by Kaylee Ryan
“I’ll be holding out for a long damn time. Having too much fun being single.”
“Trust me,” Caleb chimes in, “one woman is not as bad as you make it sound.”
“Nope. You know every inch of her body. She lets you in anytime you want. All you have to do is love her and be faithful.” I smirk.
“Yeah, you two can keep spouting that shit. I’m out.”
“You’re all out. I’m having a quiet, relaxing day, remember?”
“She’s on her way over, isn’t she?” Alec asks.
“No, but she’ll be here later, and I don’t plan to leave this apartment until I have to go to work on Sunday morning. And I won’t be answering the locked door either,” I say pointedly.
It takes me thirty more minutes to get them out the door. I double check the lock and then rush to the bedroom to find Collins. I fucking hate that she was hiding in my room. Caleb’s wedding can’t come fast enough. Opening my bedroom door, I find her curled up on the bed, the pillow I slept on last night clutched in her arms, sleeping peacefully. She’s gorgeous. As quiet as I can, I snuggle in next to her, wrapping her in my arms. I can’t think of a better way to spend the day.
“We made it through it,” I tell Grady as we’re climbing into bed. Tonight was Caleb and Emily’s rehearsal dinner, and we made it through without giving away our secret. It was difficult to say the least. We’re paired up in the wedding, so I had to walk down the aisle with him. I can feign indifference from a distance. But when he’s right next to me, my hand resting in the crook of his arm, the heat of his body seeping into mine, that’s a challenge.
“We did,” he says, wrapping his arms around me. “Now the wedding and then next week, when they get back, we get to tell them.”
“One more week of hiding.”
“Thank fuck. I want the world to know you’re mine.”
“He’s not going to be happy, Grady. I hate the thought of coming between the two of you.”
“There is no choice here, Collins. Your brother and I have been through a lot together. He’s been my best friend my entire life, but you… what I feel for you trumps all of that. It would suck to have him hate me, to lose his friendship, but it would kill me to lose you. I can’t… no, I won’t, not again. I fucked up all those years ago. I own that. I’m not making the same mistake twice.”
“I hope he comes around.”
“He will. When we have kids and he’s missing out on being a part of our lives, a part of their lives, he’ll come around. It might take him some time, but I’m confident he’ll accept us in the long run.”
“Kids?” It’s hard for me to wrap my head around the fact that he’s planning our future. A future with kids. Plural.
He laughs. “Is that the only part of that you heard?”
“No.” I smack his chest playfully. “I heard you, but that part stuck out.” How could it not? I’ve dreamed of this moment, of falling madly in love and starting a family. It was always, Grady that was there by my side. My heart swells knowing that he feels the same way.
“You do want kids, right? I mean, we’ve not talked about it. I just assumed.”
“Do you?” I counter.
“Stop answering my questions with a question, but yes, I do. I want a little girl who looks just like her momma.”
“Funny, I was thinking a little Grady might be nice.”
His lips take mine in a tender kiss. “How many?” he asks when he pulls away.
“At least two, maybe three.”
“Three, maybe four,” he bargains.
“Let’s just see how it goes.”
“Yeah? You saying you want to marry me, Collins Ward?”
“Are you asking?”
“There you go again.” He tickles my side, and I squirm in his hold.
“Not officially, but I will be.”
“You can’t get married without your best friend.” It’s tearing at my heart to think about the fallout that is bound to come from this. I hope Caleb can see how in love we are and accept that Grady is good to me. That we are fully committed to each other. I hope he can accept that his little sister is madly in love with his best friend.
“You’re right, that’s why I’m marrying her.”
Lifting up on my elbows, I look at him. “What did you just say?”
“I said, I’m marrying her. I won’t be getting married without my best friend because she’ll be standing beside me. Sure, I have the guys, and I hope that Caleb is there standing next to me as well, but at the end of the day, it’s you, Collins. You’re the first person I think of when I have a good day, and the first I want to see when I have a bad one. Caleb will always be my best friend, but the top spot, that’s reserved all for you.”
