Forever - Chapter 31 #2
Rob rubbed his hands again. “I feel young again. Hunters Sanders mess arounds always do that for me.”
“Rob, I’m begging you. Not tonight. It’s my rehearsal dinner. And it’s my first Thanksgiving back with all you guys.”
“Exactly. It’ll be a night to remember. Thanks to all our hard planning.” He elbowed me in the side.
“I didn’t do anything.”
“Sure.” He winked at me.
What was he talking about? “I didn’t. I’m not a part of this.”
“Of course you’re a part of this. Because you owed me that favor. And we decided this was how I was going to cash it in.”
“What favor?” James asked.
“When she screamed my name,” Rob said. “Did I never tell you about that?”
James shook his head. “I have no idea what you’re talking about. When did she scream your name?”
“When she was beneath me, begging me for more.” Rob raised his hand for a high five.
I shoved his arm back down. “False. That never happened. He pushed me into a dark room back in high school after betting me I wouldn’t scream his name. Of course I screamed his name. He was holding the door shut and I was terrified.”
Rob laughed. “I shoved her into a room with Matt. Definitely terrifying.”
“That wasn’t why. I didn’t even know he was there. I was just scared.”
“But you do owe me a favor. Facts are facts, Sanders.”
I sighed. “Why tonight, Rob?”
“Because I figured it was better than tomorrow night.”
Had he seriously considered doing this during my wedding instead? What the hell? “Don’t favors have expiration dates? It’s been 16 years, Rob.”
“Expiration dates? It’s not a gift card. It’s a promise.”
I pressed my lips together. I never liked breaking promises.
“This shit is really fucked up, Rob,” James said. “Can’t you just let this feud with Tanner go?”
“It’s not about Tanner. It’s so much bigger than that. You’re just not getting it.”
“Oh, I’m definitely not getting it,” James said. “You’re letting your beef with him ruin the rehearsal dinner of two of our best friends.”
I smiled. It was sweet of him to refer to me as one of his best friends.
“Ruin it?” Rob shook his head. “I’m making it a night to remember. Rehearsal dinners are always overshadowed and forgotten. But no one’s going to forget this shit.” He giggled. “So. Much. Pudding.”
“I still have nightmares from the last time,” I said. “I don’t want nightmares about my rehearsal dinner.”
“But Matt’s not going to be mad about this one. So it’s cool.”
“It’s like you don’t know Matt at all.” I stared at him.
James laughed. “She’s right. You know he has a terrible temper. And Tanner is one of his best friends.”
“But not his best. That’s me. This ends tonight.”
“Rob…”
“Sanders.” He put his hands on my shoulders. “We’re all haunted by what happened 16 years ago. This will erase all that with a good memory. I’m doing this for you. For all of us.”
It was sweet. In a weird way. “Wouldn’t my rehearsal dinner just being a rehearsal dinner erase all that hurt?”
Rob shook his head. “Didn’t you hear what I said about rehearsal dinners always being forgotten?
This will make it unforgettable. Shit, Matt’s coming back over.
Everyone be cool!” He tapped James’ chest with the back of his hand even though James was just standing there.
“Not a word about this, Sanders. It has to be a surprise. And if you say anything, you’ll just owe me another favor. And I’ll cash in tomorrow instead.”
Good God. The only thing worse than today was tomorrow. “I hate you.”
“Love you too,” Rob said.
James shook his head. “This is a really bad idea, Rob. Just call it off.”
“It is a great idea, you’re right.”
Was Rob hard of hearing or something? Or did he just refuse to listen to reason?
“Here you go,” Matt said and handed me my glass of ginger ale. “What were you guys talking about? It looked like a very heated discussion.” He smiled, not at all aware that Rob was turning our rehearsal dinner into a shit show. Almost literally.
“Just reminiscing over the good old days,” Rob said.
Definitely not. We were reminiscing over one of the worst days of my life. We were supposed to be erasing all that today and tomorrow. That was the reason we’d chosen the day after Thanksgiving for our wedding. And Rob was just bringing it all back up.
“You look a little pale, baby.” Matt whispered. “Are you feeling alright?”
I felt like I was going to be sick to my stomach. But not because of morning sickness. I looked over at Rob.
He pretended to zip his mouth shut and then threw away the key. Which made no sense.
But I did believe his threat. If I didn’t let him do this tonight, he’d just do it tomorrow.
And Rob was not going to ruin my wedding day.
And I honestly kind of understood where he was coming from.
Emphasis on kind of . I wanted to erase all the hurt, just like he’d said.
But did he really have to make me promise not to tell Matt?
I didn’t want to keep secrets from him. I’d learned my lesson the last time.
I cleared my throat. “Everything is great,” I said.
Rob smiled. “Yeah it is. And about to be better.”
“You know what I love?” I said. “Telling people stuff. Being open and honest. Best friends shouldn’t have secrets.”
“I agree,” Rob said. But didn’t offer any more information.
Robert Hunter was going to be the death of me.
A waiter walked up holding a tray of hors d’oeuvres.
I went to grab one.
“No thanks,” Rob said and grabbed my hand and lowered it. “We’re saving our appetite for the main course.” He leaned over and whispered in my ear. “Remember last time when people started throwing up? It’s better if our stomachs are empty so we don’t embarrass ourselves.”
Fuck me. I was already nauseous. This was going to be a disaster.