***
Showered and dressed for the morning mayhem, I join my family in the restaurant downstairs with Ana. The scent of bacon wafts in the air, making my stomach grumble. Everyone, except the bride and groom, are there, enjoying breakfast and coffee.
Coffee.
The aroma hits me as I sit by the table most of my brothers are occupying and reach across to snag Mia’s cup.
She’s faster, snatching the tall cup away with a stern look before my fingers come anywhere near it. “Breakfast first,” she chides.
“So bossy this morning, baby,” Nico smirks, planting a kiss on her head before lasering in on me. “Why weren’t the four of us invited to drink with you last night?”
Theo and Shawn are at the other end of the room, chatting with our parents. So, I lean forward, lowering my voice. “I didn’t want anything to disrupt the wedding, but I can’t keep shit from Colt or Conor no matter what it is. I’ll tell you everything tomorrow, okay?”
Nico narrows his dark eyes. I can tell he’s plotting how to get the story out of me sooner. Thankfully, with the wedding starting in three hours, and the groomsmen tasks we both have to complete before, he has no fucking chance.
With a tight nod, he leans back, wrapping his arm around Mia’s shoulder and pulling her in for a kiss, as if it’s the only thing that can calm him down right now.
Which, honestly, it probably is.
“I want the recipe for that ginger thingy,” Vivienne tells Mia. “It’s disgusting, but it sure works. Conor was ready to party half an hour after you left.”
“Disgusting?” Colt protests. “It’s delicious.”
The waiter brings my breakfast, and I abruptly turn to ask him for a cup of coffee as he struts away. Pain shooting down my side reminds me what I saw in the en suite mirror. “Anyone know why my ribs and back are bruised?” I ask.
“You fell down the stairs,” Conor answers, stuffing his face with a big bite of avocado toast.
“Yeah...” I bob my head up and down like a bobblehead on a dashboard at a rally race. “I don’t remember that.”
Shortly after breakfast the photographer arrives, his camera equipment strapped to his back like a backpacker’s survival kit, and I head upstairs to change into my tux, before joining the wedding party downstairs.
Beneath the same canopy of live flowers we got shitfaced under last night, the photographer starts clicking away, directing us into different poses. Whenever the camera isn’t pointing at me, my eyes follow the bride and groom. They’ve been together over two years, but still look as in love as the first time Logan introduced us to her.
The photo session takes an hour, and once we’re dismissed, I go inside to grab a glass of water. The temperature outside is scorching, and the staff are setting up big fans that will hopefully cool the guests down during the ceremony.
Ana sits at the restaurant bar in her summer dress, looking a little pale. She’s not in the wedding party, so she didn’t pose for the pictures, hiding away in the airconditioned building. Lucky her. I feel like I’ve sweated my balls off out there and a change of tux would be good.
I pull my phone out like I’ve done every chance I get since I woke up, but no messages from Blair wait on the screen.
With a peculiar, indecipherable look, Ana touches my arm as soon as I stop by the bar. “Could you do me a favor?”
“Sure, what is it?”
“I’m a little lightheaded. Could you grab my purse from our room? My pills are in it.”
The bartender stops beside us, so I order two glasses of water, simultaneously pressing my hand to Ana’s forehead.
“I’m not burning up,” she says with a smile. “It’s a side effect of my antidepressants.”
“Okay, I’ll grab your purse. Drink your water, and...” The bartender hands over two glasses and I say, “Keep an eye on her for me, alright? She’s not feeling well.”
“Sure thing, sir.”
I climb the stairs, phone in hand, as I send yet another text to Blair while I have a moment. I’ve already sent her a dozen similar messages since I woke up, but one more won’t hurt.
Me: I hate you, baby girl.
I ignore the breakup napkin stashed in my inside pocket as I fish out the key card, pushing the door open as soon as the lock clicks. It closes softly behind me and I stop.
