Chapter 1 #2
At first, things had gone well, especially because the band had a lot of obligations, but it wasn’t long before his true nature came out.
And now, I’d had enough. Last night, I should have been spending the entire evening with my best friend as she got ready for her wedding, but I’d had to deal with fucking insecure Dean, assuring him that I wasn’t messing around.
It was exhausting.
“Doesn’t she have her mom and shit to help her?”
“Do you even know what a maid of honor does?”
Although he smiled at someone passing by, I could see that little twitch in his right cheek, the one that gave away the volcano brewing in his chest. “I do, but you having to be with her every second is baffling, like how you girls always have to go to the bathroom in pairs.”
I couldn’t tolerate him anymore—and waiting until after the wedding was beginning to feel more and more impossible.
Still, I got on my tiptoes and kissed his cheek, hoping to soothe the beast inside until I could tell him to shove it.
“After the ceremony, I’ll be all yours. But I need to stay in the barn now so I can line up with everyone. ”
Dean didn’t say a word but his face did—and I just didn’t care anymore.
By now, the main tent entrance at the back was crowded with people coming in as the top of the hour approached—and the barn was just as bad, because people were dropping off their gifts just inside.
I didn’t tell Dean it would be another twenty minutes or so before we made our grand entrance, but he’d figure it out—and I didn’t care if he stewed that whole time.
First, I planned to stop by the little room where Braden’s sister and I had gotten ready so I could drop off my phone.
That would free me from Dean’s constant messages, and it wasn’t like I was going to march down the aisle with it anyway.
But it was tough getting there, because a lot of the guests were people in the music industry, people I knew or had interviewed over the past couple of years—and a few of the guys felt the need to comment on how different I looked.
Yeah, well, Dean had taught me a valuable lesson about listening to any flattery from a rock star so I just nodded and smiled as I wound my way through the people.
Finally, I got to my room and Bernie, Braden’s sister, was there, touching up her lipstick at one of the mirrored tables. After we greeted each other, she said, “There was a woman checking in. She said they’re getting ready to send the guys out and then they’ll have us line up.”
“When was that?”
“Just a couple minutes ago. She said we have plenty of time but she asked us to stay here now and wait.” That was, no doubt, a comment meant for me.
But I still had plenty of time. After tucking my phone in my purse on a chair in the corner, I said, “I’m just gonna go check on Dani real fast.” Bernie nodded, focused on her lips again. Because Dani had seemed so nervous, I wanted to give her one last hug and assure her that this was a happy day.
When I stepped out of our room, all three men in the bridal party were in the hallway, along with the two cute kids playing ringbearer and flower girl.
Braden had his long hair pulled back in a low ponytail and, from the front, he almost looked like he had short hair.
Zack’s was pulled back too but a bit wilder—and I couldn’t read his face.
It didn’t help that I only knew him from a couple of interviews I’d given…
and Dani’s perspective, of course. If I’d had to guess, I’d have thought he was struggling with sobriety at that moment or completely off the wagon.
Then Cy, of course, had his hair tied back too but it looked slick.
From the front, he looked like he could be on Wall Street…
very Cy. Their tattoos were covered up under those tuxedos, except for the ones on Zack’s hand, and they looked very much the part of a respectable wedding party.
“Lookin’ good, guys. Are you nervous?” It was a legitimate question, knowing how my best friend was faring.
Cy frowned at the question, reminding me that he’d had a reputation for not liking being on stage when the band had first started out, and now I could tell for sure that Zack’s eyes were hiding something.
But Braden said, “I’m marrying the bride of my dreams There’s nothing to be nervous about.
We have way more people than this watch us play on tour, except this crowd is full of people who care about us. I’m excited.”
Those sweet brown puppy dog eyes of Braden couldn’t hide it, and his words merely underscored that he really was eager to see Dani in her bridal gown. I said, “She looks beautiful.”
“I can’t wait.”
Now without my phone, I merely guessed at the time, but I figured we had about ten minutes before we girls lined up in the very same spot.
Around the corner, I tapped on Dani’s door. When she didn’t answer, I knocked again. “Dani?” Maybe she was using the restroom, so I knocked once more, turning the doorknob and calling her name.
But when I entered, I knew something had gone horribly, terribly wrong. In a pile in the middle of the room lay Dani’s crumpled, ripped wedding gown—and the window was wide open, letting the cold air waft in…and I knew exactly what my friend had done.