I take a minute to compose myself as his words have me choked up. “Thank you for waiting. For giving us this time together. I feel like our past is just that, the past. I no longer feel as though you’re going to up and leave me. I needed this time to have you all to myself. I know it was hard, and that it goes against what you wanted to do, but thank you for agreeing to it.”
“Don’t you know by now that I can’t say no to you? Baby, I’d give you the world if I could.”
“How about forever instead?”
“Are you asking me to marry you?”
“What if I was?”
“Yes.” It’s one word, a simple three letters, but they stop my heart all the same.
“One day,” I say, choking out the words. What I really want to say is let’s hop a flight to Vegas, or Gatlinburg, or the courthouse on Monday. Tomorrow is my brother’s day. We’re going to get through this wedding, send the happy couple off on their honeymoon, and then drop the bomb we’ve been hiding. If we make it through that, then we’ll be ready to face anything.
“One day soon,” he says, kissing me softly.
We kiss until we’re both breathless. Grady surprises me when he kisses my temple and whispers goodnight. I love that about us. I love that our relationship has substance, that it’s not all about sex. Tonight, we had intimacy without intercourse, and it was perfect. I don’t know that three years ago we would have been ready for this. I’m starting to think that Grady did the right thing. His actions that night led us here, and this is where I want to be, where we both want to be. I make a mental note as I drift off to sleep to tell him thank you.
I’m up early the next morning. I have to meet Mom, Emily, her mom, and sisters at the venue to get our hair done. “Hey.” I kiss Grady’s bare shoulder to wake him up. He rolls over and wraps his arms around my waist where I’m sitting on the edge of the bed.
“Come back to bed,” he mumbles.
“I can’t. I’m meeting the girls to get our hair and nails done. I won’t see you again until we get to the venue.”
“What time is it?” he mumbles.
“Eight.” I run my fingers through his hair. “You don’t have to be there until noon. The wedding is at three.”
“Why do you have to be there so early?” he asks, his voice muffled as he speaks into the pillow.
“Because us ladies, need to go get beautiful.”
“Pfft, you’re already beautiful. Come back to bed.” He tries to pull me down with him, but with my feet planted on the floor, I have some leverage.
“You’re sweet, but I need to go. This is all a part of being in the wedding. Besides, you’ll be with the guys later.”
“One more week.” He says exactly what I’m thinking.
“One more week. In fact, I thought maybe we can have dinner with our parents next week? I’m not as concerned about them as I am Caleb. As long as we keep what happened in the past out of it.”
“That’s a part of who we are.”
“Yeah, maybe we can leave out the fact that I gave you my virginity? Keep it PG for the parentals?”
He chuckles. “Might be a good angle.”
“Indeed. I have to go. I’ll see you later at the venue.” I stand from my spot on the bed and his han
ds fall away. Bending over, I kiss his cheek. “Love you.”
“Love you, too,” he mumbles, and I know he’s going right back to sleep.
When I arrive, everyone else is already there. Mom pulls me into a hug, and then Emily scoops me up. There is an entire team of stylists from a local salon doing our hair, nails, and makeup. There is an assortment of bagels, pastries, and fresh fruit that we graze on throughout the morning.
“I love your hair,” Emily’s sister, Samantha, tells me.
“Thank you. I’ve been contemplating getting it cut, but I always chicken out.”
“No!” she exclaims. “Don’t cut it. It’s gorgeous.”
I smile at her, but before I can reply, my mom interrupts me. “Collins, can you go check on the guys? You know all of them, so you’ll know who to look for. Emily is worried they’re not all here.”
“It’s too quiet,” Emily chimes in. “We all know Bryce and Alec are not quiet,” she says, making those of us who know them well burst with laughter.
“Yeah, I’ll go check on them.” Looking down, I’m already in my dress. “Wait, should I slip out of my dress?” I ask the room.
