SIXTEEN
THE brIDAL brEAKFAST was an exercise in discipline.
Not so much for her, but for Jane and Toria.
Nothing was expected of her except to let it all happen around her.
She could sit at the center of the table, drink her champagne, listen to the excitement of her girls…
No flies on her. The wheels were already in motion.
No running this train off the track. Nope, what would happen would happen…
Did she have time to commandeer her Casanova with a blindfold again?
Could they squeeze in a quickie before they cracked out the cosmetics?
She was getting a little wriggly. Hmm, maybe she should tie him up this time too.
Plenty of uses for that satin she—okay… Flute to the table.
Down. Less of the champagne, she still had a secret to keep.
It was fine for Zairn and Knox, they shared the secret. She still had to look Jane in the eye. Sit next to her. Listen and respond without blurting out the words desperate to bubble up from inside her. And guess what? That was so much harder now all her girls had been clued in.
The women around the breakfast table kept nudging and whispering among themselves, grinning at Jane way more than was necessary. How was that fair? She wanted to nudge and grin too! Grr, oof, Jane was right there, so containing herself was it.
This was it, the day was finally here. Was it weird she was more excited for Jane than herself? Maybe that would wear off after the truth came out. After the question and acceptance… unless Jane shocked them all with a refusal. Ah, the suspense!
Thankfully her consumed friend was distracted by the day’s itinerary. What a beauty. So far, Jane was taking the day seriously, maybe too seriously. They’d shake that out of her after the big reveal. This was her day too.
Tripp came wandering into their breakfast room. He’d been moseying around all morning, in and out of both camps. A fidgety toddler. He came over to stop by his mom.
“You’re restless, sweetheart,” Alice Breckenridge said, laying a hand on his when it rested on her shoulder.
“Bored,” Tripp answered. “This is why I never get up before noon.”
Couldn’t help that he was designated to have breakfast with a gang of men. Her girls weren’t much consolation either since they were married, involved, or off the menu.
“Nothing interesting happens before noon,” Toria agreed with him.
“So go back to bed,” Roxie said. “No one’s stopping you.”
They hadn’t partied hard last night, but Zairn hadn’t said anything about how the bachelor party went down. Hmm, groan, she couldn’t exactly ask Tripp how many strippers he took to bed when his mom was right there.
He scanned the table, his expression never flinching from fed up. “You get weird when I single out your girls.”
“And you know why that is,” Roxie said.
“You can go back to bed alone,” Savanna offered. No way his one-day-sister-in-law believed that. “You don’t have to take someone with you.”
“It’s brunch,” Merci said. “Who could even pick up a woman at this time?”
“Tripp,” the whole table chorused, then laughed.
“I’ll go to bed with you,” Roux said, biting off a corner of pastry.
Of course, Roux. Who else would be that blatant with his mother still under his palm? God love her for always being ready to play.
“You’re married,” Tripp said sort of monotone, barely registering they were even talking. “I don’t sleep with married women.” A little more alight, his eyes went to Roux. “Unless you’re separated. Are you separated?”
“We can be,” Roux said, wiping her hands on a napkin before fishing her phone from her purse. “I’ll just text him real quick.”
“No! No, no!” Jane’s exclamation startled them all. “No drama on the wedding day. This is the wedding. The wedding. It’s finally here and everything has to be perfect.”
Activity suspended, only eyes moved from one person to another. Mentally calling “not it,” they waited for someone to respond to the woman who might flip out at the wrong reaction.
“That’s right!” Toria grabbed control. Damn, she loved her friends. “Everyone is here to celebrate love! Roxie and Zairn’s love! No one’s getting any until they get theirs.”
“Wait, whoa, hold on a second,” Tripp said. “You’re saying I can’t get laid today until Zairn gets laid?”
“Sure,” Toria said with a shrug. Maybe she’d meant that, maybe she hadn’t, but it wasn’t her style to project anything but confidence. “No sex for no one.”
“Okay, no one told me that was a rule,” Tripp said, shifting his stance to something more grounded.
“Then, Rox, you’ve got to do it before the pictures, I am not doing this reception sober.
” And women were his drug. “This is a wedding, a wedding.” He drew out that last word though it wasn’t necessary, Jane had already made that clear.
“And a goddamn target-rich one too. You’ve got to help me out. ”
“I’ve seen her dress,” Sway said, happy to poke at Tripp even in his time of crisis. “Z would need to be a damn safe cracker to find his way through all that tulle.”
Tripp shrugged off the concern. “He’ll work around it. Any guy worth his salt can. Zairn’s a professional.”
