Chapter 28 #2
“Here’s my opinion. Wear something you like . I can tell the difference.”
I hum. “Noted.”
We work through more of the wedding stuff, throwing about half of it away before we have to get ready to go to Quinn’s party. My nerves get to me as I’m picking out an outfit, which leads to me being more indecisive than I’ve ever been before.
“Okay, but what about jeans? Are jeans too casual?” I’ve been at this for thirty minutes and have gotten nowhere. Nate is on my bed, waiting patiently.
“Hey, Maisie, you don’t happen to be worried about this party, right?” He asks it in a soft voice, like he knows that’s exactly what I am.
“I’m obvious, aren’t I?” Throwing the jeans back into the closet, I flop onto the bed next to him. “I was doing so good with facing things on the cruise. But now that we’re in real life, it’s harder.”
“You also faced your ex, who’s an absolute idiot.”
“That too.”
Nate’s hand lands on my back. “It’s a good thing that you’re not hiding out. I’m glad you feel safe enough to face the hard stuff now, but it’s not gonna go well every time. Just like last night.”
“So, should I hide?”
“Not necessarily. This isn’t talking to the man who love bombed you. Sure, he’ll be there, but so will other people.”
“Yeah, his family.”
“And your best friend,” he reminds me. “Say the word and we’ll stay, but I know you wanna be there. Don’t let what happened with Rob affect this.”
I let his words sink in. I know I’m disappointed that I couldn’t be civil with Rob. All of last night was a mess.
But Nate’s right. Things don’t always go to plan.
Slowly, I sit up. “Okay. Not letting Rob affect today. I think I can do that. Once I pick an outfit.”
“Can your new boyfriend offer his humble opinion?”
“Since when do you have an opinion on fashion?”
He gasps and puts his hand to his chest. “Excuse you. I picked out those shorts for you and bought them. They’re obscene , berry.”
My cheeks heat. “Is that why you got all weird?”
“Guilty.” He shrugs and gets up. “And I’ll get even weirder if you wear this.”
He pulls out a purple dress, one that I’ve had for years but had forgotten about. “Really? Can I pull that off?” Nate’s answering glare tells me I should not be putting myself down. “All right, all right. I’ll wear it.”
“Thank you.” He tosses it to me before going back in my closet. “Now it’s my turn to find something. I have a feeling I can wear one of the shirts you stole from me.”
“Hey, you left them here.”
“Potato, potahto.”
I shake my head at him and head to the bathroom to get dressed and work on my hair. I’ve gotten more comfortable with wearing it down, even when it’s inconvenient. I’d let it air dry when getting out of the shower this morning, which has left it wavy and slightly frizzy.
I debate on whether to leave it down or put it up and settle for a half updo that gives me the best of both worlds.
“All right, Nate,” I call as I step out of the bathroom. “Moment of truth.”
Nate comes around the corner and does a double take when he sees me. “You look ...”
“Different?” I ask. “Yeah, I’m trying?—”
“Incredible,” he finishes.
I step close and he pulls me into his arms.
“Are you trying to make sure I can’t stay away from you tonight?”
“Not really. That’s just a bonus.”
His words remind me that we’re supposed to be just friends, at least for tonight.
“Can I rip this off of you tonight?” he asks. “Please say yes.”
“If we’re good and don’t get caught, yes.”
“Now you’re challenging me. And I don’t know if I can do this one.”
“Just for tonight,” I remind him. “Then everyone’ll know.”
“Fine,” he says. “You’re driving, though.”
“What? Scared of the traffic?”
“Not at all. I just wanna be able to stare at you.”
A surprised laugh escapes me as I grab my purse and pull him out the door.
The Nortons always went overboard on parties, but this was even more so. I knew Quinn would have a lot of people at their house, but this was busy .
“Are you sure Rob isn’t turning this into a surprise wedding? I swear this is how many people were attending yours.”
I glare. “Don’t even put that energy out there. It might come true.”
Thankfully, when we walk into their ostentatious home, it’s clear that this is a birthday party. On the right is a massive photo booth with a sign congratulating Quinn on turning thirty.
“You know, when I hit the big three-oh, I don’t wanna call a lot of attention to it.” Nate’s eyes roam slowly. “And I’m also pretty sure they reused decorations.”
I gasp. “Andrea Norton reusing things? Say it isn’t so.”
He shrugs. “I’ve seen a lot of this before.”
I go to elbow him, but he catches me and tugs me closer. I’m about to lean into him when I realize where we’re at, and I spring away.
He frowns and the realization dawns on him. “Shit,” he says. “I didn’t even think.”
“Me either.” I rub the back of my neck. “This might be harder than I thought.”