“You’re not the bride, silly.” Mom laughs. “Just go check on your brother and the boys and report back to us.”
“Got it.” I salute to them and slip out the door. It’s not until I’m out of the room and roaming the halls do I realize I’m not sure where the guys are getting ready. After all the details and wedding planning, it’s one thing that never came up. Not that it needed to. I mean, we’re all here at the same venue, but this place is huge. I still don’t understand why they chose such a huge place for just under one hundred guests. Oh, well, it’s not my wedding, and regardless, it’s going to be a beautiful ceremony.
I reach the main ballroom, and stop and look around, taking it all in. Not much has changed since last night except for the fresh flowers and their sweet floral smell. Tears of happiness prick the back of my eyes for my brother and Emily. I can only hope that when this day comes for me, that it’s Grady by my side and that my brother will feel the same joy for us as I feel for them. I send up a silent prayer that everything works out.
Breaking out of the thoughts, I head to the other side of the building where I assume the guys will be. I hear a commotion at the end of the hall, and that’s where I’m headed when someone snags my arms and pulls me into them. I yelp in surprise, but immediately recognize his voice and his smell.
Grady.
“Hey, baby,” he says softly, kissing my bare shoulder. His hand is gripping my waist, and he’s shirtless.
“W-where is your shirt?” I stutter, because let me tell you, Grady Carmichael shirtless will render you speechless. Trust me.
“I had to use the bathroom. What are you doing on this side? Not that I’m not happy to see you.”
“I’m coming to make sure everyone is here. Emily had this feeling that Alec and Bryce might be late.”
“Nah, we’re all here. You look beautiful.” He kisses me on the shoulder one more time. “I’m glad you left your hair down.”
“We all did,” I tell him. Emily has hers up, but her sisters and I left ours down. “You better get back. Go ahead of me. I’ll wait before I come to the room.”
“One more week,” he says, kissing me softly. Stepping back, he drops his hand from my hip, turns and walks away.
I count to two hundred slowly before making my way down the hall and knocking on the door. Grady answers. “Hey.” He smiles big, stepping back to let me in.
“Everyone decent?” I say loudly, covering my eyes with my hands.
“No way I’d let you in otherwise, baby,” his deep voice whispers in my ear.
“Hey!” Caleb is standing before me in just a few long strides. “What are you doing here, little sister?” He wraps me in a hug. “You look beautiful,” he says.
I catch Grady’s eye over his shoulder, and he’s wearing an “I told you so” grin. “Thank you. I’m just checking on things for Em, making sure everyone is here and accounted for.”
“Aww, is my bride nervous?” His smile is huge.
“Nope. Cool as a cucumber. We just haven’t heard anything from any of you, so she wanted to make sure everything was set, and all of you”—I point to Grady, Bryce, and Alec—“were here and ready to go.”
“Come on, Collins,” Bryce says, stepping next to me and putting his arm around my shoulders. “You know the real reason you came on our side of the lot.” He winks. “You wanted to see me.” He pulls me a little closer, and I hear a growl. Normally, I would roll my eyes at such an obvious act of possessiveness, but the growl, it came from Grady. When it’s my man, it’s a turn-on. However, there is not time for that now. I have to diffuse the situation before my growly boyfriend gives us away.
Thinking it’s Caleb, I look at him, but he’s smiling. Grady, however, looks murderous. “Nope,” I say, removing his arm from around my shoulder and stepping away. “Great, the gang’s all here. I’ll report back. See you in about an hour or so,” I say, not knowing the exact time, but knowing that the wedding is drawing closer.
“Tell my wife she has nothing to worry about,” Caleb says. I can’t help but notice the emphasis he put on the word wife.
“Got it. You four stay out of trouble.” I wave over my shoulder and rush out the door. I thought Grady was going to give us away. I had to get out of there. This day has barely even started. Thankfully, I’m walking with him in the wedding party. I’m not sure how things would have turned out if I were paired with Alec or Bryce. We were lucky the night he drew and got me. Maybe, just maybe that luck will continue when we tell my brother about us.
