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Epilogue
Laney
The backyard weddinghad been fucking adorable, like I thought it would be.I didn’t consider myself a kid person, but Eli and Owen Barron were pretty cute ring bearers.It was early June, and the only music the happy couple included were the crickets and frogs.Liam had even sprayed his yard for mosquitos so the only bloodsuckers in attendance were family.
Not my family of course.
I avoided weddings.More like, I hadn’t been invited to any.My own wedding had been—
Nope.Not going there.
It had been hard enough to keep memories of my own happy day from superimposing Kennedy’s day.Just like the last nine months of watching her fall stupider into love.Old jealousy threatened to flare up, but I wasn’t the same girl I’d been in high school.I wasn’t jealous of Kennedy.My envy was that she’d found two decent guys in her life.I must repel good men like the mosquito control Liam had used.
The wedding was over, and I was at Rattler’s with some of the other guests.The happy couple was on their honeymoon with two little boys in tow.Next year, they might have another little one to drag along.Ever the teacher, Kennedy was planning to “work on it” this summer so she limited her maternity leave next year during the school year.
There’d been a time I had considered removing my IUD since I’d been happily married.Good thing I hadn’t, or my in-laws would have reason to interfere in my life more than they had.
I kicked back in my chair and almost put my cowboy boot on the table.I refrained.I was a fucking lady, like my husband had wanted.Besides, I didn’t need to give the town any more reason to think I was a bitch than they already had.
I took a drink of my fruity piss water, as Aspen called it.
She was sitting next to me with Lyric.Nora was even here.That girl was so young and sweet, she probably farted rainbows that smelled like Skittles.Lyric’s BFF, Isla, was not here.Big surprise.Cameron had probably taken his family to some resort to forget the fact that the son he ignored was getting married.
Bruce had attended.I saw him sneaking out after the wedding vows had been said.I would’ve said something snarky, but his head was dipped low.Not low enough for me to miss his red-rimmed eyes.
So, yeah.
I cleared away the tightening in my throat and took another drink.I wouldn’t be making snarky comments.I missed Derek too.Couldn’t believe he was gone.We had history.I hadn’t been in love with him, same for him with me.But we’d grown up together.We’d spent a lot of time together before we broke up.And after we broke up, I’d felt like a limb had been severed.I’d had no one to talk to.My closest friend had moved on.Ironic that my best friend now was his widow.
Aspen scanned the bar, her amber gaze on the hunt.“I thought Liam would have more hot friends show up.”
I chuckled.Aspen liked men.I could live vicariously through her since I wasn’t exactly free to date.People could call me a lot of things, but I wasn’t a cheater.
I took another drink of my fruity piss water.I wanted something stronger, which meant I shouldn’t have something stronger.“Are you saying that Coal Haven lacks hot men?”
“Most of them are Barrons.”Aspen’s tone was wry.“No offense to Liam—he’s cool—but I don’t need a Barron of my own.That whole last name seems to come with, like,a lot.”
Lyric grunted her agreement and pushed a hand through her purple hair.“I was hoping he’d have some of his buddies from Williston come out.”
Kennedy had talked to me about that.“They wanted a small, intimate wedding.They kept it at family and local friends only.He just wanted everyone close to her to be there to support her.As long as they had their two witnesses, he didn’t care who was invited.”
“Damn, that’s sweet,” Aspen said.
“Isn’t it?”Neither of us were bitter.I sensed Aspen and I had that in common.We’d been burned.There was no point dwelling on some other man’s romantic gesture if it’d only bring up how we’d been let down in the past.
“Where’s Holden?”Lyric asked Nora.
Nora’s big cornflower-blue eyes swiveled to the left, then the right, as if she was afraid her mom would jump out and slap her hand over Nora’s mouth.“He’s um…distracting Stetson.”
So Cameron had whisked only his wife away.“Keeping the Barrons from storming the wedding?”
Nora grimaced.“Uncle Bruce said he wanted what was best for Kennedy and told my uncle and Stetson to leave them alone.”
I ran my tongue along my teeth.“Cameron ordered Liam to stay away from Kennedy and now they’re married.He’s going to be pissed for another twenty-seven years.”
“Cameron scares me,” Lyric muttered.We all stared at her.“I mean, not like physically.He’s just so…” She swirled her hand around her head.“Negative.Terminally angry.I swear, when he walks by a garden, the flowers wilt.”
I flicked the tab on my can.“Naomi steals the souls of children and sells them on the dark web.”Nora coughed, her innocent gaze wide.“Sorry.I don’t say things I wouldn’t say to their face, but my mom already told her that so…”
