Wade frowned. “You sure?”
Fox took a deep breath and looked his friend in the eyes. “Yeah.”
Wade spent the next thirty minutes talking about everything and nothing, while Fox’s drink sat untouched in front of him, sweating beads of condensation onto its cardboard coaster. While Wade prattled on, Fox watched the ice slowly melt to the sound of his heart hammering in his ears.
“Dude, have you been listening at all?” Wade waved his hand in front of Fox’s face. “You gonna drink that or just stare at it all night?”
“I...” Fox looked up at his friend, and down at the watery rum and coke sitting in front of him. The air was suddenly too noisy, too thick, and he was having trouble breathing. “I have to go.”
Fox shot out of his seat before Wade could even open his mouth. Back outside in the cool North Carolina night, he took off down the street in the direction of the Flour Girl Bakery. It wasn’t because he wanted to see Harper—he didn’t want to see anybody right now—but it was in the opposite direction from the inn. By now, anyone out looking for them had most likely given up the search.
This was not how Fox thought this night would go. Just a few short hours ago, when he’d been in the woods with Sienna, it had felt like the beginning of something.
But what, exactly?
It had been so many years since he’d let himself feel this much that it had taken him completely by surprise. His teasing had shifted at some point during the past few days from a place of annoyance to a place of attraction. Sienna had let him see past the fake smiling facade, and he’d fallen for the soft, beautiful, caring girl hiding behind it. He knew that she could be better, could be so much more than what she was showing people.
Could he accept both parts of her, knowing that her dreams depended on her keeping that facade in place?
Or would saying yes to whatever was happening with Sienna have the same effect as saying yes to a drink? It could take him down a familiar, shameful spiral, scraping bottom all because he let his feelings for someone else cloud his judgement.
There was no way to know.
So he had to do what he’d been doing so well the past ten years: protect himself. The risk was just too great, and he’d already lost so much. Sure, giving Sienna another chance and letting his heart call the shots might lead to something amazing, but it could also blow up in his face. So, he had to stay away.
It was the only way to be sure.
Eighteen
6 Days Until Dream Wedding
If it weren’tfor her need for coffee, Sienna would have stayed in bed all day—all week even. She had no desire to go downstairs or see anyone. Audrey. Bruce. Fox. They were all sources of pain, in their own unique ways.
But the bright sunlight on her face reminded her that it was a new day, and no matter what kinds of new pain it might bring her, she would need caffeine to face them. So Sienna pulled on her cutest pair of jeans and ran a brush through her hair. Then she put on the smile she’d spent hours in front of the mirror practicing and went downstairs.
The quiet and subdued mood in the dining room was a surprise. Voices were low and it was like the energy had been zapped out of everyone.
Sienna looked around in a panic, but her heart rate slowed when she saw that both Audrey and Eli were in the room. They weren’t sitting at the same table, but at least they were here.
Sienna was still too hurt from what Audrey had said last night to go over and talk to her sister—especially since she was at a table with their mother—but she was still happy that, for now, the wedding appeared to still be moving forward. She didn’t want Audrey to be unhappy just because she was mad at her.
Sienna grabbed a large cup of life-giving java and plopped down next to Harper and Reagan just as Bruce came up to the front of the room.
“Good morning, everyone.” His smile was wide, but his eyes were dark. “I think we’re all feeling the pressure of shooting on such a tight schedule, so I wanted to tell you all how great you’re doing.”
Sienna’s stomach twisted, and not just from the way Bruce looked at everyone in the room. She’d need food soon, not just coffee, if she was going to get through today without bailing.
“It appears that you all need a break, so instead of shooting the next competition this morning, we’ll shift it to the afternoon. Enjoy a quiet morning, but make sure to stay on the Emerald Inn’s property. In a few hours, we’ll meet back here, hopefully refreshed.”
“Well that was nice of him,” said Sienna, her eyes wide. After the way he scolded her outside the safe room, she was surprised that he was being so compassionate.
Harper and Reagan, however, looked skeptical.
“Not really,” said Harper. “He’s hoping we’ll all walk around the woods talking about what happened last night.”
“What happened?” The panic was back in Sienna’s veins, making her as jittery as if she’d had three cups of coffee instead of one. Her head spun around, and she realized that Fox was not in the room. Had something happened after she’d run off?
“Fox and Wade escaped into town.” The corner Harper’s lip twitched up. “They said they were getting something from his car and then just ran down the mountain. A rideshare picked them up at some point, and they hid out in a bar.”
