If We Dare - J.H. Croix Page 0,26
table. I didn’t quite know how to read the expression in his eyes. I couldn’t say I knew him particularly well.
Yes, but you feel safe with him, a voice whispered deep in a shadowed corner of my heart.
“How’d I do?” Walker asked.
It was just a question, a question that had nothing to do with me. But still, a shiver chased over my skin at his drawl and the rough edge to his voice that I was coming to love.
Restless, I uncrossed my legs and crossed the other one over the top. “Quite well,” I managed, my voice coming out a little breathy.
“I think my duties are officially done, right? Or did I miss a rule? There’re so many unspoken rules to weddings that I don’t even know what the hell I’m really supposed to do.”
Walker’s question was earnest, and I almost laughed. Although Walker came across as a completely confident man, it was becoming clear to me that when someone was important to him, he wanted to make sure to do the right thing even if he didn’t know precisely what that was.
I nodded. “As far as I understand it—wedding etiquette, that is—your duties are officially done. I don’t even think the toast was a given, but many best men do offer a toast. Dave means a lot to you, doesn’t he?”
I wasn’t quite sure why that question slipped out, but it did.
Walker was quiet for a beat, and the teasing glint in his eyes faded. With a single, decisive nod, he replied, “Absolutely. He is truly my best friend. He’s like a brother to me.”
“Do you have any brothers and sisters?” I asked, forgetting for a second that I’d asked him that question on our drive here.
With the direction of the conversation, that was a logical question. Yet, the moment it passed across my lips, I suddenly knew that it was somehow loaded, and that Walker’s cursory response during the drive wasn’t the whole story. Of course, I didn’t know why.
After a moment that felt jammed up by my question, Walker replied, “I didn’t mention it when you asked before, but I had a little brother who died. It wasn’t that I wanted to lie. It’s just easier not to dive into it. You know?”
I managed, just barely, to contain my gasp and nodded jerkily. “I’m so sorry. I didn’t know. I understand why you don’t usually mention it to people.” My mind spun in circles with the implication that he’d chosen to share this personal and sad detail with me.
His hand tightened incrementally where it was resting on my shoulder. “Of course you didn’t know. How could you without me telling you? Thank you, though. He died when he was a baby. Apparently, he had a breathing disorder, but it wasn’t diagnosed until he died in his sleep. It was a long time ago.”
Unsure what else to say, I nodded and repeated, “I’m so sorry.”
I felt the pads of his fingers press into the skin of my shoulder when he squeezed again. “It’s okay. Really.”
Someone else said something on Walker’s opposite side, and he turned to reply. I reached for my champagne and took a gulp, savoring the fresh, bright burst of flavor. The waiter stopped by with a tray of glasses filled with champagne. I shook my head, and Walker leaned back, asking, “Can we have a fresh bottle, please?”
My chest tightened. Even though I’d commented to Walker last night about why I didn’t prefer to have guys buy my drinks, it seemed his perception ran deeper. Somehow, he’d picked up that I didn’t prefer to take a drink unless I knew exactly where it came from. The fact he made sure to take care of that had tears stinging at the backs of my eyes.
That led to me reminding myself, yet again, I was an emotional wreck over nothing.
Chapter Twelve
Jade
A few hours later, I walked at Walker’s side up the stairs. This inn had only one elevator since it was an older building. When we noticed the line of people waiting for the elevator, we elected to take the stairs at the end of the hallway. It was only two flights.
Although I’d had a few glasses of champagne over the course of the evening, I wasn’t drunk. If I’d ever been tipsy, that had worn off. As it was, my entire body felt as if it were fizzing like champagne—alive and bubbling from the sparks of need Walker elicited.
His hand was warm where it rested at