Page 72 of Getting Lucky

“Um, didn’t you say you didn’t care for milk?” the server asked hesitantly.

“Notinthe coffee, but it should be served alongside it.” She lifted a hand as if at wit’s end. “Honestly.”

“There’s milk on the table,” Iris said slowly.

“The milk for coffee and tea should be separate!”

It was such an insane statement that no one commented on it or asked her why. The server took off quickly, probably accustomed to dealing with the occasional irrational customer.

“Now, when each of you finish your tea, bring your cups to me,” Dottie said expectantly.

“I realize we’re in the middle of nowhere,” Victoria said, “but surely the waitstaff collects the soiled dishes.”

“She’s going to read the tea leaves,” Adalia said.

“Read them? What on earth does that mean?”

And Maisie, who’d never particularly taken with palm reading or psychics, especially given that the one reading she’d gotten had been so spectacularly bad, found herself in the position of defending Dottie’s readings.

“Reading the future. Don’t you want to know when you’ll be getting engaged?”

“Oh,” Victoria said, perking up. “And would you still know if I pour the tea into a different container, or do I need to actually drink it?”

“You need to drink it,” Dottie said. “And really, you should anyway. It has chamomile in it. A very calming blend.”

Adalia laughed a little at that, and Iris perked up from her phone, which she’d been bent over once again.

Who was she talking to, anyway? One of her friends? Or was she maybe texting with Jack? The thought was alluring, and she pulled out her own phone.

He’d clearly been thinking of her too, because there was a text from him.

Is it six yet?

At six, she would be defecting from the bachelorette party to join the guys for the brewery and bites tour she’d arranged with Finn.

She was about to type out a reply when Georgie announced, “I need to use the restroom.”

“Really, Georgie, there’s no need to tell everyone,” Victoria said, shaking her head slightly. “There’s a time and a place for such things.”

“Just ask the horse,” Adalia muttered, and Iris burst out laughing.

Cheeks slightly flushed, Georgie turned to Maisie. “Will you come with me?”

Maisie wouldn’t have been more surprised if Victoria had started dancing on one of the tables. Why did Georgie want to talk to her? And alone, at that. But she was the bride, after all, and she could hardly say no.

“Um, sure,” she said, pocketing her phone. “Just don’t ask me to hold your dress while you pee. From what I’ve heard, that’s only necessary for wedding dresses. Victoria knows what I’m talking about. She has three of them.”

Chapter Twenty-Four

Jack was starting to wish he’d faked the flu. It wasn’t like heneededto be at River’s bachelor party. While he and River were getting along better than they had before Jack moved to Asheville, they were by no means friends. Jack knew the only reason he’d been invited to participate in the wedding, let alone the bachelor party, was because he was Georgie’s half-brother. While he could hardly get out of the wedding or the engagement party, considering he’d helped plan it, he’d seriously considered declining to participate in this afternoon’s festivities. He’d gotten friendlier with Finn, but the thought of spending all afternoon and evening with River and Lee sounded exhausting, maybe even excruciating, but he didn’t want to hurt his sisters’ feelings.

Okay, that wasn’t the only reason. He was also there to see the woman who’d helped plan it…the woman who wouldn’t show up for several more hours. He’d considered begging off the movie portion and just showing up for the brewery tour, but it was the kind of rude, self-serving thing his mother would have done. And he never, ever wanted to be like her.

He told himself he was getting worked up over nothing, that the afternoon and evening would go just fine—he was fairly sure Prescott wouldn’t be around—but his stomach still churned with anxiety. And it wasn’t because of River.

Why did he care about what Lee thought of him? Jack had lived thirty years without an older brother and had done just fine. He didn’t need Lee’s approvaloracceptance. But somehow it still mattered. Back in high school, he’d look at those pictures of the Buchanans and think about what it would be like to have a big brother, someone to help show him the way. Because his grandmother was already gone, and he was caring for his little sister, and dammit, at times he’d wanted the guidance of someone older. Now, of course, he realized how ludicrous that was—Lee was only slightly older than him, and he’d led a charmed life. He wouldn’t have had any special insights into Jack’s problems. Nor, in all likelihood, would he have cared.

Jack showed up at Finn’s house a few minutes late with Tyrion in tow. He’d hoped Lee would already be there, but River was the first and only other guest.

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