Page 88 of In a Pinch

Watching her hug Isla as she walks up behind her makes me miss my mom. Badly. I haven’t been home since I moved. I promised I would come visit once my sister's baby comes, which, crazy enough, could be anytime now. Time flies when you are having a quarter-life crisis. Maybe I should take Sam home? I ponder that thought. My mom would love him.

Focus, Addie. It’s go time.

“Has anyone seen Liv? I have texted her three times.”

“I’m literally right here,” Liv says, walking in and slurping on a smoothie. The sight makes my stomach rumble. That’s what I forgot to do this morning: eat. I made sure Isla ate before I came down, but I didn’t. “Also, I brought a round of smoothies.”

My mouth waters as I walk to her. “I’m not trying to be dramatic, but I literally have never loved you more.”

“I’ve been a bit hormonal, and this is my offering of apology. I promise to do my best to keep the mood swings at bay. Not tears, though.” She points to her bag and the giant box of Kleenex on top of them. “I came prepared. So, if anyone else wants to blubber like a baby at my little brother marrying the love of his life, feel free.”

Liv sets everything down and goes and hugs Isla, carefully avoiding the curling iron the lady has in her hair. “And I could cry over the fact that I’m finally getting a sister. And if we’re lucky, we might be able to add this one to our crazy train.”

“Wow, I can’t wait.” Sarcasm peeps through my voice. But in reality, I love that. I grew up in a big family, and having this one in front of me, I am luckier than I ever could have thought possible.

“Okay, everyone start getting ready before I have to go crazy on you.” Mostly, I’m talking to Liv and Mrs. James. I know I can get ready in no time flat. Anna, Cal and Sam’s mom, is getting ready in her room, but I’m sure she’ll stop by at some point, too.

“If I have to keep my crazy at bay, so do you,” Liv says. A chuckle rises up from me.

We move around the room, and time flies faster than I thought possible. I watch Isla’s mom slip her into her dress and tears fill my eyes. My girl is really getting married today. Her skin is glowing, slightly sun-kissed from yesterday. Her lashes are dark and make her blue eyes look striking. Cal is one lucky son of a bitch.

We make our way down to the beach. With the nerves I have, one would think it was me getting married. The hotel did a great job of setting up for the wedding. They have a little wall for us all to hide behind. I peek my head around to look at the sitting area. Everything looks perfect. The pink flowers pop against the cerulean blue of the water.

Isla did a hell of a job planning this shindig. Maybe I will have her plan mine when the time comes. However, with me being crazy organized and Isla having flair for utter chaos, it doesn’t seem like a good idea. Should probably just stick to her being my emotional support person.

I feel a little tug on a strand of my hair and whip my head back to see the boys have joined us. My eyes roam over Sam. Hotdamn. He looks good in a suit. Well, khaki slacks and a white dress shirt. His tan skin peeks out of the undone buttons at the top. I get why Isla banged Cal in a closet. A man in a suit is just one of the finer things in life. If I thought we had time, I’d probably sneak off and get railed behind a tree.

“Well, don’t you look dapper,” I say, wrapping my hand around his neck and bringing his lips to mine.

“I could say the same thing about you.” He adds one more peck to my cheek.

I pull back and dip back into my maid of honor duty. I snap my fingers to grab the attention of the group. “All right. Tyler, you’re with me. Liv, you’re with Sam. Everyone remember their cues?”

The monotonousyesfrom the group gives away how sick of my shit they are. I only made them practice twelve times last night during dress rehearsal. If they would have gotten it right the first eleven times, we wouldn’t have had to take so long.

I make my way over to Isla at the back of our little herd. Her hair is perfectly pulled back into a messy updo, with curls framing her face. Her satin dress perfectly frames her body, and it looks even better now than it did when we went shopping. She’s standing with her dad, whose sandy blonde hair is filled with little speckles of gray.

“Mr. James, a pleasure to see you today. Your only jobs are to make sure she doesn’t bail and to not let her trip. She isn’t wearing heels, but this girl could trip on an imaginary crack. So, stay alert.”

He gives me a little salute, followed by a, “Yes, ma’am.”

“Into positions everyone. It’s showtime.” I make my way to the back, turning to look at my bestie one last time before she becomes a wife. “You look so beautiful and today couldn’t be more beautiful. I love you.” I give her a quick kiss on her cheek.

“Enough with the sap. I can’t cry before I walk down the aisle.” She looks up and blinks her long black eyelashes rapidly to ward off the tears.

“Okay, okay.” I squeeze her hand and turn around. Holy crap, this is seriously happening. My heart fills and swells to the point where I think it is going to burst.

The ceremony goes off without a hitch. The sound of waves crashing in the background makes for a beautiful background soundtrack, while the sun provides perfect lighting and the sky is painted with cotton candy-shaped clouds. The pictures from this day are going to be beautiful.

“I now pronounce you Mr. and Mrs. Reynolds.”

The crowd erupts, and so do we.

Walking back up the aisle with Tyler, I feel a huge sense of relief. At least if shit goes downhill from here, the ceremony is done, and they are legally married.

Sam finds me as we make our way inside. Since we are all coupled up at this point, we do our grand entrances as couples instead of walking partners.

I have been blessed with the best blood-born family, and my siblings are all amazing. But as I look around, I realize that I somehow built myself a whole other family. Where we love each other not because we have to but because we choose to. Despite our flaws, mistakes, and all else, this group around me has filled my heart in ways I didn’t think possible.

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