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“What do you need from me today?” I ask her. I make a mental note to kick my best friend’s ass for putting me in this position. He should be here. There is no excuse that’s good enough. Not unless he’s hurt or injured, and he’s neither of those things.
“Charlie?” Audrey asks her sister.
“I have you down for verifying that the cake is all set with the resort bakery.”
“Done. Anything else?”
“Not that I can think of,” Charlotte replies.
“Do you ladies want to meet downstairs for brunch?”
“I’d love that. Thank you,” Audrey pipes up before Charlotte has a chance to decline. “Give us thirty minutes, and we’ll meet you in the lobby.”
“We have our spa appointment, remember?” Charlotte gives her sister a pointed look. One that says, “what the hell are you doing?” and I fight my grin.
“That’s not until eleven. We have plenty of time to grab something to eat first. It’s nine thirty. We meet the guys at ten. That gives us an hour.”
I can see that Charlotte wants to argue, but there’s really nothing she can counter with. Audrey is right. There is plenty of time, and they have to eat.
“Bring it in,” I tell her. I open my arms wide, and Audrey steps into them so I can give her a hug. “You’re too good for him,” I tell her. She laughs, and I release her. “You can bet your ass I’m going to continue to give him shit over this. He should have already been here.”
I turn to Charlotte and open my arms for her. She rolls those beautiful blue eyes, just like I knew that she would. “One day, Charlie.” I point my index finger at her and wink.
“Don’t count on it,” she mutters as I step out into the hallway, waving to the ladies as Charlotte shuts the door in my face.
That went better than I thought it would. I fire off a text to Lincoln as I reach our suite.
Me: I delivered your message. You don’t deserve her. Get your ass here.
I don’t wait for a reply because I know he’s not going to risk looking at his phone during his meeting. I slide my phone into my pocket as I enter the suite to let the guys know we’re having brunch with the ladies in less than thirty.
CHAPTERTHREE
Charlotte
Brunch wasn’t as bad as I had anticipated it would be. The mood was somber even though my little sister smiled through it all, as if this was the happiest time of her life.
It’s supposed to be.
The groom should have been there. I kept a smile on my face and let my little sister pretend everything was okay. My gut churned with a feeling that everything was not okay, but I hid it, thinking that maybe this time, my gut was wrong.
Outside of the groom not being here, today was fun. We spent the day at the spa, getting facials, massages, manicures, and pedicures, and ended with hair and makeup. We drank champagne and talked about anything and everything. We left our phones in a locker at reception, and to us, all was well. We all assumed that Lincoln had wrapped up his meeting and was on the road.
We were wrong.
He’s not here. He hasn’t even left South Carolina. I’m telling you, if my little sister didn’t love the guy, I’d kick him in the balls, but I know Audrey wants to be a mom someday, so I’ll have to keep my anger in check when I see him.
My little sister is smiling, but I can see the worry behind her eyes. To make matters worse, it’s the rehearsal, and that means I have to lock arms with Spencer Pennington and smile as he leads me down the aisle.
Damn Audrey for falling in love with Spencer’s best friend.
I just need to plaster a fake-ass smile on my face and get it over with—tonight and tomorrow—and then I’m done with him. I’m sure with my soon-to-be brother-in-law being his best friend, I’ll see him again, unfortunately, but this week, is almost over. Less than forty-eight hours, and I’m free of Spencer.
“Best man and maid of honor,” the wedding planner announces.
I step up to where she points, and I can feel Spencer next to me. I keep my eyes facing forward, waiting on further instruction. It’s not like it’s rocket science, but it gives me something to focus on outside of the sexy, infuriating man standing next to me.
“Link arms,” the wedding planner instructs. Her tone tells me she’s miffed that she even had to ask, but I ignore her and Spencer as long as I can.
