room at a restaurant in the hotel next door. And the best part is...the whole thing is covered, including all the liquor you can guzzle down.”
“VIP room?” one of them screamed, jumping up and down in excitement.
“Open bar?” another bridesmaid asked, her eyes going wide in surprise.
“Oh my gosh, Amelia! You’re a miracle worker.” Maria rushed over to hug me. “I can’t believe you got them to pony up so much for such a small mistake. This is why you’re the best maid of honor ever!”
I squeezed her back. “If you’re happy, I’m happy.”
“You know what’ll make me happy?” She leaned back and flashed me a sly grin. “If you let me pick out your clothes again for tonight. I packed lots of extra outfits with you in mind.”
Thinking about the halter top and skinny jeans she’d talked me into wearing last night, I mentally groaned as I pasted a smile onto my face. “I’ll look at what you brought, but I’m not making any promises.”
“You better like one of the dresses I brought because we’re going VIP tonight.” She dragged me into the bedroom where she was sleeping and flung open the closet doors. “We need to look the part.”
“Looking the part” turned out to be code for trying on a half dozen dresses until I found one I felt semi-comfortable in. It was the stereotypical little black dress with a sheer illusion neckline that gave a peek of my cleavage and a ruffled high-low hem that hit right above my knees in front and behind them in the back. Then we spent three hours primping—showering, shaving, blow-drying, hair curling, and applying makeup. By the time we walked to the hotel next door, I’d been forced to do the whole shebang. It had been intense, but even I was willing to admit I looked better than I ever had before. And much more comfortable than I’d been the night before since Maria okayed my black wedge sandals.
It added some extra confidence to my stride...right up until I almost tripped over my feet when I spotted my mystery man standing next to a booth in the far-left corner of the restaurant.
“Hey, isn’t that—?”
I practically shoved my cousin into the private VIP room the hostess was leading us to. “Shh,” I hissed. “He might hear you.”
“Why is that a problem?” she asked as she made a beeline over to the bar set up on the opposite side of the room.
In a hurry to get away from the open door and windows that looked out on the main part of the restaurant, I stalked after her. “Then he’d see me.”
“Again, I don’t see the problem,” Maria said with an eye roll.
“I went up to him on the street, out of nowhere, and flung myself at him! If he sees me here, he’ll probably think I’m crazy.” I glanced over my shoulder to scan the restaurant in search of him. “Like I’m stalking him or something.”
“You’re the furthest thing from a stalker,” she snorted, shaking her head. “But he’d be lucky if you did decide to stalk him. You’re a catch, Amelia. Smart, pretty, and nice.”
Moments like this reminded me why I loved my cousin so much. Our personalities were opposites, but we were always there for each other. Even though it sometimes involved her pushing me outside my comfort zone. Like last night, when I kissed a stranger. My mystery man.
And there it was. Every thought I’d had since then had led to him. I caught myself starting to turn toward the interior windows again and bit down on my lip. No matter how badly I wanted to see him again, it was bound to go horribly wrong. He was sure to think I was crazy after the stunt I’d pulled. Although he had pulled me in for another kiss after I’d backed away…
I shook my head in an attempt to clear my thoughts. No amount of wishful thinking was going to change how we met and give me a real chance with the only man I’d ever really wanted. I just had to survive this party without him seeing me, and then I could try to forget about what happened. I was upset enough by the idea that I downed one of the shots Maria was handing out and almost choked as it burned going down.
The bartender handed me a glass of water as my cousin patted me on the back. “Damn, Amelia. I don’t think I’ve ever seen you take