Page 1 of The Bride's Secret

Chapter 1

Wyatt felt ill. When had his childhood friend become such a tool? Heath was about to be married. But he acted more like a man on the prowl, hungry for anything in a skirt. Today was the rehearsal dinner for his marriage. Wyatt and he sat at breakfast at the hotel and all the groom-to-be could do was eye every woman who walked by.

When Wyatt arrived from New York, he had expected to see a doe eyed man in love. He had been prepping to swallow his own vomit at the exaggerated sweetness between him and his fiancé, Carisa. But instead Heath was, right now, making eyes at another woman. She leaned forward over a table she was cleaning in their line of sight. A clear line of cleavage beckoning to Heath. Instead of looking away or joking about her, Heath encouraged her. She slinked closer, dropping a hand across his friend’s shoulder and dropped a slip of paper in his shirt pocket.

Wyatt snorted and shook his head. “As if.”

Heath raised an eyebrow. “Dude. She’s hot.”

“And you’re all but married.” Wyatt wanted to slug him.

Heath just shrugged.

Wyatt felt more conflicted than he had in years. Heath’s bride was a vibrant, warm woman. She’d been kind and welcoming to everyone she met. Wyatt admitted a twinge of jealousy when he’d first seen her. Jealous his friend had found such a beautiful person in his life, jealous he had found the kind of love that led to marriage. Wyatt wasn’t even dating anyone. At all. “Dude. It’s time to let that go.” He put a hand on his friend’s shoulder. “Yourwifeis hot, man. And worth giving all this other stuff up.”

“Hey now, you calling my wife hot? Let me know if I should step in any time, keep you two apart.” He leaned back and laughed. “I don’t blame you. She’s your type.”

My type?

“Yes. She’s from your kind of family. All established. Old money, what little they have left. Her brothers invest in my app. Her father loves me.” Heath had the audacity to wink. “I’ll settle down in a few years. But I had to snatch her up early when she was interested, didn’t I?”

Wyatt couldn’t speak.

They stood up. Heath left a huge tip and then as they exited down a long hallway, the server girl showed up, close to him in the narrow space. Heath rested a hand on curve of her waist and winked. She swiveled her hips and shimmied away. And Wyatt really thought he might be ill. He’d been raised so differently.

They went straight to the rehearsal dinner and Wyatt grimaced when the beautiful Carisa came running to greet her fiancé, all smiles and warm welcome. Heath’s voice turned charming at once. “There’s the most beautiful bride the world.” When Heath pressed his lips to Carisa’s, Wyatt had to look away.

“Carisa babe, this is my best man, Wyatt. We’ve been friends since he caught the biggest fish back in third grade.”

Wyatt nodded, ready to shake her hand and move on. But then she turned her amber eyes on him and he couldn’t look away. They had greenish tints, flecks of gold, speckled across the light brown. They widened, searching his own for a moment. “Hello.” She cleared her throat. “The biggest fish, huh?”

He blinked. “Uh, yeah. So he says. Back in third grade, couldn’t have been more than five inches long…” He searched her face, smiling in her eyes. “He’s mastered the hunt since then.” The words tumbled out of him. Maybe he thought he came off as a comedian. Maybe his subconscious felt guilty knowing what this woman was marrying.

“Ho ho. Friend. What will my fiancé think?” He wrapped an arm across Carisa’s back and gave him a look. “Mastered the hunt. Whatever. That’s weird. Come this way babe. I want you to meet the other guys.”

A loud clapping and the click of heels across the floor distracted him. “Come come. It’s time to find your places.” A round woman with tight curls approached and people scattered. She stopped to his front and lifted her eyes to his. “Best man?”

He nodded. Suddenly a feeling of guilt tickled his insides. Was he on the verge of plotting ways to destroy his friend’s wedding? He wasn’t of course, just sick inside the woman didn’t know what she was marrying.

“Come with me.” The wedding planner turned, and he followed, suddenly feeling meek. She was a force. She whipped around. “Stand here.” Her long, red nailed finger pointed to one specific tile on the floor and he made sure one of his feet touched that tile. Then he shook his head, smiling. “Thank you. I won’t move.”

She huffed but he thought he saw the corner of her mouth turn up as she placed all the other men.

When they all stood across the front to practice the moment Carisa would walk down the aisle, Wyatt’s concern about how to handle his friend’s planned affairs escalated. He was the best man, supposed to be on the groom’s side. The way they managed together in their marriage was none of his business. He had almost talked himself into getting drunk at the wedding and forgetting all about what he’d heard, but then the back doors opened, and Carisa stepped out into the aisle. She beamed, laughing, and moved forward perfectly to the music. What got him though, was her face, her shining eyes looking only at Heath. She would not be disloyal. She was going all in and would love her husband. But she might never know he cheated. He rationalized. Or maybe he wouldn’t cheat. Maybe he’d get over his problem while on a honeymoon with his wife.

Her eyes fell on Wyatt, mid laugh, and he jolted inside. Stunning. She was an angel. And he felt as though a beam of sunlight had warmed everywhere her eyes fell. It was only a second while she scanned the front, then she was all eyes on Heath. Wyatt wondered how his friend could handle so much light in his direction. Was he affected by her? Did he even love her?

After, they drove back to the hotel together.

Heath stretched his hands over his head. “I’m tucking in early tonight. Maybe you can go out with the other guys.”

Wyatt’s suspicion heightened. “Not that waitress girl.”

“You don’t know anything about it.” The force of Heath’s venom shocked Wyatt as his eyes turned to him.

Wyatt swallowed. “You can’t do this. Carisa is special. You’ll never find something like her again.”

“That’s why she’ll never know.” His eyes cut into Wyatt’s with a force, but Wyatt held his ground. “You should cut it off, or change your ways. Dude it’s just not right.”

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