Page 46 of Charlie Takes a Chance

“That’s nice,” I manage to say stiffly. I don’t dare make eye contact with Dad.Destination wedding?I can just picture them setting up an arbor right next to the pile of rusty fencing supplies Dad has saved for thirty years.

When I look at Logan, I see the consternation on his face, as though this is the first time he’s heard of it. I finally risk glancing at Dad’s face, which is turning red with the effort to hold in his laughter.

“Would you be my best man?” Logan blurts out.

“Guess I did introduce the two of you.”

Logan leaps to his feet. “That’s not fair. I’m trying to include you here!”

“Is that what this is?”

Mom starts moaning, Jessica starts talking a mile a minute about how they want to put everything behind them, and Dad is sitting in his chair shaking with laughter.

“You’re not letting us extend an olive branch here!” Jessica exclaims.

“Someone extended something very different,” I mutter. A week on a tropical vacation with my brother?

Logan frowns at me and I turn away.

“Y’all have a good day. Great to see you, Mom.” I give her a hug as I walk by.

Dad follows me out to the driveway as he tries to get his chuckling under control.

“What the heck was that?” I ask him as I chuckle a little myself.

“I think your mom was hoping Logan and you could work things out. I was hoping he’d apologize at least.” Dad shrugs. “He’s always had a hard time taking responsibility for his actions. Honestly, I’m hoping he’ll wake up enough to call this damn wedding off. I don’t want to make excuses for your brother, but he told me that he thought the two of you had broken things off before he and Jessica got together.”

I snort; even if he did think we had broken it off, he sure jumped all over her pretty quickly. “Honestly, I hope that’s true.”

Dad shakes his head. “Are you doing okay? I should have warned you about this, but I wasn’t informed until an hour ago.”

“Meh, I feel bad for mom. But I’m not ready to sit down with Logan yet.”

“You’re not actually hurt about Jessica?”

I shake my head. “I’d rather find out now than in five years.”

Dad nods. “You’ll find someone as loyal as you are. It’s why it hurt you so much when your brother broke that trust.”

I nod because he’s right. What Jessica did stung…what my brother did shattered me a bit. It’s something I need time to work through—but it didn’t hurt standing there talking to them. It was awkward as hell, but it wasn’t painful to see the two of them together.

“I assume you won’t be here for Christmas?” Dad jerks his thumb toward the house. “Those two clowns are going to be here for the next couple of weeks.”

“Nah, I’ll be at the ranch with Charlie and her grandma.”

“Hergrandma?” Dad’s bushy eyebrows shoot up. “And who’s Charlie?”

I smirk. “She’s not Jessica.”

Dad grins at that. “Good to hear. You’ll have to introduce me sometime.”

“You’d like her. She tells me like it is.”

“Don’t let that one get away.”

I shake my head. “I don’t think I have the right to ask her to stay.”

I stand in the driveway and talk with Dad for another hour before heading back to Pine Ridge. It was great to see my parents, but I’d much rather spend the day annoying Charlie than try to make awkward conversation with my brother and his fiancée.

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