Guests were just starting to arrive to the ballroom as they were finished up assembling the cake. This was one of the largest cakes Jen made for the day. The cake was ten layers with light-green buttercream icing. White daisies were draped over the layers with light-green vines flowing from them. The cake was absolutely beautiful with its earthy quality.
Wynn took a minute to look around the now-filled ballroom. The reception looked as though it was going to be a formal five-course meal. Half the bridal party was milling around an open bar. The bride looked stunning in a mermaid dress. A tiara nested in a sea of her natural blonde hair. A baby was handed over to the bride, and it became suddenly clear that the child was the bride’s.
“Ready?” Wynn asked.
“Yeah, I’m going to hit the bathroom real quick.”
“Okay. I’ll meet you outside.”
Wynn wasn’t sure why she was so down. She suspected it had everything to do with avoiding Kade and now the deafening silence of the phone in the pocket of her cargo pants. Most of all she needed a minute away from Jen, or she was going to spill her heart and soul out to her very pregnant sister. Jen didn’t need to hear about all the mistakes she’d made lately.
Wynn was making her way around the outside of the tables when she felt the erotic brush of eyes on the nape of her neck. She glanced over her shoulder and walked into a chair. She fumbled, nearly falling before she recovered because of who she saw.
“Excuse me,” Wynn mumbled.
Kade.
Wynn felt dizzy as their eyes connected across the room.
Time slowed to a pinprick. Everyone around them moved in a blur of motion, but they both held perfectly still. The drink in his hand was stopped midway up to his mouth. She could see his eyes widen, and her heart raced. His black tuxedo fit him perfectly. His right hand was deep within his pocket, giving a nice view of the vest inside. The ivory vest peeking out told her exactly where he fell within the bridal party pecking order.
He was the groom.
All the air left her in a whoosh. They’d been joined at the crotch from the moment they met. Kade had pursued her wildly. Now she knew why. He wanted one last conquest before he was officially off the market.
Wynn was forced to yield her gaze to the bride when she came up to Kade’s side. She shook his arm to get his attention. When he didn’t immediately look her way, she looked across the room to where his eyes were focused on Wynn. The bride handed the baby over to Kade, and he lifted the babe to his shoulder, giving him a sweet kiss.
At that moment, the photographer chose to come around and snap a picture of the happy family. The baby started to fuss, and Kade handed him over to his bride. It was then that the bride took more notice of Wynn.
Oh, no.
Wynn didn’t want to be the reason for the happy couple’s split on their wedding day. The bride’s head bobbed back and forth between them. It finally rested on Kade. He looked at the bride. It was then that time righted, and Wynn knew she had to get out of there right away.
She turned and rushed from the room. Her heart raced out of her chest as the air she was sucking down her lungs went straight to her head. The Duvall Embassy was a maze, and Wynn quickly became turned around deep within the corridor.
Despite her eyes stinging, she would not cry over this. She refused to shed one tear for a man she knew less than a week. As far as she should’ve been concerned, it was better that she found out before he tried to sleep with her again.
He was married. He was so fucking married.
He wasn’t when he was with you.
“Engaged is practically married,” she fired back to no one in the hallway. The sound of her phone ringing had her stopping cold in her tracks. She dug it out of her cargo pants, thinking it was Jen looking for her. It was Kade. She pressed the answer button before she thought about the consequences of what her actions would be.
“Shouldn’t you be enjoying the wedding?” she snapped.
“Where are you?”
She heard the passionate heat in his voice, and she knew she was the reason why it was there. “What the hell do you want?”
“I want to talk to you. Tell me where you are.”
She snorted derisively. “Shouldn’t you be worrying about taking care of your responsibilities tonight?”
“Oh, I am. That’s why I’m calling you.”
She whirled around, searching for the nearest exit that wasn’t there. “I’m leaving. Good-bye, Kade.”
Where the hell was she? Kade hung up his cell phone and ducked down the next hallway. Relief poured through his body when he saw her a few yards up. He rushed to catch her before she got away.
He grabbed her around the waist from behind. “Don’t go. Not like this.”
“I’m leaving. Have a nice life.”
“No you’re not,” he said. “We need to talk.”
