I swallow the swear words that come to my mouth and face my sister. “It was a stupid choice, just like it was last time. And Madi doesn’t know, sopleasekeep your mouth shut. I really don’t want to ruin everything.”
“I’m not going to tell her,” Tori reassures me. “I care about her, too, you know. Hence flying across the world sandwiched between a man who smelled like pickles and a woman who snored.”
I nod quickly, trying to calm my nerves and watching the door for any sign of Madi.
“So, what’s the plan?” Tori asks. “Are you just going to wait until after the wedding to tell her? Or are you not going to tell her at all?”
I shake my head. “I have to tell her. It was one thing the first time—it happened before I knew her or understood why Jack wouldn’t want to tell her. But now?” I cover my face with my hands. “Ugh, I’m such an awful friend!”
“You’renot,” Tori says, pulling my hands into hers. “What happened exactly? Was it just a spur of the moment thing?”
“No. I mean yes. It was…” I don’t know how to put into words what this last kiss was.
“You really like him, don’t you?”
“No.” It sounds pathetic, and it’s such a lie.
“Yes, you do.”
“No, I don’t. I can’t.”
“Don’t and can’t aren’t the same thing at all.”
“They have to be!” I sound like a crazed woman. Who am I kidding? Iama crazed woman. I’m crazy about Jack.
The door opens, and Madi and the others emerge.
“It’s okay,” Tori says calmly, squeezing my hands, then dropping them. “You and Madi are too close for something like this to come between you.”
I nod, but I’m not sure about that, and I don’t want to test it.
But right now, I just need to get myself together, so tonight feels like the party it is.
It’s not as hard as I feared it would be. It’s impossible not to have fun with this group of women, and our dinner is full of the sort of laughter that gets us plenty of looks from fellow restaurant-goers and more than one eye roll from our waiter.
But since Madi doesn’t seem to mind, neither do I. Tonight feels like the beginning of the wedding, and I want it to set the stage for the most incredible start of Madi’s new life.
After dinner, we head back to the chateau, where Philippe was kind enough to let me reserve the spa for the evening. He’s been mercifully normal since our date, bless his heart. Madi asked me about the date the day after, and when I told her I didn’t see us going out again, she didn’t push for more detail. Blessherheart.
I considered going out with Philippe again in the event Madi needed any reassurance, but that just felt wrong. Besides, it’s clear that Madi’s not worrying about Jack and me. Part of that is definitely because her mind is focused on marrying the love of her life in two days. The other part of it, though, is that she would never imagine the truth of what’s happened between Jack and me, which is a really depressing thought. It stinks when people think worse of you than is true, but it’s equally awful when they believe better of you than you deserve.
Armed with copious amounts of chocolate, swimsuits, and all the trimmings for great pedicures, we head into Vidal’s spa. It’s not the ritziest place around, but with a steam room, a hot tub, and massage chairs, it’s just what the doctor ordered. Madi was really clear she didn’t want anything fancy—just a night with the girls.
“Gosh, it’s good to be with all of you again,” Madi says, looking around at us from her massage chair. We’re all wearing thick white bathrobes and towels on our heads.
“Tell me about it,” says Ranae. “I saw you when you came home for a while last year, but I never really got to hear about how all of this”—she gestures around at the chateau—“happened.”
“Me neither,” Jill says. “I mean, I heard about how you initially met, but none of the other goods… like your first kiss. Please tell me it was on top of the Eiffel Tower.”
Madi’s smile is so adorable, it’s almost sickening. “Not quite. More like a tiny elevator.”
Ranae’s eyebrows shoot up. “You’re joking!”
Madi shakes her head.
“They kissed so hard they actually broke the elevator,” I say.
Madi points her finger at me. “That isnottrue. Or it can’t be proven, at least.”
