I patted his back, my heart jumping to my chest. This guy—this awesome guy—was supposed to be my brother-in-law. I swore I saw their future as though it had already been written. I smiled for his benefit as I forced my attention back to my mission.
We said our good-byes, and I was back to trailing Brandy like the secret sister stalker I was.
Moving like a sleuth, I ducked behind walls, behind a vending machine, and into a few stores to follow Brandy.
My phone rang in my purse, but I didn’t miss a beat as I plucked it from my pocket.
“Sorry.” It was Lyria. “I just can’t … I’m just not ready to see him yet.”
“He works with Nana, Lyria. Nana is, like, your favorite person in the whole wide world. Unless you want to avoid Nana altogether, there’s no way you can avoid Justin.”
I followed Brandy to the food court.
“Sydney, I gotta go. I’m just too emotional right now to even help you in this little secret spy mission of yours. Seeing him after all this time …” Her voice trailed off.
Brandy was standing in front of the Chinese food joint.
“How are you going to get home?” I couldn’t exactly leave her stranded.
She sighed. “I’ll just Uber home.”
I sighed too. “Fine.” I wasn’t a completely unfeeling sister. I knew it was hard for her. But still,shehad lefthim.And we had no clue why.
Smelling the grease of fries and burgers and pizza in the food court was making me hungry. Maybe I could reward myself after this.
As Brandy waited in line for food, I thought back to when Alec had first brought her home, the golden-haired, green-eyed beauty. How excited he was to introduce us to his girlfriend, the pride in his eyes. At every family event, holiday gathering, and birthday celebration, he held her hand tightly, as though she were his prize. And the pride was equal in her eyes. She might be a spoiled brat, but if my brother loved her, I was willing to accept her into our lives. But now …
I rubbed at my temple. Maybe my sisters were right. I believed wholeheartedly that Alec was too young to get married. We all did. But he was in love and paying his own way. Even though we all thought he should live life to the fullest, travel and see the world, and party till his liver gave out—rites of passage for every twenty-something male—the truth was, that was not Alec. Alec was one of the few men out there who wanted to marry his high school girlfriend straight out of college, settle down, and have a big brood of his own—eventually.
Alec had always been the quiet kid in high school. Brandy was the head cheerleader and the popular one. When they met sophomore year, I didn’t think their relationship would last. They were two mismatched peas in a pod, but he was kind to her and treated her like a princess, unlike her previous boyfriends. That was how they had fallen in love, and they’d lasted ever since, standing the test of time.
And I had to come to terms with that.
I was just about to give up on my investigation when I saw something out of the corner of my eye. My gut tightened as though I had been punched hard, almost making me buckle forward.
Brandy reached up and wrapped her arms around the neck of an over-six-foot guy with a freaking beard—a lumberjack beard. She met him in a hug that was more than friendly.
My hands fisted at my sides, and I was about to charge forward, catch them in the act, but I let out two slow breaths and steadied myself. I bit my inner cheek to force some clarity and sanity back into my mind. Maybe he was just a friend. Maybe he was a friend that both Alec and she knew.
But then …
No freaking way!
When their fingers intertwined in an intimate handhold as they made their way to the front of the Chinese food line, anger bubbled in every part of me.
I wouldn’t doubt if my face was red and steam was coming from my ears. I held up my cell phone, fingers shaking with the intensity of my fury, ready to capture her betrayal.
After I take this photo, I’m going to confront them.
My cell was up, the camera on, the cheating pair front and center. My finger was over the button to take the photo.
“Sydney!”
What?My fingers stumbled, and my phone dropped out of my hand. I blinked and turned to see …
Austin?
CHAPTER5