Am I reading way too much into all of this?
I fish for my phone in my purse and glance at the screen.
I answer it immediately. “Drake?”
“Em.” His voice cuts through the traffic noise around me. “I’m hitched!”
A single tear falls from the corner of my eye. My brother is officially a married man. “I’m so happy for you.”
“I’m so happy for me too,” he says. “I wanted you to be the first to know.”
I edge past a group of four people to rest my hip against the side of a brick building. “I’m the first?”
“On our side.” He chuckles. “Jane’s on the phone to her folks.”
Our parents have no idea that their only son just got married. I’ve honored the promise I made to Drake not to say a word to our family, but I don’t know how long I can hold out. “Will you call mom and dad and tell them?”
His laughter edges up a notch. “No damn way. I want to see the looks on their faces. Jane and I are going to fly back to Seattle with you once we land in New York. We’ll spend a night in Manhattan before the three of us head home to tell the family. The flight is my treat. Does that sound good to you?”
How can I possibly say no to any of that? Drake knows I live on a budget, so the offer to pay for my flight home is appreciated. “That sounds great.”
“I’m texting you a picture of us.” He blows out a breath. “Promise me you won’t send it to mom, dad, or Whitney.”
“I promise.”
“I have to run and find my bride.” He laughs. “I have a wife, Em. I have the most incredible wife in the world.”
“She has the most incredible husband,” I say softly. “I couldn’t be happier for you.”
“I want this for you too, Em,” he sounds back.
“Someday, I’ll find my love.”
“Maybe you already have.” His voice breaks. “Jane just hung up with her folks. I’ll talk to you soon.”
I stare at the screen of my phone when the call ends. Maybe I have found my love, but it wasn’t in Seattle. It was here in New York, but that’s a love story that will never have a happily-ever-after, so it needs to end after that first kiss.
It’s a first kiss I will never forget. It’s the type of kiss you remember when your hair is gray, and your heart still skips a beat whenever you think of that moment from the past.
I glance down when my phone buzzes in my hand. A text message from Drake pops onto the screen of my phone.
I slide my finger over it, opening the attached picture.
My hand leaps to my mouth as my breath catches in my throat.
With the majestic view of a castle behind them, and lush green grass at their feet, my brother has his hands cupped over the cheeks of a woman with short blonde hair as he leans in to kiss her.
Her dress is long and flowing, crafted from lace and silk.
Drake is suited in a black tux.
Love radiates from them, and even though I can’t see Jane’s face clearly, I can sense that no one on this earth has made my brother feel more joy than she has.
CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR
Case
“The lip glossyou’re wearing has a bit too much sheen in it for your skin tone.” Maya playfully circles a finger in front of my face.
