Live In Position (42 page)

Oh god, Collin would kill him and me.

"I actually have a prior engagement this weekend. A friend of mine is getting married and I'm in the wedding, so there are rehearsals and –"

"So, this has nothing to do with Collin?"

"Excuse me?"

"You aren't avoiding me because of him are you?"

I swallowed the large lump in my throat that had suddenly formed.

"No," I squeaked out. "Why would that make a difference?"

"Hmm, I don't know, you just seem to be avoiding me."

"Honestly, I'm not, this is just the way it is for a live in care giver." Or live in whore.

"Victoria is at school now, right?"

Oh god.

"Um –"

"Good, then you can meet me for coffee."

"I really have a lot I need to –"

"You aren't getting out of this one. I'll just come to the house if I have to."

I wanted to scream and smack my head off the steering column.

"Fine, where?" I said as friendly as possible.

Dominic gave me a coffee shop nearby and I arrived first. I ordered my coffee and sat at an empty table. He arrived about five minutes later. Once he took a seat we fell into familiar conversation that revolved mostly around him.

While he rambled on, I silently wondered what had ever been so appealing about him. Even after we realized dating wasn't going to work out between us, why had I decided to continue to hang out with him? The moment my cell phone rang, I felt relieved.

"Sorry," I grabbed my phone and answered.

"Hello?"

"Good morning Sophia." God was definitely a man, a jealous man, and he hated me.

"Hello Dr. Bishop." I realized the mistake as soon as it left my mouth.

"Why are we back to formalities?" Irritation and suspicion saturated his words.

"Umm…" I didn't know what to say. "What can I help you with?"

"Is someone around?" He asked coldly.

"Yeah, sure."

"Who?" The suspicion was back.

"I can't do it right now, but perhaps I can –"

Because God hates me so much, Dominic decided to interrupt.

"Back off Collin, we are having coffee. She'll be through in twenty."

There was no holding back the groan that escaped my lips.

"You're with Dr. Erickson?" His voice rose and the anger lacing his words were scary.

"Yes."

"Are you on a date with him?"

"Of course not, Dr. Bishop."

"Stop with the damn formalities Sophia!" His heavy breathing through the phone had me terrified to say anything. Did I drop the charade and reveal us to Dominic or did I keep with the secret we both planned?

"Please tell me it's not a date."

"I already told you it wasn't." I growled.

"I want you to leave now. I don't want you around him."

"You don't get to dictate who I can associate with." I glanced across the table and saw Dominic smiling proudly at the results playing out before him. His face made me snap.

"And
you
, don't you sit there with that look on your face. I am not someone you get to use to piss Dr. Bishop off. I agreed to meet you as friends and you just want to cause shit." I pushed away from the table, grabbing my bag.

"Sophia, wait –"

I spun around on him.

"Don't," I pointed at him. "Just leave me alone."

Once outside of the coffee shop I took a deep breath.

"Did you leave?" Dr. Bishop's voice was low and full of worry.

"Yes, but not because you demanded." I snapped.

"I'm sorry I –"

"I need to go and calm down." I hit the end call button and hurried to my car. Ignoring all calls coming in from Dr. Bishop for the rest of the day, I knew eventually he would find a way to get to me.

Soon, Friday arrived and I was getting both Victoria and I ready for the wedding rehearsal and dinner.

"Why can't I wear the dress? I need to practice don't I?" Victoria had been arguing with me for the past ten minutes about why she should wear her dress tonight.

"Miranda wants it to be a surprise for tomorrow." I looked at her with my brow raised and a curling iron in my hair. She huffed, knowing she couldn't argue any longer.

"Fine," she growled, stomping out of my room. I stifled my laugh so it didn't piss her off. Victoria was much fierier lately.

We arrived to the rehearsal with exclamations of how adorable and beautiful Victoria was with her curly red locks. She was very content with the compliments. Miranda's wedding
coordinator, Beth, had us run through the entrance twice and then the exit three times. It was at the first exit I met Demetri.

"I'm Benji's cousin, Demetri." He leaned down and whispered as we walked down the aisle side by side. Demetri was tan skinned with dark hair and bright blue eyes. He was quite attractive.

"Sophia, friend of Miranda," I whispered back.

"It's a pleasure to meet you." His voice returned to normal volume since we made our way out of the church.

"No hitting on my bridesmaids," Miranda teased him as she and Benji walked by us. I laughed out loudly and earned a glare from Beth. Covering my mouth, I dropped my head.

"You got in trouble," Victoria sang in a hushed tone, one person down from me.

