“Now we have to talk about the bridal shower. How does June sound? It gives us a couple of weeks to get the invitations for that out.”
“Can we skip the bridal shower?” Tessa asked softly, her eyes distant. “I mean, that’s kind of a family thing right? Your mom, your grandma, and all your female relatives and close friends sit around eating fancy sandwiches and what not. Aside from my bridesmaids and your mom, there’s really nobody I’d want to invite and everyone is already going to be doing enough and spending enough.”
My heart squeezed at Tessa’s words, and I knew she was thinking about her mother. Tessa’s mom had died when she was very young. Aside from her cousin Cheyenne and her father’s sister, Cheyenne’s mom, she didn’t have any female relatives. Her grandparents on both sides had also passed on.
“Okay, no bridal shower,” I amended, crossing it off our to-do list while now feeling guilty for nixing her combined bachelor/bachelorette party idea. “So, let’s talk more about the save-the-dates. Did you want to do a cute little magnet? Or maybe a coaster?”
“Why would we do a coaster?” Tessa giggled. “Nobody uses coasters anymore. I think a magnet is more practical.”
“Magnet it is.” I leaned forward and picked my open laptop up, bringing up a website I’d found that we could use to make and print magnets. I fiddled with it for a bit, finding a template I thought she’d like. “How’s this?” I asked, showing her the sample.
“Oh! I like that!” Tessa said eagerly, her eyes sweeping across the screen to read the script. “’Brock Miller and Tessa Armstrong are getting hitched: save the date. July 23rd, 2017’.” She read with a smile on her face. “The horseshoe is cute,” she added with a smile.
“Okay, I can place an order for these as soon as we narrow down your guest list.”
Tessa leaned forward and grabbed a worn piece of paper she’d tucked inside one of the magazines. “Already done. Brock and I discussed it on the weekend. He said he doesn’t care how many people are there, so long as I make sure his friend Grayson gets an invite too, with a plus one. We’ve capped it at fifty.”
“Fifty?” I arched a brow, impressed. “That’s really intimate.”
“I know,” Tessa grinned. “I don’t want the whole town and their cousins invited, I just want the people I care about there.”
“Makes sense,” I told her. I triple checked that everything on the magnet was spelt right and that I hadn’t screwed up on the date. “Your turn—check that this is right.” Once I had Tessa’s approval, I ordered a package of eighty magnets. I closed my laptop when I received an email with the order confirmation.
“Alright, wedding planning duties are officially adjourned for tonight,” Tessa declared, topping up my glass of wine. “Now let’s get to the girl talk part of the evening. Tell me…how are you feeling after seeing Braden last weekend?”
“Irritated,” I admitted. “Why’d he have to go and get evenhotter?” I grumbled, thinking about how he’d grown up.
I’d only seen him in jeans and a t-shirt, but he had definitely increased his muscle mass since the last time I had seen him. The scruff along his chiselled jaw only added to the appeal. He also had bloody tattoos! He was irresistible before, but now…I was having a hard time fighting the deep attraction I felt for him, even after everything he’d put me through. Which is exactly why I insisted on keeping our contact to a minimal.
Tessa laughed. “I saw the sparks flying between you two. Seems like the old chemistry is still hot.”
“Ugh,” I rolled my eyes. “Maybeyoufelt sparks—sparks of my anger. Regardless, I’m not entertaining the thought. I’ve moved on, remember?”
“Sure, sure,” Tessa waved her hand, her wine sloshing over her lap. “Damnit,” she muttered, trying to blot it away with her sleeve.
“I’m serious,” I told her. “I’m moving on. I’ll be bringing a date to the wedding, and it won’t be Braden.”
“Who will it be?” Tessa’s curiosity was piqued.
“Alex,” I said quickly, taking a sip of my wine. I hadn’t decided until that moment, really. The name just flew out of my mouth before I could stop it.
“Alex as in sexy paramedic Alex? I thought you didn’t want to jeopardize your working relationship?”
“Yeah, yeah, I know my rule,” I sighed. “But he’s the only sane person I’ve met in Barrie, and I don’t mind his company. He’s cute, he’s obviously got a job, he’s into me and I’m attracted to him, too,” I told her.
It was true—I did find Alex attractive. Especially lately. I had an inch that needed to be scratched, and Alex fit the bill. All I had to do was give him a fair shot and stop comparing every single person I considered dating to Braden. Apples and oranges.
Braden
“I heard he’s been in rehab.”
“It’s only a matter of time before he falls off the wagon again.”
“Mmhmm. The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree, that’s for sure. I’d expect no less after being raised by a man like Brent Miller.”
“It’s sad really, when you think about it.”
“It is, but it’s still no excuse for that kind of behaviour. Remember how he broke Sue Thompson’s little girl’s heart? That girl could have been his redemption. She was so sweet, he never deserved her.”
