sniffles a bit through her vows which I helped her write.
Brady’s voice sounds like his balls are in a vice when he calls her Banks.
“You may kiss your wife,” the minister says.
Brady and Nat kiss and there is not a dry eye on the beach. My tears stay inside my eyes, burning them.
“May I introduce Mr. and Mrs. Coldwell.”
The crowd erupts.
Petals fill the air like it’s snowing as we walk the lantern-lit path back. For a second time, Bev takes my arm and walks down the aisle.
“You’re an idiot.”
“We have to stop meeting like this,” I say.
“Maybe if you stop being an idiot, we will. Moron.” She sighs but somehow she does it with a smile while waving and nodding as we march all the way to the first photo op. “Lori, when I put Jenny in the cabin next to you, I figured maybe you two could bang it out and you’d have fun.”
“Well, that worked. Believe me, Bev. So thanks for that.” I don’t bother to sugarcoat the bitterness in my tone.
“I didn’t think you’d fall for the girl. And I certainly didn’t think she’d fall for your dumb ass. Especially, after we got to know her and realized how amazing she is. She is way out of your league, buddy. But here we are. She’s pregnant with your kid.” Bev steers us because I’ve gone on autopilot.
I swallow the lump forming in my throat. My kid.
“I know you’re upset—if Geoff came to me next week and said he was pregnant, I’d be crushed. That’s not the plan. That’s not what I want. But try to step out of your privileged boots and imagine for one second how hard this has been on her and what she’s going through and how you just reacted to a problem you helped create. You left her alone with a mess you made. One hundred percent of pregnancies are caused by men, my dude.” She pats me on the arm as we get to the long grass on top of the sand dune where the setting sun has turned the sky slightly orange, tinting the ocean behind us.
“You guys ready?” Geoff asks, his smile lingering on Bev.
She leans in, her whispers touching my cheek, “And just so ya know, that pregnancy test you saw came out of Nat’s purse, not Jenny’s. Nat’s mom found it and lost her damn mind. Jenny saved the day by claiming it, saying Nat was holding it for her.”
That means I’m carrying the pee stick that belongs to Nat and Brady in my pocket. Knowing that makes it weigh less but feel nastier.
Overwhelmed, I paste a smile on my face because the alternative is stress pacing, which Nat and Brady don’t want pictures of.
Pictures last an hour, mostly because Brady’s done, but also because Sami has an oceanic photo shoot in mind for tomorrow after breakfast.
We eat, they eat, I push food around my plate.
The toasts at this wedding crush my soul.
Brady’s father missing the event is a theme and Andy’s speech pushes more rusty tears to my eyes though I fight them back. Brady doesn’t. He cries freely, making the crowd of people love him a little more.
His mother’s soft and sweet words, spoken with a lack of confidence and experience in public speaking, is a destroyer. We’re all dying until the end when she smiles and says, “We’ve made a decision, if you blow this, BJ, Nat stays in the family and you have to find new relatives.” She winks, fully aware she just said, “blow this BJ.”
Brady’s dying and nodding, muttering, “Fair, that’s fair.”
Nat doesn’t drink from her champagne glass. Brady drinks way too much.
And, eventually, the evening ends with everyone dancing like pagans around fires on the beach to a live band.
I find a comfortable seat and watch, my mind whirling and counting down the seconds before I can reasonably go home and see Jenny without being the person who ruined my best friend’s wedding.
Sami finds her way to me, stumbling and crazy. Since having the baby, she hasn’t drank so the effects on her are heavy. She plops down in the chair and points. “I love this. This pauper wedding is way better. Less nonsense! I’m adding that to the blog about it all.”
“You do seem lighter here.”
“I am.” She’s breathy. “I feel so free. Ya know?”
“No.” I laugh bitterly. Freedom is the last thing I feel at this moment.
“Stop being a bitch, Lori. Go find Jenny and make this better.”
“I don’t