Page 20 of Wild Heart

The one thing I hadn’t anticipated happening then did.

While Ivy sat on one side of me, Tate sat on the other.

It made no sense. Why would he do such a thing?

Was he trying to make this more difficult for me than it already was? He knew how I felt about him. Why couldn’t he have just been kind enough to sit anywhere else instead of torturing me like this?

Because it was absolutely akin to torture to have to sit by him. To see him in his suit and have the scent of him invading my senses. I loved the way he smelled—a sharp, masculine fragrance. Something I’d only ever associate with Tate for as long as I lived. To feel his big body so close to mine—he wastall and lean, but strong and muscular. And his dark brown hair that still held some lighter strands from his time outside in the summer was something I’d always wanted to grip in my hands while kissing those slightly pouty lips.

I glanced at him briefly, noted the way he was looking at me like he had no less than a dozen things he wanted to say to me, and quickly directed my attention to the place setting in front of me.

Fortunately, Jules and Ivy broke the tension for me and pulled me into a conversation. Jules brought me up to speed on the new bakery Cooper had built for her at Westwood’s, and since she and Ivy were both seated on the opposite side of where Tate was, I only had to contend with the knowledge and scent of him being beside me. I didn’t have to worry about lingering stares, softened expressions, and upturned lips.

And in the moments when I wasn’t caught up in discussions with Tate’s sisters, he was busy having a conversation with Liam, Cooper, and Skye. Of course, the entire table broke out into conversations often, which helped things for me. The only time I struggled was if I was speaking and could feel Tate’s stare burning into me, or if he was talking and I needed to look his way, so nobody would cotton on to what was happening between us.

Following dinner, Wyatt and Rhea stood and thanked everyone for coming. Wyatt gave a speech, and as he professed his love for Rhea, tears welled in my eyes.

Would I ever experience that? Would I ever know that kind of love? I’d been searching for that kind of love my whole life. I thought I’d have it with Tate.

Maybe it was selfish of me to not be happy with all that I had been given in my life. The Westwood family should have been enough for me. I had them, and I had my career.

Did I need to be greedy? Perhaps I wasn’t meant to have it all.

A couple of hours after I’d arrived, the night wound down, and everyone was set on heading out. The festivities were set to commence early tomorrow for everyone in the wedding, so nobody wanted to stay out too late.

I made my rounds, saying goodbye and offering my help if any last-minute things came up.

It was when I was on my way to the exit, believing I’d managed okay, considering I’d spent so much time beside Tate, when he called my name. “Ava?”

I stopped moving, looked at him, and tensed. “Yeah?”

The frown returned as he closed the distance between us. When he came to a stop beside me, he asked, “Would it be alright with you if I walked you to your car? I’d like to talk to you privately for a minute.”

I should have known better than to assume something bad wouldn’t have happened. Tate probably wanted to warn me not to tell anyone what happened between us more than a year ago.

I sighed. “Sure.”

Sweeping one hand out in front of me and placing the other at the small of my back, Tate urged me forward and out of the restaurant.

We walked beside one another in a tense silence toward my car. Neither of us said a word. I’d said plenty to him before I went out on the tour. I wouldn’t make the same mistake again.

Tate and I came to a stop at the driver’s side door, where I tipped my chin up to look at him.

For several long seconds, his eyes roamed over my face. I wondered what was going through his mind, if he was wishing I hadn’t ruined our friendship.

“It’s nice to see you again,” he finally said.

Okay. So, that had been unexpected.

And infuriating.

My eyes narrowed. “Pardon?”

“You’ve been gone a long time.”

“I’ve been working.”

He nodded. “Right. I know.”