Page 20

Two Years Ago – June

Jordan

“This is a really stupid idea,” Ash tells me as we get ready for the rehearsal dinner. I fix the dusty pink tie around his neck and narrow my eyes at him. He might be right, but I’m not backing down.

“It’ll be fine. If she wants to go out of her way to avoid me, so be it. But I’m not going to make it easier,” I mumble.

Ash sighs and fidgets with the sleeves of his shirt, rolling them up to expose his forearm tattoo. “Can you two just get along? You already bickered over Christmas,” he says, looking at me disapprovingly.

“That’s because she brought some random date and he was a dickhead.”

“True, but you didn’t have to crush the guy so hard at Uno. And what about the All Star break?” he counters, and I cross my arms over my chest.

“What about it?”

“You guys turned everything into a competition that week. Board games, pond hockey, even snowboarding. To be honest, man, you were both kind of annoying.”

“Yeah, well. She’s the one that won’t accept my apology. I’ve tried to make things right but she’s stubborn,” I say morosely.

“Pot, meet kettle,” Ash scoffs, sitting on the couch to put his shoes on. “You did the same thing over Easter too. I just—I don’t want you guys to ruin this weekend. Robbie and Olivia don’t deserve that.”

My shoulders slump and I sit next to him, sinking into the couch. I rub both hands over my face and groan. “I know, I swear I’m not trying to be difficult. I’m just frustrated that she won’t talk to me.”

Ash leans forward and clasps his hands, resting his forearms on his knees.

“That’s tough, and I get it. I would be heartbroken and mad too if Eli never wanted anything to do with me after I fucked up.

” He looks over at me with keen blue eyes and I can’t believe I’m getting sage advice from Ash.

“I just think this particular weekend might be the right time to let it go,” he says.

I swallow, not wanting to admit that he’s right. I nod, but deep down the truth is that I don’t want to let her go.

“There you are,” Eli says, walking into the living room, dressed in black slacks, the same white button up that all of us are wearing, but wearing a dusty blue tie, indicating he’s part of Robbie’s wedding party. I pull at my matching one, loosening it up a bit.

“Here I am,” Ash says with a smirk, lifting up on his knees and pulling Eli down by his tie. They meet in a kiss over the back of the couch, and I check my phone just to give them some privacy. With all of us bunking up at the cabin, there’s not much of that to go around.

“You look good in pink,” Eli tells Ash, running his hand down the fabric of the tie.

His own tattoo of a sailboat peeks out of his sleeve and I smile at these two idiots, happy they got their shit together enough to admit they’re in this for the long haul.

I wouldn’t be surprised if they decided to tie the knot next.

“Is everyone ready?” Robbie asks from the hallway, fixing up his green shirt, opting to go without a tie.

“How come you don’t have to wear one?” Ash asks, frowning.

“Because I’m the groom.”

“So?”

“Take it up with the boss,” he says, chuckling.

“Olivia!!” Ash yells, and a moment later, Olivia steps out in a green dress that matches Robbie’s shirt, her dark brown hair flowing in waves around her shoulders. She’s barefoot and wearing very little makeup, but the smile on her face makes her look radiant.

Robbie gravitates toward her and kisses her forehead, whispering something none of us can hear. She blushes and squeezes his hand in acknowledgment.

“Do I have to wear a tie?” Ash whines, and she shrugs.

“That’s not up to me,” she says, returning to the hall and putting on a pair of sandals.

“Who is it up to then?” he asks, flailing his hands around like a toddler. We all chuckle and shake our heads, but then Alice comes down the stairs. She’s wearing a pink dress and her dark blond hair is pinned half up in a bun, strands of hair falling around her face.

“Me,” she says, smirking at Ash. “And that tie stays on no matter what.”

“Ugh, you’re no fun,” he says.

“Well, someone has to keep you all in check,” she says with too much sweetness in her voice. “And we need to head out or else we’ll be late.”

“Can I talk to you for a second?” I ask quietly as everyone heads out the door.

“Must we?” she sighs, turning back to look at me.

“Look, I just want to say that—” I start, thinking of ways to make her listen to me, that I’m not looking for a fight.

But then I notice the circles under her eyes, and the way she’s clutching the clipboard too tightly, and her bitten cuticles.

All at once, I understand the pressure she’s putting on herself and the anxiety she must be feeling, wanting this to go off without a hitch.

So instead, I smile and say, “You’re doing an amazing job, and everyone is having a blast.” Her mouth opens in surprise, but I keep going. “I know you don’t trust me much right now, but if you need anything—a break or some help—let me know, okay?”

