Page 162 of Friends Don't Kiss

“You’re free labor now,” I joke.

“Nu-huh. I called dibs on that,” Chris chimes in as he drops a pink backpack at our feet.

But Skye claps her hands. “I get to make cakes with you?”

I wink at her father and answer Skye , “Anytime you want, honey.”

Chris chuckles. “I should go.”

Alex is near her due date, and Chris’s concern is clear. “How is Alex doing?”

“Feeling very big, but no contractions yet. Hopefully we make it tomorrow. You sure you’re good with Skye?”

“Of course! We’re doing a mini bachelorette of sorts at your sister’s. It’ll be fun. And then Grace will have her over for the night, right?”

Two hours later I step down from the massage table at A Touch Of Grace. All the neck and shoulder tension from working on the cake is gone. Between Colt’s attentive love and the pampering, I feel like I’m walking on clouds.

The rest of the Bitch Brigade is there. Haley is pouring bubbly, Skye is admiring her manicure and getting a trim of her locks. All my female friends are there, including Alex who decided to join us for a foot massage, my soon-to-be sister in law Grace, and of course Willow.

I take her in a quick hug. “Boo, you know this wouldn’t happen without you, right? I’m so stinking proud and happy to call you my friend. Never stop the crazy, m’kay?”

“Me? Not a chance,” she smiles.

Willow

I couldn’t have hoped for a better day for Kiara and Colton’s wedding. Under baby blue skies, a slight breeze comes up from the river, cooling down the sun’s warm embrace.

The wedding is taking place at the park that slopes from The Green down to the Emerald Creek, so the whole town can attend and celebrate. Ethan, Nathaniel, and Autumn directed a team of helpers to erect an arch now covered in flowers. Rows of foldable chairs delineate an aisle. Cassandra walks down it now, greeting everyone by name as she prepares to officiate the wedding.

“Alright, time to line up!” Ms. Angela says to the small group huddled in a tent. Kiara waits in her pink VW van, turned into an airconditioned bridal room by Colton and currently illegally stationed at the top of the park per Declan's orders. She's with her uncle Bill, who will walk her down the aisle, while Colton is with us in the tent, waiting to go last.

“The best man and the maid of honor first,” Ms. Angela calls, and I take Chris’s arm.

“Alex and Noah next.” Alex stands from her chair.

“You gonna be okay, pancakes?” Chris asks her. As we turn around to check on her, my gaze involuntarily crosses Noah’s, and a twinge of want pinches me. Days like this, it’s hard for me to forget the crush I’ve held for him, even though I’ve long come to terms with the fact that he barely registers who I am, and if he does, I’m a hard pass.

After Alex and Noah come Grace and Ethan, followed by Chloe and Justin. The men are wearing dark suits and white shirts, the women dresses in assorted pastel shades. Kiara wanted us to choose whatever we wanted to wear, so we coordinated the colors and picked the shapes that would suit us best. Alex and I went for a mid-length wrap (light green for Alex and light blue for me), Chloe is super classy in her soft yellow A line, and Grace is radiant in a sparkly light pink full-length gown. If I may say so myself, we look spectacular without taking any attention away from Kiara.

We make our way down the grassy expanse, joy filling the air as Luke strums a mellow tune on his electric guitar and croons softly, and I quickly forget my mini heartache. But Cassandra opens the ceremony with some heartfelt words on love and commitment, and before long I’m fighting the urge to look at Noah.

Then I feel more than hear Alex stifling a gasp, and I’m brought back to more important questions. I know she doesn’t want Chris to be worried and she really wants to be here. But nowI’mworried about her. I can feel her struggle to not show her discomfort, and I’m upset at myself for believing her when she said she didn’t need a chair for the ceremony.

I dash out of my station as maid of honor, nearly trip in the soft grass, grab an empty chair, and plop it behind Alex before anyone has a chance to realize what’s happening.

She lets herself fall into it with a sigh of relief. Chris narrows his eyes on her, worry painted on his face. “I’m fine,” she mouths and squeezes my hand as a thank-you.

Next to him, Colton wipes away a tear as Kiara says her vows in an assured voice, and I find myself tearing up too.

On Chris’s other side, Noah pushes his glasses up his nose and narrows his eyes on me. I let my gaze fall down to my feet, trying not to register how good he looks in a suit.

Noah looks good in anything, my internal devil whispers, and I shut her up.We’re not doing this anymore.

I take a deep breath as Colton says, “I do”. Kiara’s bottom lip trembles as she answers, and it’s the most beautifully shattering thing to see—the way these two are brought to their knees for each other. Being the maid of honor is as close to a happily-ever-after as I can get, so I soak it all up as their bliss radiates into me.

Once Cassandra pronounces them husband and wife, Alex holds my hand to stand up and leans over to me. “I’m going to step ahead of you to get to the tent sooner and walk down with Chris.”

“Yeah-yeah-yeah, of course,” I say, taking a step back to let her in front of me as Kiara and Colton saunter away to the tune of Luke’s electric guitar.

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