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It was all stuff I’d heard at the rehearsal, so I tuned her out. Truthfully, I wasn’t looking forward to this wedding or the reception after… or moving in with Alistair and Gareth. We moved in tomorrow. Alistair and my mom were going on some honeymoon at a beach somewhere, which would leave me alone with Gareth to start school next week at my new high school.
Oh, yeah. It’d be one shit show after the next. I wasn’t looking forward to any of it.
The woman led me to the wedding hall, stopping before a set of double glass doors. Inside, I could see just how many people had come to the wedding. Most everyone, I’d say, was already here, in their seats, all dressed up, waiting.
“Goddamn it,” the woman muttered under her breath. “Where’s the boy?” She got her phone out and called someone. “Meghan, I thought you said you brought the groomsman.” She paused. “Well, he’s not here anymore, so where is he?” She then realized I was watching her freak out, so she let out a nervous chuckle and shoved my bouquet at me, adding, “You stay right here, okay? Don’t move a muscle.” She brushed past me, walking with a frantic pace.
I turned my head, watching her walk away in search of my future stepbrother.
Hmm. So far, he sounded like a pain in the ass, but it’s exactly what I expected from a rich boy. A spoiled brat. Someone who thought the world revolved around him, someone who refused to be on anyone else’s time.
Kind of rude to go missing at your father’s wedding. Or, uncle’s, I guess.
I stood there for a few minutes by myself, waiting. This felt so surreal, like a dream. I didn’t know what my mom did to manifest something like this, but all her prayers had been answered.
What about mine? Wouldmyprayers ever be answered?
A slow, annoyed breath escaped me, and I grew tired of waiting. I turned around, my plan to try to help the coordinator find Gareth so we could get this show on the road, but the moment I turned and took a step, I walked right into someone’s chest.
I blinked, taking an immediate step back and saying without thinking, “I’m sorry.” Anything else I might’ve said died in my throat when I realized who it was I’d just walked into.
Gareth. It had to be the infamous Gareth.
Just under six feet tall, Gareth’s brown hair was slicked back in a way that might look stupid on anyone else, but on him, the look fit. He wore a black suit with a dark red vest underneath and a matching tie—the same color as my dress. Behind thick-rimmed glasses, his green eyes were narrowed in my direction, locking stares with me as the realization dawned on me.
Square jaw, shaved clean, so angular it could cut a brick. Shoulders wider than I’d anticipated. Perfect posture, making him seem even taller than he already was. I was just over five feet tall, so even with the heels on, he dwarfed me.
Calling him a boy would be the worst kind of fib ever. He was as much a boy as I was a lizard; I didn’t know what I was expecting, but I certainly wasn’t expecting him to look like this.
“Gareth?” I spoke his name in a whisper, almost as if I was afraid to say it. I supposed he could be someone else, but what were the odds he’d have the same color red on as me? No, it had to be him. Good genes must run in the Montgomery family, because just like his uncle, he wasn’t bad to look at.
“You,” he said, his eyes dipping to my feet, slow in rising, taking me in. “You must be Brianna.” As he spoke my name, his mouth curled into a tight frown.
“I don’t know if I must be, but… yeah,” I said lamely.
He snickered. “You will never be a Montgomery.”
“I don’t want to be.”
“Everyone does.” Gareth tilted his head, the intensity coming off him in waves. He had an air about him that made me both infuriated and curious—he probably was used to making other people feel small and insignificant, people just like me.
But he’d never met someone like me before, and I wasn’t just saying that in theI’m not like other girlsway. I meant it.
I opened my mouth to say something smart back, but right then, the coordinator appeared from around the corner, spotting Gareth near me and heaving a visible sigh. She ended the call and hurried over to us, saying, “Thank God you’re here. I was about to lose it.” She laughed nervously, but one searing glance from Gareth shut her up.
One look. One look was all it took for someone like Gareth to have his way, to silence people. I bet he was born sneering. Just because his glowering was kind of hot didn’t automatically make it okay to be so mean.
And, no, I’d never want to be a Montgomery. He could take that to the bank.
The coordinator repeated what we’d have to do: “Once I give the signal—”
“I think we got it,” Gareth muttered with a glare, once again shutting her up.
She tossed me a look, and I knew what that look meant: she was sorry for me. Sorry I would be a part of this jerk’s family. Sorry I’d have to deal with him on a daily basis after this. Yeah. Let’s all pity Bri.
The woman brought me to where I’d stand, on the right side of the double doors. Under her breath, she whispered, “Good luck.” Then she went and pointed to where Gareth had to stand.
I tried not to pay attention to my future stepbrother as he glared at me, instead watching another woman appear to help the coordinator open the doors and keep them propped, but it was hard. It was basically impossible to pretend I didn’t feel his glare when that’s all he seemed to do.
