My stomach lurches. Planning. Wedding planning.
Elaine claps. “Oh, it’s going to be so exciting.”
Jay opens her mouth, probably ready to pump the brakes, but I press a hand to her side to quiet her. Not here. Not now. Soon enough, when I’m back in Boston, and hopefully she is too, we can say it didn’t work out.
Is that the real reason you don’t want to say anything, dude?
Yes.
Oh, it doesn’t have anything to do with the fact that you’re enjoying all this, that maybe you like being a fiancé and would one day love to marry Jaylynn at the country club?
No.
Okay maybe.
Dammit.
That’s when Dylan strikes.
“Wow, looks like Penn’s aunt is more excited than the bride to be. What about your parents, Penn, are they just as excited?”
Jay curls her arm around me, holding me tight as my pulse thunders, my control hanging by a thread. But one thing is clear, Dylan is looking for trouble, looking to take me down. He’s still the bully he was in high school. But yeah, he can say what he wants to me. But so help me if he hurts Jaylynn.
“Maybe they’re busy,” Dylan adds with mock sympathy. “Or wait, do you have any other family? Family is such an important thing in this small town.”
I feel Jay stiffen beside me. Her grip on me tightens, like she’s trying to keep me from lunging at him. I’m not going to do that. I’m not going to do anything to mess this festival up for her.
“Of course, he has family,” Jaylynn snaps, her voice sharp as broken glass. She exchanges a quick, loaded glance with her father.
Dylan just shrugs, feigning innocence, like he hasn’t just ripped open a scar that never fully healed. “Oh yeah? Then where are they?” He lets his gaze sweep the crowd in exaggerated mockery, as though proving a point.
And then something miraculous happens.
Before I can answer, Jaylynn’s family moves. One by one, her brothers and their wives, the kids still sticky with candy canes, her parents, and even the neighbors—all the carolers standing around in the frosty night—step in closer. Forming a wall. Closing ranks.
Around me.
For me.
My chest tightens, my throat going raw as my heart grows two sizes bigger, threatening to burst clean out of me. For the first time in too damn long, I’m not standing alone.
Dylan’s smile falters, his fake bravado cracking. Good. Let him choke on it.
Elaine clears her throat, stepping in to smooth the edges. “You all need to get home before you catch your death of cold,” she says again and reaches out to give my hand a squeeze. Her touch says more than words ever could. “Thank you for coming.”
“Elaine’s right,” Judy agrees warmly. “We can’t have Santa sick before his big day.” She glances at my aunt, her tone genuine and sweet. “It’s always so good to see you, Elaine.”
Dylan slinks back, his moment ruined, while Jay presses tighter against my side, as though to shield me with her body.
Back in the car, silence hangs heavy until the heater hisses on. Jay’s thigh presses against mine, a quiet reassurance, her careful glances softening the raw edges Dylan left behind. He’d meant to humiliate me, to remind me of everything I don’t have—but instead he showed me exactly what I do.
Family.
Maybe it’s borrowed. Maybe it’s fake. But tonight, wrapped in their circle, it feels real. And for once, I let myself bask in it.
“Are you guys warming up?” Will calls from the front seat, breaking the quiet as he steers us back onto the road.
Jay wiggles closer, burrowing into my side like she belongs there. “Nice and toasty,” she says, tilting her face up at me, mischief sparking in her eyes. “So… you still up for the beer fest? There will be karaoke.”