Chapter 71
“Sorry,” Bobbi said with a short laugh. “I’ve been talking your ear off the entire drive, haven’t I?”
“It’s fine,” McKenna said.
It wasn’t fine. The girl hadn’t stopped talking about her Italy trip from the moment they’d spotted each other outside the airport in the pickup line.
Normally McKenna wouldn’t have minded. But on an evening when they were running behind and everything needed to be perfect, McKenna was starting to mind the entire ding-dang world.
“Oh, did I tell you about the first time I tried ordering stracciatella?”
McKenna rotated her neck and forced herself to take a deep breath as Bobbi dove into another gelato story.
If McKenna had known they were going to be stuck in traffic for so long, she wouldn’t have suggested they stop for pie at a diner where they could get plenty of refills on their coffee.
Yes, she’d wanted to hear about her sister’s trip, but she’d also wanted to make sure Bobbi was well caffeinated for all the excitement this evening.
A girl ought to feel wide awake when she gets proposed to, after all.
But now, hours behind schedule, McKenna was wishing they’d waited to grab that coffee until they were closer to Bugle. By the time they’d made it out of the traffic jam, they’d needed a bathroom break, which had only delayed them more.
She offered Bobbi a tight smile, trying not to think about how close they were cutting it for the concert. “Well, it certainly sounds like you had a great time.”
“Oh, I did. I’m so glad I stayed the entire three weeks. But boy am I ready to be home now. Bet you are, too, right?” She covered her mouth as a big yawn overtook her.
Uh-oh. Maybe they should stop for another quick coffee. McKenna changed the radio station, hoping to find something a little livelier than the slow Tricia and Guy Scampy ballad currently playing.
“You okay?” Bobbi asked.
McKenna spared her a glance, then focused back on the curvy road ahead of her as she flipped to another station. “Fine. Why?”
“I don’t know. You seem kind of tense.”
She was. Very tense. McKenna rotated her shoulders. “Just the traffic. Getting stuck. Too much pie.”
“Nothing’s wrong with you and Nate?”
McKenna frowned, giving up on finding a good station. “Why would you ask that?”
She saw Bobbi shrug from the corner of her eye and heard her give another yawn. “I don’t know. The whole reason I’m here is to meet him and so far you’ve hardly said two words about him.”
“I haven’t said two words about anything, you goof. Not with all your jabbering about Italy.”
“Fair enough. So you guys are still . . .” Her words faded with another yawn.
McKenna turned up the air. She could feel her sister’s gaze on the side of her face like a heat laser. “Yeah. We’re still . . . you know,” she finished with a nod.
“I don’t know. That’s why I’m asking.”
Well, neither did McKenna, so she wished her sister would stop asking. “We’re taking it one day at a time.” That seemed like a safe-enough answer. For now. Until she knew if Bobbi and Oliver were still . . . you know.
Speaking of which. “Talked to Oliver lately?”
“Sent him a message when I landed,” Bobbi said, looking at her phone.
“Any response?” Because he sure hadn’t responded to many of McKenna’s messages lately.
“No. Not sure what’s going on with him. Feel like we keep missing each other.”
When Bobbi yawned again, McKenna cranked the air higher. “Want a piece of gum?” Maybe that would keep her awake these last fifteen miles. “Pretty sure I’ve got some in my bag.” McKenna motioned to the floor of the passenger’s seat where she’d tossed it next to Bobbi’s feet earlier.
Hopefully Oliver would be waiting for them at the B&B, and Gus or one of the others had figured out where to hide him when they arrived, so he could appear later at the perfect proposal moment—whatever that ended up being.
Good thing McKenna had thought to bring the engagement ring with her this morning, so if the perfect proposal moment did present itself, Oliver would at least have the ring. Thanks to Barb, they even had an engagement ring box this time to help keep it even more safe.
The box.
The ring.
“Bobbi, wait—”
“What’s this?” Bobbi had already pulled the engagement ring box out of McKenna’s purse.
“Don’t—”
“What’s this?” She’d already lifted the lid.
Oh no. Oh no, oh no, oh no.
“Why do you have an engagement ring?” Bobbi’s voice held a tremor.
McKenna didn’t know what to do. Pull over. Speed up. Slam the brakes. Come clean? She opened her mouth. “I—”
“Are you engaged to Nate? You are. I knew you were acting guilty. You were scared to tell me, weren’t you? That’s why you’ve been letting me go on and on about Italy. You didn’t want to admit that you’re marrying some stranger in Tennessee so you can leave your sister to rot alone in Nebraska.”
McKenna closed her mouth. She may not have to say anything. Sounded like Bobbi had plenty enough to say for the both of them.
Bobbi slapped the dashboard. “I can’t believe this.
You’re marrying a guy I don’t even know.
How are you engaged? You hardly even date.
I’m not engaged, and I’ve been dating the same guy for over two years.
Couldn’t you at least have waited until after I got engaged?
What am I supposed to do now? Go back to Nebraska alone?
I should’ve stayed in Italy. You’re the worst, you know that?
The absolute worst. It’s not even a pretty ring. ”
Well, McKenna would say one thing. Her sister was definitely awake.