagne. His bride leaned forward and put her mouth along the lip of the flute and tasted the fruity, bubbly wine. He couldn’t seem to drag his gaze away. He remembered her kisses and wanted more. Hell, she was more intoxicating than the wine.

      Dipping his head, he couldn’t resist the temptation to kiss her once more. This time the kiss was brief. But the impact was as powerful as the others.

      She smiled at him…or at Griffin. Damn!

      Who did she see when she looked at him? It grated on his nerves that this beautiful woman, who was holding his hand and sharing champagne kisses with him, loved his brother. What had she seen in his twin?

      This crazy wedding was getting to him, too. Maybe there was something in the water…or champagne. What was wrong with him? Annie was not his bride, not even a potential date. Hell, she should have been his sister-in-law. And that would have been a damn shame.

      For one insane moment, he wished her smiles and kisses were for him. That was his most dangerous thought yet.

      He disentangled himself from her and took a step away. He still couldn’t draw a full breath though. What was in that champagne? Or was it Annie’s kisses that had drugged him?

      Whatever it was, he knew he needed to get away from her. And fast!

      BENEATH A CASCADE of rose petals, they raced toward the decorated car parked in front of the church. The velvety aroma embraced Annie just as Grant’s solid arm held her firmly against his side. She caught a glimpse of a few suggestive sayings shoe-polished onto the car windows along with a string of balloons attached to the side mirrors. She gave a self-satisfied smile. The wedding and reception couldn’t have gone better—except if she’d actually gotten married.

      But she wouldn’t—couldn’t—think of that now. Even a sexy fake groom was better than none, especially when her old school chums and fellow teachers had drooled all over Grant.

      Grant…not Griffin. She figured her ex-fiancé, if he’d shown up for their wedding, would have charmed them the way he’d dazzled her with slick talk and Casanova grins—but not with the same sincerity and savoir faire Grant seemed to possess. A peculiar feeling tightened her stomach. This charade was about to end.

      Then she wouldn’t have Grant’s strong shoulder to lean against, his warm smile encouraging her or his kisses tempting her to forget her recent heartache. Why that should bother her, she wasn’t sure. She certainly didn’t want to analyze the reasons.

      With her friends and family cheering and engulfing the car, Grant held the door open for her. Bunching her skirt around her, she slid into the passenger seat, but her train and veil trailed out the door. Grant gathered the material and settled it across her legs. His hand brushed her calf, making her skin tingle and sending tiny electric sparks along her spine.

      But he didn’t seem to notice his effect on her. He didn’t pause or meet her startled gaze. He slammed the door closed and darted around the car.

      Well, why should he notice anything? He wasn’t her groom. He was supposed to have been her brother-in-law. But why did he make her feel things she shouldn’t be feeling with a stranger on her wedding day?

      Simple. He looked too much like her fiancé, almost making her forget he wasn’t Griffin. Almost, but not quite. That in itself was a risky acknowledgment.

      Grant had a different type of charisma, a quiet charm that unsettled her. Griffin had been boisterous and entertaining, but he’d never made her feel emotionally vulnerable. And that had given her a false sense of security, she realized now, looking back. But Grant made her feel as if she was on the verge of something, teetering on the edge of a cliff. He had a way of looking at her that made her feel exposed, as if he could see through her defenses right into her soul. His touch ignited her. And his kisses! Oh, Lord, she didn’t need to think about his kisses.

      Maybe it was best if they parted ways—and soon.

      “We’re off,” Grant said, gunning the engine of his rental car. The sedan took off with a jolt and peeled out of the parking lot.

      Annie resisted the temptation to look back, to second-guess her decision to leave her hometown. This was for the best. She’d said her goodbyes. Now it was time to move on to her new life. Still, she felt a tiny catch of sadness mixed with remorse in her chest.

      Being alone for the past few years had been difficult enough in a small town where she knew her neighbors as well as she knew herself. She’d missed her parents. Their deaths had shaken her to the core, left her all alone without anyone but Aunt Maudie to call family. Living in her parents’ house had only made her pain and isolation more acute. But being all alone in a big city suddenly seemed more bleak. She’d be truly alone, with no one to turn to for comfort or even a shared memory.

      Her stomach rolled, waves of doubt crashing through her. What if she was making another mistake? If she was, then at least she’d suffer the consequences anonymously. No one would ever have to know. Besides, it was already too late. She’d already burned the proverbial bridge to her hometown. There was no going back now—not unless she wanted to confess her wedding had been a charade. And be the laughingstock of Lockett? No way!

      A clanking noise startled her. Oh, great. Just what they needed—car trouble. Would this interfere with their clean getaway?

      “What’s that?” she asked, glancing over her shoulder.

      “Cans,” Grant answered, looking calm and collected. “The groomsmen tied them onto the bumper.”

      “Oh.” She slumped back into her seat, exhaustion from the long, traumatic day settling into her bones. “They really went all out, what with shoe polish and balloons.”

      He cleared his throat. “Uh-huh,” he said, smirking.

      Annie glanced at him. “What’s wrong?”

      “Nothing.” He seemed to stop fighting it and broke into a grin.

      She felt her insides dissolve like ice cream in July. But it couldn’t be his dazzling smile, she reasoned. It had to be the summer sun beating down on them. “Tell me.”

      He shot her a glance. “Are you that innocent?”

      “What?” Confused, she tried to figure out what piece of the conversation she’d missed. “What do you mean?”

      He rubbed his jaw. “You and Griffin didn’t…”

      “Didn’t what?” Drained of patience, she heard the defensiveness in her own voice. “What are you talking about?”

      “Never mind. It’s none of my business.” He cast a glance toward the balloons flapping and turning in the wind. “Those aren’t balloons, Annie.”

      She leaned toward him, squinting to look out his window. The balloons weren’t a normal shape for the helium-filled variety. The color was a neutral shade not a vibrant color, as you’d expect to see at a circus. Realization dawned. She felt her hairline burn with embarrassment. “Oh my.”

      That’s why he’d thought she was an innocent! She hadn’t recognized—hadn’t even thought about—the balloons being condoms. Worse than that, he knew she and Griffin hadn’t had sex. Why that should be so awful she wasn’t sure. But it was.

      Did he think she was a virgin? That she couldn’t satisfy her man? That Griff had gotten cold feet because she’d given him a cold shoulder in bed? She jerked her chin. It didn’t matter what Grant thought.

      Still, her skin blazed. She tried to remember back to what else she’d said to him when they’d first met, when she’d believed he was Griff, when she’d practically thrown herself at him. Her head pounded. She didn’t want to think about that.

      “Don’t worry,” he

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