Christmas With the Best Man (9 page)
Read Christmas With the Best Man Online
Authors: Ari Thatcher
Her friends would freak if they ever found out she and Chaz had been a couple long before he and Joey Hughes formed their band, Marino. It wasn’t something she could just throw out there in the middle of a conversation, like, “Oh, you know, I used to do him.” And when they talked ex-boyfriends, there’s no way she could bring him up. He wasn’t some creepy-ass, cheating schmuck she wanted to forget. On the contrary, he’d been so good, he still showed up in a lot of fantasies. And damn, he was superhuman there!
Yeah, she definitely was not mentioning her relationship with him.
After her second cup of coffee, she was ready to run. Moving through her stretches in their room, she called out to the balcony, “Who’s running with me?”
Her question was met with groans and gripes, but they both came inside to stretch with her. They took the elevator to the lobby and stretched again when they reached the street. The air smelled so good, clean and salty. The air in Oakland was probably just as clean, with it being so close to the Pacific Ocean, so maybe it was just the idea that she was in the Caribbean that made her think it smelled better here.
The three were silent as they gained their stride. Then they broke into the usual complaints.
“You’d think on vacation we could give up the routine,” Bree said.
“Sure,” Kenzi replied. “As long as we give up eating.”
“And drinking,” Jasmine added.
“Not likely.” Kenzi sidestepped some broken glass on the road without breaking stride. “Just think, running in the morning, snorkeling in the afternoon and dancing at night. We’ll actually lose weight!”
“And sleep for the entire week when we get home.” Bree jogged ahead so they could move single file as a car passed.
They followed the narrow road all the way out to the point before turning back. In the distance, Kenzi noticed a single runner coming toward them. A tall, slender guy, to be more precise. Creamy dark skin. Closely shaved hair. He had on large sunglasses, so who knew what he really looked like, but the rest of him was drool-worthy. Broad shoulders tapering to a narrow waist, chiseled upper arms. She could easily picture that body poised above her on the sheets.
He swiped the butt of his palm on the side of his face in a move worthy of an exotic men’s cologne commercial. His teeth flashed in a smile before disappearing behind full lips. Kenzi’s heart rate sped up. No way, it couldn’t be him. She only had Chaz on the brain because Jasmine mentioned him. This guy was leaner. Not scrawny, but wiry. Definitely buff.
And he was wearing Spandex running shorts. The Chaz she knew would never be caught dead in those.
The closer he got, the tighter her stomach muscles knotted. It was Chaz. Did he even remember her? Should she acknowledge him as a friend or play it cool? He was probably trying to avoid attention. Avoid cameras and shrieking fan-girls. She voted for cool. “Hey.” And kept jogging past.
“Lady K?”
Oh, shit. She turned and jogged in place. “Omigod, Chaz!” She sounded like a nerd. She felt like one. She had no makeup on. Her hair had last night’s mousse in it, yanked back in a ponytail to keep it from flapping in her face. And, her running shorts showed every ounce of the five pounds she’d gained since college.
“I thought that was you. It’s so cool to see you.” He stopped running and put his sunglasses on top of his head. “Are you staying long?”
“Until Sunday.”
“Cool. Maybe I’ll run into you again and we can catch up.”
“Sounds great.” She ignored the piercing stares her friends were giving her.
“Great.” He turned and jogged away.
Kenzi did the same. Hopefully she could outrun the questions she knew were coming.
“Do you know who that was?” Jasmine nearly squeaked, her voice was so high.
Here it comes. “Um, yeah, I did call him by name.”
Bree trotted in front of Kenzi, spinning to jog backwards. “I’ve known you four years and not once did you mention him. He calls you by a nickname! ‘Lady K.’ What’s up with that?”
Jasmine punched her arm playfully. “You didn’t even say anything when I said he was on the island.”
Kenzi looked up at the crystal blue sky in frustration. “Will you guys keep it down? He can hear you. And how was I to bring up something like that without sounding like I was name-dropping? It’s not that big a deal.”
Bree turned around again to jog forward. “Not that big a deal.
Hello.
Chaz-freakin’-Marino.”
“Did you sleep with him?” Jasmine always got straight to the point.
“What kind of question is that?”
“I thought it was pretty straightforward,” Bree said.
“All right. We dated in college. He moved away and I stayed to graduate. That’s it.”
“Dated. Are we talking Cokes in the coffee shop or dinner followed by a little headboard banging?” Jasmine had such class at times.
There was no way they were just going to let this die. Rolling her eyes, Bree spilled the truth. “God, you guys drive me crazy! Okay, it was a real relationship. Could have turned out to be something if we hadn’t been traveling different paths. Do I need to remind you he’s engaged to Vanessa? I have no intentions-nor do I think I could accomplish-stealing him from her. There’s no point talking about what might have been.”
Thinking about him had never been painful, even after he became the name on every girl’s lips. He was a happy memory, nothing more. Now if she could just convince Jasmine to leave him there.
~*~
Chaz ran a towel over his head, tossing it in a corner of his room before padding out to the living room in his sweatpants, where he found Joey sitting on the sofa with his feet on the coffee table. “Dude, this isn’t your apartment.”
“Huh?”
Pointing to Joey’s feet, Chaz twisted his lips into a wry grin. “With what we’re paying for the villa, the least you could do is act like you grew up in a house, not a barn.”
“Whatever.” Joey dropped his feet to the floor. “Have you heard from Vanessa?”
“Yeah. She’s flying in tomorrow night.”
“Wow, keep your excitement under control.”
Chaz shrugged. “I save it for her. She needs the adulation.”
“She’s so many levels beyond high maintenance. I’d get exhausted just trying to keep her happy.”
