All of You (3 page)

“This perv is Deacon.” Lincoln motioned to
the man who had wanted to kiss him at midnight but who was now
talking to a pretty redhead. “He’s on the team with me.”

I pulled away from him slightly and looked at
him, confused. “Team?” I asked.

“Um… yeah. And that’s my sister, Kennedy,”
Lincoln said, not stopping to clarify my confusion, and pointed to
a woman on the other side of the table. “Most people call her Ken
or Kenny…” Lincoln trailed off as I took several small steps
backward away from him. Oh shit. “Jillian, what’s wrong?” he asked,
looking at me with concern.

“Kennedy and Lincoln. And you have a brother,
Carter?” I asked as the pieces of the puzzle fell together. Lincoln
nodded with a sad but concerned look on his face. I pulled my hand
out of his. “Your father is Senator Monaghan, right? You’re Lincoln
Monaghan? THE Lincoln Monaghan??”

Lincoln exhaled, obviously frustrated, and
asked, “Will you let me buy you that drink before you freak out?
Please?”

I shook my head and looked down. My emotions
were getting the better of me. This was not good. I couldn’t be
involved with any guy, especially Lincoln Monaghan.

Lincoln grabbed my arm and pulled me with him
as he walked toward the bar. When we were a safe distance away from
his friends, I dug my heels in and refused to go any further with
him. He stopped and turned back to me. “All right. Go ahead.”

“Go ahead?! Go ahead with what?!” I said
while trying not to freak out.

“Go ahead with your freak-out. It’s nothing I
haven’t heard before,” Lincoln said sadly. I stared up at him. What
did he mean, he’d heard it before? I highly doubted this gorgeous
man had ever had a woman refuse him as I was about to. He couldn’t
know what I was about to say yet he had a resigned look on his face
as if this was inevitable.

Before I could start my list of all the
reasons why I should walk out of the bar right now, Lincoln started
talking. “I was just hoping we could get to know each other before
you realized who I am.” He looked so sad.

“I don’t understand,” I admitted to Lincoln.
That’s not what I expected him to say.

“You don’t understand why I wouldn’t want you
to know who I am?” Lincoln asked doubtfully. “I barely convinced
you to let me watch the parade with you. Would your reaction have
been the same if you knew who I was then?”

I realized he meant he didn’t want me to
think of him as Lincoln Monaghan, the senator’s son, the
professional hockey player, and the celebrity.

“That doesn’t really have anything to do with
anything, Lincoln. I didn’t know who you were, and I didn’t think
we should be together, and it’s even clearer to me now. I should
go.”

“Go??” he asked, confused. “Why would you go?
We just got here.”

“Lincoln…” I didn’t want to try to explain
this to him in the middle of a bar.

“I owe you a drink,” Lincoln said,
interrupting me. “And an apology. And I’m not letting you leave
without either one.” His face was serious but friendly. I didn’t
understand why he wasn’t taking no for an answer, but he wanted me
there and would not be happy if I left. I nodded and walked toward
the bar with Lincoln following behind.

The bar area was swamped, but Lincoln quickly
made his way up to the edge and ordered a beer for himself and
asked me what I wanted. I scooted in closer to the bar and shouted
for a peach sunrise. The bartender turned to make my drink, and I
looked up at Lincoln for approval with a smile. He was smiling down
at me, and my stomach fluttered slightly.

I felt pushed from behind, and I stumbled
into Lincoln’s broad chest. Turning my head, I saw people
harmlessly trying to push their way closer to the bar. I looked
back up at Lincoln, unconcerned, and I realized just how close to
him I was. I pressed into his chest, and he put his arm around me
protectively and drew me even closer while eyeing the crowd behind
me.

Those dang butterflies fluttered in my
stomach again, and I longed to wrap my arms around his waist. I was
surprised to realize I wanted to feel his muscular body against
mine and the scruff of his beard against my face. I focused on his
lips as he looked down at me. A serious and heated look crossed his
face, and I wanted nothing more than for him to grab me and pull me
close and press his soft lips against mine. And it seemed like he
was looking at me with the same thoughts.

“That’ll be nine fifty!” the bartender
shouted, effectively breaking the bubble that had surrounded us. I
could breathe again, and Lincoln removed his arm to pull out his
wallet to pay the man. I felt so stupid. I shouldn’t have come here
with him. I shouldn’t have let him buy me a drink. I shouldn’t lead
him on since nothing was ever going to exist between us.

