“Once again, your parents sound pretty extraordinary.”
I appreciated both the words and the reverent tone he used when he said them. “Thank you.”
Sensing the need to lighten the mood, Thorn motioned to the bowling lane. “Want to bowl now?”
“Seriously?”
He shrugged. “Why not? Then you can be the only one back home who has bowled at the White House.”
With a laugh, I said, “Ooh, bragging rights—I like it.”
“Give me one second,” Thorn said as he walked over to the control pad. After hitting a few buttons, the lights on the lane lit up, and the mechanized pins reset. Thorn flashed me a grin. “It’s all yours.”
With an excited squeal, I kicked off my heels and padded over to where the shiny black balls were lined up. After slipping my fingers into the holes, I thrust the ball upward with one hand and lifted my other hand to my chest. As my stocking feet slid on the slippery floor, I lamented not having an attractive pair of bowling shoes to wear. The last thing I needed to do was bust my ass in front of Thorn.
Pulling my arm back behind me, I focused on the pins. I slung my arm forward and released the ball, sending it spiraling down the lane. A loud crack echoed through the room as the ball smashed into the pins, knocking them all out in a perfect strike. I jumped into the air and let out a victory whoop.
The sound of applause caused me to whirl around. Thorn was grinning from ear to ear while clapping for me.
“Thank you,” I said before curtsying. “Now it’s your turn.”
Shaking his head, Thorn held up his hands. “Oh, no. I think I’m good.”
“Come on, just try it.”
He gave a frustrated grunt at my insistence. “Fine,” he muttered.
Thorn picked up one of the balls then went over to stand in front of the lane. After flinging his arm back, he brought it forward with equal momentum. Unfortunately, it slammed straight into the gutter. “Yep, I suck at bowling.”
“No, you don’t suck. It’s not like you just start off being perfect. You have to practice.” I handed him another ball before pushing him back into position. “Now this time, you want to do it slow and easy.”
Standing behind him, I eased his arm back. As I held his bicep, I couldn’t help noticing how huge the muscle was beneath his shirt. I liked the feel of him under my skin, and I couldn’t help imagining what it might feel like to cling to those bulging muscles as Thorn made love to me.
“Am I just supposed to stand like this forever?” Thorn questioned.
Shit. I’d totally zoned out for a moment while fantasizing about him and his muscles. “Uh, no. I just wanted you to take a moment or two to focus on the pins,” I lied.
“Okay, I’ve focused on the pins. Now what?”
“You’re going to bring your arm forward with strength, but I want you to go slower than the last time.”
Once I let go of Thorn’s bicep, I stepped to the side. He stepped forward and let the ball go. This time it careened down the lane to knock over five pins.
“See—you totally have this!”
He grinned. “I guess I just needed a good coach.”
I laughed. “Considering I’m the least athletic person of anyone I know, I hardly think I’m coaching material.”
“You were great.” Apart from when I imagined touching him naked.
With a little curtsy, I replied, “Thank you.”
“Do you want to torture me with more bowling, or would you like to see more?”
“I think I’m good to continue once we bust into the chocolate shop next door.”
Thorn chuckled. “How did you notice that?”
Tapping my nose, I replied, “I sniffed it out.”
“Come on, let’s get you some chocolate.” Ah, music to my ears!
When we made a pit stop at the chocolatier, we found we weren’t alone. Members of the staff were working on souvenir chocolates for wedding guests to take home, and they kindly gave us a sample before we headed upstairs.
Instead of going up another flight of stairs to the residence, we headed to see what the East Wing had to offer. We made our way through what Thorn called the Visitors Foyer, where the non-VIPs entered the White House, to the long hallway called the East Colonnade.
“What’s that?” I asked, pointing to what appeared to be a lighted garden.
“That’s the Jacqueline Kennedy Garden.”
“Oh,” I murmured as I pressed my hands against the glass.
“You must be a Jackie Kennedy fan.”
“Yes, I am. I loved her style.”
Tilting his gaze to the ceiling, Thorn said, “Speaking of First Ladies, the second floor is pretty much just a bunch of offices, including my mom’s.”
“Sometimes it’s hard to believe your mom is the First Lady.”
“Why do you say that?”
“She’s so down to earth.”
“Even though she comes from a pedigreed family, she’s always been that way. She’s a true mom, and she took care of us instead of a nanny.”
“I can totally see that about her. I have to say she did an amazing job. Look how the three of you turned out.”
Thorn smiled. “I’ll make sure to tell her that.” He jerked a thumb at the door across from us. “And this is the theater.”
I walked across the Colonnade to peek inside. “Okay, forget the bowling alley—if I lived here, I’d be hanging out in the movie theater all the time.”
Thorn shot me a look. “Get serious, Flannery. You know you’d always have your head buried in work.”
“I would make a point to carve out some ‘me time’, which would include movie time.”
“Yeah, I’ll believe it when I see it.”
With a roll of my eyes, I replied. “Whatever.”
“Shall we continue?”
“Yes, we shall.”
“How about I show you the swimming pool?”
“Sounds good.”
