Page 68 of Break Out

“What do you mean?”

Arthur takes a deep breath, and I hold mine, hoping he’s going to elaborate. What the hell is going on?

He pats my arm and says, “It’s nothing you need to worry about.”

I open my mouth to argue, but he shakes his head and walks toward Thad who’s been watching the whole exchange silently. They exchange words, and Thad glances over at me before nodding at Arthur. Arthur pats Thad on the back and walks back toward the hotel.

“Let’s run through this one more time and then I’ll let you all get to dinner and the rest of your evening,” Maggie says with a clap of her hands.

We line up and proceed to walk through the ceremony one more time. My mind is spinning. What the hell is really going on? Have I stepped through some crazy wormhole into an alternate reality?

Chapter twenty-six

Brody

“What are you thinking about?” I whisper, leaning closer to Aubrey. She blows out a breath before turning from where she’s been staring out at the ocean to face me.

“That this wasn’t what I expected. Ya know?” She tilts her head, studying me. “All these years I thought it was just me she treated like that,” she adds in a whisper. If I wasn’t standing so close to her, I wouldn’t have heard the words. “I always wondered what I did to make her hate me so much.” She sighs, glancing around.

I move so I’m standing next to her, our backs against the railing of the catamaran, watching everyone drink and laugh as the boat glides through the water. I slip my arm around her and pull her close to me so her head is resting on my chest. We stand in silence for a few minutes as everyone parties around us. The band starts playing again, and I nudge her gently so she looks up at me.

“Dance with me?”

“Okay,” she says, stepping away from me, and I immediately miss her.

I lead her to the dance floor and wrap my arms around her. My best friend. The woman I’ve fallen in love with. The woman I’ve probably always been in love with but never admitted it to myself.

“This was definitely not the way I saw this week going,” Aubrey whispers as we slowly sway back and forth even though the band is playing an upbeat song.

“Do you think they’ll still get married tomorrow?”

It’s something I’ve wondered since the scene with Mrs. Fairchild. And after, when Clara said that a lot of this wedding isn’t what she and Chet wanted. I’ve never given any thought to my own wedding, but I sure as shit know I wouldn’t want anyone, other than my fiancée, taking over. Changing things like Mrs. Fairchild did.

“Why do you say that?” Aubrey stops dancing, pulling out of my arms so she can peer up at me.

I shrug one shoulder, pulling her back into my arms. “You can’t tell me the thought hasn’t crossed your mind.”

“Oh, it has,” Aubrey mumbles. “I don’t think Clara has it in her. Even if she’s livid at Mother, she still wants to make her happy. Make us all happy. It’s who she is. Who we all are. Living to make other people happy.”

The words give me pause. This time, it’s me who pulls back from her so I can stare down into her eyes. “I hope you don’t do that with me. I want you to be happy. Don’t think you need to make choices that will make me happy.”

Aubrey studies me for a few seconds before saying, “I know. Want to go get another drink?”

I stare at her for a heartbeat. “Yeah, sounds good, Aubs.” I intertwine our fingers and lead her toward the bar.

A few minutes later, drinks in hand, we move away from the crowd at the bow of the boat.

“So—“ Aubrey starts.

“Do we really have to talk about this now?” Clara’s voice comes from the other side of the wall that Aubrey’s leaning against. Aubrey turns to look at it as if she can see what’s going on on the other side.

“I think that’s one of the bathrooms,” I say, glancing around. It’s really the only thing that makes sense. There are no other private places on the boat.

“Now’s my last chance. When we get off this boat, the guys are going to whisk me away, and I won’t see you until we’re at the altar,” Chet answers, his voice muffled by the wall.

“Do you not want to get married? Is that what this is?” I can picture Clara crossing her arms and rolling her eyes at Chet as she says that. I hold my breath, wondering what his response is going to be.

“Of course I want to get married to you, Clara. I love you. But is this wedding going to make you happy? Or will you look back on it in fifty years and regret it?”