“Shoot,” I say, scrolling through them. “The bachelorette party is starting in like an hour. I totally went MIA on everyone. Sophia is freaking out apparently.”
Brooks nods. “You’re a good friend.”
I roll my eyes. “Is that what we’re calling it?”
We laugh again, and there is something in the words we say that is deeper than talking. It’s like he gets me.
And I get him.
“Maybe tomorrow, we can —”
“It’s the rehearsal dinner. The whole thing is going to be…”
“Exciting? Thrilling? Your best friend’s dream come true?”
“Right.” I smile tightly. “The groom’s family is coming over early tomorrow to get all the decorations from my house, and then we’re headed to the lodge to set up the wedding. It’s going to be a busy forty-eight hours.”
“Of course,” he says. “If you need a hand, call me. I’ll be there.”
“Thanks,” I say, meaning it. “I might just take you up on that. You know how we were talking about people being in our corner?”
He nods, his hand on the small of my back. “What about it?”
I drop my chin, knowing what I’m going to say is the most vulnerable version of me. “Well, I want someone in mine.”
Brooks lifts my chin, his hands calloused and capable. “I want someone in mine, too.”
“Be my date to the wedding,” I say. Brooks frowns. Surprised. “Or not, I add. I mean — no pressure.”
“That’s not why I’m frowning.”
“Why then?” I ask, my belly filled with butterflies.
“Because I was thinking when we go to a wedding together, it ought to be ours.”
My eyes widen, but the words don’t shock me. “Brooks,” I say, blinking to avoid crying I front of this man I hardly know. This man I want to know everything about.
“No pressure,” he says with a chuckle. “Of course, I’ll be your date. To the rehearsal dinner, and the wedding.”
I nod as he opens my car door. “Are we really happening? Like is this…. a thing?”
“No,” he says firmly. “That’s not what this is called.”
“It isn’t?”
“Noelle, this isn’t any old thing. This is the thing.”
I bite my lip, shaking my head. “Yesterday you told me your life was in Seattle.”
“Maybe I was wrong. Scout loves it here. This is where her family is. And in the end, isn’t that all we have? And I love it here. Turns out, I love … everything about this place. Everything.”
His words catch me off guard … even though they are the exact ones I want to hear. “You’re insane.
“I think you’re right about that.” He grins, and it reaches his eyes. So bright and beautiful, seeing straight to my heart. “Be safe tonight, and if you need a ride, call me. Please.”
“I promise,” I tell him, hating that we’re saying goodbye. But my phone starts pinging again, and I know I’m pushing my luck.
“Soon,” he tells me. “I’ll see you soon.* * *The bar is packed — everyone is apparently home for the holidays and avoiding their families. Tillie, Kensie and I — her Linesworth crew — are surrounded by a pack of Sophia’s sorority sisters and I’m only on a first name basis with them, we don’t have anything in common except Sophia.
When Sophia left for college, I stayed here and went to a culinary school a few towns away, working my way through school. Sophia on the other hand, moved to Seattle the first chance she got, and every time I see her, she has a new promotion and a fancier pair of heels. Her college friends seemed to have followed suit. Me? I’m a small-town girl, through and through. I like living somewhere where everyone knows my name. Where the owners of the bakery where I work have taken me under their wing. I don’t have any family, but I do have Linesworth.
Tillie carries a tray of shots to table with a massive grin, and the other bridesmaids whoop and holler in excitement.
“What are you smiling about, Tillie?” I ask, adjusting my black mini dress as I teeter on a stool. I’m trying to be present, engaged, but my mind is on Brooks and Scout. I love Sophia, but I the only place I feel like I belong, is with the two of them.
“Oh, I’m just excited to see Sophia drink this Buttery Nipple.” She hands one to Sophia, who is decked out in a little white veil and a sash that reads BRIDE TO BE.
“I don’t do shots,” she groans.
“Until now!” Kensie adds with a laugh. “Do it, do it, do it!”
We all crack up, taking our own shots from the tray and pour them back. “Oh god, sugar rush,” I say with a snort. “Though, that’s not half bad.”
“Okay, I’m getting the next round,” Kensie says, standing. Sophia asks for champagne but Kensie waves her off. “Nope, I’m getting us Snowshoe Shots.”
“This was a bad idea. I don’t do well with hard alcohol,” Sophia moans until the next round of shots arrives. Then she takes them like nobody’s business. After five, I cut her off. “Slow down, sweetheart. Don’t want you totally wrecked for tomorrow.”