Those Red High Heels (22 page)

“Hey. I’m on my way.”

“Okay, great. I was making sure everything was okay. You seemed upset after the ceremony practice. Did Greyson say something to you?”

Heat rose in my cheeks and I knew I had to lie to my best friend, at least that weekend, because she needed to be stress free and enjoy the time with Collin. “No, not at all. It was stuffy in there and when I went to get a cab, my shoe broke and I fell on the sidewalk. I had to make a quick stop at my apartment to get some new shoes and fix my hand up.”

Brynn sucked in a breath, and even though I couldn’t see her, I knew she placed her hand on her chest. “Oh, sweetie. Are you okay? Not your red shoes? I’m so sorry, I know how much they meant to you.”

I let out a little laugh, and loved how she was so concerned about my shoes. That showed what a true best friend is. “I’m fine, I’ll see in you in about ten minutes. I can’t wait.”

“Great, oh, and Emma. You’re a lousy liar.”

When the phone clicked off, I looked down at my screen and rolled my eyes. Best friends were also a pain in the ass sometimes. When the car got close to the venue, I took a few deep breaths and decided that I would have fun that night, and not think about any more dramatic topics. Greyson was scribbled down next to number one.

Chapter Nineteen

When I arrived at the country club where Collin and Brynn were having their rehearsal dinner, I noticed they were stepping out of their car, and were ready to head in the front entrance. I didn’t want to interfere with their introduction, so I decided to find a different way in.

Just as I had made my way to the back entrance, I could hear some voices in a low hush, and from what I could make-out, they didn’t sound very happy. When I was almost around the corner, I instantly knew one of those voices belonged to Greyson.

“Nora, will you please calm down. This is a special night for Collin and Brynn, and I do not want you of all people to mess anything up.”

“Me mess anything up? It will be you! I swear to God, Greyson. If I see you even look in her direction, well, I will make a scene.”

I stopped dead in my tracks and moved against the wall so a bush was blocking my sight of Nora and Greyson. They were obviously having a fight, and I was the cream in the middle. I had kept true to my word before that night, and Greyson and I hadn’t said one word to each other in over a month. After what had happened earlier, though, I felt guilty. I didn’t want more stress for Greyson.

“You’re being paranoid, Nora. Emma and I didn’t say one word to each other at the church. I am here with you, and we are having a baby. Now will you please quit making a scene out here and get inside?” My stomach dropped as I heard Greyson lie about talking to me. I guessed he didn’t want her to know that his hand had been up my dress about thirty minutes ago.

“You don’t want this baby. I know it! You think I’ve trapped you and I’m ruining your life. How do you think that makes me feel? Stupid, that’s how. You think I want a baby? Do you?”

I peeked through the tall bush, and could finally see Greyson’s face. My handsome man with those piercing eyes, looked different in that moment. The sadness that engulfed his face was very apparent. I wanted to run over and save him, but his new fate was sealed.

“I hope you do soon, because we're having a baby, Nora. It’s time to start embracing it.”

“I want to leave early tonight. We’ll be social, and then leave.”

Greyson ran his hand through his hair and lowered his head down. “You can leave, but I'm staying. I’m the best man, and Collin is one of my closet friends. You knew this when we came tonight.”

Nora shot Greyson a dirty look and turned around to head back inside. I looked at Greyson through the bush, but suddenly lost my footing and went sailing to the side. The noise caught his attention and he looked over in my direction. Shit! I was going to get busted for listening in on their conversation. Before Greyson moved to check out the strange noise from the bush, Nora reappeared and grabbed his arm, pulling him back into the club.

“Phew, my gosh,” I said quietly as I stood back up and picked a leaf out of my hair. I moved out of the bush, and walked back around to the front entrance. I was sure that Brynn and Collin were already inside, being swarmed by friends and family. I did not want to encounter Greyson and Nora, at least not right away. A few drinks would make that situation much more tolerable.

When I walked back in, I caught Dexter waving to me from the bar that was off to the side of the dining area. I shot him a quick wave back and headed in his direction. I was very thankful at that moment that I talked Brynn and Collin into letting him join the party at the last minute.

“Hey, I’m so glad you could make it.”

Dexter leaned over and placed a friendly kiss on my cheek. He was a nice guy, and I even tried to talk myself into being attracted to him romantically, even though he had the strangest acquaintances, because he was one hell of a nice guy. A complete nerd in my book, but genuinely sweet.

“Of course. I could tell you needed me here. This place is amazing, and look at Brynn in that dress. Collin is one lucky man.”

I watched Brynn walk around the room and greet her guests. She was lovely, and I was giving her a mental high-five for buying that cream dress.

I looked back over at Dexter, and I noticed he was playing with some appetizers with his toothpick. “Something on your mind?” I asked and watched him shift uncomfortably from side to side.

He put his toothpick down and looked at me with a nervous expression. “Don’t get mad.”

I shot my eyebrows up and put my hands on my hips. “What did you do?”

“I may have given your number out to a really great guy.”

I let out a loud sigh and threw my hands up in the air. “Dexter! I told you that I didn’t want to date any more of your friends. They’re weird, and awkward, and the past five or so haven’t worked out very well. I’m fine. I don’t need to be set up on any more blind dates.”

