Mindy smiled at Addie and Gannon. “I know you didn’t see the ceremony, but would you like to be witnesses?”
The next few minutes felt like a blur. I signed my name, Sutton signed hers, and somehow my brother and Addie signed as witnesses.
“How about we all go grab a late breakfast?” Addie said.
“I thought you and Gannon wanted to get married?” Sutton asked.
Gannon and Addie exchanged a look and then focused back on us. “I think we’re okay waiting until our actual wedding day,” Addie said. “Can we please go somewhere and talk? Maybe The Maine Bakery?”
I was about to decline when Sutton said, “Okay, we’ll meet you there.”
Fuck.
All I wanted to do was get the hell out of dodge. Seeing how much Sutton had fought to keep herself from running out of Mitch’s office was enough to deal with for one day. Now I’d have to sit and hear about how awful it was to be forced into marriage to keep a fucking psychopath out of her life.
Outside, Addie kissed her sister on the cheek, then leaned up and kissed mine. “See you both there.”
We watched as they walked away, hand in hand. Once they’d crossed the street, I started toward my truck.
“Brody.”
I kept walking.
“Brody, please, will you slow down? I can’t walk that fast in these heels.”
Every part of me screamed to keep going. To not even get in my truck and just run as fast as I could. But I couldn’t do that to Sutton. No matter how much my heart was hurting. I slowed, and she eventually caught up.
“I didn’t mean for it to sound that way.”
“It’s fine, Sutton. It was pretty damn clear from the look on your face during the whole ceremony that you were repulsed by the idea of marrying me.”
She stopped walking, and I did the same. Turning around, I saw a look of confusion on her face. “You really think that?” she asked.
“Do you deny it?”
She started fiddling with her dress.
“I’ll take your silence as a no,” I said. “I’m sorry that I wasn’t the guy you dreamed of marrying. At least it’s simply a business arrangement. Once Jack is out of your life, we’ll get an annulment.”
She stood there and stared at me. When she didn’t say anything, I turned and started to walk away again, though I moved slower this time. I could hear her heels clicking on the sidewalk behind me.
Once we got to my truck, I opened the door and held out my hand to help her get in. She ignored it and climbed in, then stared straight ahead.
The drive to The Maine Bakery was about ten minutes. Neither one of us said a word until I parked and started to get out. Sutton’s hand landed on my arm, and I stilled.
“I won’t lie and say that it didn’t cross my mind that we might be making a mistake,” she said, “but it’s not for the reasons you think, Brody. I’m not repulsed by the idea of marrying you.”
All I could do was nod.
“It’s just that…I thought the next time I got married, it would be—”
I feel my body deflate. “With someone you wanted to marry. Someone you loved. I get it, Sutton. It’s fine. Let’s go in and explain all this to Gannon and Addie before they come out here and drag us inside.”
I opened the door and got out of the truck, then made my way around to open Sutton’s door. When I did, she turned, and something about the way she stared at me made me pause for a moment.
“Do you really think of this as a business arrangement, Brody?”
“What would you call it, Sutton?”