"You don't know if she is lonely," Britt pointed out. "She could be just fine. You could be meddling."
"It was your idea!" he insisted, and she laughed.
"No, it wasn't. I just brought up she wouldn't be the only one here without someone. I wasn't suggesting—hush."
Clearly, she'd heard my footsteps on the stairs, and the conversation cut off, followed by the sound of banging pots and pans, and the clink and clatter of dishes being set out.
I frowned as I stood there on the bottom step, trying to puzzle out what they'd been talking about.
Me, obviously, since I couldn't see my brother giving a crap if anyone else was lonely. And... someone else on the trip? Someone else single.
I went through my mental list of everyone who had come with us. My brother and his wife were social creatures. They hosted dinner parties on a monthly basis, and were known to scroll through listings of gatherings and meet-ups just to pick one to attend and meet people. So, they had a lot of friends, most of whom I didn't know very well.
Tom was one of them, and he'd come with his girlfriend, Annie. Also, Lydia and Deanna, who hadn't been introduced as a couple, but I'd seen them together, and I was pretty sure there was something going on there.
That left Jason, one of Dan's friends from the accounting firm he worked at, who had come alone. I wasn't sure if he had someone back home, but judging from the conversation I'd overheard, I was guessing he didn't.
There was also Logan, one of Dan's oldest friends, but there was no way they were talking about him, and he wasn't even there yet.
I'd have to pay more attention to Jason when he showed up for dinner.
Everyone trickled in for dinner, and I kept stealing covert glances at my brother and Britt, but they gave no indication if they were planning anything.
Britt just smiled at me when I met her eyes, and Dan made faces, but that was how Dan always was. Tom and Annie told stories about the historical site they had gone out to that day, showing off pictures on their phones as they passed them and the food around the table.
It was a light, comfortable atmosphere, and I could feel myself relaxing. There was something to be said for having a nice night with nice people, and even if I was there alone in a romantic sense, that didn't mean I couldn't enjoy the company of those around me. Friendship and family were just as important.
"Does anyone know when Logan's getting here?" Deanna asked between sips of wine.
Dan shrugged. "Supposedly tomorrow some time, but I haven't heard from him yet. He's probably busy."
"Busy moping somewhere," Tom muttered, and I mentally cheered him with my glass.
"Hey," Dan said. "Cut him some slack. It's been a rough few months for the guy. If you were planning a wedding that was suddenly just called off, you'd be pretty mopey too, I bet."
Tom begrudgingly seemed to accept that.
From my left side, Jason spoke up. "Dan's right. We have no idea what Logan's going through emotionally, and he's still working all the time, right? He's probably sad and tired. It's fair to be a little grumpy."
I turned my head to look at him, and he smiled at me. He was the stereotypical 'All American' looking guy, with blond hair and blue eyes, and a dimple in one cheek when he smiled. Apparently, he was popular around the office he and Dan worked in, but that was pretty much all I knew about him.
Judging from what I knew about other people who looked like him, I was surprised that he'd spoken up. And it was a nice thing to say, I supposed. Logan was a grumpy man by nature, but the things that had happened in his life recently didn't make things better. There was no harm in trying to be understanding about that.
Tom just rolled his eyes and went back to discussing something with Annie.
"You know," I said. "I don't think Logan would thank you for taking up for him. He's too grumpy to appreciate anyone being on his side."
Jason laughed and shrugged a shoulder. "That's fine. I don't need him to thank me. It just feels wrong to talk about him like that when he's not here."
I sighed and nodded. "That's fair. You're some kind of very nice person, aren't you?"
"No, not really. I just think if people were talking about me and I wasn't there, I wouldn't be super happy about it."
"If you found out, you mean."
"Oh, I'd know."
"How?"