She looks at me for a long moment, her blue eyes assessing my honesty. Finally, she nods, her shoulders relaxing. “Thanks.”

Alice

When Olivia asked me to help her with the wedding planning, I thought she meant picking out color schemes and going dress shopping.

It turns out she needed a lot more help than that.

Not that I’m complaining, I’m genuinely excited for her to officially be my sister-in-law and I cried big fat happy tears when she asked me to be her maid of honor.

Even though my mom helped find a venue in Traverse City and did the seating arrangements, seeing how we have a lot more of our side of the family coming, I still took on more than I could handle.

I’ve been stressing out, wanting to make this wedding perfect for them.

With Blue Line Brigade taking off and all but doubling the number of kids in attendance since last year, he didn’t have much time to plan the wedding.

And Olivia has been traveling around the country, reffing not only the regular season, but the playoffs too.

So it’s been mostly me and my mom pouring over all the details and logistics.

Olivia’s grandma, who moved to a nursing home in Grand Marquee recently, has also helped a little, to the best of her abilities.

She’s the sweetest old lady, and she very much approved of the pink and blue color scheme we chose.

Thankfully the rehearsal dinner went swimmingly. Everyone remembered their positions and timing for walking down the aisle, and the dinner itself was delicious, being held on the patio of a restaurant overlooking the bay.

I expected Jordan to pester me, wanting to apologize again for how he left things between us. Maybe I’ve been too stubborn, not hearing him out, but at the same time, I’m just trying to protect my heart. Especially from him.

What I didn’t expect was for him to be helpful.

Not only did he tell me I was doing a great job, but he looked out for me throughout the night, bringing me water and appetizers.

It was nice and thoughtful and infuriatingly kind of him.

Especially since I’ve been giving him a hard time for the better part of the last year.

Ever since he reconnected with us after Thanksgiving, he’s been more active in the group chat, sending us updates and video-calling Robbie more, which is especially annoying when I’m around and have to listen to them being besties.

I’ve done my best to ignore him every time he comes to visit, but it’s hard. He’s so damn sweet and likeable. And yet, I can’t get over the fact that he just left me behind like I meant nothing.

I take another sip of my coffee as I look out at the lake and mentally prepare myself for today. I love weddings, but I’m never planning one again. Unless it’s my own.

“Hey,” Olivia says from behind me. I startle, having not heard the sliding door open. “Sorry, didn’t mean to scare you.”

“Oh, it’s okay,” I smile at her, patting the spot next to me. Olivia joins me and rubs sleep from her eyes, leaning her head on my shoulder.

“Last night was amazing. You’ve truly outdone yourself,” she says, squeezing my knee. I place my coffee down next to me and wrap my arms around her.

“You deserve the world, my friend. I’ll make sure today is perfect, don’t you worry.”

She chuckles. “I’m not worried. I do think you missed your calling; you’d make a terrific wedding planner.”

I groan and let her go, grabbing my coffee once more. “You’re lucky I love you. I was just thinking how I’m never doing this again, unless it’s for my own wedding.”

“Fair enough, it’s a lot. I’m sorry we’ve put it all on you.”

“Don’t be. I’m glad you trusted me with this.”

“Of course,” she says. We sit in companionable silence and listen to the rustle of trees as we wave at the few neighbors out kayaking on the lake.

After a while, Olivia says, “Are you and Jordan okay?”

“I think so. I’ve been really harsh on him, but he was really helpful yesterday.”

“Maybe it’s time to hear him out,” she says, her green eyes watching me closely for a reaction.

I sigh and nod. “Yeah, maybe.”

When I arrive at the vineyard ahead of everyone else, the venue is a disaster of massive proportions.

Okay, maybe it’s not that bad, but the balloons are not set up around the arch by the entryway like I was promised they would be.

And the tables have nothing on them except for linen.

All the decorations I brought over yesterday are still in bins.

The venue coordinator was supposed to set them all up.

The guestbook is missing too, and I’m on the verge of tears.

I hold my breath, trying not to panic. This will set me back long enough that people will arrive and the tables won’t be ready. Nothing is going as expected, and I can’t focus enough to formulate a plan. I need help.

I bite my lip and pull out my phone, calling the one person I’ve been doing my best to avoid this week. He did offer to help. I just hope he’s up for the challenge.

“Al?” he asks in that deep voice of his.

“I need help,” I cry, my tears giving in almost instantly.

Jordan patiently listens to my rambling and calmly says, “I’m on my way.”