Dexter looked over his shoulder and shook his head a little. “You’re not fine. You are hung up on a guy, Emma, one who's not available and is going through a lot of shit. Ryan, the guy I gave your number to, is a great guy who's available. He’s one of my ex girlfriend’s brothers, and I only stayed with her the last two months of our relationship because I got along with him so well. We ended up staying in touch, and he got out of a bad relationship a few months ago and is looking to meet a nice girl. Your name came up. He also owns the Hotel Deauville in Midtown,” he shot me a smile that might have worked on women who think he looks like Clark Kent, but I wasn’t sold and all I could think about after hearing Deauville was Cruella, which brought me back to Nora.

“Thank you for thinking I’m such a wonderful person, but your past track record for ‘great guys’ isn’t that hot. I’m tired of dating, Dexter. I feel like I need to get my career going and fix me. Then I’ll be ready. Besides, Cade is flying in tomorrow, and he’ll take my mind off things. At least for the weekend.” I winked at him, hoping this subject was dropped.

“Okay, but after this wedding I really think you should give Ryan a chance.” He popped another shrimp into his mouth and shot me a big grin.

“We’ll see. I’m going to find the ladies room, I’ll find you in a little bit, okay?” After a slight nod from Dexter, I walked out of the party area and headed out to find the restrooms.

When I finally found a sign that said
Ladies
on it, I felt like I had climbed Mt. Everest and was seeing a flag for the United States. Why they had to hide it so far back into the club was beyond me.

I walked through the door and my nemesis was looking into the mirror, reapplying her lipstick. I almost turned around to retreat, but when the door swung open, she looked in my direction and spotted me. Dammit.

I headed to a stall, hoping if I willed her invisible, she would magically disappear. I wasn’t so lucky, and knew it would be uncomfortable peeing with her standing out there.

She stared at me with an evil glare as I walked over to the first stall, not wanting to pass her in case she had some sort of magical laser ability in her pupils.

Just as I was about to pull the stall door open, Nora cleared her throat and turned to face me. Great, another bathroom showdown. That was not what I needed.

“Emma, I’m so glad I ran into you. I’ve been meaning to talk to you.”

I closed my eyes and took in a deep breath. I kept reminding myself that she had a growing baby in her, and I couldn’t do anything crazy.
Deep breaths
. I turned around and faced Nora, reminding me how beautiful she was. Her long auburn hair, and turquoise eyes were a brilliant combination. If only she was a decent person, she would be a total package.

“Nora, hi. You look very pretty tonight.”

Nora made a little grunting noise and pushed herself off the sink. “Look, I want to get one thing straight with you and then I hope to never speak to you again.”

“Great, sounds good to me.”

Nora shot me a very evil smile and walked over to stand by me next to the stall where I desperately wanted to hide and lock the door. This woman was way too crazy for me.

“I know about you and Greyson. He told me everything. I don’t know what he’s been telling you, but we are back together and we are having this baby. Our wedding is still on, and I need you to stay the hell away from him.”

I wasn’t sure what to think. I had a feeling she was bluffing, but another part of me wondered what the real truth was.

“Nora, Greyson is all yours. I’m going to stay out of the picture, you have nothing to worry about.”

Nora let out a low laugh and shook her head. “That’s where you’re wrong. I don’t think you are going to stay out of the picture. You see, without Greyson, my father doesn’t think I’ll be able to handle his business. He thinks I need Greyson. Greyson is my ticket to what I have always wanted. Yes, this is a slight hiccup, but that’s why we have nannies.” She pointed down to her stomach, and made me feel sorry for the child growing inside. Greyson was right, he had to be around that kid so it had a chance with Nora as a mother. “Oh, and another thing. I could smell you all over him when he arrived here. So, because I don’t trust you whatsoever, I have a little back-up plan that makes me confident that you'll keep your word to me.”

She had finally piqued my interest, because I knew it wasn’t anything that was going to benefit me. “Oh yeah, and what’s that?”

“You see, I know people inside your little Purple Moon company, and I was able to get ahold of a manuscript you’re getting ready to promote. What would happen if someone leaked the story and it had your name written all over it? The author would be furious, and you, my dear, would be jobless. Authors would spin off her story, and you would be out. I would make sure no one on this tiny island would even think about hiring you. You would be exiled, and shipped back to that windy city you should be calling home.”

I rolled my eyes at Nora, and didn’t like that I was being threatened. “Go ahead, you psycho bitch. I know people, too, and I’m not afraid of you. I will stay out of your life, but I can promise you that your future with Greyson is up in the air. Now, I have a threat of my own. Stay the hell away from me, because I will go country on you and kick your redheaded ass when you’re not knocked-up. Got it?”

“Classy, Emma. Real classy. I guess we’ll see who wins.” And with that, Nora was out of the bathroom, and I was seething mad.

When I found Dexter and told him about my bathroom encounter with Nora, he was more pissed that we had someone working in our company who would give away a new manuscript to Nora Mathews.

He was eventually able to calm me down, and the rest of the evening was painless. I had a fabulous dinner with Dexter and some new friends I had made who were acquaintances of Brynn. Dexter ended up leaving with one of them. I did’t know how he did it, but he was one chick magnet.