in his mind he would lose. Sometimes he could understand her cues, but most of the time, her thoughts were still a mystery.
âDo you want me to get the door?â Danni asked Autumn. He hadnât even heard the doorbell.
âNo, Iâll get it,â she replied as she rushed out of the room. The gentlemanly thing to do would be to let her walk out of the room and discreetly check out her backside or not even look at all. Instead, his eyes followed her all the way out of the room.
âI donât know whoâs worse. You or your brother.â
âWhat do you mean?â he asked, turning back to Danni.
She gave him a knowing look. âThe way youâre always staring intently at Autumn is the exact same way your brother stared at Winter in the beginning of their relationship.â
âYou canât compare me and Autumn to Taheim and Winter.â
âWhy not?â
âBecause they were falling in love with each other. They had a bad first date, which made things rocky in the beginning, but in the end, they realized just how much they had in common. Autumn and I barely know each other.â Except for the things we shared with each other a few days ago. He quickly brushed the thought aside.
âOh, okay, I see now,â Danni said. âTaheim and Winter didnât get along when they first met. You and Autumn got along great when you first met, right?â
âRight,â he said without thinking. âWell, not really. She told me the food Iâd ordered for a practice we had before the grand opening of Inferno Night Lounge wasnât healthy. The same way she hounded me for weeks after about the menu of my other venues.â
âGotcha. And Taheim and Winter were forced to work together for an event. But you and Autumn were never forced to work together, right?â
âCorrect. We were never forced to work together.â
Danni waved her arms around the room and it clicked that they were working together for their siblingsâ wedding. âThis doesnât count. Iâm happy to be a part of Taheim and Winterâs wedding.â
âAnd Iâm sure Autumn is, too. But this forces you both to work together. Still, I see your point because Taheim and Winter would always steal glances at each other when they thought no one was watching. You and Autumn donât do that, either, am I right?â
He was about to respond that she was right yet again, which would validate that they were nothing like Taheim and Winter, when Autumn walked back into the room with Jaleen beside her.
He dapped fists with Jaleen as Autumn made her way to the other side of the table where Danni was standing. Jaleen started talking about something that had happened to him at work earlier in the day, but in the corner of his eye he could see Autumn adjusting her outfit. And just like that, his eyes found hers again.
Remembering what Danni had just said, he turned away from Autumn, but it was too late. Danni had caught him.
Her lips curled into a sly smile as she mouthed the word Busted .Okay, so maybe he wasnât being completely honest with himself. What Danni had said may be true, but they werenât like Taheim and Winter. Anyone could see that Taheim and Winter were made for each other. It may have been a while since he and Autumn had a debate, but it was only a matter of time before they had a disagreement about something. And when that happened, heâd remember why heâd told himself to stay away from her in the first place.
* * *
âLetâs get down to business,â Autumn said as they each took a seat at the table. âIn order for us to pull off this combined bridal, bachelorette and bachelor extravaganza, we need to have a plan of action first.â
âHow did Winter describe the wedding theme again?â Ajay asked.
âBeach chic and sexy elegance. They also wanted a masquerade beach theme and reception. However, I was thinking