"Shut it down there." I raised my fist teasingly.

"Your daughter?" Demetri glanced between Victoria and me with a small smile.

"Oh, no, I'm her nanny." His smile widened, giving a slight nod.

At dinner, Victoria wanted to sit with Nessa, so I was left with Lucas on my left and Demetri on my right. Miranda and Benji were a few people down, but close enough for me to catch her grinning at my situation. If she only knew.

Lucas tried to make small talk for the most part, but Demetri was the type of guy who demanded your attention. He would swoop in and take command of the conversation. It wasn't too long into the dinner that I felt like maybe I should step away from the table and just let them arm wrestle for my attention.

My head hurt and Miranda's constant wiggling eyebrows were enough to make me toss a piece of bread at her. I excused myself to go to the ladies room. Both of them stood when I left the table. Once in the ladies, I leaned against the wall and took a couple of deep breaths.

"So, you have some admirers." Miranda couldn't hold in her giggle.

"Zip it, you." I laughed and lightly smacked her arm. "They are driving me crazy."

"Well, if it were me, I'd be all on Demetri. That man is—" She stopped when she saw my gaping mouth. "What?"

"Miranda, that's Benji's cousin. You know the guy at the table that you are marrying tomorrow?"

She laughed. "Oh hell, I can still look, and Demetri is worth looking at."

We burst into loud laughter.

"I guess you're right."

"You guess?" She looked at me curiously. "Are you seeing someone and not telling me about it?" Her eyes narrowed and I froze. "You are! Oh my god, who is it? Do I know him?"

I groaned. "Look, it's complicated and I, well, it's too soon to really talk about it." I ducked into an empty stall quickly.

"Oh, no you don't!" She shouted through the closed metal door. "Spill it," she beat on the door.

"Miranda, really, I'm just not ready to make it public yet."

I flushed and stepped out of the stall.

"I'm not the public, Sophia. I'm your friend."

The door suddenly opened.

"There you are," Benji's sister exclaimed at Rand. "We are all waiting for you." She grabbed Miranda's arm and tugged.

Rand turned her head back to me. "This conversation isn't over yet," she warned me with a smile before following Benji's sister out of the ladies room.

I sighed in relief that we'd been interrupted.

When I returned to the table Lucas wasn't in his seat. Demetri made sure to take the opportunity to 'have me to himself'. His words, not mine.

"So, looks like we will be spending a great deal of time together tomorrow?" He smiled slyly at me.

"Yeah, I guess. I mean for the wedding sure."

"Don't forget about the reception," he reminded.

"The reception?"

"Yes, we'll have to dance with the bride and groom, of course."

"Oh, yeah, I guess so." I smiled small at him. He was a genuinely nice guy. Unfortunately for him, I seem to prefer cold, conservative antichrists.

"We could practice now?"

I looked at him questioningly. He nodded his head toward a small cleared away area where Benji and Miranda, her parents, his parents, and a few other guests were dancing.

"Um, I guess, but—" he didn't let me finish. Taking my hand, he pulled me to the rest of the dancing couples and wrapped his arms around my waist.

Miranda smirked at me. I rolled my eyes. The wedding was going to be interesting.

Chapter Twenty One

Early Saturday morning Victoria and I arrived to the hotel, that Rand had reserved a room, with our hair wrapped up in curlers. We got a few second glances and weird looks from people, but we both just laughed at the reactions.

Once we entered the suite, the chaos was immeasurable. Nessa, the little girl that Miranda took care of during the day was whining as her mother tugged and twisted her hair. Victoria was in a chair while another woman twisted her hair around her head. Mrs. Murphy was a teary eyed mess that couldn't stop crying long enough for her make-up to be applied. Mrs. Cramer and Karen, Benji's sister and maid of honor, were nitpicking every little detail. Miranda's Aunt Terri was trying to comfort Rand's mom. I ended up sticking close to Rand and helping with whatever she needed.

I never thought that it would take so long to get ready for a wedding, but holy heck if it didn't take over six hours to get everyone dressed and ready for the drive to the church. Miranda looked stunning in a very crisp, classic white gown. Even I had a hard time keeping dry eyes at the sight of her. The click of the camera shutter on the photographer's large black camera was the dominant sound in the room as we exited.

One by one, we filed into the limo that would drive us the twenty minutes that it took to get to the church. When we arrived, Mrs. Murphy and Mrs. Cramer got out first, with the assistance of the driver, to make sure that Benji was nowhere in sight. The moment they gave the go ahead, everyone climbed from the car. The photographer was still there to capture every moment.

