It took about ten minutes of driving for Astrid to relax and not dart glances at the cake. I wasn’t a crazy driver usually, but now I pretended there wasn’t a cake in the back but a big bowl of gravy that I didn’t want to spill. The idea of damaging the cake she’d made to such perfection for what sounded like a bridezilla sister made my palms sweat. Not that I’d tell her that. Ever.

“I’m surprised you’re walking away from your business for the weekend.”

Out of the corner of my eye, I caught an eye roll. “It’s not easy to do, that’s for sure. Mary, my assistant, is covering, and I trust her. I double baked this morning so there will be enough for the weekend.”

I didn’t know exactly what that meant, other than she’d been up since before dawn and was still awake. That was impressive in itself.

“You want to tell me about your family and what I’m walking into?” I asked, switching topics.

Cutthroat was a little over an hour from The Bend and we had some time on our hands.

The air conditioner was cranked and I wanted to send out a thank you to the inventor because Astrid’s nipples were poking against the soft fabric of her dress. I remembered how responsive one had been beneath my thumb.

“It might be better going in blind.”

“Why’s that?” I asked.

She glanced at me, then fiddled with her fingers. “Some families are crazy. Loving, but insane. Mine are… mine.”

That explained nothing, but if she wasn’t in the wedding party because she didn’t fit into a dress, then I had a feeling she was following the rule of if you don’t have anything nice to say, don’t say anything at all.

As for bridesmaid dress not fitting, I had no idea what kind of weird-ass style the ladies would wear, but Astrid fit perfectly in the one she had on. It was sleeveless, the green the same color as her eyes. The neckline dipped in a V accenting her large breasts, but not flaunting them. A slim shiny black belt circled her waist which made the flirty skirt flare out. It rode up a little since she was sitting, and the peek of bare thigh made my mouth dry. Combining all that with cowgirl boots, she was fucking gorgeous. Simple and understated, but she didn’t need flashy. Today she had a hint of makeup on. There was definitely something shiny on her lips which I wanted to smudge and kiss right off.

Hell, I wanted to tell her to flip up the hem of her dress and show me the color of her panties, but… fake boyfriend.

I cleared my throat and wondered if the air conditioning could go any lower. “How about a brief rundown.”