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“I can’t tonight, guys. I’m waiting for Grace to come home.”

“And you’ll see her later, we promise,” Linc says, grabbing my coat off the hook and tossing it at me.

I glance at the clock on the wall in the living room and back at my friends.

“Where are we going, and when will we be back?”

Linc groans, but Gavin chuckles.

“You got big plans or something?” Dutton asks.

Yeah, tell your sister that I’m in love with her and want to marry her.

But I can’t exactly tell them that.

“As a matter of fact, I do.”

Dutton parts his lips to argue, but Grace walks in the door.

“Oh no, what’s going on in here?”

“We came to steal your fiancé,” Linc says. “But he says he has plans tonight.”

I can tell instantly that she’s been crying. Her eyes have a small red glaze to them, and if she were to look right at her brothers, they’d know, too, but she pulls her eyes from mine and keeps them down.

“You should go with them,” she says. “A night out would be good for you.”

For me or for her?

“Yes!” Linc says. “You have permission. Let’s go.”

The boys all turn and walk out, but I make it over to Grace.

“We need to talk,” I tell her. “I want to stay in and talk.”

“Go,” she says and then looks up.

The look in her eyes breaks my heart. She’s upset with me. I know she is.

“Sunny, I don’t want to leave if you’re upset.”

“I’m fine. Really. Today was a lot, and I think having a little time in my home, alone, would do me good. I have a wedding to plan, too, so I’ll be busy anyway.”

“That’s what you want?” I ask.

She nods. “I’ll see you when you get back.”

She backs up a step, but I grab her coat and pull her to me, kissing her forehead. “Don’t be mad at me, Sunny, please. This isn’t a bad thing, all right? You and me. Maybe there’s a reason we didn’t have an exit plan. Maybe we weren’t sup⁠—”

“King, let’s go!” Gavin says. “Kiss her goodbye and make haste.”

“Make haste?” Linc says behind him. “What the fuck are you saying?”

“I’m …”

“Drunk already?” Dutton waves at his sister. “He’ll be back later.”

I sigh and give in. There is so much more to say, but I don’t want to rush it and say the wrong thing.