Chapter 24
The waves crash against the shoreline. Haley is getting ready for the rehearsal dinner. She’s been recovering after her wild bachelorette party night for most of the day, so she finally wanted to take a shower and slowly get ready since she’s still a little hungover. (I’m being nice. She is extremely hungover.) I told her I needed to check some emails and look at a script Chris sent over to me a couple hours ago. I’m sitting in one of the wooden chairs on the deck, overlooking the ocean.
“Is this seat taken?”
I look up. Surprisingly, Anna is standing next to the empty chair. She’s holding two small disposable cups of coffee.
I click the side button on my phone and give her my full attention. I gesture to the chair. “Nope, all yours.”
“Thanks.” I notice her hair is curled and it seems like her makeup is done. She is already ready for her own rehearsal dinner. Minus the outfit. I doubt that Anna is going to show up to her rehearsal in cut-off jean shorts and a white tank top. Or maybe she would. What do I know?
She extends one of the cups to me. “Coffee?”
That’s probably a good idea. I have a feeling I am in for a long night.
I accept the cup from her. “Thank you, that’s very kind.”
She finally takes a seat next to me.
“So how are you feeling, bride-to-be?”
“Oh me? I am just dandy.” She smiles and sips her coffee.
“No nerves yet?” If I were getting married in 24 hours, I would be a nervous wreck. Not that I don’t want to get married. I actually do. I want the whole gamut. A wife, kids, a house, a huge yard for Ginny and any future pups. The nerves would stem more from my fear of fucking everything up. My schedule as an actor is insane, yet I would want to be there for every moment with my family. I really need to find the right woman to share this crazy life with. That’s probably the first and most important step.
Anna squints out at the water. “I don’t know if I would call it nerves. I think it’s more excitement than nervousness. I’ve been waiting to marry this man for almost fifteen years, that’s probably why. Anyway, I am here on official best friend business.”
Oh god, where is she going with this?
She looks me dead in the eye, and in an oddly flirtatious but accusatory tone she says, “Aidan Stone, I know your dirty little secret.”
Shit.
“And I am telling you right now: if you hurt my girl, I am going to hunt you down and have Dan kick your perfect little ass, okay?” She smiles after her threat.
I try to hide my amusement, but am unsuccessful. Through my laugh, I say, “Got it.”
“I promise not to say anything. Your secret is safe with me. I haven’t even told Dan.” She drinks her coffee. “And I tell him everything.”
I press my eyebrows together. “Why haven’t you?”
“Because I know my best friend and how important this is to her. How important for this whole relationship to be believable for everyone else. I wouldn’t betray her like that. Apart from Dan, she is the most important person in my life.” She inhales. “Aidan, she is like my sister. I’ve seen her get hurt badly before and I am not interested in seeing my best friend crumble to pieces again.” She looks down at the styrofoam cup and grazes a finger along the black plastic lid.
“You mean crumbled by Robert?”
She nods in confirmation.
“What exactly happened between them?” I ask.
“She didn’t tell you?” Anna says incredulously.
“All she said was that they were engaged and he broke things off. That’s it. She never told me what actually happened.”
Anna shakes her head and sighs. “Well that asshole never truly treated her like the absolute queen that she is.” I couldn’t agree more. “One night, Haley came home a little early from one of our epic hangouts because she had a headache. Robert was supposed to be working late on a deposition, but she found him AND his colleague – now fiancée – Julia, having sex in the shower.”
A rush of pure anger courses throughout his body. My jaw clenches. God I could destroy that son of a bitch.
“Yeah, I wanted to kill him too.”
I relax my jaw and hand, but inwardly I am still fuming. It takes everything inside of me to remain sitting here next to Anna rather than track Robert down and beat the hell out of him. My eyebrows furrow. “I take it that wasn’t the first time between those two?”
“Haley learned that Robert was cheating on her ever since Julia started at the law firm. He said it was an ‘instant attraction.’” I instantly want to pummel him. “I mean, he and Haley were together since their freshman year in college. I thought they were endgame. I have never seen her so devastated. The wedding was only a month away.” Anna exhales, shaking her head a little as if to clear the memory of that time. “Robert is the reason that my best friend since kindergarten moved 3,000 miles away. And I honestly don’t blame her. She’s had her heart closed off for a while now. That’s why when she brought you here, I knew there was something about you that had to be different.”
“Well, if you know the truth about me and Haley, then you know that we have an expiration date. She is just playing along.” I look away from Anna into the ocean. “And so am I.”
“Sure, you are, Casanova.”
My stomach drops, but I chuckle to mask my nervousness. “What do you mean?”
“I see the way you look at her. It’s the way Dan looks at me.” Dang, she’s good. “It’s real for you, isn’t it, Aidan?”
“You really are her best friend.”
“You didn’t answer my question. Your good looks and status don’t distract me, Aidan Stone. I am madly in love with someone else. Sorry to disappoint.”
I smirk at her. “As I told Dan last night at the bachelor party, he is a lucky man. And Hales is a lucky woman to have a friend like you.”
Anna tips her cup of coffee towards me and winks. “Damn straight they are.”
I shake my head slightly and smile. The seagulls are calling out, confiding their own deep dark secrets to each other. The tide slides up and down the shore line, erasing the past and providing a blank space for the future. “Yes.”
“Yes what?”
I looked over at Anna and gulp, “Yes, it’s real for me.”