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My breathing was shallow as the last bridesmaid passed by, leaving the bride visible as she waited. She was wearing a short white dress with cowboy boots and a white cowboy hat that had a veil attachment.
Wow, they were definitely all about “theme” here.
The fiddler switched to—dear God—“No One Else on Earth” by Wynonna Judd, and the bride began walking (well, kind of strutting) down the aisle. She was pretty, but I was also scared of the stubborn jut of her chin and the way the crowd started making whistle sounds. These wereher people, so what was going to happen when someone—me—ruined her wedding?
Shit, shit, shit.
I was seriously contemplating doing nothing, just sitting there and watching two strangers get married, when I saw it. She glanced to her left when she reached the third pew from the front, and the cowboy on the end gave her a wink and a very sexual smirk.
Holy shit, that had to be Ronnie.
And her smile literally grew bigger, as if they were sharing a fantastical secret joke.
Thosebastards.
They were doubling down on their grossness in achurchwhile she was getting married to someone else?
Forget it—the bitch had it coming.
Good,I thought.That’s good.The anger was way better than the nerves, so I thought back to my own relationship in hopes of building more rage.
I’d actually thought we were a good match, Stuart and I. I truly believed that we were best friends and great roommates and could have a wonderful life together, being perfect partners. Maybe nottrue love, but more than what I’d needed for a happily-ever-after.
The first time he cheated he’d blamed booze, and I’d forgiven him. Everyone had the capacity to cheat, and booze amplified that—not that it made it okay. It was disappointing and horrible, but I got past it because I knew we’d be a great match. After the cheating IknewI didn’t love him (that’s when I really started thinking about the Big Lie), but I liked him a lot and had a whole backpack of warm feelings for Stuart that were worth the risk.
But the second time... the second time had punched me in the face.
His phone buzzed while he was showering, and if I hadn’t been sitting in the dark, I doubt I’d have seen the text that said,You better wear my boxers to the wedding, babe.
That was... weird, so I’d crawled over to his side of the bed and opened his messages. I legitimately thought there would be a simple explanation. It hadn’t even entered my consciousness that I might find text messages between Stuart and a woman who used the wordlove, had naked photo exchanges, and also mocked me for a myriad of things that were wrong with me.
Bossy Bitch had apparently been their nickname for me.
The music stopped and the pastor started speaking. Everythinghe said sounded just as flat and ridiculous as the words my pastor had uttered at my wedding.Join together these two in love blahblahblah.My breath caught in my throat as I waited for the passage.
“If any—”
“I do!” I yelled.
“Too early,” Max muttered from my right.
“Miss?” the pastor said, his eyebrows crinkled together. “I’m sorry...?”
“You said if anyone here knows any reason—well, I do,” I said, heat flooding my cheeks. “These two should absolutelynotget married.”
A loud murmur rolled through the crowd, and I trained my eyes on the preacher’s face. I didn’t dare look at the bride or her black-hatted backups. “Callie has been having an affair with Ronnie for years, and everyone but TJ knows it. He deserves better.”
I heard multiple gasps, and the bride said, “What the hell? She’s a liar!”
“Nope,” I said, my stomach knotting as the woman seated in front of me whipped around and pinned me with a lethal glare.
“Are you done, liar?” the bride yelled at me, her eyes scary mean.“I don’t even know who the hell—”
“Is it true?” TJ interrupted.Thank you, TJ.
“No, it’s not true,” Callie said, looking downright pissed as she waved a hand in my direction. “I’ve never seen that knockoff Barbie chick in my life.”
“Still true, though,” I said, getting pissed in my own right.Knockoff Barbie? What the hell.“You don’t know me, but that doesn’t mean you didn’t cheat.”
