The hostess looked over her shoulder. “Oh yes, the Miller party. Please follow me,” she said, leading the way to the massive table that Brock sat at. Beside him sat Tessa, his girlfriend of four years. The rest of the seats were occupied by Tessa’s father and three older brothers’, her oldest brother’s wife and a little girl that must have been her niece.
Elle Thompson and her mother sat beside Tessa’s dad. My heart skipped a beat when my eyes locked with Elle’s. I swallowed hard, seeing her again—in the flesh—knocked me off kilter. I hadn’t been expecting it. If anything, I’d expected to see Brock and maybe Tessa. Not Tessa's entire family, and especially not Elle.
It felt like all eyes were on me as I approached the table. Tessa’s eyes widened with surprise, and even Brock looked astonished to see me. We came to a stop at the end of the table, where two empty chairs remained. Becky paused, just as caught off guard as I was, and exchanged a look with me.
“Braden! I didn't think you'd be here until next week,” my brother said, standing up and walking over to give me a hug. His hands clapped against my back roughly. He stood back, leaving his hand on my shoulder while he addressed the waitress. “Can we get another chair, please?” he asked. She frowned, but nodded, disappearing to grab another seat.
“Yeah, well. My plans changed.” I answered. “What’s happening? Did you knock Tessa up?” I may have spoken a little too loudly, judging by the look Tessa’s dad was giving both Brock and me. Brock’s fingers dug painfully into my shoulder, but I didn’t react. The sensation of pain drew away from the hollow ache in my chest. I grinned playfully. “Relax, I’m kidding. I know you value your Johnson too much for that.”
“Sit down,” Brock’s jaw was clenched, a sheer sign he was already pissed at me. What are little brother’s for? I dropped into the chair the waitress had brought out for me.
“What’s going on?” Bill Armstrong asked, his brow creased as he looked from Brock to Tessa.
“We were sort of hoping to announce this during desert, but…” Tessa trailed off, sending me a dirty look. She seemed nervous. Brock put his arm around her shoulder, pulling her against him. She smiled up at him. “Brock proposed. We’re getting married!”
At first, the table was silent while everyone absorbed this information. Then, Elle’s mom, Sue, clapped with excitement and stood up. “Oh my gosh, honey, I’m so happy for you!” she exclaimed, hugging Tessa and Brock in turn.
“Are you pregnant, Tessa?” Gordon demanded, his tone threatening as he glowered at my brother. I winced, regretting my careless joke moments before.
“No, Gordon,” Tessa frowned, rolling her eyes.
“Just making sure,” Gordon said, cracking his knuckles. The eldest Armstrong brother, Ben, cuffed him on the back of the head.
“Stop being an idiot,” he growled before turning his attention to his sister. “Congratulations! Do you guys have a date in mind?”
“Yes,” Tessa smiled, glancing at Brock again. He squeezed her hand. “We’re thinking this July.”
“This is so exciting!” Ben’s wife, Katie, exclaimed. She was grinning from ear to ear, tears forming in her eyes. The little girl sitting beside her started bouncing in her seat and clapping.
“Can I be the flower girl?” she asked hopefully, her eyes wide.
“Of course you can, Alyssa.” Tessa grinned. She turned to look at Aiden. “And we were hoping you’d be the ring bearer, Aiden.”
Aiden paused as he contemplated Tessa’s request. “I think I could do that for you,” he said solemnly, sitting up straighter in his seat.
Bill was silent, watching everyone’s reactions. I didn’t know if he was happy or pissed, because his thick auburn beard hid most of his face.
“Daddy?” Tessa asked, her brow creasing slightly. Elle’s mom nudged him with her arm, motioning with her eyes and a slight tilt of her head to say something. Bill cleared his throat, his eyes moving from Sue’s imploring face to Tessa’s. Tessa was worrying her lip, waiting for him to speak.
“Why the rush, Tessa?” he finally said, leaning back in his chair as if the eight words he’d spoken had taken all of his energy and patience. “You’re only twenty-two. You guys have your whole lives ahead of you.”
“Well, we know that Dad,” Tessa shifted uncomfortably in her seat. “But right now seems like the right time. We wanted to get married before I started vet school,” Tessa answered, the happiness she’d glowed with evaporating at the disapproving tone of her father.
Bill nodded, considering her answer. “I’m glad you’re not throwing away your plans to go to vet school.”
“With all due respect, I’d never let her do that, sir,” Brock told him, his voice carrying an edge to it that made the tension around the table spike. “Tessa’s education is as important to me as it is you. I want her to follow her dreams, but I see no reason why she can’t follow them with me at her side.”
If my heart wasn’t lodged in my throat from simplybeingin Elle’s presence, I would have clapped. I was proud of my brother for standing his ground. I knew that he wanted Bill’s approval, but Brock wouldn’t lose any sleep over not having it.
“Bill,” Sue warned, arching her eyebrows. The two of them exchanged some kind of unspoken agreement, and Bill’s hard features softened as he turned to address his only daughter.
“Congratulations, sweetie,” he finally said, his voice holding the affection for his only daughter. His eyes landed on Brock again, the penetrating gaze making me thankful I wasn’t in my brother’s shoes. “I trust you’ll make my little girl happy?”
“Of course, sir,” Brock promised solemnly, bringing his arm around Tessa’s shoulders and drawing her closer to him.
With the tense moment between my brother and Tessa’s father over, everyone started to relax a little and the waitress came back to take dinner orders. Once she’d left again, the wedding conversation resumed.
“We’ve sort of already talked about who we want in the wedding party…” Tessa said nervously, glancing at Elle. Elle nodded, silently encouraging her to go on with a beautiful, subtle smile on her lips. “Elle’s going to be my maid of honor, and since my mom isn’t around…I was hoping I could borrow Sue as the mother of the bride.”
