Page 42 of The Best Man Wins

I snort a laugh at that.

[txt: Susie] Yes.

There’s a longer pause between texts now. The bubble pops up that tells me that Braxton is typing, but it takes him a few extra seconds to actually send the text.

[txt: Braxton] I don’t hate you.

[txt: Susie] Aw.

[txt: Susie] That’s practically a proposal coming from you.

[txt: Braxton] I think I’ve had enough of weddings for a lifetime.

I bite my lip. I’m feeling bold, silly, and drunk. My mind drifts to memories of Braxton. Braxton’s strong hands on my hips. Braxton’s lips gracing my throat. Braxton. I know I should put down the phone, but instead, my thumbs betray me and type out another text.

[txt: Susie] Send a picture of your junk.

[txt: Susie] ;)

[txt: Braxton] Or I can come give you the real thing.

It takes a lot to embarrass me, but I feel my face go completely red at that. I stare at the text, debating how to answer. I want him. That’s the easy answer. But I know better than to get involved with the best man…at least, I should know better…

“Another Dirty Murty,” Mandy calls out to the bartender beside me.

I quickly roll my phone over onto its face so she can’t read my texts and then shove my phone into my purse.

“Having fun?” I ask her casually.

Mandy lets out a breath of a laugh. “Yeah. It’s great.”

I might be tipsy, but I’m not so tipsy that to ignore the warning signs. Most of the bridesmaids are drinking to celebrate. Mandy? She’s drinking to get drunk. There’s a faraway look in her eyes as she stares morosely down the bar.

Time to do some recon. I slide up beside her. “It must be crazy,” I say. “Watching your childhood friend get married…I mean, that has to be full circle, right?”

“Is that what they’re calling it?” Her tone is blade-sharp, and she tucks her thick, curly hair over her shoulders.

“What would you call it?” I ask.

Mandy sighs. Finally, she confesses, “We dated once, you know.”

No surprise there. I nod sympathetically. “You and Ray?”

“Yeah.” The bartender sets her drink down on the bar, and she takes a sip from it. “It was…a long time ago. We were just kids…we were each other’s first kiss, first you-know-what. All that cheesy stuff.”

She’s vague about it, but I’m willing to bet she has a very distinct memory of each and every time Ray Dalton kissed her. Love can be crazy that way, always burning the best and worst memories in the backs of our skulls. “Do you love him?” I ask bluntly.

Mandy lets out a quiet laugh and then sidesteps my question. “It’s just hard. You spend your life thinking one way…that you’ll eventually get back together, get married, have kids, and it’s all a done deal. And then…something knocks you sideways.”

I let out a puff of a breath. “I can relate,” I tell her. “But listen…in a couple days, this will all be over. Maybe it’s just the closure you need.”

“Yeah,” Mandy says, “if he goes through with it.”

My eyebrows knit. “Did he say he wouldn’t?”

Mandy shrugs. “No. But if someone objected at the wedding…”

My heart sinks. Oh no. I’ve already got Braxton ripping this wedding apart at the seams; I don’t need Mandy dropping a bombshell in the middle of the ceremony.

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