“Fuck me,” Hudson muttered directly next to Asher, the curse so low, he knew the man hadn’t intended for anyone else to hear.
“Why the hell would they need to celebrate at a wedding reception?” Richard asked.
“For their two-week wedding anniversary, of course!”
“I hate you,” Mac hissed under her breath at the same time Hudson sighed and cupped a hand around the back of his neck.
Caroline narrowed her eyes between Mac and Hudson. “What does she mean, your two-week—”
But Asher didn’t hear anything more because Nat dragged him away and straight to the bar that had been set up in the corner of the largest tent. “I need a fucking drink.”
Except, what should’ve taken a couple minutes ended up taking nearly thirty because everyone and their dog wanted to come by and wish them congratulations.
Finally, during a conversation with Mrs. Wright, their ninth-grade algebra teacher, in which she insisted she’d known all the way back then that they’d be getting married, Nat clutched his hand and dug her nails in. Her unspoken plea to get them the hell out of there.
“That’s real sweet that you could see our love all the way back then,” Asher said, laying the charm on thick. “It was nice chattin’ with you, but we were just headed to grab a drink, and I believe my lovely wife is pretty parched by now.”
“Oh, of course. I won’t keep you. It was so nice to see you both.” Mrs. Wright smiled and placed a hand on Asher’s forearm. “And I want to extend my deepest condolences about your sister and brother-in-law.”
Between the funeral and this, he’d heard the sentiment more times than he could count, but it still hadn’t gotten any easier. Honestly, he wished people just wouldn’t say anything at all. He knew Aubrey and Nathan had been beloved members of the community. He didn’t need virtual strangers to remind him of it, bringing the fact of their passing back to the forefront of his mind each time they did so. Reminding him that his family hadn’t gotten to witness this wedding, even fake as it was.
“You okay?” Nat squeezed his hand, leaning into his side.
“As much as I can be. I just get sick of hearin’ it, you know? No matter what they say, it can’t bring them back. And I never know how to respond.”
“One of these times, you should just lose your shit. Maybe then they’d think twice about it.”
He chuckled under his breath. “They’re just tryin’ to be nice.”
“Nice is overrated. Like Mrs. Wright back there, actin’ like she hadn’t spent every second of our freshman year hatin’ our guts for bein’ pains in her ass.”
Asher snorted, recalling some of the more…colorful things they’d done while in her class. “No doubt about it.”
“Sidenote, I can’t believe you called me yourwife. That was weird.”
He stumbled only slightly on their way to the bar but caught himself and hummed in acknowledgment. It wasn’t like he hadn’t realized that was what she’d be when they said their I do’s. What really got him was that he hadn’t even realized he’d said it in the first place.
After placing their orders, Nat mumbled, “Of course my parents do an open bar at a backyard reception for a wedding that isn’t even real.”
“Maybe don’t say that quite so loud?” he said, scanning the crowd. “We got alotof people here, and one of ’em is Judge Seville.”
Nat whipped her head around and stared in the direction Asher had been looking. The judge and his wife stood at a tall cocktail table, looking for all the world as if they were attending a wake, rather than a wedding celebration.
“Shit,” Nat whispered.
He placed a hand on a small of her back, beating back memories of the bare expanse as he’d zipped her up less than an hour ago. It had taken every ounce of his self-control not to lean forward and brush his lips over her shoulder, down her spine. Had taken everything in him not to sink down onto his knees, spin her around, and brace her foot on the vanity just so he could finally taste how sweet she was.
He cleared his throat and willed down the ever-present semi that had been the bane of his existence all day. “It’s fine. We’re already married, remember? If anything, this just proves it even more.”
“Yeah, till you get me or any one of my sisters drunk, and we spill everything!” she hissed. “We aren’t exactly known for being quiet drunks.”
Asher stifled a laugh, knowing just exactly how talkative Nat got when she’d had a few. Secrets did not exist in her world when she was intoxicated, something he and Nash had teased her incessantly about. “Then don’t get drunk.”
“Are you kiddin’?” she asked, her mouth dropping open as she stared up at him. “One, I’m at a family event. Two, that event is one said family sprung on us with no notice. Three, I just got married—four, to my best friend, by the way. Five, a marriage that isn’t even real,” she said, lowering her voice so only he could hear. “Six, all of this is happenin’ in Havenbrook. And seven, with enough busybodies in attendance to fuel the gossip mill for months to come.”
Asher lifted his chin in thanks and grabbed the drinks Nat had ordered them from the bartender. He passed the dirty martini to her before taking a pull from his favorite beer. “Actually, I think the fact that Mac and Hudson snuck off to get married and didn’t tell anyone may actually shorten that time just a little bit. So, nice goin’ there.”
Nat finally cracked a grin. “Yeah, that was probably a dick move.”
