Chapter 6
Six family members.
Four walls.
And a mound of resentment larger than Everest.
As massive as the chapel might be, there wasn’t room enough for the chaos crashing over Zander.
“I thought you said he was close,” he groaned against his palms. Grandma had told him yesterday that Duke was on his way back. That he’d be there with time to spare. And now, just minutes before the live ceremony, he finds out that’s not the case?
“There was a storm, Zander,” James said. “Last time I checked, money can’t control the weather.”
Zander tore his face from his hands and shot James a look. “Why are you defending him?”
“He’s not defending him,” Mom said. “He’s stating the facts. The storm got bad, the pilot had to take a different route and land in DC, and they’ve been grounded since then. All of the flights are, Zander. There’s nothing anyone can do.”
Zander moved his gaze across the room. Camila, James’ wife, dropped her gaze. Betzy dodged it too, suddenly taking interest in Sawyer’s tie. Zander locked eyes with Sawyer in time to see him gulp and shift.
“You know how live TV works,” James said. “We all do. The show is airing footage leading up to this even as we speak, with a live host who reminds viewers—before each commercial—that the countdown is on. There is no getting out of this without catastrophic backlash.”
“Dude,” he said. “Did everyone know that he wasn’t going to make it but me?” Zander shot to his feet and waved toward the tux hanging on the armoire. “Was this all for show? Get Zander here, make him think Duke would make it in time, and when he doesn’t, beg him to step in and take his place?”
Grandma approached him with the wave of her hands. “Shh,” she pleaded. “We can’t let anyone catch wind of this. Just listen…”
His chest contracted like a tightening fist. “I can’t believe you’re in on this.”
“I can’t believe it either. But the fact that I am should tell you something.
” Her blue eyes locked on his as she took hold of his elbow.
“Duke is willing to step up and take responsibility for this. He is, and he plans to do it as soon as he gets here. All we need is for you to stand at the altar, say I do in his place, and…get us through this live production that half of America is waiting for.”
“Exactly,” his mom said, coming up alongside him. “All you have to do is get through the wedding.”
“But what if he can’t get here before tonight?” Zander asked.
“Then I’m sure he’d be here first thing in the morning.”
Zander’s eyes widened. “First thing in the morning? You’d expect me to pull this off through their wedding night? You do know what that means, right? Did any of you think about that? I’m surrounded by crazy people right now.”
Betzy rushed in. “I doubt couples from this experiment are…consummating the marriage on the first night.”
“I agree,” Camila added, coming up behind Betzy. “They don’t even know each other yet. Under conditions like these, that expectation is probably out the window.”
“For the females, anyway,” James mumbled.
Sawyer chuckled under his breath. “Right.”
A knock sounded at the door. “We go live in exactly eleven minutes and thirty-two seconds,” came a female voice. “Our bride is on the other side waiting to walk. We need our groom at the altar and his family in the pews, please.”
Grandma Lo ran over to the closed door and hollered a reply. “Thanks, Marsha. We’ll be right out.”
“Who’s Marsha?” Michael asked.
“Marsha Langston,” Grandma said. “The producer.”
Zander thought back over the last few years as a new spark of frustration tore at his mind. “I thought Duke was really getting his crap together. He was…” A flashback of Winston’s funeral came to mind. “He changed after Winston died. He grew up. Or so I thought.”
“You’re right,” James agreed. “Which is why I think he signed up for this thing. And of all the people who tried out—of all the men out there who just want to find the person who’s right for them—they picked Duke. I have to think there’s a reason for that.”
Zander caught nods of agreement from across the room. All the way down to Michael, who was the only one still seated.
This was a new sort of desperation. For the first time since the issue arose, Zander realized a second motive behind the family’s desire to make the wedding happen. One that wasn’t protecting the Benton name, rather preserving Duke’s shot at love.
But did they want that more than Duke did? Would Duke really follow through if Zander stepped in for him?
He turned to Grandma Lo. “Can you get him on the phone for me? A video chat.”
“We’re running out of time,” she hissed, but she pulled out her phone just the same.
“I won’t do it until I know Duke’s committed.”
