Page 5 of All This Time

There are other reasons he doesn’t visit home often, though. Reasons only I and a few others know about.

Unfortunately, in a matter of hours, I’ll be forced to come face-to-face with the man that not only broke my heart but showed me his true colors in a way that made me question if he was ever really honest with me.

Elliot Thorne, one-fourth of my older brother Rhonan’s best friend group, is getting married in just a few weeks, which means the entire crew will be here, including the man who’s still ruining my dating life, even after all this time.

And because he’s the best man and I’m the maid of honor, I’ll have to pretend like he doesn’t still affect me while performing countless wedding party duties.

Some therapists might say I have suppressed rage and anger I should deal with when it comes to him. That maybe telling him how he made me feel back then would help me move on.

But that would mean admitting how naïve I was to believe we felt the same about one another, and my pride just isn’t letting me go there—at least not yet.

“Laney? You still in there?” Yvonne reaches over and raps her knuckles on my forehead.

I swat her hand away. “Good gracious. Yes, I’m still here.”

“You didn’t answer my question.”

“Which is?”

“Did you tell your date that Fletcher is actually coming to town tomorrow?”

I shake my head and resume sweeping. “No, and you owe me a dollar.” She just sticks her tongue out at me.

Claudia comes out from her nail room, joining the two of us. “Well, he already booked a manicure with me, so…”

I stop mid-sweep and glare at her. “You’re joking, right?”

“Nope.” She pops the p before continuing to smack her gum.

“I guess now’s the time to tell you that he booked a massage with me too,” Yvonne says as she rubs her palms together. “God, I can’t wait to rub that man down with oil.”

“You’re both fired.” I turn my back to them and take the dustpan over to the trash can.

“Oh, please. We all know you need us, honey. And Fletcher booking appointments here is a good thing. It means more business, whichmeans more money. You know, that stuff that keeps this place running?”

“The salon does just fine without him.” I put the broom and dustpan away just as the door opens and Elliot’s fiancé, Tori, comes walking in.

“Tori!” I paste on a smile, grateful for the distraction. “What are you doing here?”

“Laney!” she chirps, barely connecting her fingertips with my shoulder as we attempt to emulate a hug. “I just stopped in to make sure that we reserved spa time for the day before the wedding.”

My brows draw together. “Um, yeah…we did that last month.”

She sighs and smacks her palm to her forehead. “God, that’s right. I’m sorry. I’m just really overwhelmed with this whole thing. That’s why I’m so glad that I have you to keep everything straight for me.”

I grind my teeth together as I smile, fighting to hide my annoyance. “Well, that’s what maid of honors are for, right?”

Yvonne calls out to me as she heads back to her space. “This isn’t over, Laney!”

“Yes, it is!” I yell over my shoulder before turning back to Tori. “What’s going on?”

I lead her over to the waiting area where we take a seat in two of the olive green chairs.

Tori sighs as she stares off to the side. “My boss isn’t being very flexible about the wedding, and it’s stressing me out. Looks like I’m going to be stuck in Nashville most of the time leading up to the wedding.”

I blink slowly. “Okay…”

“It just means I’m going to have to lean on you even more than I already have.” She says it like an apology, but her smile doesn’t exactly seem sorry.