Mirror of My Soul by Joey Hill (book club recommendations .TXT) 📕

forward to take the box from Tyler and dancers resumed their movement on the floor.

She gathered her scattered thoughts enough to take care of the final detail.

“It’s exquisite and perfect. Thank you.” She nodded to Justin. “To you both.” She reached out and touched Josh’s hand as well, for he had joined them.

Josh looked very sexy in Armani, a burgundy shirt under a tailored black coat, slacks, polished shoes, his hair a loose lion’s mane of brown and black on his shoulders.

Marguerite couldn’t resist the urge to tease. “Did Tyler dress you?”

He clasped her hand with a smile. “He insisted, but I put my foot down at

underwear.”

223

Joey W. Hill

Marguerite smiled, looked toward Justin. “I’m sure Josh gave you an address for the invoice?”

“And it better be mine, if he values his life.” Tyler interjected. “I’ll be paying for this debt, Justin.”

“I expected nothing less,” Justin said, unperturbed. “I’ve already mailed it to your home.” Marguerite’s surprised look became somewhat mutinous at being so smoothly handled by the two men and Justin and Josh wisely withdrew, deciding it was up to the groom to smooth any ruffled feathers.

Justin Herne reflected that smoothing Marguerite Winterman’s feathers would be any man’s pleasure. However, he had a lovely bird of his own. Sarah watched him, amused, as he pulled up his chair next to her.

“That looked like a strategic retreat. You two weren’t trying to overwhelm her with testosterone, I hope?”

He slid his hand under Sarah’s fall of white-gold hair, knowing her large gray-blue eyes, soft lips and the curve of her breasts outlined in the simple spaghetti strap black dress were enough to arouse his testosterone to alarming levels. He would have to think of ways to coax her into breaking a few public decency laws on the dark highways on the way home. In fact, he liked the idea of getting his hand under that short filmy skirt, past the thigh-high stockings, finding her pussy under the swatch of nearly nonexistent panties and bringing her to climax in the car. Several times.

“Justin.” Her lips curved into a smile, her eyes heating, showing what he already knew and thanked the stars for. That he could arouse her with just a look. “Behave.

There are people around. You’re surrounded by cops.”

“And not a single one of them carrying handcuffs. What earthly good are they?”

* * * * *

Marguerite and Tyler danced several more times before they were separated again.

She did a three-woman dance with Gen and Chloe on the floor, enjoying quiet laughter with them as they coordinated feet and legs.

When Josh coaxed Mac out onto the floor with Violet and his own wife, she

laughed, really laughed, so that she couldn’t help the reflex to cover her mouth. Tyler drew her hand away as they watched Josh try to teach the big cop the first steps of a sexy Latin dance. Mac was not too enthused about gyrating his hips, even with his tiny Mistress laughing and pushing him from behind.

She and Tyler gave Natalie the honor of cutting the first piece of cake. They carried on conversations with almost every guest. Finally, in the early hours of the morning, they saw them off in cabs or their cars, depending on their level of inebriation.

Marguerite held on to Komal a long moment before letting her into her car. She’d been unable to talk her into staying in a guestroom, but Tyler assured her several of the guests were headed back to Tampa. He quietly arranged for them to keep Komal’s 224

Mirror of My Soul

vehicle in their sights until they were sure she’d made it back to the turnoff to her suburb development.

She watched with quiet delight when Brendan walked Chloe to her car with his

hand beneath her elbow. He even held on to it a few moments before leaving her, visibly reluctant to go. Marguerite didn’t bother to hide her laughter this time when Chloe turned and mouthed Oh. My. God. across the driveway. Gen rolled her eyes and ordered her into their vehicle, then blew Marguerite a kiss. “See you back at the shop after the honeymoon!”

“Tired?” Tyler slid his arms around her waist as she watched them bump across the oyster shells down the driveway.

“In a way, yes. In another way, I feel like I could dance under the stars forever.”

“Well, we’ve one more group of guests to deal with. They’re vowed to stay and

mooch off our hospitality until the last bottle of champagne has been opened.”

She chuckled as they strolled back to the party area. As she expected, she found the lone inhabited table was the one with Violet and Mac, Josh and Lauren, Justin and Sarah. Josh stood up and held out a chair for Marguerite while Mac pushed one out for Tyler beside it with his foot. Nearly half asleep, Violet blinked at them in benign pleasure, her body leaned into the curve of Mac’s.

“Exhausting, isn’t it?” Lauren, who looked like she should be a lifeguard on a Hollywood fluff drama rather than a doctor, crinkled her blue eyes in a smile at Marguerite. Josh’s arm lay across the back of her chair, fingers playing with her bare shoulder. Sarah had her feet in Justin’s lap. He was massaging them, his fingers occasionally drifting up her thighs so that she could slap at him like at a mosquito, making his dark eyes twinkle.

“Little Madonna.” Tyler reached over, touched Violet’s knee. “What a mother

you’re going to be. Watch, Mac. It will be a girl and you’ll have two spoiled brats to care for.”

“You’re pregnant?! Oh my God, you didn’t tell us!” Sarah jerked up, bringing her feet down so abruptly she managed to thump her heel into Justin’s groin, then smacked her friend smartly in the arm as he winced good-naturedly.

“Hey, delicate condition here.” Violet fended her off, laughing and shook a finger at Tyler. “You, I’m going to kill. And aren’t you supposed to defend me?” She shot a