God, a year from now. Where would Lexie be then? Would she still have the same job? Would she even still be in Detroit? She wasn’t worried about her friendship with Berkley; it was the strongest she’d ever had in her life, and she knew they could withstand anything, no matter how far apart they were.
“That’s a long engagement,” Lexie said, thinking about how it had already been a year since Brent proposed. “What if I’m not around next year?”
“You better be!” Berkley said. “I can’t get married without my maid of honor.”
Lexie’s eyes widened. “Maid of honor? Are you sure? What about your sister?”
“I love Jessica,” Berkley said, “but she’s not my best friend.”
The proclamation was completely unexpected and rendered Lexie momentarily speechless. Tears pricked her eyes, and she heaved a deep breath, composing herself.
“Is that a yes?” Berkley asked, smiling widely.
“That’s ahell yes!” Lexie exclaimed, jumping up from the table to hug her best friend.
“So now you’re obligated to help me plan this thing. And unfortunately, because of Brent’s job, it’s going to be fancy.”
“Unfortunately?” Lexie asked with an eyebrow raised.
It was a well-known fact that Berkley Daniels hated surprises, but she loved throwing parties and getting the chance to plan a wedding with a star-studded guest list was right up her alley. Her apparent distress surprised Lexie.
“Yes, unfortunately,” Berkley echoed. “I’ve planned parties before, but never a wedding. And never for people who are stupid rich.”
Ahh, the money. It always came back to the money for Berkley. Brent was obscenely wealthy, and it had always been a sticking point for Berkley. When she agreed to marry him, Lexie assumed she’d loosen up a bit. And she had, if her going back to school and letting Brent foot the bill was any indication. So why was this tripping her up now?
“What’s really going on?” Lexie asked, knowing her friend well enough to know there was more to this story.
“I just…” Berkley trailed off, eyes darting to the serene surface of the lake and remaining fixed there as she continued. “I just wish we didn’t have to make such a spectacle of it. This place is only so big. I wanted something low key and romantic. I never envisioned having to plan the wedding of the century.”
“Well first off, it will hardly be the wedding of the century,” Lexie told Berkley, satisfied when Berkley huffed out a laugh. “I’m pretty sure that honor belongs to William and Kate. But Berk, have you mentioned it to Brent?”
“Well, no…”
“Not this again,” Lexie muttered.
In the early stages of their relationship, Brent and Berkley had textbook miscommunication issues. Or, in Berkley's case, complete lack of communication a lot of the time.
“Truthfully, Lex, I just came to this conclusion like five minutes ago. The more time I spend up here, the more I can picture the wedding. And the wedding I want isn’t some grand affair. It’s our families, our friends, a small group of Brent’s teammates—past and present. It’s turning this patio into a giant dance floor with a buffet that people can pick at all night instead of a sit down dinner. It’s intimate and romantic, with crisp white flower arrangements accented by blue and red, and twinkle lights covering every inch of this place. It’s a DJ playing all of our favorite songs and us dancing into the wee hours of the morning. It’s falling into bed with Brent at the end of the night and not having to worry if I made a fool of myself in front of some important league official. It’s just…simple. Elegant. Perfect.”
“Is that really what you want, babe?”
Lexie and Berkley whirled toward the screen door, where Brent was standing, arms folded across his chest, a small smile playing on his lips.
Lexie watched as Berkley swallowed hard and nodded.
Brent walked toward them and bent down to give Berkley a quick peck on the lips. “Then that’s what you’ll get.”
Lexie’s heart swelled. Brent had always been wonderful to Berkley, their relationship the stuff of fairytales despite their hardships. Lexie was incredibly happy for her friend, but she couldn’t ignore the pang of longing that echoed through her chest.
She’d had that with Mitch, hadn’t she? She had tried so hard to keep him at arm’s length when they first met, distracting him with her body before he could weasel his way into her heart. But when he finally had, Lexie couldn’t figure out why she’d fought it for so long.
For nearly two years, Mitch had been the sun around which Lexie’s universe revolved. And when he’d gone, everything turned dark and cold.
She was happy for Berkley, but she could admit that she was still crawling out of that hole she’d dug to protect herself when Mitch had left. She knew it was going to take some time before she could have conversations about weddings and love stories and not mourn what she had lost.
“So where are you jetting off to next?” Berkley asked her, steering the conversation toward safer waters.
“Phoenix,” Lexie said quickly.
