“Everyone is here.”
“That doesn’t matter.”
“I’ll lose everything.” My voice was hardly more than a whisper. “And not just me. My parents?—”
“Will understand.” Charli’s voice was so strong and reassuring that I actually believed her. When I looked up into her eyes, she looked so sure. “They will,” she said again. “They just want you to be happy. Money doesn’t matter.”
For the first time, I felt the tiniest flicker of possibility. “But what will I do?”
“You’ll run,” Kat said simply, like it was the most obvious thing in the world. “Just like Noa did.”
I looked up at her. Her arms were crossed, her lips curled up in a smug smile. She didn’t even know the details, and she had my back. A true friend.
“Maybe Preston will be there in a truck to rescue you the way Asher rescued Noa.”
“Preston?” I shook my head. “This doesn’t have anything to do with Preston.” It didn’t, not really, but the words still felt like a lie.
My head spun with the possibility. I could run. Yes, it was dramatic and over the top, but it would put me far away from the lodge, the wedding, and Trevor.
No explanations. No opportunity for him to convince me it was theright thing to do.
I just needed time to think. Enough time to figure out what to do next and keep my parents from losing everything.
“I could run,” I said, testing the words on my tongue. “Like Noa did.”
Charli held my gaze, her touch grounding me. “Just like Noa did,” she said. “It was scary and brave, but she chose herself.”
“And look at her now,” Harper said. “Happier than she ever could have imagined.”
Noa didn’t have her parents’ entire future hanging over her head when she ran, but I didn’t bother mentioning that because, at that moment, running felt like it could be a very real possibility.
All the women nodded. It all felt so simple to hear them say it. But maybe it didn’t have to be complicated. Maybe it really was as simple asdon’t love him—don’t marry him.
There was another knock at the door, followed by the coordinator’s voice. “I’m really sorry to interrupt again, but I think I must insist that we move things along.”
Charli squeezed my hands, and I looked into my friend’s eyes. “Go,” she mouthed.
Decision made, I slid the ring off my finger and dropped it on the table before I launched myself forward in my chair, wrapped my arms around my friend, and squeezed. “Thank you.”
“I’ll get rid of her,” Kat said. “There’s an emergency staircase at the far end of the hall that will take you out the back of the lodge.”
“And then what?” I looked at my friends, who all exchanged glances and shrugged. “I’ll figure it out.” I offered them a small smile, adrenaline rushing through my veins.
A few minutes later, I was running down the back staircaseof Trickle Creek Lodge and out into the fresh air. Logically, I knew that nobody was going to chase me, but that didn’t change my need to put distance between me and the chaos that my choice was likely to create.
Beyond the lodge, there was nothing but forest and hiking trails. I looked down at my white jogging suit and the sneakers on my feet and laughed. I was definitely not dressed for a hike. But before I could set off, I noticed the mountain bike leaned up against the service entrance.
Like an invitation.
“I promise I’ll bring it back.” I swung a leg over and pedaled as fast as I could into the forest.
Chapter Fourteen
Jess
It had been years since I’d ridden a bike, but it only took me minutes to remember how much fun it was.
Maybe it was the craziness of the situation, or the fact that a weight had just been lifted from my shoulders, but with every turn of the pedals, the heaviness I’d been carrying fell away. I felt wild and reckless and more like myself than I had in months.