Kade pressed his lips against her ear. He felt her shiver erotically as she inhaled the scent of his expensive cologne.
Kade closed his eyes and tried not to think about Wynn walking away from him and into the arms of another man. Jealousy roared through his body as he backed her into an alcove behind a pillar.
“Why are you running from me?” he asked.
“It seems I have every reason to.”
“Not until you hear me out.” He set her on her feet and pulled her around so that she had to look at him. “Why didn’t you call me back?”
She laughed. “Oh, that’s funny. You’re really worried about why
I
didn’t call
you
when you’re the one who had a wedding to get to.”
Kade braced his hands on the wall and leaned in close. Up close, he saw the pain in Wynn’s eyes, and he wanted to make things right. “You would’ve known about the wedding had you bothered to listen to my voice mail.”
Wynn’s face flamed. “Well, now I know.” She pushed past him. “Give your wife my regards.”
He caught her by the inside of the arm, and he yanked her back into his arms. “Rachel is not my wife. She married my brother, Jack.”
She froze within his arms, and he smoothed her hair back from her eyes.
“Were you jealous?” he asked.
“We are so not doing this.”
He smiled. “Oh, I think we are. In fact, I think I want to know what was going through your mind when you saw me.”
He backed her up against the wall to get out of the way of a group coming through. He liked getting closer to Wynn. He loved the way she felt within his arms.
“Kade...”
He kissed her neck and licked his way up to her ear. The move had her swooning against his hard chest. “Now I know why your skin always tastes like cupcakes. You’re a pastry chef.”
“I’m not a chef. I only help my sister out in her bakery when she needs it.”
“You still taste like sweet honey cakes.”
“Do I?”
He brushed her hair away from her face. “Yes, you do.”
He kissed her passionately, licking his tongue inside her mouth, making her tighten her hands into his shirt. Wynn flicked her tongue against his and moaned as Kade reached around, grabbing her ass tight. He didn’t hide his growing arousal and made sure she felt his hard cock through his pants.
“Kade, is that you?”
“I’m right here, Kendra.”
He could see that Wynn thought the wrong thing about this wedding. How could he be so foolish to think she’d trust him? How could he be such a fool to think he could marry a woman that didn’t trust him?
“Is this her?” Kendra asked.
Kade stepped away from Wynn and reached out to take Kendra’s outstretched hand. The guide dog helped lead her through the hallway. “Yes. This is the woman I was telling you about,” Kade said. “Wynn, I’d like you to meet my sister, Kendra.”
“It’s lovely to finally meet you. I can tell Kade is smitten with you,” Kendra said.
“Enough...sweets,” Kade warned.
“It’s nice to meet you, too,” Wynn said. “Jen is waiting for me. I should go.”
Kade could see that she was pulling away. “Duty calls for both of us. I want you to meet my brother and Rachel before you go, too.”
She ran a hand through her messy ponytail, and Kade could see that she was about to make an excuse as to why she couldn’t.
“I shouldn’t...”
“You will.”
Kade took her hand and led her and Kendra back to the wedding. He waved to the bride and his brother who were standing near the cake. They met in the middle. Kade held her close as he made introductions.
“This is Browynn South. My brother Jack and his new wife, Rachel.”
Rachel grinned. “Kade told us all about you.”
Wynn blushed and glanced at Kade with those questioning eyes that made him want to do stupid things for all the right reasons. It made him think of that Tiffany engagement ring waiting to be slipped onto her finger.
“Has he?”
Kade pulled her in closer to his side. He could see that she was shocked by the news that he’d talked about her to his family. “I have.”
“I have to go. Best wishes on the night,” Wynn said.
Kade followed her out into the hall, holding both of her hands. He pulled her in close and gave her a quick kiss.
“Don’t be afraid to pick up the phone when I call,” he said.
Kade gave her a quick kiss, and then he walked away.
Wynn
was
a rule breaker. She was climbing on private property, waiting for the landowner to come home from work.
Rock climbers had to get permission from the landowner to climb on private property. This one just so happened to be her target. She had to get inside his place to look around, and like a vampire, she needed permission before she entered his place.
