without any reminders and now, in two days’ time, it was all surfacing.
“I’ve had reporters calling me for the past two hours. What are you telling them?”
“Nothing. My phone is at home.”
“They’ve been blowing me up. And JJ too.”
It made sense that the press would contact JJ and Jackson. They were the only other two family members that were public figures. JJ had been a major league baseball pitcher, and Jackson had his own notoriety as an Oscar-winning cinematographer.
JJ must’ve heard his name because he walked around the pen to us, a smirk on his face. “We talking about the kissing bandit?”
“Seriously, what were you thinking?” Jackson asked, knowing how much I treasured my privacy.
“I wasn’t.” Honestly, I hadn’t been thinking at all. I’d been acting purely on instinct.
“I didn’t even know that you knew Sasha.” JJ shook his head, a smirk still on his face, clearly reveling in my predicament.
“I don’t.”
Both my brothers stared at me like they thought I was full of it.
“I swear. I’d never said one word to the girl before she caught the bouquet. The photographer told us to get together to take a picture and the next thing I knew, we were kissing.” That was the truth, not that anyone actually believed it.
“What does she have to say about it?” JJ’s smirk remained in place.
“I don’t know.”
“Didn’t she stop by the station today?” Jackson continued taking pictures of the kids.
I nodded.
“That wasn’t the only visitor he had at the station,” JJ singsonged.
People wondered why I wanted privacy. This was why. Everyone knew everything about my life.
“Oh really?” Jackson turned toward me.
“Rachel showed up right before Sasha. She was leaving just as Sasha was arriving.”
“What did Rachel want?” I could hear the protectiveness in Jackson’s tone.
He’d always been that way. The three of us were close because we were born in rapid succession. The middle clump, as my dad used to say. Jackson and I were ten months apart, and JJ and I were eleven months apart.
“She wanted to apologize.”
Jackson didn’t respond.
“I’m more interested in what Sasha wanted,” JJ shifted the conversation.
“Nothing. She was there to drop off muffins.”
JJ tilted his head. “Is that a euphemism?”
“No.”
“What did she say about all the press?” I could hear that Jackson was still in protective mode and clearly thought that Sasha must’ve had an ulterior motive for the kiss. I didn’t blame him for thinking that, but I didn’t think that was the case.
“I don’t think she knew about it. Her phone was dead because she left her charger in her car which was still at the church. I gave her a ride to go pick it up,” I explained.
“So you guys obviously spoke.” Jackson put the camera down and turned his attention to me. “The kiss didn’t come up?”
“I don’t think she remembered it.” It was just a feeling that I had. I knew that she was an actress, so there was a chance that she was pretending that she didn’t remember. But my gut said that she didn’t.
JJ cringed and Jackson just stared at me blankly.
“How is that possible?” Jackson asked.
“It was so bad she blocked it out,” JJ offered.
“She’d been drinking.”
JJ’s head fell back as he laughed. “There’s all this drama going on and she doesn’t even remember the kiss?”
“I don’t think so.” As I talked to my brothers I was actually getting worried for her. This was a lot to deal with and I knew that she was already going through it with her boyfriend, or I guess ex-boyfriend. I really wished that I’d said something today, made sure she was okay. But her showing up out of the blue, with muffins, and then acting like she had no memory of the kiss had thrown me for a loop.
Jackson must have sensed my concern. He slapped his hand on my shoulder. “I’m sure she has people to handle it.”
I nodded, feeling an even stronger urgency to talk to her. I would call her, but I didn’t have her number. I started calculating what time the party would be over and if it would be appropriate to stop by Mrs. Nelson’s and check on her.
“Heads up. Incoming.” JJ lifted his chin to motion behind me. “She doesn’t look happy.”
My heart skipped in my chest. Was she here?
Glancing back I saw that Mrs. Nelson was walking straight toward me with purpose in her gait. “Well, if it isn’t Hot Lips Houlihan.”
I only got the reference because my dad had loved M*A*S*H. I looked back to see