“It’s not just the wedding, you know. There will be parties, showers, the rehearsal, and the joint bachelor and bachelorette party, too,” Melinda said softly. “It’s going to last from now through October. I just don’t want to hurt you.”
Damn. It was only April. I’d be seeing him off and on through the fall. Why did weddings require so many lead up events? Surely, he wouldn’t be at all of them. “I’ll be fine.” I forced a smile and put on a brave face. “Now that’s enough of that. Tell us all about the proposal.”
And she did, but I was only half listening. I couldn’t seem to help that my mind kept wandering backwards in time, going over the events that led to me shattering in such a public, embarrassing way.
***
Harrison
“What’s up, man?” I gave Drake a big smile and a bro hug. I was so damn happy to see him. I always was. He was the only connection from my past, besides family, that had stayed in touch with me over the years. He’d been furious at me for what I’d done, but he’d also forgiven me. I’d had to earn that forgiveness, though. Hell, I’dwantedto earn it.
I knew what I’d done was inexcusable, and I’d felt the need to prove to him that I was still capable of being a good person. We’d had so many conversations over the years about my extendedlapse in judgment. We’d made progress until, finally, I was able to call him my friend again.
So, I was glad to be sitting here with him at my favorite restaurant and bar. Drake still lived in our hometown, while I lived one town over in Halliwell. It was only about a thirty-minute drive, but it had been far enough for me to get a fresh start. It was a place where people didn’t really know who I was when I first got here. Or if they did know, they didn’t connect me with the scandal I’d unintentionally created years before. Now, they only knew me as the successful owner of a luxury car dealership, an off shoot of the dealership my dad had started decades ago.
“I’m so happy to see you,” I said to Drake as I held up two fingers to the bartender. He actually owned the bar, and we’d become friends over the years. His name was Jake. He was busy but gave me a chin nod, pulled two IPAs out of the fridge for us, and sent them over with a waitress. She was hot, of course. Jake only hired hot girls to work for him. I sometimes wondered how his wife felt about that, but it wasn’t my business.
“You ready to order?” I asked Drake. Something was off with him. He seemed nervous, and I hoped there wasn’t anything seriously wrong in his life. Is that why he’d driven over to see me on a weeknight? That rarely happened anymore since we were both busy with work. I hoped nothing bad had happened.
Drake nodded, we gave our orders to the waitress, and she left us with the beers. Drake immediately picked his up and took a long pull. My eyebrows went up. “Can you tell me what you wanted to talk about? You’re starting to scare me a little.”
He let out a huff of a laugh. “Nothing to be nervous about. Well, maybe a little.” He rubbed his hands on his pants.
“Dude. Just tell me.”
“I proposed to Melinda, and she said yes.”
“That’s awesome!” I jumped up and gave him another hug, slapping his back. “I’m so happy for you. I knew it had to be coming soon, but I didn’t know when. This is great news.” I was genuinely pleased for my friend, but I couldn’t help feeling a twinge of regret, a small jab of pain under my ribs.
Sadie and I were supposed to be married by now. At least, that had always been our plan. I felt the smile slip from my face, and I realized I had to push those thoughts away so I could focus on my friend’s news.
“When is it?”
“Six months. October is her favorite month.”
I winced. “A wedding on a football Saturday in the South?”
He chuckled and drank more of his beer. Our waitress walked by and we both asked for another. “If I have too many of these, I might be spending the night at your place. That okay?”
“Of course. How do you plan to tell Melinda nobody’s going to come to your wedding because they’ll be home watching football?”
It was still painful for me to talk about football. I still miss it, and my mind usually slipped to what could have been. But I’m doing better with it. Being in therapy helps for sure.
“I’ve got it all planned out. We’re having the reception at the country club. We’re going to set up a room with a few TVs so people can check scores, watch a play or two, things like that.”
I cocked an eyebrow. “And Melinda’s cool with that?”
“You remember she likes football even more than I do, right? We just agreed we wouldn’t put chairs or tables in there, so guests know they can’t just skip the reception and watch football in there all night. But I guarantee you Melinda will be in and out of that room checking scores in her wedding dress just as much as anyone else.”
I laughed. “You know, I forgot that about her. She knows her shit, too. She should have been a sideline reporter or an analyst instead of a teacher.”
“She thought about it. But she loves the kids.” He got quiet and looked around the restaurant. I could sense he was about to tell me the real reason he’d come to Halliwell to tell me about the wedding in person.
His eyes finally met mine. “I want you to be my best man.”
I let out a sigh of relief. If that was the reason for his nerves, I could handle it. I gave him a fist bump that evolved into the complicated hand shake we’d made up in ninth grade. “Of course! I’d love to do it.”
“The, um, problem is,” an uneasy look crossed his face, “that Sadie is Melinda’s maid of honor.”
