I wasn't expecting her to be here. Aunt Margaret married Paul Colton, the man of her dreams, and she got the most loyal, respectful, and dedicated man a person could hope for. They were the only reason I never gave up on love.
"She got him good, Aunt Margaret," I say fondly, smiling over at Eleanor who sniffles and laughs at once.
At least her Mad Hatter side has crept back into a slumber.
Tria grins as she looks over to our two aunts. "She got him damn good," she adds, making everyone's laughter bubble out.
Tria is just like me. Her mother was the other woman, and Eleanor, being the incredible woman she is, took us both in as her own. How in the hell did an angel end up with a twisted devil?
"You girls head on out. We've got a celebration planned. We've been waiting on this day for years," Aunt Melanie says, offering us a wink and a smile.
I start to hug Eleanor, but Dane tugs me away, wearing an amused smile on his face. I almost forgot about her crabs, and Dane just saved me from the contact transfer possibility. It’s a taxing job not to grin. Eleanor chuckles knowingly, and Dane leads me out, never saying a word.
Tria follows, but she pauses once we reach the outside. She glances at her phone, but she doesn't do anything.
"What's wrong?" Dane asks her while lacing his fingers with mine.
She frowns before looking back up. "Nothing. I just need to call a cab. You two can head on."
Dane looks to me, and I almost want to scream. We finally get to be together, but we don't get to be together because my life is going freaking crazy. Shit.
"Or you could come back to my place, and we could... talk?" I suggest, fighting back the groan of frustration.
Tears glimmer on her lids as she stares at me for a few silent moments. Finally, one of those tears falls, and I have to fight back my own.
"I'd like that."
***
DANE
"So you and Rain are official now, right?" Corbin asks as I grab the bouquet of roses from my table.
I'm sweating. I'm fucking sweating. I haven't been this nervous since I was a kid. This is just a date.
"I don't know. With all of her family stuff, we haven't really had a chance to talk since the other day. She and Tria have been staying at her house... talking about things."
"For two days?" Maverick asks as he joins us.
"I imagine it takes a while to squash over a decade of resentment. They had a lot to discuss, and I didn't want to interfere."
"I don't suppose we have to give you the whole 'break her heart and we'll break you' speech, do we?" Corbin drawls, trying hard to hide the amusement in his eyes.
"Funny," I mutter dryly.
Britt walks in wearing the new dress I bought her, and I can't help but smile. She's so different from the scruffy girl who had dirt caked in her hair when I met her.
Maverick whistles low and long as Britt humors us with a twirl. I hand her the bouquet of roses, and her grin only grows.
"I've never gotten roses before," she muses, staring at the soft tips of the petals.
"Now you have," I say before bending down to kiss the top of her head.
She smiles happily while clutching the roses to her, and I hold back a small bit of laughter when she tries to leave while still holding them.
"You're supposed to put them in water. You don't take them," I call out, prompting her to turn around.
She frowns as she looks down, and then back up. "But how will everyone know I got roses if I leave them behind?"
Maverick looks at me and shrugs, and Corbin snickers under his breath. If Britt wants to carry around her roses, I won't stop her.
"Let's go," Maverick chirps, proffering his arm to Britt.
She takes it, and they lead the way to the limo. As I sit down, my eyes go to Dale and Kode who are already waiting inside. Kode won't even look at me. Considering he hasn't answered my calls since the night of the tequila shot party, I'm assuming he's pissed at me for getting the girl. Not sure why. She was mine long before he ever thought about her in that way, and he's the only one I confided in. He knew how I felt about her, but he went after her anyhow. If anyone has the right to be pissed, it's me.
"I've never seen so many guys in tuxes," Britt says idly, glancing around the limo as she crosses her legs.
She's completely unaware of the silent standoff between Kode and me, so she continues chatting, using words I'll need to find a dictionary for later. But no one is really paying that much attention to anything but the elephant in the room.
The tension gathers, and everyone keeps looking from Kode to me, though my brother and I refuse to make eye contact. Maverick clears his throat, possibly trying to prompt someone to break the tension as we drive toward Rain's house.
"Is this an awkward silence or a comfortable one?" Britt asks earnestly, lifting her eyes to meet mine.