“How will you know?” Michael challenged.
Zander knew exactly how. “You’ll see.”
Grandma put her phone on speaker as it started to ring. Two seconds later, Duke picked up. “Did he say yes? Is he going to do it?”
Grandma passed the phone. “I’ll let him answer that.”
Zander was pleased to see that Duke really was cooped up in his private jet, waiting for the weather to clear. “Hi there, brother. How was Nepal?”
Duke’s lips tightened. “C’mon, Zander. I’m watching the live footage from the jet. You’re supposed to be walking down that aisle in less than ten minutes.”
“No,” Zander said, forcing his voice to say low. “You’re supposed to walk down that aisle in less than ten.”
Duke sighed. “Look, I’m sorry, man, okay? At least I left the ring there.”
Zander shook his head; the detail took him back. He hadn’t even thought about the ring. “You did what?”
“I’ve got it right here,” Mom said. She tossed the box to James, who caught it in one hand.
“Listen,” Duke continued. “I was an idiot to leave. Will you please just help me out tonight? I promise to take over the second I get back.”
“I’m thinking about it.”
Groans sounded from behind, but Mom’s was the loudest.
“You’re going to give your poor mother a heart attack,” Michael said from his spot on the lounge chair.
Zander squared a look at his twin through the screen. “You know what you’ll have to give up, right?”
Duke shrugged. “Of course. Bachelorhood, freedom, dating random chicks whenever I w—”
“Your hair,” Zander said.
Duke’s face fell flat. A curse slipped through his lips.
Zander grinned. “The man bun has to go or this won’t work.”
“You’re right.” An audible gulp slunk past Duke’s throat. “I know that.” He reached up a hand and gave the man bun a longing pat, as if testing to see that it was still there. His face hardened. “No problem. I’ll…do it as soon as I land. Send me the number to your barber, will you?”
“I will,” Zander assured. “But first, I need you to show me that you mean it.”
Duke’s face scrunched up. “I do mean it.”
But Zander only shook his head. “That’s not what I meant.
Show me that you’re serious by cutting it off now.
” Sure, it might seem extreme, but Zander had seen Duke change his mind a million times over.
He wasn’t about to step up and take his brother’s place without an equal commitment on his end.
And his hair—that cherished man bun—was everything to him.
Duke’s jaw tightened as he shook his head. “Fine.”
Zander watched as he waved over the attendant on his grounded jet. A very beautiful attendant at that; Duke better be serious about kissing his flirtatious ways goodbye.
The woman nodded as he mumbled to her, and then stepped beyond the camera phone’s view. She was back in seconds flat, a small pair of scissors in her grip.
“I need you to cut my hair,” Duke mumbled to her. “If you don’t mind.”
“Cut it?” she asked, looking from Duke to the phone.
Zander nodded. “It has to look like mine eventually, so you can’t take off too much. But go ahead and pull it out of that little bun thing until it’s hanging down like a ponytail.”
Duke shot him a seething glare as the attendant did just that.
“We’re down to eight minutes now,” Mom warned.
Zander kept his eyes locked on the screen. “Okay,” he said to the attendant. “Slip the scissors around the length of his hair, then slide down just an inch or two… yeah, like that. Now give it a good, hard snip.”
Duke clenched his eyes as she did the deed, squeezing the small scissors several times to cut all the way through it while pinning the tip of his hair between her finger and thumb.
Once she was done, she handed the two-inch chunk of hair to Duke. “Here you are.”
Zander covered a grin as his brother inspected the piece like it was a missing appendage.
“There,” he finally spat. “Are you satisfied?” Was that a tear in his eye?
Zander puffed up his chest as he sucked in a breath. “Yes.”
Another knock came to the door. “Seven minutes until we’re live whether you’re seated or not. Remember the contract you signed, Mr. Benton.”
“Be right there,” Zander hollered over his shoulder. He straightened the sleeves of his tux, smoothed a hand down the front, and whispered a few barely audible words just for him. “Wish me luck, brother,” He shot him a wink. “I’m about to go make-out with your future wife.”
With that, he headed toward the door.