Page 58 of The Trouble with Runaway Brides

“Hate to break it to you, but the bar is closed,” Van says.

She stops and stares over the hood of the truck. “You’re the owner. It’s never closed for us.”

He chuckles. “Good point.” He clicks the button on his remote to unlock the truck.

“We’ll meet you over there,” Easton says.

Brinley whips around to face him. “No.”

“No?” Easton’s whole face scrunches up. “Why the hell not?”

“This is between Kenzie and me. You two need to stay far away until we tell you otherwise.”

“But Van gets to go?” Easton whines.

Lance stands by his side, saying nothing, mostly staring at the ground. I’m sure he’s happy for the excuse not to be there.

“Don’t act like a teenage girl who wasn’t invited to hang with the cool kids.” Brinley doesn’t wait for him to answer before she gets in the truck.

Geoff winks at me, and Blake hugs me, whispering, “I hope you get what you need.”

“Thanks,” I whisper back.

“Geoff and Blake, let’s go to Truth or Dare Brewery in Sunrise Bay,” Easton calls as if he’s going to make us jealous.

Brinley shakes her head. Van drives us to Lucky’s, opens up the bar, and then brings over two beers and sets them on the table.

“He probably doesn’t want to be here. He probably wants to be alone with you,” I say to her, talking about Van.

“Please. He’s with me all the time.” She leans back and sips her beer.

“A lifetime won’t be enough,” Van says from behind the bar.

Brinley sighs. “He is romantic even though he looks like he’d be one of those possessive caveman types.”

“So, you’re engaged.” I hold out my hand for her to show me her ring, and she places her hand in my palm.

“Happened right after we left you in New York City.” She tells me the story, and of course it’s as sweet as anything and romantic as all hell. “What about you and Will? How’d it happen?”

“I came to his condo one day after work and there he was on bended knee with the box open.”

“That’s romantic. No audience. He must have wanted the moment to be between just the two of you.”

“I guess.” At the time, I thought the same, but afterward, the more I thought about it, the more I wondered if it was just the fact that it took little effort that appealed to Will.

We sip our beers at the same time, discomfort coating us like layers of paint. Now that we’re past the emotion back at the school and the most obvious of small talk, the real issues stack up between us.

I can’t take it anymore and we can’t ignore it. Whatever happens, the friendship we used to have deserves for us to have this conversation, regardless of how it turns out.

“I’m sorry,” I blurt. “I should have been a better friend. I should have been here for you when Sawyer passed, and last year when you reached out for advice, I wanted to get on the next plane and fly here to be by your side, but I didn’t… I’m ashamed.”

“I’m in the wrong too.” She grabs my free hand.

“Just let me get this out because I haven’t been able to since it all went down. I want to clear the air if there’s really a chance of us getting back to where we were.”

“Yes.” She squeezes my hand. “After what you said at the school, how could there not be? I just—”

“I know before I got together with Lance in high school, I liked Easton. And I know you thought I was playing the two against each other, but at the time, I only really wanted Easton. Then at your grandmother’s birthday party, when Lance caught me before I fell to the ground, something shifted. And in that instant, I saw him differently. As the night went on, he kept asking if I was okay and when he asked me to dance, I can’t even explain it… it was just this feeling of it being right. I’m sure to everyone it looked like I flip-flopped, but I never wanted Easton again after that. Ever.”

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