Page 105 of Runaway Bride’s Husband

Mom glanced between the two of us and back at the car, straightening up as she stepped out of my arms. “Alright. That’s quite enough of this. No one is drinking. The wedding is tonight. I wish you’d both reconsider coming, but if you’re going to insist, I won’t let you arrive intoxicated. Take your things to your rooms, and when you’re done, we’ll go exploring.”

“We will?” Holden made a show of twisting to look around. “What are we going to explore, the hotel?”

She huffed out a breath. “There’s a town just a few miles away. We’ll go there.”

When she looked back up at me with more tears gathering in her eyes, I took her hand and gave it a squeeze. “Let it go, Mom. That’s what I’m trying to do. I’m here as her friend and nothing more. This is how it needs to be.”

“It shouldn’t be,” she murmured, lifting a hand to my cheek. “You deserve better, Ryan.”

I shrugged. “We all do, but that doesn’t change the facts.”

She held my gaze for a beat. “Jane told me you’re finally moving back to Chicago. This is why, isn’t it?”

“Everyone wanted me back in the family fold,” I said. “That’s why I’m doing it. We should be together. Especially now. As it is, Isaac is stuck in Egypt most of the time. The rest of us need to be there for each other. It’s fine.”

“It’s so far from fine, it’s not even a joke,” Holden muttered, slamming the trunk shut after grabbing both of our overnight bags and shoving mine at my chest. “Let’s go. The longer we stand here, the better the chance we run into someone I’d rather run over with the car.”

Mom sighed, her lips pursing as my brother and I took off toward the entrance. I knew she wasn’t happy about any of this, but at least she was letting it go. Even so, she followed us in and looked at me with that maternal concern that made me feel twelve years old while we waited for the elevator.

“Don’t make yourself suffer just because you think you deserve to, Ryan. If you decide not to go to the wedding, it’s okay.”

“Thanks, but I’m going, Mom. I’d do anything for her.”

Mom whimpered with the effort it took to hold back her tears this time, but then she took a step back and waved at the elevator as the doors slid open. “Go, but come right back. Exploring will be a good distraction.”

As instructed, Holden and I dropped our bags in our rooms before heading back downstairs to meet up with Mom. Maggie and I had driven through here a couple times on our way to and from the estate, but we’d never stopped in the quaint little town to look around.

While Mom oohed and ahhed over supposedly handcrafted or artisanal finds in the shops, Holden and I stuck mostly to the sidewalks, both of us brooding with our sunglasses on and one foot kicked up against the bricks as we waited for her.

“You doing okay?” he finally asked, glancing down at his watch. “It’s almost time.”

“Yeah, I know.” I was viciously aware of every minute bringing us closer to sunset. “And no, I’m not okay.”

“I thought as much. If you stare at that wall any harder, your brain would probably start leaking out.”

“I’m just trying to make it through the day, man.”

“Yeah, I know. I guess I would have been genuinely worried if you were actually okay, knowing you’re about to go to Maggie’s wedding.”

When I flipped him off, he grinned, but that didn’t come as much of a surprise. Holden had developed this dark, almost irreverent edge after Dad had gone to prison, like he’d decided the easiest way to survive was to become the guy nobody could quite figure out.

He could be charming when he wanted, but underneath the charm, the confidence, and the bullshit was this sharp refusal to let anyone get too close. I understood it better than most, but I detested the fact that it was back in full force.

We spent the rest of the afternoon wandering around, stopping for coffee and lunch in between. Mom did most of the talking and Holden did all of the flirting, flashing every woman we came across that lazy smile he’d perfected at some point in high school.

While he chatted to a girl who’d approached him in a cafe, Mom glanced at me. “I worry about him sometimes.”

“Only sometimes?”

She sighed. “We’re going to have to support him and Wyatt a lot more over the coming months.”

“Just another reason I’m moving home, Mom.”

When she glanced at me again, I could tell she was about to ask about Maggie or what had happened between us, or something else I didn’t want to talk about, so I pushed my chair back and stood up. “We should be heading back soon to get ready.”

Mom blinked a few times, checked her watch, and nodded. “Yes, you’re right. Let’s go. Grab your brother, would you?”

“I mean, I can try.”