Nate doesn’t get to say anything because Quinn is running to me. She’s wearing bright pink and a literal tiara. I wonder if Andrea bought it from an actual princess.
“Maisie!” she yells. “God, it’s so good to see you!”
I get a tight hug from her before she pulls back to look at me. “You’re so tan! And your hair!”
I fiddle with it. “Yeah. I’m trying something new.”
“You should do this more often.”
She looks at Nate and me. “So, everything went well? ”
He and I share a glance.
Play it cool, I silently beg.
“It was fine.” He shrugs. Once he cuts eye contact, he doesn’t look at me again. Normally, I’d be annoyed, but this was perfect. Eye contact turned into me wanting to touch him.
“Yep. Fine.”
“Oh,” Quinn says. “You’ll have to tell me all about it.”
“Another time,” I reply. “This is your birthday, and I bet you have a ton of people to talk to.”
She sighs, and I know I’m right. “At least we can all get some photos, right?”
“You two go. I’ll hang out here,” Nate says.
“Yeah, okay.” Quinn looks between us one more time before dragging me away. As I go, I give him a thumbs-up.
He laughs and shakes his head, letting just a bit of that man I know through before he gets it under control.
I pose for at least ten photos in the booth before the curtain opens and Andrea appears. My heart jumps into my throat when seeing her, but I keep my gaze steady. She gives me a cold stare.
“Mom, we talked about this,” Quinn hisses.
“Yes, yes.” She finally looks at me. “Hello, Maisie. Vacation looks like it suits you.”
“It was something,” I reply. “Happy to be back to see everyone, though.”
“Someone tried to see you last night,” she mutters. “I hear you turned him down.”
“Maisie can make her own choices,” Quinn says.
“Sure.” Andrea finally looks at her daughter. “Your grandfather wants to see you, dear.”
She sighs and turns to me. “Sorry.”
“Don’t worry about it. Go see your grandfather. I can entertain myself.”
She gives me one last frown before Andrea pulls her away. I find Nate still by the entrance.
“So she hates me,” I say. When I get close, he eyes the space between us. “What are you doing?”
“Trying to stay one foot away to keep up the pretense. It’s how far I used to make sure I was.”
“You measured it?”
“Any closer and who knows what I’d do.”
I want to pull him to me and remind him that he’s the only one I want to keep close, but I shake off the thought and give us even more space.
“We should mingle. Apart.”
“Too tempted?”
“I wouldn’t last as long as you did, that’s for sure. I’ll see you around?”
“Stay away from Rob.”
“Don’t need to tell me twice.” I wink before walking away.
Most of Rob’s family isn’t interested in talking to me, so they’re easy to avoid. As I sift through the sea of people, I come across two familiar faces.
Lia and Ellis are newlyweds, and I was a plus-one to their wedding. They’re Quinn’s friends from her work, and she often hangs out with them. Their wedding was gorgeous, and at the time, I wondered if mine would ever measure up.
I know it definitely wouldn’t.
“Hi!” Lia pulls me into a tight hug, her curly hair in a gorgeous bun. “Gosh, it’s been way too long.”
Ellis is behind her, two glasses in hand. They’re always together, and I wondered how they managed it.
Now I know.
“It has been. Sorry I was so busy with wedding planning. Doomed wedding planning, I mean.”
Ellis and Lia glance at each other, and it’s almost like they’re communicating without words. “We heard about that,” Ellis says gently. “How are you doing?”
“I’m okay. It was the right decision in the end. Nate helped me see the light.” When I say it, I immediately regret it. If either of them sniffs out anything about Nate and me, it’ll get back to Quinn.
“Oh, Nate. Is he here?” Lia’s eyes light up. Before I knew she and Ellis were destined to be together, I wondered if there was a chance she would go after Nate. They always vibed whenever he tagged along with me.
“He is. He’s just doing his own thing. We better not bother him.” Lia’s smile fades as she studies me. “Anyway.” My voice is a little too high. “It was great seeing you. I need some more punch!”
I run before they can think too hard about how I acted, and then find someone else I know to talk to. That hadn’t gone well, but at least no one knows that Nate and I are together.
I run into some of Quinn’s other friends that have also become mine by proxy, so I catch up with them and make a mental note to reach out to Amy and Riley to go to the next book club. I’d gotten bad about going when planning for the wedding.
Now, I have time. Now, I feel like me .
Once everyone knows about Nate and me, all bets are off. I’m finally living life.
It’s an hour before Quinn finds me again. I’m by the dessert table, watching as one of her uncles talks to Nate about sports. “Whew,” she says. “This is exhausting.”
“I can’t imagine,” I say. “You’re doing great, though.”
“And how are you doing?” She peers over at me.
I pause. “Why are you asking?”
“Just checking in, you know? Like if anything is ... different, you can tell me.”