Wynn looked down the valley at his house. The house was a weathered cabin that was built in the late eighties. A garden around the house was full of wildflowers. There was a wraparound porch that made the rustic house look charming and inviting. Wynn could picture Kade sitting on the porch swing to watch a summer storm blow through.
Wynn glanced away from the house and got back to waiting for Kade. She thought about the wedding and her heart fluttered faster. She imagined Kade one day becoming her husband, and she became breathless. She shouldn’t be thinking about her target this way, but she was. What was wrong with her? Oh, she knew what was wrong. She loved him.
Toe Jam was a massive boulder sitting within the boundaries of the Red but nestled on privately owned land. The boulder was at least forty feet wide and twenty feet tall. Kade’s cabin sat off in the distance against the forest.
Wynn chalked her hands and walked around the boulder, ignoring the sign that said “No Climbing Without Permission.” She started around the backside and was several moves in working her way across when she heard the sound of a car door slamming. She kept climbing.
She glanced over her shoulder and froze. Kade stood there in his uniform.
Wynn hopped off the rock. It was game time. “I didn’t expect to see you here.”
“Same,” Kade said.
She didn’t like the look on his face. “What’s up?”
He came in close, putting his palm on the rock. “One of my coworkers came into the station today. He thought he recognized you.”
Fear raced down her spine. Was her cover blown? “Oh? Did he?”
“Yeah, he did.”
“And?” Her gaze flashed to his. “Who...who was it?”
“Gage Stewart.”
She went through training with him in Washington.
Shit.
She shrugged her shoulder. “Don’t know him.”
Kade frowned. “So, this is how you want to play this?”
They stared at each other for several beats. She went for her backpack. “It’s not anything, and it’s not what you think.”
“Tell me what’s going on, then.”
She couldn’t. She wanted to, but it wasn’t the right time. She’d lose everything if she did so now.
She tossed her chalk bag into her backpack, and her shoes came off next. “It’s not a problem, only a situation, and I’m handling it.”
Kade crossed his arms. “You can trust me, Wynn.”
“I know.” She zipped up her pack and slung it over her shoulder. “We good?”
Standing three feet away from Kade, she felt vulnerable with work chasing her so closely. She couldn’t definitively rule him out yet. She knew if she told him everything, he’d swoop her up and want to protect her from the truth. She wasn’t ready for that.
“Kade, if I thought it was something you needed to know, I’d tell you.” He looked as though he wasn’t sure if he believed her but he wanted to.
“I know you’re dealing with something,” he said. “You were reported missing. You were out in the fields like you were looking for something you shouldn’t be. What kind of trouble are you in?”
She crossed her arms. “I got it under control.”
“Do you?”
His voice lowered to a concerned whisper. She smiled even though she felt terrified at the possibility of Kade finding out that she was down here to investigate him. She looked off in the distance at the house. “Yes, I do. Do you know who lives here?”
“I live here.”
She grinned. “Makes sense why you’re never home. I’ve been trying to climb Toe Jam for weeks.”
He closed the distance. “You are trespassing on my land.”
“I guess you’ll have to arrest me.”
Kade came in closer, locking each of her wrists with his hands at her sides. Her heart raced from the searing heat of his touch as he made his fingers into cuffs. Slowly, he lifted her wrists above her head, making her breasts arch out toward him. Wynn felt her nipples harden and tighten at the mere possibility of being played with. He backed her up against the warm rock, pressing her wrists against it.
“Spread your legs,” he ordered.
“Why, officer? I didn’t do anything wrong.”
She pretended to fight him, but he merely held her wrists tighter. Her eyes widened as he pressed his cock against her hips.
“Don’t resist me, Wynn.”
Wynn spread her legs, feeling the heat of his thick shaft slide over her pussy. She lifted her chin to meet him eye to eye. Erotic tension poured through her body as she saw his eyes dilate with sexual need. She wanted him to kiss her until she forgot all about her job. He locked her wrists with one hand as he ran his right hand down her arm, over the curve of her breast, and down the outside of her leg. He smoothed his way back up the inside to the juncture of her thighs. Wynn groaned as his fingers rubbed over her pussy, making her wet. His thumb rubbed up over the seam of her crotch to thumb her clitoris.