Forever After All - Kaylee Ryan Page 0,48
the small couch.
I suck in a few deep breaths before I feel as though I can speak. “What are you doing?” I ask.
“Waiting for you to get ready.”
“I don’t need help.”
His heated gaze trails over me, making me feel open and exposed. “You might need me to zip your dress or something,” he finally says when his eyes find mine.
“I can manage.”
“I’m not leaving. Time’s wasting,” he says with a smirk.
I don’t have it in me to argue with him for multiple reasons. The two biggest are the fact that he just kissed me stupid, and I know I’m in no shape mentally to go to battle with him. And two, I’ll take all the time he’s willing to give me. I’m secretly thrilled that he wants to be here, so instead of arguing, I make my way to my bedroom, shutting the door behind me to get ready to go out on the town to help my best friend celebrate the last few days of being single before she marries the love of her life.
“No.”
That’s the first word out of Rip’s mouth when I walk back into the small living area of my suite. “What do you mean, no?” I tilt my head to the side.
“You can’t wear that, Kenna.”
I look down at the purple sundress I’m wearing. It’s low cut with spaghetti straps and stops about midthigh. I’ve paired it with my cowboy boots. Sara and Laramie are going to be wearing the same thing. When we learned Sara was coming on the trip, we wanted her to feel included, so we reached out, and the three of us went shopping. It was Laramie’s idea that we dress alike, and Sara and I readily agreed. She chose these, and we tried to argue that she should be the only one wearing white. She then told us that these were the exact outfits she wanted us to wear to the wedding when we both stood up with her. There were lots of tears, and of course, we bought the dresses.
“You don’t get to decide that,” I counter.
“McKenna,” he says. His voice is a low growl. “You can’t wear that. How in the fuck am I supposed to let you walk around Vegas looking like a wet dream?” He runs his fingers through his long hair.
I can’t explain what his words make me feel. I’m all gushy inside and speaking of wet…. I shake out of that train of thought and focus on the fact that although he looks pained, his eyes haven’t stopped taking me in. Almost as if he’s trying to catalog the exact image in his memory for a later date.
“I’m sorry to break it to you, buddy, but your sister picked this outfit. All three of us are wearing the exact same thing, so you’re just going to have to deal.” Not only that, but he doesn't have a say so, regardless of what he thinks. He’s not mine. I’m not his. Even if I want to be.
He stands from the couch and doesn’t hide the fact that he grabs his crotch and adjusts before stalking toward me. “And this,” he says, gliding his fingers over the hair of my side ponytail. “How am I supposed to resist you like this?” He leans in and presses a kiss to the corner of my mouth. He blows out a heavy breath, closing his eyes. “Are you ready to go?” he asks.
“Yes. Do you need to change or anything?”
“You think I should?” he asks.
I take in his black fitted T-shirt, worn jeans, and cowboy boots. “No.” I shake my head. “You look fine.” I step away from him, needing a little space. I grab my small crossbody, making sure I have my ID, cash, room key, and cell phone.
He grins wickedly. “Come on, let’s get this night over with.” With his hand on the small of my back, he leads me to the door. We don’t speak as we make our way down the hall to Laramie and Colby’s room. We reach their door, and I raise my hand to knock, but I’m frozen when his lips find their way next to my ear.
“You look beautiful, McKenna. I didn’t get the chance to say it, but you take my breath away,” he says softly. My hand drops to my side, and he chuckles, reaching around me to knock on the door. His hands land on my hips as we wait.
A few seconds later, Colby answers the door. He