We all huddled in one small back room waiting for our cue. The moment that Mr. Murphy arrived and knocked at the wooden door, everyone grabbed their bouquets and did last minute hair and makeup checks. The wedding coordinator quickly lined everyone up and Mr. Cramer took his daughter's arm. It was already clear that he wouldn't have dry eyes by the time he got her to Benji.

The music began and the large mahogany doors parted. White, pink, and blue flowers lined the aisle. The processional began and we all walked down the flower lined aisle as practiced before Miranda made her entrance. When the wedding march filled the church, each guest turned in their seats and slowly rose to their feet. She looked amazing and Mr. Murphy was crying before they got halfway to the front of the church.

The ceremony was beautiful and even when both Miranda and Benji messed up the fidelity part of the vows, it was still perfect. It was so them. After the ceremony, we exited as we had been instructed and stood in the receiving line. Demetri seemed to be standing quite close, but I simply tried to make do with the situation.

When the last guest had left the church we were grouped together for pictures. Then the whole wedding party was ushered out into two limos. Miranda and Benji requested to have us all driven to a couple of locations that they wanted to have pictures taken. Then, the newly wedded couple was driven off to locations that were special to them; the restaurant that they had their first date, the fountain where they shared their first kiss, and even to Benji's garden where he proposed. The rest of us were driven to the site of the reception. While we waited we were served appetizers and drinks.

Once the bride and groom arrived, the DJ did his introductions as we all entered with our partners. Benji, being a large Seahawks fan, entered holding a Seahawks flag. We all took our seats at the bridal table and I was so happy that Miranda had chosen the set up where all the bridesmaids were on one side and the groomsmen off to the other side of Benji. Whew!

Dinner went smoothly, but once the dancing began I internally groaned. Mr. Murphy first danced with Miranda to 'Daddy's Little Girl'. Cheesy yes, but still awesome. Then, the moment that Benji and Miranda's first dance song started up, Benji tapped Mr. Murphy on the shoulder. Mr. Murphy turned and then took Benji's hand to begin dancing with him. Everyone laughed loudly. Mr. Murphy patted Benji's back and then kissed Miranda's cheek and placed her hand in Benji's. It was remarkably sweet. Soon, the third song was in play and this was the bridal party's prompt to join them on the dance floor. Demetri was quickly at my side.

"Shall we?" he said smoothly with a pretty amazing smile. I nodded.

He took my hand in his while wrapping his arm around my waist to guide me toward the floor. Once on the floor, he spun me and pulled me quickly to his chest. His grin was so large that he almost looked boyish. The move earned us some clapping and whistles.

"You know you aren't supposed to outshine the bride and groom, right?" I half smiled at him.

"Well, the bride is beautiful, but I'm afraid that it's not my fault that we are such an amazing dance team." He dipped me and I gasped.

When I was back on both my feet again I laughed out loudly.

"Okay, next time, give a girl a warning." He smiled and we continued to dance. Demetri was an amazing dance partner.

There was one moment, during one of the many dips, his hand slid very low on my hip. I quickly readjusted his hand and cocked an eyebrow at him.

"I apologize." There was a sly smile on his lips.

"Yeah, sure you are." I narrowed my eyes at him.

"I swear it won't happen again." He made an X mark over his heart.

We finished the dance and with the last note I started to walk away.

"Wait," I spun back around toward Demetri. "Will you dance with me again?"

"I need to check on Victoria," I blurted out quickly. I really did need to check on her though.

"Later then?" He looked hopeful.

"Uh, sure." I smiled and began looking for my little redhead.

I found the little redhead alright.

"Victoria, Nessa, what are you two doing?" I tried not to laugh at the fact they both had been caught with their fingers in the chocolate fountain.

They both looked at me with wide 'I just got busted' eyes and then we all burst into laughter.

"That's enough ladies, come on." I motioned them away from the chocolate. They both groaned in disappointment.

As soon as they were at my side, the DJ started playing faster tempo music. I grabbed both of their hands and pulled them to the dance floor with me. We all goofed off and danced around. My feet started to ache from the heels, so I kicked them off and danced in my bare feet.

When 'Girls Just Want to Have Fun' blasted through the speakers, I think we had every woman on the floor. Everyone was singing loudly and I was spinning Victoria around with me. It was so much fun that my feet ached and my stomach hurt from laughing so hard.

The night went on with drinking, eating, laughing, and dancing. At one point, I pulled Miranda out to slow dance with me, but our dance was interrupted when Benji appeared for his bride. I stepped back to give Benji room to dance with Miranda. As I did this, Demetri took me up on my 'later' promise.