For some reason, I expected the pool to be indoors. Maybe it was because I was thinking of the old one Roosevelt used, but this one was tucked away from prying eyes and shielded by trees. “Have you been swimming here yet?”
“Not yet.”
“Too bad we don’t have our bathing suits,” I mused.
Waggling his brows, Thorn replied, “We could always go in our undies.”
“That would be a negative considering I’m not wearing a bra with this dress.” Shit. From the look that flashed in Thorn’s eyes, I knew I really shouldn’t have shared that little tidbit.
A moment passed before he shook his head. “You wouldn’t have done it anyway.”
“Excuse me?”
“Even if you had a bra on, you wouldn’t have gone in.”
I swept my hands to my hips. “And just how do you know that?”
“Because you’re too straight-laced. You’re a rule-follower, not a rule-breaker.”
“I seem to recall breaking quite a few rules when I sabotaged you at work,” I protested.
Thorn grinned. “While that is true, my assholery influenced your decision. In this case, there’s nothing to really influence you.”
“Besides having bragging rights about jumping into the White House swimming pool with formal wear on?”
“I don’t think it’s in quite the same league.” He reached over to tap my forehead. “Somewhere in that mind of yours is a raging battle about how impractical it would be to ruin your expensive dress, not to mention what everyone will think of you when they see you all wet and bedraggled.”
I snorted. “Did you actually just use the word ‘bedraggled’?”
“Hey, don’t knock my extensive vocabulary.”
“I’m not knocking it. I’m impressed.”
“You’re also deflecting.”
“I am not.”
After crossing his arms over his chest, Thorn cocked his head at me. “So, was I not completely correct about what’s going through your mind?”
Of course he was. Although we’d only known each other four months, somehow he had the ability to see through to me as well as Mila or Christina did, but I didn’t necessarily want him to know that—at least not yet.
“No. That’s not what I was thinking at all,” I argued.
With a smirk, he replied, “Yeah, right.”
I glanced from him back to the water. I desperately wanted to not only prove him wrong, but to show myself that I could be spontaneous. Sure, the cost-conscious part of me was horrified that I might ruin a perfectly good formal dress with a dip in the pool, but there would be other dresses. There wouldn’t be other chances to swim in the White House pool. At the end of the day, I could pull some strings and use the dress as a tax write-off.
And yes, I was worried about what people would think if they saw me looking bedraggled, as Thorn had pronounced, especially if they gave me a pretentious, snooty-type look like I was obviously trash since I didn’t know how to act respectfully—but hey, I would most likely never see them again, so why did I give two shits about what they thought?
After kicking off my shoes, I gave Thorn one last fleeting look before breaking into a run. As my feet left the tile floor, I closed my eyes before letting out a victory squeal. The cool water hit my skin, sending slight shockwaves through me before the rest of my body was enveloped in the recesses of the deep end.
With a grin, I couldn’t help thinking, Carpe diem, motherfuckers! Rules be damned. One day I could tell my grandchildren about how I’d thrown caution to the wind and swam in the pool at the White House.
Kicking my feet, I surged back toward the surface. When I emerged, I wiped the water from my eyes. Thank God I’d chosen waterproof mascara and eyeliner, or else I would’ve been looking like a raccoon.
“That was impressive,” Thorn said behind me.
I whirled around to see him behind me in the water. “I’d say the same for you,” I said with a grin.
Chuckling, Thorn said, “Since you already showed me up at bowling, I couldn’t let you do it again.”
“I see how it is.” As I treaded water, I gazed up at the sky illuminated with stars. “What a gorgeous night.”
“It is, isn’t it?”
“You know, I don’t ever seem to stop and look at the stars except when I’m away from home.”
“Maybe it’s because they’re harder to see with all the skyscrapers in the city.”
“Could be, or maybe it’s because I just don’t take enough time to actually look up at them. I need to be enjoying the little things in life,” I remarked.
“Like swimming in formal wear in the White House pool?”
I laughed. “This isn’t a little thing—it’s a huge, colossal-type thing.” I gazed back at the stars. “Just taking a few seconds to stop and look at the world around you…that’s the little things.”
When I looked at Thorn, who was quiet, he had a faraway look in his eyes. “I felt the same thing when I was deployed. Everything would be so wild and chaotic, and then it everything would seem to calm for a few moments. It was then I noticed the mosaic of colors when the sun stretched across the morning sky, or the different colors of sand.” He nodded at me. “The little things really do matter.”
As I stared into Thorn’s eyes, I knew I was never, ever going to meet another man like him—one who could be as emotionally deep as the ocean while in the next breath be as irreverent as a comedian, not to mention the kindness and generosity he had shown Christina, and in turn, me. Forget the good looks or the money; I was so very attracted to the person he was within—the person he really was and not the asshole he had pretended to be.
While it was exhilarating to feel that way about another person, it was also equally frightening. I didn’t know how to take the next step with him. Hell, I didn’t even know if there should be another step for us considering everything that was at stake. I hated how convoluted everything felt.
