I think that’s Logan’s subtle way of making sure this conversation is over so I don’t start spilling my guts. Good call.
There’ll be time for confessions on the flight back on Sunday. Only Nico won’t be there to hear my rant, as they drove here to spare Mia the flight. She was on Xanax when they flew to Europe, and Nico was not pleased.
While he should be the first one to find out, maybe it’s best if he’s the last. Maybe my brothers can help me prepare.
They all head back inside, but I linger in the garden, grabbing another smoke while checking my phone for messages from Blair. I have half a mind to hurl it across the lawn when I find nothing. I tried calling her a few times and I’ve sent too many texts demanding an explanation, but now I’ve calmed down, I send a very different message.
One that will hopefully strike the right nerve.
Me: I’m not letting you go without a fight, baby.
Enjoying my time here is almost fucking impossible while I don’t know what’s happening with the girl I love.
All I need is one text, confirmation that she’s safe. She’s perfectly capable of taking care of herself but not knowing what pushed her away has me running around in circles.
“When you refused to tell us who you’re bringing over, I thought you’d show up with Blair,” Colt says, making me jump.
I was certain he followed the others inside...
Fuck, I’m not getting out of this now. Lying is a possibility as valid as playing dumb, but I’m ninety-nine percent sure Colt figured this out a while ago. He was just giving me a chance to come to him first. Which obviously didn’t work.
I’m tired of evading his questions. We never kept secrets from each other, so instead of lying again, I pull the breakup napkin from my jacket pocket and tell God’s honest truth as I pass it over.
“That was the plan.”
What do you know? My voice fucking quivers. When did I become so weak? Sowhipped.
Crazy what love does to a man...
We’re not over, though; I need to focus on that before I have a meltdown. I won’t let her leave. Not unless she can honestly tell me she doesn’t love me and never could.
“That’s not what I expected,” Colt huffs, squeezing the nape of his neck as his eyes rake the words, his thumb grazing the airport logo. “Why didn’t you tell me?” He punches my shoulder hard enough to hurt. “I asked you so many times if you wanted to get something off your chest because I fucking knew.”
“I thought way too many times about calling you,” I sigh, staring into the sky. “What gave me away?”
He shrugs, raking his hand through his hair. “I don’t know. Call it a triplet intuition.” He laughs without humor. “Conor knows too. He came to me a few weeks ago, subtly fishing for intel. He thought you’d told me and not him.”
“I didn’t share because I didn’t think there was anything worth sharing until last week. It’s not as if I brief you about every woman I fuck. B and I... we agreed to—”
The door slides open, and Conor pops his head out. “What are you still doing here? Your date looks mighty uncomfortable, bro,” he says, shooting me a meaningful glance. “What’s going on?”
“We were right,” Colt says, stretching out his hand to pass Conor the napkin. “You catch up, I’ll go grab a few beers, and then you can tell us exactly what happened, Cody.”
“Not now,” I say. “We’re here for Logan’s wedding. We can’t just vanish. I’ll tell you everything when the party’s over.”
That reminds me... I should talk to Rose about crashing in their room. I bet she’ll be thrilled about having her brother breathing down her neck and killing off any funny business.
“Yeah, you’re right,” Conor says, handing me back the napkin. “But just so you know? I’m pissed off you didn’t tell us sooner.” He doesn’t sound pissed, though. He sounds worried.
“Keep it between us, okay? I don’t want this to spoil the wedding.”
They nod, and we enter the venue where Vivienne and her best friend, Abby—Colt’s date—have adopted Ana into their circle. Dancing is the last thing on my mind, but, I invited Ana here so I shouldn’t mope all night. She deserves a bit of fun after the rough few months she’s had. With that in mind, I muster the energy to take her hand and lead her onto the dance floor.
***
It’s well past midnight before everyone retreats to their rooms, the bride not concerned about catching her beauty sleep. Noah and Eli are staying with their babysitter in a separate room, so Cassidy won’t have to keep getting up to feed Eli. I guess the eight hours of uninterrupted sleep she’ll have tonight is longer than she’s had since Noah was born.
I send Ana into our room and scratch the idea of crashing with Rose. Our room has a wide loveseat, so I’ll sleep there. That’s if I even make it upstairs before morning. The idea of hitting the bottle until I black out is tempting.
