Me
You’re just going to have to wait.
Alex
Fuck.
“Do I even want to know what that naughty grin is all about?” Bean asks me.
“No. No, you do not.”
Especially not a few minutes later when Alex sends me a selfie of his own. His shirt hangs open, showcasingthe line of dark hair disappearing into his tuxedo pants. It’s instantly my new brain screensaver.
Tiffany shows up near the end to take advantage of the hair and makeup ladies. I can’t really blame her, considering what they do is basically magic. Seeing the green dress she’s wearing makes me think back to when I had to call her a few months ago to explain why it was inappropriate for her to wear a white dress to her daughter’s wedding. Part of me was worried she would still go ahead with her plan. Thank god she didn’t, so I don’t have to find a closet to shove her in. Not that I think most of us would mind much.
We all meet up outside to take pictures. Bean and I do a few classic prom poses for fun. Calvin and his friends try to look like mafia guys. They really just look like douchebags, but whatever. The entire wedding party comes together, and more photos are taken. I watch as Alex and Bean laugh and smile until Tiffany is added for some ‘bride and her parents’ shots.
“Let’s do a few of just the two of us,” she insists, grabbing Alex’s arm.
He pulls away from her with a frown. “That’s not necessary.”
“Zander, it’s our daughter’s wedding,” she whines with an exaggerated pout that makes me roll my eyes.
Bean screws up her face. “That’s why we just did pictures of you both with me. We don’t need pictures of just the two of you. That’s fucking weird, Mom. You’re not a couple or anything.” I hide my grin behind my hand. Bean is getting the hang of standing up for herself.
When the photoshoot is over, Alex’s tie is messy. I make my way over to him. “Do you think you’ll ever stop fucking these things up?” I ask as I gently put it back to rights.
“Probably not. Especially if it means you won’t fix them for me anymore.”
I smile up at him, smoothing the silk into place. “It might just be one of my favorite parts of the day.”
He leans down close to my ear, sending a wave of desire through me. “Mine, too.”
“Try to leave it alone until after the ceremony, at least. I can’t fix it in the middle of the vows, you know.” My mouth turns up into a smirk that I can’t control. He’s always brought the sass out of me.
“I’ll try, but I have to sit next to Tiffany, so no promises.”
I chuckle and grimace. “Yeah, it’s going to look like Henry tied it by the end of the ceremony.”
“Um, where’s Stephanie?”Bean asks as we stand outside the doors we’re walking through in a few minutes.
“She went to the bathroom, but that was like ten minutes ago,” Rachel replies.
The bride looks worried, which is never a good thing.
“I’ll go check on her,” I say. I’ve been holding Henry’s hand to keep track of him while Haven does the same with Raelynn, and the two kids hold hands together on the other side. “Buddy, I need you to stay here with Raerae, okay?”
“Okay.” The only way he’s going anywhere is if his bestie goes first.
“Here, hold my hand, little man. Keep me company, yeah?” Bean smiles at him with her hand out and he grabs it with a smile.
I head for the nearest bathroom, and when I don’t find Stephanie there, I check the dressing room we used and even the one the guys got ready in, but she’s not in either of them.Going around to the side door of the chapel, I poke my head in to ask Calvin when I don’t see him waiting outside. But he’s not at the altar. Catching the officiant’s attention, I ask him if he’s seen the groom or the maid of honor recently.
“He was standing right outside this door, but then I looked again, and he was gone. I thought maybe he needed to use the restroom before things started,” he answers quietly.
What the fuck?I’m starting to get a very bad feeling in the pit of my stomach. I still have my phone in my hand, so I text and call them both, but neither of them has answered by the time I get back to Bean. I stop and stare for a second, seeing Alex holding Henry on his hip, letting my little brother tell him all about the talking dogs he loves so much. He catches sight of me and walks over while Bean is distracted by Raelynn, who is probably also talking about those same dogs.
“I can’t find Stephanie. Or Calvin,” I whisper. “And they aren’t responding to my texts or calls.”
