I cleared my throat, trying to keep a straight face as I looked her up and down, imagining the look that would’ve been on my dad’s face if he’d seen her like this. “I know it sounds like empty platitudes, but it’s not. They really would’ve been proud of you, and I am, too. Scott is so lucky to have you, but I’m always going to be there for you. You know that, right? I don’t think of this as losing you to their family. I’m choosing to see it as gaining him into ours. I mean it when I say that whenever you need me, regardless of where in the world I am, I’m going to be here for you. Not just as a stand-in for Mom and Dad but as your brother. You are going to make an amazing wife. I know that Scott is going to take good care of you. I’ve already lectured him about the consequences if he doesn’t, but if either of you ever need me, here is where I’ll be.”
“Thank you, Colt,” she choked out, blinking hard to keep the tears at bay before she hugged me tightly. “We’re always going to be here for you, too. Remember that. It’s not a one-way street. If you ever need us, all you have to do is call.”
“I will,” I replied just as the music started playing. As I pulled away from Teddy and offered her my arm, I saw Emma and the other two girls wiping their eyes before they took deep breaths and the first one started around the corner to the aisle.
Emma was the last to go, and I noticed the way her ass swayed when she walked.Not the time.
I glanced down at Teddy. “Are you ready?”
“I’m ready,” she said, her voice still shaky. Exhaling slowly, she lifted her chin and squared her shoulders. Then she nodded as she looked up at me. “Okay, now I’m really ready.”
I wasn’t sure I was. We appeared around the corner and waited at the top of the aisle as the music morphed into the bridal march. When Scott saw her, I could see his heart melt.
Giving my sister away was going to be a bittersweet moment, but she was happy. She’d found a man who adored her and put her on a pedestal, and she loved him back just as much. Not all of us were that lucky, and if it couldn’t happen for me, then I was fucking ecstatic that it had happened for her.
One of us deserved to have the kind of love in our lives that our parents had had, and given a choice about which one it had to be, I’d let her have it any day.
Teddy was the best person in the world.
I placed her hand in Scott’s and turned to take my place. Emma watched me closely. I couldn’t help but wonder if I’d already had my chance to have what Teddy and Scott and my parents had had, and if maybe, just maybe, there was any way I could get it back.
20
EMMA
We made it to the wedding reception, and so far, everything had gone off without a hitch. There had been no big disasters, Teddy and Scott seemed to be enjoying themselves, and even Reece was on his best behavior. I was pretty sure it had been a front, but he’d even managed to look happy when his brother and Teddy had promised to spend the rest of their lives together.
The ceremony had been beautiful and there hadn’t been a dry eye in the house. Although I’d been afraid she might show up to ruin everything, Caitlin had stayed away. Reece’s higher spirits—and his sobriety—seemed to be holding, and as I looked around the reception venue, I realized that some of the things he and Colt had changed had definitely been for the best.
Even the freaking centerpieces were perfect now that they were in here, and despite how ostentatious they’d seemed when we assembled them, they didn’t look too fancy at all. Colt had also made the right call on the venue, the hundreds of strings of Christmas lights, the wine, the cake, and everything else.
I’d seen Teddy’s expression when she’d walked in, and I knew she agreed with me. We would never tell them they’d been right after what they’d put her through, but they had been.Maybe there’s something to be said for the big city experience after all.
However it was that they’d somehow known all this would work together, I was just glad that it had worked out so well and that somehow, it had turned Teddy’s big day into exactly what she’d wanted. Standing with my back to the bar counter, I swayed along with the music and watched the event unfold in front of me.
People were talking and laughing, dancing and stealing more pieces of the cake. Others were standing around the tables where the caterer Reece had gotten had set out a selection of after-dinner snacks. I’d thought it was a ridiculous idea to give people snacks after you’d already provided them with a meal, but judging by how many people were picking at the offerings on their way past, it hadn’t been so crazy after all. It was definitely something I’d learned and would keep in mind for my own big day—if it ever happened.
I sighed and finished the last of my cocktail. I was about to turn around to order another when the DJ made the announcement I hadn’t been looking forward to hearing. “Okay, everyone, the formalities are nearly over, but now it’s time for the official bridal party dance.”
I squeezed my eyes shut, not super excited about having to dance with Reece, but as the maid of honor and the best man, we had to do it. In my defense, he didn’t seem to be too excited to be pulling me into his arms, either.
“How are you doing?” I asked softly as the opening bars of the song sounded. He spun me in a circle before bringing me back to him.
He shrugged, holding me but not with much enthusiasm. “Honestly? I wish people would stop asking me that. No one really wants to know how I’m doing, and even if you really do, it’s not like I can spill my guts here, while I’m being happy for my brother and his bride.”
I made a sympathetic noise at the back of throat. “I suppose that’s true. For what it’s worth, you’re doing a good job of pretending not to be upset about it this evening.”
“Thanks.” He chuckled dryly. “I’m under strict instructions to look like I’m not falling apart.”
“Really? By who?”
“Colt,” he replied, and my heart skipped a beat just at the mention of his name. When he sighed, I had to remind myself to listen instead of getting lost in the daydreams that had been threatening to overwhelm me all day.
“My parents,” he went on. “Hell, even Scott asked if I thought I could put on a brave face. It’s like they were all worried that if they didn’t talk to me, I’d have a meltdown at my little brother’s wedding. I know I’ve been a bit of a loose cannon these last couple of weeks, but Caitlin fucking broke me. If anyone knew how torn up I’ve been, they’d understand that I could’ve been so much worse.”
“Sometimes people aren’t what we want them to be,” I said, as much a reminder to myself as it was to him. “It’s better to have found out now than after the wedding, though, right? A breakup is bad, but a divorce is worse. It costs a bunch of money on top of everything else.”
“It’s more the fact that there was anything to find out at all that gets me,” he grumbled. “Jesus. I need a drink.”