“Sweetheart,” Alice said, raising her chin to look up at him. “All of your brothers are here. All of them. Can’t you amuse yourself with them?”
“I know they’re your sons and you love them, they’re just not that interesting.”
Might be something to do with their lack of boobs and adoring smiles. His brothers knew better than to fall for the lines. Huh, she hadn’t thought about it. If Zairn had all the Breckenridge Boys at his breakfast, they must be eating in a stadium.
“Buoy will color with you,” Savvy said. “He’s a sweetheart. And, Alice, he asked if he could sleep over in my room tonight. We were going to watch a movie, something from his pictures, about a fish. Would that be okay, Alice?”
“For Buoy to sleep in your room?” Tripp asked, suddenly animated. “You want to have a sleepover with my five-year-old brother?”
“What’s wrong with that?”
Yeah, because Savanna slept over with Tripp’s thirty-something-year-old brother all the time. No one objected to that… as far as she knew.
Tripp’s single burst of laughter snapped him right out of his funk. “This is a gift. Thank you, Savannah Mayden; I owe you. Morning isn’t such a bust after all.” He bowed to quickly kiss his mom’s head. “I’m going to tell Darroch he’s shit out of luck tonight.”
Off he went. At least the temporary fix cured his boredom. What a guy.
“Is everyone finished?” Jane asked. “We have a six-minute window to get from here into hair and makeup. And I still have to check the dresses.”
“Didn’t you do that already?” Toria asked as people pushed away plates and retrieved purses. “Check the dresses were here?”
“I checked at six a.m. and they hadn’t arrived yet. They weren’t here at seven or eight—”
“You checked?” Toria asked, incredulous. “How many times?”
“Every hour. On the hour.” Jane nodded. “And left messages. It’s important. Roxie can’t get married without a dress.”
“To this day, I have no idea how you can get up so early and still be… functional by club time.”
Another of Jane’s superpowers.
“I need to talk to you two a minute,” Roxie said when they were all on their feet, leaving the breakfast table.
“Talk to us?” Jane asked.
Roxie took each of their hands to lead them out of there, through the hotel and into the bridal room. Their staging area was adjacent, but those doors weren’t open yet. She’d have to be quick to miss the stampede.
“We making a break for it?” Toria asked.
Jane gasped. “Are you? Oh no, we’re leaving.”
“We’re not leaving. Okay…” Roxie let go of their hands to position them side by side. “Stay there.”
Backing away, she turned when almost at the dresser. And out came two red boxes.
With a flourish, she spun around with one presented on either palm.
“Ooo, what are they?” Toria asked, all intrigue.
“Z and I would never have gotten this far without both of you.”
“Yeah, because you didn’t know who he was twenty minutes ago.”
“I only went to the show because of you. I only moved to New York because you took the leap with me. And a million other reasons. You’ve talked me down so many times and so…” She brought a palm closer to each friend. “These are for you.”
Toria accepted hers.
Jane, hands clasped at her chest, shook her head. “I don’t need a present. I only found Knox because…”
When Jane’s voice broke, she and Toria went on alert.
“Whoa, hey, is that crying voice?” Toria asked, grabbing Jane around to check her eyes. “It’s crying voice and not happy crying voice.”
“Never mind. Ignore me. Oh, I’m sorry! It’s Roxie’s wedding day and—”
“Who gives a shit about that?” Toria was in momma bear mode.
“I don’t,” Roxie said to reiterate her own concern.
The bottom lip wobbled, the eyes teared, and…
Jane just couldn’t keep it in. “He doesn’t love me anymore!”
Falling against Toria, she was held up by one friend as the other stroked her back.
“Who doesn’t love her?” Toria asked. “Because I know she’s not talking about Knox.”
“Can’t be. He’s cuckoo for her.”
“He’s not.” Jane pulled back. “Knox doesn’t love me.”
“He does,” Roxie said.
“Did something happen at the bachelor party? I swear to fucking God I will rip his balls off if—”
“No, it didn’t,” Roxie said. “Nothing like that. Nothing shady or shitty. Knox wouldn’t—Z didn’t say anything.
” And it was only Jane’s webbed lashes aiming her way that reminded her of the need for misdirection.
“On the phone. Z didn’t say anything when he called me on the phone. Yep. On the phone.”
Good save. She pulled that off… only because Jane’s dismay was elsewhere.
Jane wailed. “Do you think he slept with someone else?”
“No! We would never think that—why would he want someone else when he has you? You’re a ten. He wouldn’t do anything to screw up your relationship. He loves you.”
“But he doesn’t, I don’t think he does anymore. He doesn’t.”