Chapter 9
Silas
I tugged at the cuffs of my pink, pinstriped jacket even though it was perfectly fitted. It was one of my favorite outfits—one usually reserved for a Rehearsal Dinner—but in a way, this was a rehearsal.
The first day of getting on with my life as if Bryson hadn’t knocked me off my axis. My cell phone sat on the conference table, drawing my gaze again and again, practically whispering he deserves a response.
After talking with Caitlyn to set up this meeting, I no longer doubted Bryson had told me the truth. He hadn’t lied to me or tricked me—and yet, I couldn’t bring myself to call him.
Heidi strode into the conference room with a slim binder in her arms. We kept the most pertinent information in the computer, but I liked to have something tangible couples could see and hold at meetings. It made it all feel more real to them.
“Ready for the Kennedy meeting?” she asked.
“Do I have a choice?” I asked with a nervous laugh.
She smiled sympathetically. “I’d cover it for you, but Caitlyn refused to work with me.”
I took a gulp of lukewarm coffee and moved to a seat at the small round table. “Don’t take it personally. She just didn’t want me to quit at the last minute, and I can’t blame her for that. Especially since…”
Heidi was kind enough not to fill in the gap. The whole office knew what I wasn’t saying.
Even though I’d created drama over something that wasn’t even true.
The door swung open, and I tensed. But it was Carol Ann, not Branson and Caitlyn. Only slightly better. I was so embarrassed by the chaos I’d caused the office last week.
“Hello, darlings, just checking in about out lunch meeting later?”
“It’s in my calendar,” I confirmed.
“Then it must be happening,” Heidi teased playfully.
There’d been a joke around the office for almost as long as I’d worked here. If it wasn’t in Silas’s calendar, it didn’t exist, and if it was there, it was damn well not going to change.
Of course, sometimes I had no choice. I worked with vendors who weren’t always beholden to my calendar, but I treated it like my personal compass. Without it, I’d be utterly lost.
“It’s my treat today,” I added. “For all the headaches I caused.”
“Oh, you don’t have to do that,” Carol Ann said. “It’s quite understandable that you were caught off-guard. Frankly, dear, I’d be more upset if you took something like that in stride.”
I pulled a face. “I hate to give credence to the stereotype that all gay men are drama queens.”
“No one thinks that,” Carol Ann assured me.
“We just think you’re a drama queen,” Heidi teased. “We don’t put that on all gay men.”
“Oh, play nice, you two,” Carol Ann admonished before ducking out of the doorway.
Heidi flipped open the binder, and we quickly reviewed its contents. I frowned. “Damn. You didn’t make any of these vendor calls?”
“Caitlyn expressly declared she would not work with me. Ethically, I didn’t think I should do any work in case they hired someone else.” She hesitated. “Was that wrong?”
I sighed and shook my head. This was a mess of my making, no one else’s. Maybe it was understandable I’d believed Branson to be Bryson and freaked out, but I could have taken their calls sooner. “That’s on me. Don’t worry about it.”
A soft rap sounded on the door just before it opened. Amari from the front desk smiled in at us. “Mr. Larkin and Miss Kennedy are here for their appointment.”
I nodded. “Good. Show them in.”
She hesitated, her forehead creasing. “They brought a guest.”
My stomach swooped. Three guesses who that was. “It’s not Caitlyn’s mother, is it?” I asked hopefully.
“No. Mr. Larkin’s twin brother.”
Fuck. I couldn’t stick my head in the sand and ignore this anymore.
As much as I’d prefer to avoid Bryson for the rest of my life, he was the groom’s brother.
He was the best man in the wedding, from what Caitlyn had told me.
Even if he wasn’t, this was a small town and we were bound to run into each other again at some point.
I’d have to pull on my big boy pants and be a professional.
“Show them in, please.”
Amari nodded and withdrew. Seconds later, Caitlyn swept in, Branson just behind her, large hand on her lower back. A few feet behind them, Bryson entered, a sheepish smile on his face.
“Good morning, Silas. I hope you don’t mind we brought a plus one,” Caitlyn said with a little laugh. “I realize we’re kind of springing him on you, but I thought it might be good for you to see Branson and Bryson together, so we could all start over.”
