Page 26 of Kiss the Bride

“Obvs that your guy has never had his heart trashed,” Rod says, unaffected by Hunter’s attitude. “A person as beautiful as you, can’t go from loving and building a life, to being healed and ready to move on in a week.”

“It’d help if I understood.” My words hang in the air while Rod completes his pre-flight checks and Hunter checks through his carry on and offers me one of two bottles of water. I take it, gratefully, and lean back into the seat.

As the helicopter heads out to sea, I force myself to focus on the pristine ocean and coastline of hotels and high-rise apartments. There is something about the beauty of nature up against the opulence of civilization that makes what happened yesterday seem insignificant.

Perspective changes everything.

There are no second chances at life. We have a finite amount of time, and I refuse to spend mine trapped in a lie. The marriage to Mitch would have been built on deceit, and I deserve better. I deserve someone who loves me as much as I love … I can’t continue the thought. When was the last time I honestly felt love for Mitch? We’d been hurtling towards our wedding day since we started dating. It felt as if our relationship had been a series of steps towards the alter and I’d never stopped to think whether it was the right alter with the right man. I cared about Mitch. I said the word he wanted to hear and our friends expected, but when was the last time I actually felt the heart-stopping feelings of love?

Did Mitch and Lina do me a favor? I can’t think about that, not yet. I’m still in shock and need a minute to process yesterday.

Rod’s voice breaks through my thoughts. “Some guys cheat because they’re afraid of missing out. Others because they need validation.”

I glance at Hunter, who’s scrolling through his phone, pretending not to hear. I can’t see him doing either. Then again,I never worried about Hunter cheating on me—he’s seen what it did to his parents, and we always valued honesty, even when it felt brutal.

Rod’s voice softens. “Then there are the assholes who just enjoy the thrill. You gotta learn to spot them.” Rod pauses to play with the instruments before continuing. “Those are the ones that you need to steer clear of. I don’t know which one your ex is, but you’ve gotta learn what to look for. There’s the guy who’s never going to think you’re enough. The guy who’s always gonna need another piece on the side who thinks he’s perfect because his wife knows his imperfections. He’s the one who will apologize for hurting you, all the while he’s only sorry for getting caught—and it’s only a matter of time before his next girlfriend soothes his conscious and reassures him that what he’s doing is understandable.”

“Sounds like someone we know,” I say, squeezing Hunter’s hand thinking of both of our fathers. “Or should I say, someones.”

“My father was the workaholic, corporate asshole who screwed around on my mother until something happened and he changed.” Hunter explains. “I don’t know why he stopped or why my mother forgave him, but they’ve somehow made their marriage work.”

“What about you, Liv?” Rod asks, looking back at me. “What’s your story?”

“Even now, I reckon my mother would take daddy back if he groveled enough, dumped the witch, and told mum everything she wants to hear.”

“Oh, sweetheart, I think your mum is too smart for that.” Hunter quickly says. “Rachel might make him grovel, but she’ll never take him back.”

“And the douchebag you left at the alter?” Rod asks. “What’s his story?”

I hesitate, then decide to be honest. “I think he wanted me without the responsibility of marriage. We spent the last six months arguing about adulting up and responsibilities. He wanted to sell the house my father gave us and travel until the money ran out.”

“What?” Hunter gasps and I can’t believe Mitch didn’t tell his friends about traveling the world until he could come back and take over his father’s business. It seemed like a typical brag—while the rest of the world is struggling with rent or mortgage payments, he blows the lot on the trip of a lifetime. Only, I was the selfish bitch—his words—that stood in the way of his dream. “Your dad would have killed him.”

“It was never going to happen. The house is in my name.” At the time, I didn’t know why we were fighting about the house. Although, I remember the one time I’d vented with my friends, Lina had taken Mitch’s side and told me to either support my husband or walk away. “Anyway, maybe it was my fault. The whole house thing may have made him feel impotent or something.”

“Fucking jerk.” Hunter shakes his head. “If he wants to travel, then do it on his dime. You could have rented out the house to fund the travel, come back, and be ready to build the family you guys had planned.”

“It doesn’t matter, now. I have my health, my family and a house to go back to. I just need a job and a way to pay off my wedding bills.”

“You’ll be fine, Liv.” Hunter looks at me, his expression pained and guilty even though he wasn’t the one who cheated yesterday. “You’re stronger than you think.”

“Which asshole are you?” Rod throws to Hunter, winking at me. “And why are you here?”

“I’m the asshole who was the best man, but is also the best friend. I’m the guy his friends are going to spin as stealing thebride, and her friends are going to warn her against rebounding with.”

“Unless he was the rebound,” I shyly giggle. “After all, he was my first serious boyfriend after you and according to his last lot of texts, I’m good at PR and can spin things any way I want.”

“And with that, if I can have your attention, to your left are the trillion-dollar views that you can only get from this plane.” Rod waves to the side. “You can keep thinking about the past, worrying about the future, or you can enjoy this magical moment.”

Hunter and I don’t speak again for the rest of the hour flight over to Lizard Island, content to take in the purity of the ocean against white beaches. Everywhere we look, it is spectacular and I feel separated from my old life and the humiliation back in Sydney. Here, nothing matters other than tan lines and cocktail hour.

By the time we land, I’m ready to take the first steps towards the rest of my life, and to hell with cheating assholes. Hunter helps me out of the helicopter before turning back to grab our luggage when Rod stops me.

“Liv, if you want some advice from a guy who’s seen too much and done far more, you’ve got a second chance. You might not feel it now, but walking away from a bad marriage before there is one might be the luckiest break you’ll ever get.” Even though Rod quickly releases me, Hunter’s glare is lethal. “I’m not saying that your best friend over there is the one, but he seems to have your interests at heart. Enjoy this break and don’t forget to take some time to figure out who Liv is and how she wants to.”

“How I want to live?”

“Yep. Once you’ve figured that out, the rest, including husband or marriage, will be easy.”

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