“Oh!” Molly blinks in surprise, but her eyes sparkle and crinkle at the sides before Bert pulls away. “Thank you.”
“Bert, what the hell is all this?” I sweep a hand across the room that opens to the adorned back deck.
He arches his back, puts his hands in his pockets, and lets out a steely breath. “Well, Dana was at the beauty parlor yesterdayand all the other ladies in the shop insisted you couldn’t have a courthouse wedding without some kind of fancy shmancy acknowledgment, so here we are.”
But this is too big. Regular family barbeques involve people I’m used to, those I don’t have to feelonwith. Meeting my brothers at a bar is okay because I can prepare for it and employ mind over matter for a short while. But being ambushed at what looks like a town event where I’m part of the focus? My pulse picks up and my muscles tighten, and before I realize what I’m doing, I reach for Molly’s hand. She makes no reaction other than to give my hand a squeeze and not let go. I’m still not happy with what’s going on, but I almost immediately feel calmer and ready to face everyone.
But I don’t enjoy being caught off guard, and my family knows this. So when Molly excuses herself to use the restroom, I storm straight to the bar near the food tables and am mildly surprised to find Vanessa working behind it.
“They roped you into this too?” I cock an eyebrow.
“It was last minute, I was available, and I like money,” she rattles off before getting right to it. “What’ll you have?” Then, as she pours my drink, she says, “Congratulations.” The space between her brows pinches as she tips the bottle down and back up.
“Thanks.” I give a curt nod as she places a cocktail napkin down in front of me. I don’t know how to address her obvious confusion, so I don’t.
“I didn’t realize you were seeing anybody.” She sets my drink down in front of me and then squints her eyes in speculation. “You’re…happythough, right?”
“Of course I am,” I say then knock the drink back, hoping to distract the both of us. After swallowing half of the straight whiskey, I set it down and concentrate on the burn slowlysmoldering its way down my throat, eager for it to sear the cold wave of anxiety in my chest.
“Never can tell with you,” Vanessa says to herself, and I return a tight but polite smile. “So,” she exhales swiftly, relaxing her shoulders, “can’t say I ever thought I’d be bartending at my ex’s wedding.”
“Yeah.” I fake a chuckle. “Though we hardly dated.” I knock back another swallow. In ninth grade she asked me to be her boyfriend, and because I thought she was pretty and not overly annoying, I agreed. For about a month I walked her to class and lightly kissed her before leaving, but other than that, I kept to myself. It wasn’t her; it was me. “Plus,Iwasn’t right foryou.”
For a fleeting second, I think I see her eyes go pensive, but in a blink, it’s gone as she gives a half smile. “Wolf.” Vanessa’s gaze searches mine. “That’s sweet. Thank you.” Her look is sincere. “And I’m happy for you. She must be something really special.” She nods, her smile bright and encouraging.
“Thank you. She is.” The response is somewhat automatic, but it prompts me to inspect it’s genuineness. Is Molly special? Of course she is, but in what way is she special to me? I’m not sure I’ve found that out yet, and I’m wondering if and how I will at some point.
I drain the meager last drops of my whiskey, and Vanessa serves me another. I only get through one peaceful sip before I’m joined by my charming twin, who’s been considerate enough to ditch his ball cap for the occasion and put on a clean pair of jeans.
“Congratulations, I guess,” he mutters, signaling to Vanessa that he’ll have what I’m having.
Aww. He’s so sweet…“Fuck off,” I tell him, tired of his piss-poor attitude and fake salutations.
“I’m sorry, Wolf,” he lowers his voice not to be overheard. “but I don’t get why the fuck you’re doing this, no matter how many times you told us.”
“You know…” I let out a venomous sigh and drape an elbow on the bar, looking out at the low-key soiree around us. “It’s really all an elaborate ploy. These are the lengths I’ll go to in order to get the rest of you off my ass about getting laid every weekend.”
“Is that right? You figured you’d just get married and that settles it. We can assume you’re getting laid every night and we’ll leave you alone…”.
“That’s right.” I subtly egg him on. “Although to this day, I still don’t get why you give so much of a fuck about what I do with my dick.” That’s a lie. I know exactly what his problem is. The truth is, he’s dissatisfied with his own life—and for good reason—but will do anything except face it, including digging up what he can of mine and smearing it around.
“Honestly,” Hawk says. “I’m thinking you’re doing this so you don’t have to worry about it.”
“Worry about what?”
“Acting normal long enough to find someone to put up with your cranky ass for the rest of your lives.”
I could get him back with a low blow here. I could tell him he’s just bitter thatheonce had someone willing to put up with his asshole self and he blew it to smithereens. But fortunately for him, I take the high road, refusing to stoop to his level. Instead, I down the rest of my whiskey.
“Wolf… I want to be serious for a moment,” he says without looking at me.
Well, fuck me. “Go ahead and be serious then.”
“Does she know what she’s getting into with you?”
Wow. I motion to take a few steps away from the bar, and he follows. “It doesn’t matter. It’s not that kind of marriage. Shejust needs it to look real” My own words stop me for a moment while the organ in my chest demands I evaluate if they really are true.
“Andyouneed to look like a normal functioning member of society,” he retorts with a snort.