As Thorn slowly swam closer to me, my heartbeat accelerated. That intensity of his was focused completely on me, as if he, too, couldn’t wait another moment to get closer. The water was cold, and I wasn’t wearing a bra, but I was on fire just from the look he was giving me. I felt desired. He looked at my lips and my breathing became choppy. I wanted my lips on his, on him. Damn it all to hell, I wanted him to kiss me—I needed him to kiss me.
As I willed it to happen, Thorn dipped his head. Just as his lips were about to meet mine, a voice boomed behind us. “Here you are.” Oh shit—Ty.
Immediately, Thorn jerked away from me, and I whirled around to face Ty.
“Is there a problem?” Thorn asked.
While he appeared apologetic, Ty was also businesslike. “You went off the grid.”
“Ty, I’m on safe grounds,” Thorn replied tersely.
“While that’s true, Barrett was looking for you.”
Thorn groaned. “Are you serious?”
“Yes. Something about you needing to get the rings from the safe.”
“Like I can’t do that in the morning,” Thorn grumbled.
“He also wants you to go with him and your dad to have a nightcap with the guests staying at Blair House.”
While I’d always been a fan of Ty’s, I seriously disliked him at the moment. After all the time it had taken to get Thorn and me to this moment, it had been ruined in just the blink of an eye. From the expression on Thorn’s face, any moment we’d been having was gone. He’d been trained to look to responsibilities first. He was that man. Normally, I respected the hell out of it, but right then, I wished he wasn’t.
He wouldn’t be trying to kiss me again any time soon.
“I guess the tour is over,” I said.
Thorn shook his head. “Barrett can wait.”
“That might be true, but I don’t think your guests can.” I nudged his arm with my shoulder. “Go on and do your duty. I don’t want your brother or your dad getting ticked that I took you away.”
“At least let me get you a robe and then escort you back to your room.”
“Escort me? There you go being proper again.”
With a wink, Thorn replied, “I owe it all to prep school.”
“Okay, Mr. Prep School, I’ll let you do that as long as you promise to take me in a back way where no one can see me looking bedraggled.”
Thorn chuckled at me referencing his word. “Yes, I can make that happen.”
As I slipped on a fluffy, terrycloth robe from the pool house, I had the fleeting thought of wanting to stuff it in my suitcase. On the way back, the conversation between Thorn and me was lighthearted, but there was an undeniable tension in the air. From time to time, I would glance back to see Ty staring intently at us. I couldn’t tell if it was just because he felt bad for interrupting or if it went deeper, like he really wanted to see the two of us together. That makes two of us, buddy.
Just as he’d promised, Thorn escorted me back to my room, and thankfully, he knew enough about the back stairwells to get us there without being seen by anyone—well, except for a few Secret Servicemen and some janitorial staff.
Ty gave us some space to say good night.
“I’ve got some best man stuff again in the morning, but I promise to come up and get you before the ceremony.”
“Okay. I’ll be ready at noon.”
He nodded. “Good. I’ll see you then.”
Just as I was about to go into my room, Thorn stopped me, dipped his head, and planted a kiss on my cheek. The touch was tender and sweet, his lips warm and soft. It was both a poignant gesture and one that set me on fire.
Chapter Twenty-Three: Thorn
“So? How did it go after you and Isabel cut out of the rehearsal dinner?”
For the second time in a week, I found myself enclosed in a small, mirrored room with bright lights and under Barrett’s interrogation about my love life. It was T-minus two hours until the wedding, and we were putting the final touches on our appearances before taking pictures.
Thankfully, Barrett had
the presence of mind to wait until it was just the three of us as his other groomsmen had already started out of the main house toward the Rose Garden.
At my brother’s question, Ty groaned. “Go ahead and say it: I cockblocked you.”
Barrett glanced between the two of us. “What’s he talking about?”
I crossed my arms over my chest. “Everything was going pretty fucking perfect between Isabel and me. I was just about to finally kiss her—”
“You still haven’t kissed her?” Barrett demanded.
With a roll of my eyes, I replied, “As a matter of fact, no, I haven’t. Jesus, it’s only been a couple of days since we talked about this. What did you expect me to do? Go storming back to the office and lay one on her?”
Flashing me a grin, Barrett replied, “I would have.”
I snorted. “Yeah, well, I think we’ve established I’m not like you in the love department.”
“So you were about to kiss her and Ty cockblocked you?” Barrett pressed.
Ty threw up his hands in exasperation. “For the record, I didn’t knowingly cockblock him. My target went missing, and I went in search of him—it’s that simple.”
“Didn’t you have the slightest idea that maybe Thorn and Isabel were getting busy since they ducked out of the rehearsal dinner early?”
“No.”
Barrett shook his head at Ty before turning to me. “Then today is the day.”
“Yes. It’s your wedding day—that’s the only day it is.”
He jabbed a finger into my chest. “Correction: it’s my wedding day and the day you seal your fate with Isabel. Don’t let me down.”
“Un-fucking-believable,” I muttered.
Thankfully, the wedding planner appeared and saved me from any more of Barrett’s berating. Sure, he was absolutely correct in demanding I quit dicking around when it came to Isabel, but it wasn’t the day to have that as my focus. I needed to have my head on straight so I could flawlessly execute my duties as best man and get Barrett successfully married. Then…I am coming to get you, Isabel.