"Hey there." He wrapped his arms around my waist and pulled me closer to him than the last time we had danced.

"Um, hi there."

"I've been watching you all night." As he spoke, his breath wafted over my face and I could smell the alcohol. Oh friggin' joy! "You are amazing with that little girl."

"Her name is Victoria," I corrected him.

"Mhm…" he mumbled and buried his head into my neck.

I pushed him back a bit and he looked down at me curiously.

"Demetri, you are a great guy, but I am seeing someone," I blurted it out. I know it was ridiculous to be nervous about saying it aloud, but I still couldn't get over the tingly feeling in my stomach as the words spilled from my lips.

"Oh," his brow furrowed a bit. "I wasn't aware." He began to look around. "Where is the lucky man?"

"Oh, um…"

He cut me off.

"He's not here is he?" he smiled knowingly.

This bastard knew that I didn't have a date with me tonight. He was messing with me.

"No, he had a prior engagement to attend." I frowned at him.

"So, technically, you are free tonight?" I opened my mouth to argue, but he spoke first. "Well, since he wasn't smart enough to attend with you looking this amazing, it's my gain." He smiled and nuzzled back into my neck.

I shoved at him again, but he held on tighter.

"Demetri, let go," I hissed at him.

"Just relax," he mumbled.

"Get off of me!" My voice had risen now.

"The lady asked you to let her go." My head snapped over as Demetri's head popped up from my shoulder.

"What business is it of yours?" Demetri spat out.

"Let. Her. Go. It's last time that I will say it calmly."

"Get the fuck out of here." Demetri snapped in a low tone, but his grip on me loosened.

I slipped out of his arms and stood between the two of them.

"Both of you need to stop." I whispered harshly and looked around to make sure that we hadn't drawn attention to ourselves only to find that people were watching. "This is Miranda and Benji's day, don't ruin it!" I glared at Demetri first and then turned to Lucas. "You got it!"

The both nodded, but eyed each other down. I shoved at Demetri to get him moving along and then turned to Lucas.

"Thank you for your help, Lucas." I smiled at him sincerely.

He shrugged.

"Yeah, don't worry about it." He half smiled and walked away, right out the door.

I scanned the room for Victoria and saw her and Nessa dancing at the edge of the dance floor with a few other children that attended the wedding. I looked back to the door where Lucas exited and sighed before I followed him. Once I was outside, I saw him leaning against the side of the building.

"Hey," I said softly. "You alright?"

He shrugged. I walked over and stood next to him.

"What's going on?" I nudged him with my elbow.

He shook his head.

"Come on, we're friends right?" I looked at him with a friendly smile.

He sighed heavily.

"Friends, huh?" The question sounded like it was the worst title I could have given us.

"You don't want to be friends?" I bit my lip.

Lucas turned so that his left arm was against the building, but he was facing me.

"I just, I guess, seeing Benji and Miranda has really just made me realize how lonely I am." His head dropped and he kicked a small rock with the toe of his shoe.

"Ah, I see." He looked up at me. "Lucas, you are a great guy. I'm sure that she is out there. You will find her." I turned to face him and patted his arm once.

Before my hand could drop back down next to me, Lucas grabbed my arm and pulled me to him. I gasped loudly and tensed up. However, when I realized that he was just hugging me, I relaxed.

"I wished that you were the one, you know that right?" he whispered.

"I'm sorry," I whispered back.

We pulled back from each other, but were still in a small friendly embrace. That was when I heard the throat clearing from behind us. I turned around, dropping my arms from Lucas.

Oh Jesus Christ…well maybe antichrist.

"Miss Ashwood," he stated coldly with his hard emeralds blazing at me.

"Dr. Bishop," I returned, but it sounded more like a question.

He nodded to Lucas with a glare and entered the reception.

"Who is that?" Lucas blurted.

"Victoria's father," I groaned and started to walk back in.

"Oh, so it's your boss." Lucas followed me.

I groaned again.

When we got inside, I saw Dr. Bishop speaking to Miranda and Benji. I stopped and watched him for a moment. Then he moved over to Victoria. At first, she was excited to see her father, but then he said something and her face fell. I walked toward them.

"But I don't want to go yet," she whined with watery eyes.

"Victoria, it's getting late and you are going to see your mother tomorrow morning," he tried to reason with her, even though his tone was a little harsh. "Collect your things, please."

She stomped her foot and then spotted me.

"Sophia, do I have to go? Can't I leave with you?"

Before I could answer, Dr. Bishop quickly answered for me.