Jess has been a part of our family for years, ever since she and my brother started dating their freshman year of college. But today, she will become my sister.
Luca and Penelope sit on the pink velvet couch, playing on their tablets and patiently waiting for the ceremony to begin. A short time later, and after a waterfall of happy tears from our mothers, we’re ready to take our places for the ceremony to begin.
The wedding party is lined up in order behind the French doors leading outside to the green grass of the golf course.
From the glass cutouts on the doors, I can see the wedding guests sitting in their white chairs and angling their decorativesun umbrellas to shield themselves from the unforgiving rays. The bright blue sky is perfectly clear, with not a cloud in sight. I squint my eyes to catch a glimpse of my annoying brother shifting back and forth under the arch at the top of the aisle.
He looks nervous—my shithead big brother, the one who has lovingly tormented me for years. I smile, thinking about how genuinely happy I am that he has someone who loves and accepts him. I can’t get emotional today. Harry will just tease me about it later.
All four bridesmaids are lined up, standing next to our prospective partners, ready for our turn to walk out. A second before the doors open, Mason quickly switches places with one of Harry’s other groomsmen. He squeezes into place next to me, brushing my shoulder against his and leans in, holding a grin on his face. I look at him like a stupid schoolgirl with a crush and butterflies in my stomach.
“Nice move,” I mutter through the corner of my mouth.
His focus is forward, waiting for our turn. “I thought you’d like that.”
I watch Luca walk down the aisle, carefully balancing the two rings that are tied on top of a small white pillow. He’s doing such a good job. A tear falls down my face, realizing how big and confident he’s getting.
When Luca gets to the end of the aisle, he fist bumps Harry, then scurries away to sit between my mom and my dad.
“Good job, buddy.” I hear Mason whisper in a barely audible tone.
I snap my head to the right. My eyes bore into him, not sure if I heard him right. I blink a couple of times, searching his face, but he doesn’t seem to notice. His focus stays on the event that’s happening in front of us. My family and I are the only ones that call Luca ourlittle buddy.
It’s obvious that as a child with a big task like this, everyone’s going to be cheering him on, but they’ll be cheering on Penelope, too, as she is the flower girl. Mason’s reaction is different with Luca.
I can’t dwell on this right now. It’s almost our turn.
Mason and I are the second couple to walk. When it’s our turn to head down, I loop my arm through his. We make our way down the aisle, walking in rhythm to the sounds of a smooth violin. I smile and nod at our friends and family who are seated on both sides. When it’s time to take our places at the altar, Mason takes his arm away slowly, letting his left hand linger against mine. I fight back the instinctual urge to thread my fingers through his while desperately trying to keep a straight face.
The warm sun hits my bare shoulders as I stand to the left of Jess. On the other side of the altar is Harry in a black tuxedo with his four groomsmen. The weather could not have been more perfect for this wedding. Only a few minutes after the ceremony has begun, a gentle breeze blows through the hanging flowers that line the wedding arch causing one of the white roses to fall to the ground in front of Mason. He bends to pick it up, immediately slipping the stem into his pocket so that only the bud sticks out—the same pocket as my panties.
It would seem no one has noticed except me because I’m the only one here who isn’t staring at the happy couple.
My eyes unintentionally land right on his. To my surprise, his unflinching gaze pins me from across the way. I startle, causing me to flinch. Blinking away a couple of times before finding his focus again, I expected him to have looked away by now, but he hasn’t. He has no shame in how obvious this is in front of a hundred people while they look on.
I take my time to examine his features; even from this far away, I’m learning the landscape of his face. His mouth is set in ahard line, and I can’t look away now. They’re locked in place. It’s not a lazy look like a glance or a flash—it’s deep and intense. A panty-dropper type of stare, if I had any on. One that makes my legs quiver and my hands sweat.
During the short ceremony, Jess and Harry recite their vows. The wedding guests share a couple of laughs as my brother adds bits of humor to it. Harry is always trying to be funny, but sadly, he’s not.
When we were kids, he used to pull pranks on me all the time. For my ninth birthday, I had a slumber party with a few of my friends. Harry and his buddies decided to dress up in girl clothes and parade around the house, making fun of us. Those were the days. Now, my embarrassing big brother is getting married to a woman who is way beyond his league.
As the ceremony continues, Mason’s hand dives into his pocket—the same pocket that holds my black lace thong. My forehead puckers, wondering what he’s thinking, then I see him slowly run his tongue along his bottom lip. Everything around us slowly blacks out, and my insides clench and ache for him.
He knows what he’s doing.Asshole.
He smirks, rubs his chin with the fingers of his other hand, then looks away, effectively breaking the current between us.
My mouth runs dry, and when I try to swallow, it feels like sandpaper. Coming out of my daze, I glance across the sea of guests to gather myself. Family and friends occupy small white chairs set up in rows along the manicured green grass. We all watch this beautiful ceremony between my brother and Jess, but all the while, no one has any idea of the amount of heat passing right in front of them.
Heat that is not being passed between the soon-to-be newlyweds but between the groom’s sister and one of his groomsmen.
The wind picks up again, causing the women in the audience to grip their parasols in fear they’ll blow away. Mason and I share a couple more inappropriate glances before we’re all trotting back up the aisle.
“I saw you eye fucking me in front of everyone. You were quite obvious.” Mason baits me.
I nod and smile at my relatives, my arm linked with his. “Oh, you must be confusing me with yourself. I’ve told you before, you don’t have to be that desperate. I do love charity work.” I continue to smile and wave at the guests.
“You are in rare form today, aren’t you?” he retorts, maintaining his bright smile as we pass onlookers. “Someone must be sexually frustrated.”
