Page 39 of The Love Chase

Next to the house, a large white canopy tent was set up with tables and chairs for the wedding party to sit at and eat. I dropped the plate off for Maggie before taking a seat next to Emma. She didn’t even wait for me before shoving a burger into her mouth.

“Some things never change,” I murmured, chuckling as I handed her a napkin.

Her cheeks turned pink as she took it from me and wiped her face. A breeze blew through the tent, and I breathed a sigh of relief as it lifted my shirt from the sweat sliding down my spine. I plopped into the seat next to her and took a bite of chicken, wincing as sweat dripped down my temple.

Bridget, why did you have to plan an outdoor wedding in June?

As soon as I sat down, Emma gripped the sides of her chair and scooted a solid foot away from me. I felt the distance between us like a kick to the gut. Though we had always been only friends, we had never shied away from being in close physical proximity. It was just the nature of our relationship.

I wasn’t sure why the sudden space between us felt so big…and wrong.

Emma’s cousin Maya sat down across from her, glancing at us—and the space between us—through narrowed eyes. Another girl with dark-blonde hair sat down next to Maya.

“Long time no see, Walker,” Maya said. “Still strumming away at that banjo?”

My eye twitched, but I didn’t correct her. She knew very well that I didn’t play the banjo; she just liked to make fun of my choice in music.

“Still meddling in everyone else’s lives?” I retorted, holding her gaze. Maya had always been protective of Emma, just like I had, and it often felt like we were battling over who could do it the best.

A tense moment passed as we had a stare down before Emma snarked through a mouthful of food, “The mud pit is over there if you two need to get this little cat fight out of your system.”

And just like usual, Emma easily broke the tension, and we all dissolved into chuckles, the rivalry between Maya and me momentarily forgotten.

“This is Elsie,” Maya explained to me a minute later, waving at the girl next to her. “Jameson’s fiancée.”

Elsie nodded hello, smiling sheepishly with bulging cheeks.

When she’d swallowed, she asked Emma, “Isn’t that fancy weather thing coming up soon? The one Jameson and your mom got you tickets for?”

Emma’s face lit up like Times Square. I hadn’t seen that much excitement on her face since I’d been back in Meridel.

“The Storm Chasing Convention, yeah,” she replied, bouncing in her seat. “I’m so excited, I can’t wait.”

Elsie and Emma gushed over the nerd convention—err, weather convention—but Maya’s gaze was fixed on me.

“So, how have you been?” Maya asked me, her eyes running over me in a way that made me feel like I was lacking. “It’s been a while.”

“Great,” I said before taking a bite of my burger. It was an automatic response drilled into me during my time in Cali. No one actually cared how anyone was doing—especially in the music scene. It only made it uncomfortable and felt pathetic to admit to someone if you were doing less than great.

Maya arched a brow but didn’t question my answer.

The other two fell silent, a strange tension falling among all of us, and I couldn’t quite figure out what the cause was. The three of them kept exchanging looks, some sort of silent conversation passing between them, and I found myself desperately wishing I knew what they were saying.

By the time I finished my food, my anxiety was about to explode from the quiet and tension. Emma’s chair crushed the grass as she suddenly stood.

“Going to the bathroom.” Then she was gone, those long legs carrying her faster than they ought to, my eyes lingering on her longer than they ought to.

I thought about getting up too and finding something else to do. Maya and Elsie weren’t my friends and sitting here with their eyes constantly on me made my skin crawl. Since the rehearsal part of the night was over, perhaps I could sneak away and head inside without anyone noticing.

It was never a problem in the past. Invisibility was kind of my thing.

“So,” Maya started, and Elsie looked at her in alarm.

“Maya, don’t start,” Elsie said quietly.

“Shh.”

“Haven’t you learned your lesson about meddling yet?” Elsie whispered, though it was loud enough that I was sure the table behind her could hear it too.

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