Lincoln handed me the peach sunrise and then
held up his beer in a toast. “This is my official apology for
spilling hot chocolate all over you. I apologize… but I can’t say I
regret it.” Lincoln smiled and winked at me. I laughed nervously
and took a sip. The peach sunrise was my favorite drink. There was
just something indescribably delicious about peaches. “Come on,”
Lincoln said and grabbed my hand again. “Let’s get back to my
friends.”

Chapter Three

By the time Lincoln had introduced me to most
everyone in the group, it was close to midnight. I was talking to
Kennedy, who was here with her husband, Brian. Kennedy was
explaining to me that this was their first night out as a couple
without the kids in almost a year.

“Since last Valentine’s Day, I think!”
Kennedy said loudly. She had either had too much to drink or she
was a naturally loud and outgoing person. “We brought the kids to
the parade, of course, but they’re staying with my parents
tonight.”

“You were at the parade?” I asked. I hadn’t
seen her there, but I hadn’t really been paying attention to
individuals in the crowd.

“Well, of course, silly! We’re all obligated
to be there with our dad. Have to be a happy family for the
senator!” Kennedy said with a laugh. I felt ill at ease again.
Kennedy probably wouldn’t have said that if it hadn’t been for the
drink in her hand or the several before it.

“What do you do for a living?” I changed the
subject.

“Oh, I’m a stay-at-home mom. I stay at home.
All the time,” Kennedy replied with a smile and a half-glazed look
in her eyes. “WE SHOULD GO OUT SOMETIME!” She yelled and grabbed my
arm. Yeah, she definitely had too much to drink.

“Um, yeah, sure. We can do that,” I said,
lying through my teeth. She seemed nice enough, but it just wasn’t
going to happen.

“My hubby works a lot, so I got all the time
in the world,” Kennedy slurred her words but then suddenly looked
sad. “I’m alone a lot.”

“Hey, hey. Yeah, of course we’ll go out,” I
said in my most comforting tone. “We’ll go get pedicures together.
How about that?” I rubbed Kennedy’s arm in an attempt to comfort
her. Kennedy’s face lit up, and she threw her arms around my neck
in an enthusiastic hug, nearly knocking me over.

Just then the music stopped, and I heard a
woman calling for everyone’s attention. I turned around and saw a
bartender with a megaphone standing on the bar.

“FIFTEEN SECONDS TO MIDNIGHT!” the bartender
screamed into the megaphone. The whole bar surged with excitement.
Men and woman positioned themselves next to their loved ones in the
best possible spot to ring in the New Year. Kennedy whipped around
to find her husband, and suddenly Lincoln was in front of me.
“TEN!” the bartender shouted into the megaphone. “NINE!” the crowd
joined in with the countdown. “EIGHT!” The excitement in the bar
was contagious, and I couldn't help but smile widely and bounce on
the balls of my feet. “SEVEN!” I looked up at Lincoln. “SIX!” He
smiled down at me. “FIVE!” My heart skipped a beat, and I smiled
back at him. “FOUR!” Lincoln reached up and tucked a piece of my
hair behind my ear. “THREE!” A thrill went through me at his touch.
“TWO!” I took a deep breath. Here it comes. “ONE! HAPPY NEW
YEAR!”

Confetti flew through the air, and
noisemakers blasted their high-pitched tone. Everyone around us
shouted and began hugging and kissing. Lincoln stood silently in
front of me. “Should old acquaintance be forgot and never brought
to mind…” The crowd started singing, and I waited for Lincoln to
make a move. But he just stood there staring down at me. “For auld
lang syne, my dear, for auld lang syne…” For once in my life, I
forgot about not being beautiful. He was looking down at me as if
there wasn’t another person in this whole bar, and I desperately
wanted to feel his mouth against mine. “We’ll take a cup of
kindness yet…” I began to feel uncomfortable. Why wasn’t he kissing
me? “…for auld lang syne.”

The song and the moment were over. Cheers
erupted throughout the bar. I blinked and looked away from Lincoln.
God, I felt like an idiot… again. Clearly he didn’t want to kiss
me. It was New Year’s Eve. It was expected, but yet he had made no
move to do it. Had I just imagined the heat between us? Ugh, I had
probably just been alone for so long that I exaggerated this man’s
kindness and mistook it for flirting. Yep, I was an idiot. This is
what was wrong with me. I KNEW no man would ever be interested in
me if he knew my real self. That’s why fake names and no numbers
worked. There was no risk of fooling myself into getting my hopes
up, which was exactly what I had done with Lincoln.

