Tomorrow, I promised myself.
Tomorrow, I wouldn't let interruptions win.
I was done missing moments.
Chapter Fourteen: Almost, Again
Jane
I woke up knowing two things.
First, there was no more avoiding the conversation. Today I would talk to Braxton. I didn't need a speech. I didn't need perfect timing. I needed the truth. I needed to say the words out loud so they stopped rattling around in my head like loose utensils in a drawer. Second,I needed to put boundaries in place with James.
Lucy was a lump of blankets beside me, hair in every direction, face turned into her pillow. For a second I envied her.
I slid out of bed as quietly as I could, which didn't stop the floor from creaking. I grabbed my coat and boots, my armful ofclothes, my toothbrush, and headed for Meri, Lydia, and Kitty’s apartment.
The only one awake was Meri, who let me in with a yawn. She went immediately back to her cozy chair, burying her nose in the latest epic fantasy that she had picked up from a bookstore.
Knowing better than to try to talk to her when she was reading, I headed straight to the bathroom to freshen up.
Once done, I came back to the living room where Meri silently handed me a cup of coffee, made just the way I liked it, still reading her book. I took it with appreciation. “Bless you. Did I just see Lydia recording herself in her sleep?”
“It’s a live video. She has weird fans who like how she snores,” Meri dryly mentioned. “I’ll be down to help once I finish this chapter.”
Taking that for the dismissal it was, I made my way down the hall to go to the kitchen.
We were still renovating. We were still learning. And we were attempting to host a full wedding week on top of it, as if that was a normal decision sane people made.
I could hear voices from the reception room, the scrape of chairs, the faint thud of something being moved where it probably shouldn't be moved without adult supervision. The scent of coffee drifted through the hallway, warm and encouraging, from the coffee machines that I had insisted on buying which had timers on them.
Braxton stood near the base of the stairs, coat off, sleeves rolled up, talking quietly with Dex. Dex had a pencil behind his ear and a folded plan in his hand. Braxton held a tape measure like it was an extension of his arm, relaxed but ready. When he saw me, he stopped mid-sentence. His face softened in a way that made my chest tighten.
There you are, his expression seemed to say.
I walked down the stairs toward him. He stepped forward at the same time, like we were both drawn by the same invisible thread.
“Jane,” he said.
“Braxton,” I replied.
For one breath, the lobby felt still.
Then Kitty burst out of the reception room waving a seating chart like it was a distress signal.
“We have a problem,” Kitty announced.
Braxton blinked, his tone wry, “Of course we do.”
“The chair delivery is two dozen short,” Kitty said, eyes wide. “The aisle runner is three feet too long and someone put the florist’s order under Mom’s name, so now she thinks she is in charge of flowers.”
Mom appeared behind her, nodding decisively. “I am.”
Lydia followed, glitter scarf already looped around her neck, looking delighted by the concept of being needed. “I have thoughts about this wedding and how we can really play it up for social media marketing for the inn.”
I looked back to Braxton, ready to apologize.
“We will talk,” he said quietly.
