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Excitement churns inside me as I get out of the car. I cannot wait to give my brother and Raya the wedding of their dreams.

Noble looks at me. “How do we want to play this?” He nods toward the group. “Friends?”

I reach over and take his hand. “I don’t really want to pretend all weekend, do you?”

He shakes his head. “I want to kiss you whenever I want.”

I smile and look at my family. “They’re going to find out sooner or later.”

“Yeah.” He smirks. “You’re pretty bad at pretending you’re not totally in love with me.”

“Are you kidding? I did it all through high school, and you had no idea.”

He laughs, and we turn and make our way toward the group—aware of the exact moment they realize we’re holding hands.

“Whoa, whoa, whoa,” Boone moves toward the edge of the porch, catching the others’ attention. “What is happening here?”

Noble lifts our two hands in the air.

Rowe lets out a cheer, then runs over and pulls me into a tight hug. “Finally!” She pulls back and punches Noble in the arm. “Hurt her, and I’ll kill you. No one will find the body, either, you’ll just disappear.”

Momma is standing on the porch with Raya’s parents, and when I catch her eye, she smiles and gives me a quiet nod. The others react the way I expected—Quent is mildly disinterested. Libby and Jordy want to know if I’m going to let Noble kiss me like Uncle Finn kisses Raya. West, Boone, and Hudson go back and forth between disgust and teasing to their final sentiment that this was “inevitable.”

It turns out they’ve been rooting for us all along.

Finn is explaining our sordid history to Raya and her sisters, and I feel my face heat at all the attention.

Noble lifts his free hand to quiet them all.

“Hattie and I are together,” he says. “But that’s not the reason any of us are here, so why don’t we all raise a pancake to the happy couple?”

“Can I raise a whole plate of pancakes?” Boone says. “I’m starving.”

Finn walks over and shakes Noble’s hand. “Good to see you, brother.” He pulls Noble into one of those bro hugs, and I turn to Raya.

“Are you ready?” I say. “Big weekend, you know. Still time to back out.”

“I can’t believe it’s actually here, but I’m so ready.” She laughs. “And I know we’re an odd match to some people, but Finn is my choice.” She reintroduces me to her sisters, Poppy and Eloise, and her other bridesmaid, Monica, along with three very handsome hockey players—Dallas, Gray, and Jericho.

Finn pulls me into a quick hug, and I notice he feels a little bulkier than the last time I saw him. “Eat a few cheeseburgers, buddy?”

“Nothing but lean muscle, shut your mouth,” he cracks, then grins. “Glad you and Noble finally figured it out.”

I frown. “I never thought any of you guys wanted us to get together.”

“Didn’t back then,” he says, with a quick nod toward Noble, who’s talking with Poppy’s husband, Dallas. “But he’s really turned things around. And you’re good for him.”

I nod. “I am, aren’t I?”

“And so humble,” he jokes. “I take it back.”

“He’s good for me too, you know?” I say. “He’s helped so much at the lodge. I can’t wait for you to see it.”

Finn looks at me. “Listen, it’s going to be crazy this weekend, but I wanted to thank you for everything you’ve done for the wedding. It was kind of nuts for us to have it out here, especially when we only have a few days off—but we couldn’t have done it without you.”

“Aw, Finn,” I say, waving off the compliment. “I was so happy to do it.”

Raya moves closer, and he wraps an arm around her shoulder. “You’ve been amazing, Hattie. Thank you,” she says.