Caitlyn had given me the perfect opening. I hitched on a polite smile. “Starting over sounds like a great idea. Please, sit down.”
Branson extended his hand. “I’d like to meet you properly. I’m Branson, the groom, and I’m madly in love with Caitlyn and would never two-time her with anyone.”
I shook his hand, a weird sense of Deja vu hitting me at the size and feel of his hand. “That’s a relief. I’m so sorry for the way I reacted at our first meeting.”
“Totally understandable.” Branson glanced over at his brother. “You’re not the first person we’ve fooled. It’s just been a few years since it’s happened, so it took me by surprise.”
Bryson cleared his throat. “We’ve never lived in such a small town before. It never occurred to me that you’d run into Branson so soon. I’m sorry I didn’t tell you about him on our date.”
His eyes were so dang imploring and earnest. I could hardly look at them. I sat down quickly, before he could offer to shake my hand as well. I wasn’t ready for physical contact with the man.
“Well, we’re all on the same page now, so how about we get down to business?”
For the next thirty minutes, I studiously avoided Bryson’s gaze—while feeling it burning a hole into the side of my head—and went over the vendor updates with Branson and Caitlyn.
We reconfirmed changes to the flower order, discussed the seating chart, and set up an appointment to tour the wedding venue again—this time with Branson along to see it.
We wrapped up the planning, and I flipped the binder closed. Heidi had taken notes on her tablet throughout the meeting, so I wasn’t worried about remembering the details. She’d add everything to my calendar for me.
“Okay, we’ll get these last details sorted, but we’re in the homestretch now. You’ll be living that happily-ever-after before you know it.”
Caitlyn beamed and bent over the table to hug me. Branson shook my hand again. “Thanks, man. Caitlyn can’t sing your praises enough. I know I haven’t been around for the heavy lifting on the wedding planning, and I really appreciate that you’ve kept my bride from leaving in a fit of frustration.”
Caitlyn laughed. “You think you’re joking, but without Silas, I never could have done this.”
I smiled, their words bolstering my confidence. “This is why I do it. Your wedding should be a celebration of your love. I want you focused on what’s important, not the small details. I’ll make sure everything goes as planned.”
They thanked me again and filed out of the room, but Bryson lingered, shifting from foot to foot.
Heidi glanced at him. “Uh, I’ll just go update your calendar and get set up for the Sheffield tour of their wedding venue.”
I nodded, my throat too tight to say anything.
It was tempting to hustle Bryson out and pretend I was too busy for this chat. But the man was owed some explanation.
Heidi left the room. As soon as she did, Bryson stepped closer to the table between us. “You didn’t call me back.”
The hurt in his tone made my heart ache. I steeled myself to stay strong.
“I’m sorry for the misunderstanding. I shouldn’t have accused you of lying without verifying the truth.”
He tilted his head. “Silas, that’s not… I don’t care about that. I just want to see you again. To touch you and—”
He reached out and I took a quick step back.
“We need to keep things professional. You’re the best man in a wedding I’m planning.”
“Well, surely there’s no policy against dating the best man?”
I smiled grimly. “I make it a policy never to date any member of the wedding party. It complicates an already complicated job. My focus needs to be on giving Branson and Caitlyn a perfect ceremony.”
Bryson looked uncertain. “Are you sure this isn’t about the twin mixup?”
“Of course not,” I said. “That’s not your fault. It was…an awkward situation, but I made it worse by overreacting.”
Bryson looked at me so hard I thought he might sprain his eyeballs. I picked up my phone and tucked into the inner pocket of my jacket.
“So, that’s it?” he asked finally. “No second date?”
I smiled tightly. “Sorry, Bryson. If I’d known you were the best man, there wouldn’t have even been a first date.”
“Well, hell, that’s the first thing you’ve said that sounds true.”
“Bry—”
He shook his head, his caramel-colored curls falling across his forehead.
“I’m glad you didn’t know I was the best man, then, Silas.
” His eyes met mine, so intense I couldn’t look away.
“I’m glad I had that night to know you, the real you.
And I really, sincerely hope I get to see that guy again.
Because I liked him. More than liked him.
I think that guy could have been real special.
I think that guy could have changed my life. ”
He turned on his heel and walked out. I stared after him, speechless, heart pounding with all the words I couldn’t say.
I think you’re right.