Page 11 of The Other Plan

“I just wanted to ta—”

“Bu-sy,” he reiterated with a raised finger and a dramatic spiral of his neck.

I opened my mouth to say something again, but he crossed his arms, and the penetrating stare caused me to clamp my mouth shut. Without another word, I raised my hands in submission and backed away. “My bad.”

“Mmmhmm,” he added as I turned away.

“What in the actual fuck,” I whispered under my breath while I trudged through the sand. Not only was Jenna treating me like a pariah, but everyone around her was acting like bodyguards needed to keep her safe. From me. The guy who should be pissed at her.

Feeling more confused than I’d ever been in my life, I walked down to the edge of the water and let the soft lapping of the waves soothe my irritated nerves.

This was going to be a long week.

CHAPTER FOUR

JENNA

––––––––

I clutched the box of wine to my chest as I walked down the dock at the Fish Creek Marina. My steps slowed as I approached the Bronson’s yacht bobbing in the water at the end... the yacht that Carter may already be on.

Chewing on my lip, I let my gaze rove over the large white boat as I searched the bodies gathered on the deck. I recognized lots of faces from the cocktail party last night, but none of them belonged to that man I struggled to believe had appeared back in my life. The one I’d successfully avoided at the party last night with some evasive maneuvering and hiding skills that would have made the Navy SEALs proud. Still reeling from the blow to my sanity after seeing him, I blew out a deep breath while I forced my feet to keep moving toward the ramp.

Just drop off the wine and run. Maybe you won’t even see him.

I kept reciting those words over and over as I got closer, hoping there was truth in them. Hoping that maybe he’d skip out on today, and he’d still be back at the house sleeping. The Carter I knew had been a carefree spirit who didn’t believe in watches or strict schedules. When I’d met him, he’d ridiculed me endlessly for my controlling and structured ways. He’d tossed my trip itinerary into the trash can and convinced me to spend several days without making a single plan... for the first, and last time, in my life. Today, I could only hope that he’d continued living by his principles that all schedules should be garbage, and even though he was the best man, he’d miss this party completely.

When I reached the wooden ramp, I considered setting the wine at the base and running back to my car to text Aunt Tilly it was waiting for her, but the professional in me refused to do something so crass. They’d paid me a hefty sum to make sure every moving part of this wedding week went off without a hitch, and it was my responsibility to make sure they had all the food and drinks they needed for the afternoon cruise around the bay. And that included the extra case of chardonnay Lydia had asked me to bring. Not to mention I’d originally planned on being on the cruise with them, but my excuse of last-minute preparations would have to suffice for the reason I needed to bolt back to shore as soon as I dropped off this wine.

“Jenna! Hello, darling!” Lydia called, and I looked up to see her waving at me from the deck, her oversized hat and sunglasses swallowing her petite face.

Too late to run now.

I plastered a smile across my face and walked up the ramp onto the boat. “Hi, Lydia. I’ve got your wine.” I hoisted the box a little higher.

“You are a lifesaver. I would hate to run out.” She blew me a kiss and gestured toward the cabin. “You can drop it off in the kitchen. The servers will make sure it’s chilled.”

As I gave her a quick nod, I glanced at the bodies separating me from the cabin. I held my breath as I scanned the faces, blowing it out when I didn’t see him.

With a Carter-less path in front of me, I hurried inside and found a server to take the wine from me. Just a quick sprint across the deck, and I could get safely back to land and avoid another awkward encounter with Carter.

“There you are!”

Aunt Tilly’s voice stopped me mid-stride. I kept the internal cringe from trickling up to my face and slapped on a warm smile instead.

“Hello, Aunt Tilly,” I cooed as I spun around to face her. “Such a beautiful day for a cruise.”

Her bright pink lips welcomed me with a huge smile. “It is—a perfect summer day. I’m so glad you could join us. Where’s your drink?” She nodded toward my empty hands.

“Oh, I actually can’t stay today.” I shook my head. “I was just dropping off some extra wine in case the cruise got extended. I have lots of planning to do today back onshore, so I’d best get going. Have a wonderful day!”

I started a quick turn back toward the dock, but her audible pout slowed my steps to safety.

“Jenna,” she whined. “You said you would be joining us today.”

Pursing my lips into a tight smile, I spun back around to face her. Disappointment puckered up her face as she stared at me.

“I know, Aunt Tilly. And I know I said that I would stay and enjoy the day, and as much as I would love to, I have wedding plans that have come up and need my attention,” I lied.