I don’t take my eyes off her as she leaves the room. I’m still standing here staring at the door, trying to get myself in check. I don’t know what it is, but when I see Bryce’s hands on her, it drives me mad. Maybe because I know that behind all the kidding and smiles, that he really wants her. He used to talk about how hot she was when we were younger.
Before that night.
Before everything changed.
Now here I am, clenching and unclenching my fists to keep from punching him in the damn face, when in reality, he didn’t do anything wrong. He doesn’t know she’s mine. None of them do. Slowly, I inhale a deep breath and release it. After today, it no longer matters. I’ll make sure everyone knows she’s mine. We’ve agreed to tell our parents this week. In fact, I already sent my mom a text and asked if we could have dinner next week. I hope Collins was serious because I’m ready.
I’ve been ready.
“Hey, can the two of you go check in with Dad and make sure nothing else needs to be done? He mentioned we might need ushers. If that’s the case, I thought maybe you guys could help out before the ceremony?” Caleb asks.
I don’t turn around. I don’t know if he’s asking me, but I need another minute. I can’t look at Bryce just yet without still wanting to knock Bryce on his ass.
“Sure, Grady, you coming?” Alec asks.
“Actually, I need someone to stay here and help me with this damn tie. Besides, he’s not even dressed yet.”
He’s right. I’m not. I’m in nothing but my gray dress pants. I can be ready in a matter of minutes, but as the groom, I’m sure he wants to make sure that everything goes off without a hitch for Emily. I hear the door and take another deep breath.
“When were you going to tell me?” Caleb asks from behind me.
Slowly, I turn to face him. “Tell you what?” I ask the question, but I already know the answer. Somehow he’s figured it out. He knows me better than anyone, and my reaction to Bryce didn’t go unnoticed. All I can think about is that Collins is going to be pissed. Today of all days he has to figure it out? We worked so hard to not ruin this day.
Even the best-laid plans can go astray.
He laughs humorlessly. “Fuck off, Grady. Just tell me.”
“Look, man,” I hold my hands up in surrender, “I’m a doctor, not a damn mind
reader. Tell me what you’re talking about.” I continue to play dumb on the off chance that my suspicion is not correct. Maybe there’s a small chance he hasn’t figured it out.
“You wanna play that way? Fine. How long have you been sleeping with my sister?”
And there it is. “That’s a complicated question.”
“Un-complicate it.”
“What gave us away?”
He’s standing before me, hands on his hips, shaking his head. “The way she looks at you. Hell, the way you look at her. Your eyes follow her no matter where she is in the room. Not to mention, you were ready to tear Bryce’s arms off for touching her.”
“He’s always fucking touching her,” I grumble under my breath.
“Why does that bother you?” he prompts.
“Why doesn’t it bother you?” I counter.
“Because I know my sister. I know she would never go there, not with Bryce. And lately, it seems like you’ve got her covered.”
I can tell by the look in his eye the jig is up. I debate on holding out and pretending like I have no clue what he’s talking about, but this is my best friend. I’m surprised we’ve made it this long without him noticing. “I’m in love with her. I have been for a long damn time. Before you yell at me, or punch me, which you have every right to do, you need to know she’s not just a fling, man. I love her, like crazy, head-over-heels would-marry-her-today-if-I-thought-she-would-say-yes in love with her.”
He’s quiet for a few minutes then says, “I can see that. What I don’t understand is why you didn’t tell me?”
“I wanted to.” I hesitate, not wanting to throw Collins under the bus. “We wanted to, but we didn’t know how you would take it. We were going to tell our parents next week, and then you and Emily when you came home from your honeymoon. We didn’t want to ruin your big day.”
“Really?” he scoffs. “You think you being with Collins would ruin my wedding?”
“Well, I mean, she and I are both in the wedding party, and we didn’t want things to be tense and uncomfortable. We just wanted it to be a good day for the two of you.”
