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Mrs. Cooper gasped in disapproval. “I told him to put that away!”
“Everything’s going to be fine. I promise.”
After everyone dispersed, Brendan’s mom looked back adoringly at her son.Thank you,she mouthed.
Beyond the circle of relatives, Brendan spotted Keith, another high school friend, arm-wrestling Matt from their college basketball team. The other groomsmen waved dollar bills, making noisy bets. They were trading Hunter’s flask among them.
Cursing under his breath, Brendan called Ian. Then Di. No answer from either one. He glanced across the room at Sonia, who was staring at the ceiling, looking bored as fuck.
Her refusal to make eye contact stung. Yes, he’d been the one who insisted on keeping their fling a secret. But now that they’d arrived at the wedding weekend, would it hurt to at least be friends in public?
To be more than friends?
Or would that only remind him that she was leaving him after the wedding?
Exhaling, he opened his group chat with Ian and Diana. In the good old days, the chat had been filled with dirty jokes and raunchy commentary. But he’d deleted it this year, when he’d purged all compromising material from his phone. Now, the chat was restricted to businesslike wedding arrangements.
He regretted not saving everything that had come before.
Quickly, he texted.
Everyone’s freaking out. Get your asses to the venue ASAP. You guys can screw each other’s brains out after the wedding
Hunter’s tipsy voice carried across the room. “Go ahead, Mrs. O’Brian. Have another drink.”
As his mother wiped her mouth, Brendan aimed a warning look at Hunter.
“No alcohol!” The wedding planner hurried over. “No alcohol in the room right now. We need a license.”
Hunter burped. “Sorry.”
“This is ridiculous.” Sonia’s dry voice cut through the chaos. Striding to the doors, she gave the room an eagle-eyed glare. “Let’s start before they kick us out. Okay? Better to rehearse than not to rehearse.”
Everyone turned to stare at her. Her eyes met Brendan’s briefly.
Brendan shoved his phone in his pocket. “Yes! Great idea. Okay, guys! Come on and line up outside the door.” He gestured to the wedding planner with a warm smile. “Chelsea will tell us what order to stand in.” Thank Christ he’d remembered her name. “She’s got the wedding music on her phone” — he raised his eyebrows at Chelsea, and she nodded quickly — “and it’s going to be beautiful. Ian and Di have been unavoidably detained, but it’s okay. All they need to do is show up on Sunday and get married.”
“No, we need them,” someone protested.
Marissa leapt forward from the bridesmaids’ corner. “Brendan can be Ian! Brendan, you walk down the aisle for him.”
He spread his hands. “I’m walking down as best man right before that. You want me to go back and do it again? It’s not like I can telepathically send the experience to Ian.”
“Can’t you?” Janelle sighed, and everyone laughed.
“Come on!” Marissa insisted. “You can just run back, really fast, and walk down again. Please? You’re still a good runner, right? We all watched you play basketball in high school.”
“And college,” Kate piped up. Eleanor eyed Brendan’s tall physique with a smile.
The way the bridesmaids were openly looking him up and down, Brendan suspected they were more interested in the view — coming and going — than anything else. Being checked out was nothing new. Growing up, Ian had complained about the twins attracting stares.It’s like we’re in a zoo.Brendan had always enjoyed it, but the attention was irritating now. He felt like a trophy to be passed around for everyone’s enjoyment except his own.
“All you need is a random female to be the bride.” Marissa whirled around, her blue hair flying, pointing like she was playing spin the bottle. Her finger landed on Sonia.
“Who’s that again?” Hunter slurred. “She a wedding crasher?”
Brendan opened his mouth, but Diana’s mother beat him to the punch.
“This is Sonia!” she trilled, putting an arm around Sonia and propelling her forward. “The — ah — last-minute maid of honor and Diana’s roommate from Yale.”
