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"Yes," I replied quickly.
"I totally forgot to tell you that Chase was going to be on the flight too. I was actually going to ask you to get some intel on him. I'm a bit intimidated."
"Why?" I asked as she led me through the hotel. The pink-and-white colors from the lobby were mirrored inside too—mostly on the ceiling and the walls.
I knew Josh was wealthy, and I loved him to the moon and back for giving my sister the wedding of her dreams.
"Josh mentioned that he's a bit of a marriage skeptic, so I was wondering if he’d try to, I don't know, change Josh's mind or something."
I pressed my lips together. What could I say? Based on his attitude so far, I wouldn't put it past him. But I couldn't form an opinion on the man just because I'd sparred with him. Maybe I caught him on a bad day.
When we arrived in front of the room, Blair reached in her bag—probably searching for the key card—but I simply knocked at the door.
"Mom, we’re here," I announced.
Blair grinned as the door flew open. Mom was smiling from ear to ear. I looked more like her than Blair. I was petite, and my hair was blonde. Blair was a head taller, and her hair was light brown with blonde strands that really lightened up when she was in the sun for too long. She looked more like Dad, though we both had his brown eyes.
"Come here, girl," Mom said, hugging me.
"Okay, so what are we doing tonight? I'm really sorry that I got here so late. Is there still time for me to do my chores? Otherwise, I can just wake up early and do them tomorrow morning."
"No need for that. Chase has like a million brothers, and he asked them to take care of things,” Blair said.
Interesting.
"So tonight is just for us girls," she continued. "Sort of like a bachelorette party."
"I wanted to throw you one, but you said no." I tried not to sound accusatory, but I would've loved to do that for my sister.
"I don't need one. Josh isn't having one either. We decided that neither of us needs that nonsense. Spending time with the two of you is all I want. We've got Skinny Pop and a ton of other snacks."
"Come on, let's sit on the bed. Is Josh going to join us?" I double-checked.
"No, he's hanging out with Chase and his brothers at the bar. He’s actually spending the night in a separate room."
"How come?" Mom asked.
"We were going to do that for the wedding day anyway, so we can get dressed without seeing each other. So we decided to do it tonight too. That way I get to spend as much time as possible with my two favorite ladies before I'll be Mrs. Josh Hanson my whole life."
Mom smiled at her. "Darling, I can't believe you're getting married. You girls grew up fast."
Blair opened the mini fridge, grabbinga lotof packages.
We climbed on the bed and spread the snacks around us.
"Who's going to give you away?" Mom asked.
I sucked in a breath, and Blair went completely still. I was surprised this hadn’t come up sooner. We lost Dad in a car crash when I was eight years old and Blair was six. Of course, I'd figured my sister worked something out. At my own wedding, I just eliminated that part of the ceremony.
"Duncan. He’s one of Chase's brothers."
"Oh good. I’m so excited for you, dear." Mom smiled, but it was a bit wobbly; no doubt this whole event was bringing back tons of memories.
I got up off the bed. "You know what? I know this isn't a bachelorette party, but I still think we need some drinks."
"You’re right," Blair said. "There are two bars. The boys are in the big one, which is near the entrance where we came in, and the other one's at the beach. Actually, I think the one at the beach is closer."
“All right, I’ll head to that one, get our drinks, and bring them back here. Room service might take too long, and I can be really quick.” I was curious to explore that area anyway, and I didn't feel like running into Chase again this evening; I wanted to get a chance to gather my wits before that. I wasn't sure if Josh and Blair picked up on the strange interaction between us. I was going to search for him tomorrow morning and maybe clear the air before we went on with our duties. Since he was the best man, I was sure we’d spend some time together.