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“Rylan,” I say. “Congratulations, on the wedding.”
“You could tell I’m the bride?” Her tone is teasing, but her gaze is sharp as she looks me up and down.
“The white dress was a bit of a giveaway.”
“Right.” Her tone is still light as she tucks a piece of blonde hair behind one ear. The huge diamond on her left hand sparkles under the twinkling lights. “You’re here with Aidan?”
I don’t buy the question she turns the statement into. She saw us sitting together at the rehearsal dinner last night.
“Yes.” I sip some champagne, holding her stare.
Parker stiffens, like she’s realized I know a lot more about her than she knows about me. “Did you go to Holt?”
I don’t miss the sneer as she says the school’s name. I would have guessed she attended a university with a single-digit acceptance rate even if Aidan hadn’t told me so.
“Idogo there.”
Parker smiles. “Ah, a younger woman. Aidan is more like Jameson than he thinks.”
My polite expression starts to feel like hardening cement. “I don’t see any similarities.” I pick up my appetizer plate. “I’m sure you have a lot of other guests to greet. Congratulations, again.”
Ex or not, she’s Aidan’s sister-in-law now. If he and I end up having a future together—and I’m really hoping we will—making an enemy of Parker won’t help anything.
I turn to continue down the buffet table.
“Rylan.”
I spin back around.
It looks like the mask has fallen from Parker’s face. I’msuddenly reminded she’s only a year older than I am. There’s an earnestness to her face that wasn’t there before.
“He’s…special. Don’t take that for granted—the way I did.”
“I won’t,” I tell her, then continue walking.
After dinner ends—a six course meal—the wedding cake gets cut up and distributed.
More drinks.
The dance floor opens up.
Aidan gets sucked into a long conversation with one of his father’s friends. Dances with his mom, and then Parker.
I decide to hit up the bar for a fresh drink.
I’m not annoyed Aidan is dancing with his ex, more impressed. I don’t think I could move past everything that happened between them as entirely as Aidan seems to have. I can see the strain in his expression from here, though. I know today hasn’t been easy for him. That he’s eager to have it all over with.
The bartender passes me another margarita. I take a long sip, then glance at the dance floor again.
“I love her, you know.”
I startle, glancing to the left. Aidan’s brother Jameson—the groom—has appeared. Holding a tumbler of scotch in one hand as he watches Aidan and Parker waltz together. The only words we’d exchanged up until now were simple, brief pleasantries. Jameson talking to me at all, let alone what’s he’s saying, is a shock.
“I’m sure my brother has told you the whole sob story, and that I was the girlfriend-stealing villain in the tale. But truthfully? I saw my shot and I took it. Parker wanted him to be me, but Aidan was never going to end up at Stanford or working for mydad. She thought he loved her enough to change, and she was wrong. So…I took my shot.”
“You fucked over your brother, you mean?”
Jameson’s eyebrows rise when I swear, but his only other reaction is to swirl the liquid in his glass. “I asked her to get coffee on campus to ask her to give Aidan another chance. My parents were worried…he was going off the rails. We spent four hours talking. I asked her out on a date the next day. Took me until she insisted on going to my parents’ place in Vail for Christmas to realize she was trying to make Aidan jealous.”
