Sensual Confessions - Brenda Jackson [18]
“Will they ever learn?” Peyton asked, smiling.
“Apparently not.”
Mac shook her head and then asked, “Did you accomplish what you set out to do?”
“With my parents, maybe. But I’m not sure about Cash. I don’t know what my parents said to him, but I think he assumed that a serious relationship with me was a done deal. I hate to burst his bubble because he is a cutie.”
“If he’s a cutie then why burst his bubble?” Peyton asked with a serious expression on her face. “You shouldn’t assume he’ll be like Guy. Who knows? He just might be the one.”
Sam didn’t reply, since Peyton was only echoing what her parents had said. She couldn’t go through life blaming every man for what Guy had done to her. All men weren’t like him.
“It doesn’t matter if he’s nothing like Guy,” she finally said. “I’m not interested in Cash. Besides, there wasn’t any chemistry between us. No heat.”
Peyton raised an eyebrow. “None?”
“Not enough to make me pause. Like I said, he’s good-looking. He has a good body, nice teeth, but that’s about it,” she said. What she wouldn’t say was that compared to Blade Madaris he lacked just about everything. He didn’t have that swagger, that intense look in his eyes, and when she shook Cash’s hand, all she felt was a warm, clammy palm—not a spark of hot desire.
“How does he kiss?” Mac asked.
Sam shrugged. “Don’t know. We didn’t get that far.” And it wasn’t for lack of trying on his part, she thought, remembering the couple of times he tried to get her alone. She just wasn’t feeling him. Maybe it had been the wrong thing to do, but she had compared Cash to Blade. There had been more than just chemistry between her and Blade, even when she hadn’t wanted to admit it. Even when she had denied it to herself and to him.
The moment he’d showed up at Mac’s rehearsal dinner, Sam knew he would be trouble. She had watched him out of the corner of her eye as he smoothly checked out the women, mostly single female friends of Mac. And she knew the moment his gaze landed on her. Later that night, when everyone left the church for the rehearsal dinner, he’d approached her to make small talk. But she’d stopped him cold with an icy look before he could even get in a word.
“Well, I hate to change the subject, but I have some good news to share with everyone,” Mac said.
Sam sat up straight and looked over at her expectantly. “What’s your good news?”
Mac was beaming brightly. “Well, it’s not really my good news personally, but good news about people I care about. First, Ashton called yesterday to say that Nettie is expecting.”
“Wow!” Peyton said, clapping her hands. “That’s wonderful!”
“He didn’t predict triplets again?” Sam asked, smiling. Everyone knew the story of how Mac’s cousin had said Nettie would be having triplets—three sons—even after the doctor had convinced Nettie she would never have children.
“No, he says it’s just one baby this time. A daughter,” Mac said, chuckling. “And,” she continued, “Luke talked to Slade last night. He and Skye are expecting.”
“I think we really do have a reason to go over to Twains after work to celebrate,” Sam said. She had met Skye at one of Mac’s bridal showers and had immediately liked her. She was down-to-earth and friendly.
“I agree,” Peyton interjected.
Mac chuckled. “Count me in.”
Sam nodded. She was happy for Nettie and Skye. They had fallen in love and married good men. Sam had met Ashton while she and Mac were roommates in law school. Sam had had a crush on him for a while. It was a man-in-uniform thing. As far as Slade was concerned, although he was Blade’s twin brother, the two looked and acted nothing alike. Slade was handsome in his own right, but his disposition was entirely different from Blade’s. They were like night and day. It was easy to see that Blade was a man who enjoyed women, and it was just as obvious that Slade was a man who could be loyal to only one woman. It was there in his eyes whenever he looked at his wife. Blade wouldn’t