“She’s happy without my help. Ease off her, man. I know you don’t like her, but she’s going to be my wife so she’s going to be around awhile.” He went to the kitchen and grabbed a bottled water before sitting in a chair that looked out onto the narrow bay. Joey had done a great job finding this place. It felt private while being close enough to the banquet hall to make it easy to slip away after the wedding.
He remembered seeing Kenzi jogging down the road. “You’ll never guess who’s on the island.”
“Who?” Joey didn’t even look up from his phone.
“Kenzi.”
“No kidding?” Joey smiled. “Please tell me she’s gone pale and plain after spending too many hours in front of a computer screen.”
Chaz’s mouth pulled to one side in a smile as he pictured her. Her hair was a shade lighter, blonder than ever, and looked as long as he remembered, in her ponytail. She had curves now. Nice ones, especially the fuller breasts. A waist that looked small enough to span with his hands. “Not hardly. If anything, she’s even hotter. She was out jogging with a couple of friends.”
“Jogging, huh? On St. Thomas? She’s the one you should be marrying.”
Chaz had considered it once, for all of a few minutes. He hadn’t been thinking marriage back then. Any hours he wasn’t supposed to be in a classroom, he and Joey had been writing songs and playing their guitars. In fact, a lot of the hours he should have been in class, he’d been doing that, too. And writing lyrics during a lecture or three. Some of his classmates had glared at him when he started humming a tune he wanted to remember.
Kenzi was the complete opposite. She took her books seriously, but she didn’t look down on him for being free-spirited. She admired his drive, she’d said. With his voice, his talent, she’d been sure he’d make it big. She’d encouraged him to audition for Star Launch and sat in the audience cheering when he made it through round after round.
He finished in second place, but it was enough to get him going. With Joey, Devin, Nate and Travis backing him, he’d never looked back. And when it was time to move to L.A., Kenzi had let him walk away.
That had stung. He’d weaned himself from her slowly, calling, texting, just needing her to celebrate with him. Then life got so wild he had a different girl in his bed with each album. Well, there’d been four albums and six girlfriends since Kenzi, including Vanessa.
Sometimes Vanessa pissed him off enough to make him think about how things had been with Kenzi, but it wasn’t in Vanessa’s makeup to just sit by and be supportive. She had her own career in the public eye. It was part of what made them work together as well as they did. Between them they were in a different state, a different country, each month. Reunions made for hot sex.
Joey continued with his train of thought, a track he’d hopped on when the wedding became imminent. “Kenzi wouldn’t have fucked around on you.”
Chaz gritted his teeth and counted to ten. “I’ve asked you to let that go.”
“I’m game, but is Vanessa? Have you seen the pictures of her and Harry hitting the clubs when shooting ends for the day?”
“When they finish shooting, she’s too wiped out to go clubbing.” At least, that’s what she said when she filmed in L.A. They only went to the popular spots when she was between movies and wanted to be sure no one forgot about her. He could care less about being seen. Having his songs get airplay was what mattered.
“Oh, right,” Joey continued. “I forgot those paparazzi guys Photoshop her picture on all those other girls Harry is sleeping with.”
“She apologized for that. We got past it. Why can’t you?”
Joey tossed his phone on the sofa. “I don’t know, man. You’re like a brother to me. You’ve got everything perfect in your life. I hate to see you throw it all away on Vanessa-fucking-Edwards.”
Chaz took another swig from his bottle. He’d convinced himself Vanessa was capable of monogamy, in spite of being the latest “it” girl cast opposite the guys who fought for Sexiest Man of the Year. He’d been a runner up for that title last year; maybe that would keep her happy for a while. “I love her.” He was telling Joey that, not himself. “And she loves me.”
“In her way, yeah.” Joey scratched his head, staring out the window. “You did get her to sign the pre-nup, though, right?”
“I’m in love, not brain dead.”
“Okay fine. Just checking.”
Chaz grabbed the soft pillow from behind him and threw it at Joey.
Joey laughed as he ducked behind raised arms. “Hey, we’re not in your apartment, remember? Act like you grew up.”
~*~*~*~
Other Books by Ari Thatcher
Destination Wedding Series
HIS WEDDING DATE: The sexy first novella in the Destination Wedding Series
THE ROCK STAR’S WEDDING: She runs into her old flame at a romantic tropical location. Too bad he’s there for his wedding.
Devil’s Promenade Series
IMMORTAL TEMPTRESS: She’s fighting to save the soul of her lover.
RENEGADE WOLF: When her inner wolf refuses to be denied, she turns to the only man who can help her.
Second Chance at Love Series
LOVE ME NOW: Their first meeting almost destroyed her chance of success. Can he make that up to her the second time around?
LOVE ME FOREVER: When they parted ten years ago, his promised call never came. How can she trust him with her heart now?
Sexy Reads (Scorchingly Hot!)
HONEY, I’M HOME: The plan was perfect. Slinky black lace dress. Leg-slimming stilettos. Some toys to expand the boundaries of their normal routine. Her husband’s favorite meal. If only her husband hadn’t brought his boss home for dinner!
THEIRS: Lori isn’t certain what to make of her new business partners’ suggestion of a team-building getaway. Brad and Marc are the hottest businessmen around, both in the boardroom and out. A week alone with two sexy hunks was a good thing, right?
About the Author
USA Today Bestselling author Ari Thatcher is the naughty side of sweet romance author Aileen Fish. Ari has always loved sexy romance where love takes the leading role. Reviews have called her work “captivating” and “compelling”, and her characters “intelligent, intriguing and realistic.”
Stay up to date through her website
http://arithatcher.com
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