I cleared my throat and took a step back from
Lincoln. “Jillian…” Lincoln said, reaching for my arm. But before
he could touch me, Kennedy jumped up and wrapped her arms around
his neck in a big hug.

“HAPPY NEW YEAR LITTLE BRO!!!” Kennedy
screamed in his ear, and I laughed nervously and stepped back some
more. Lincoln squeezed her, kissed her cheek, and repeated the
sentiment back to her but kept his eyes locked on me. A man I
assumed was Kennedy’s husband stood behind her in a way that made
it look like he was waiting to catch her when she fell. Kennedy let
go of Lincoln and turned, bringing me into her field of vision.
“JILLIAN!!!” Kennedy screamed and enveloped me in a giant hug.

“Damn, man. How much has she had to drink?” I
heard Lincoln ask Kennedy’s husband.

“Definitely enough. I just wanted her to have
a good time,” the man replied. It was sweet if not a little
misguided.

“Jillian! We’re going to be BFFs, okay? When
you and Linc start getting all hot and heavy, you call me and I’ll
give you the deets on my little bro. Mmkay?” Kennedy said loudly
enough for everyone to hear. I could feel my face getting warm with
blush.

“Oh I don’t…” I started to say, but Kennedy’s
husband interrupted my protest.

“Come on, baby. I think it’s time to go
home,” he said to her. But Kennedy was still focused on me.

“Promise you’ll call me? I should give you my
mumber. What’s my mumber?” she said, giggling at her own drunken
slurs. Her husband grabbed her around the waist to steady her as
she reached out and grabbed my arm. “Just don’t tells me about the
sex. I don’t want to know nothing about anything about my little
brother’s sex life. Okay?” Kennedy said loudly enough for all to
hear, and she giggled again. I was mortified.

“Yeah, definitely time to get you home,”
Kennedy’s husband said.

“Baby!” Kennedy exclaimed as if she just
noticed her husband standing with his arms around her. She leaned
in and gave him a sloppy kiss on the lips. “Mm… yeah, let’s go home
and get naked,” she said, pressing herself against her husband.

“Woman, it’s a good thing I love you,” her
husband said in an exasperated tone and nibbled on her earlobe,
causing Kennedy to giggle again.

“All right, all right. Take her out of here,
man,” Lincoln said with a laugh. “She doesn’t want to hear about my
sex life I don’t want to have to see hers!” Everyone around us
laughed.

Good-byes were exchanged and the party sprang
back to life moments after they left with another round of shots
being passed between friends. I looked around and figured this
would be a good time to make a break for it without drawing
attention to myself. I was stretching my neck to see what would be
the best path toward the exit when Lincoln said my name. I looked
at him and tried to keep my emotions from showing on my face.

“I was just looking for the bathroom,” I said
in a preemptive move to stop him from saying anything. I didn’t
need his words. I just wanted to leave.

“Oh. They’re right over there. I’ll take
you.” His voice was full of concern, as if he could tell I was
thinking about leaving. I nodded and allowed him to escort me to
the ladies’ room. “I’ll wait for you here,” he told me. I left him
standing at the entrance and walked into the restroom while rolling
my eyes at this man who did not seem to want to let me go but
hadn’t seemed to want to kiss me either. I needed to get away from
the feelings I had while around him, mainly feeling like an idiot.
Of course the awesome, sexy, celebrity, rich, hockey player Lincoln
Monaghan doesn’t want anything to do with me.

I sighed and gave myself a mental kick. I was
stupid to have let it go this far. Even if he was interested in me
on the outside, there was no way we could ever have a relationship.
Gah! I mentally kicked myself again. Relationship? What are you
even thinking, Jillian?? This was exactly why I needed to get away
from him. I was spinning crazy scenarios in my mind and needed to
stop. This was ridiculous. He bought me one drink, and I was
overthinking things.

I looked around the bar bathroom and tried to
come up with a new plan. I wondered how ridiculous it would be if I
attempted to shimmy out the bathroom window. Maybe I could just
slip away from him in the crowd. I rolled my eyes again, this time
at myself. I was an adult, for Christ's sake. Just go out there and
tell him good-bye and leave, I told myself, trying to give a pep
talk. I took a deep breath and pushed the door open a crack to peer
out. Lincoln was standing several feet away talking to a couple of
guys I didn’t recognize from our group. One of the men shoved a hat
and a marker toward Lincoln in what looked like an attempt to get
an autograph. Ah, perfect, I thought. Hopefully these fans would
keep him distracted. I slipped out of the bathroom and almost ran
into Lincoln’s friend Deacon who was coming out of the men’s
room.