Page 13 of Sunny Skies Ahead
Something strange and foreign twisted in my gut.
“Are you?” The question was more defensive than I meant it to be, but Lucas laugh took me by surprise.
“Good Lord, no. I can honestly say Imogen and I are far better friends than we would be lovers. Although we discussed it one time.”
“What?” I said, my knuckles tightening on the steering wheel. Glancing towards the passenger seat, I saw the classic Morales smirk and knew I’d exposed myself.
“Imogen and I have never once talked about sleeping together, but you seem rather put off by the idea that we had.”
“I’m not talking about this with you.”
Lucas fell silent for a minute, and I braced myself for whatever he might say next.
I couldn’t remember the last time I’d been interested in someone the way I was interested in Imogen. I’d had a series of what I considered serious relationships during my time in the Marine Corps, but the women I’d dated always wanted something different. They didn’t see me as a long-term option. Many of them had dated military guys before, and they looked at me and saw the same thing most people do: a hot guy in uniform.
Good enough to hook up with, fun to date for a while, but not someone to trust with long-term plans. Part of that was my fault: I’d never seen myself as a white picket fence kind of guy, and I kept my past locked down tight. Neither of those things were conducive to a long-term relationship.
“I won’t sit here and tell you not to pursue her. I think it’s obvious to everyone but the two of you that there’s a connection there. But the two of you should level with each other before you do anything crazy.”
“Level with each other?”
“Talk about your pasts. We saw that shit play out with Connor and Abbie, and let’s be honest, no one wants a repeat of that.”
I smiled fondly when I thought about Connor and Abbie, the love they had lost and then found again. But Lucas was right: that wasn’t something I was keen on experiencing myself, nor did I want to put Imogen through that. We were both adults who had been through some serious crap. We owed it to each other to talk about the things that had impacted us so deeply.
If we wanted to date, that is. Which, from where I was standing, was an option Imogen was not interested in.
“Imogen’s ex-husband really screwed her up. He was. . .” Lucas’ voice trailed off. “If I ever see that man again, I’ll kill him.”
I let out a small laugh to diffuse the tension now present between us, but I knew he spoke true. Lucas was the class clown, but he didn’t screw around when it came to the people he loved. It was the thing I admired most about his personality.
We spent the rest of the drive back to Winding Road in contemplative silence. Lucas handled the music, and I kept my eyes on the road.
I ignored the pain in my chest when “Take Me Back to Eden” by Sleep Token came on over the speakers.
Chapter five
Imogen
Abbigail Kaitlin Collins was a bridezilla.
I’d always suspected this would be the case, but watching my best friend about to lose her mind over one singular flower arrangement being wrong when the florists were still setting things up had me clamping a hand over my mouth to stifle my laughter while also wanting to be an emotional support for her.
The last four weeks had been a flurry of phone calls, meetings, and last-minute conversations ensuring that everything was in order for the wedding. I’d confirmed every detail, down to 15-minute windows of each vendor’s expected arrival. The spreadsheets were updated. I’d taken to setting an alarm on my phone to remind myself to eat.
I was in my zone. Abbie should know better than to freak out now, when the finish line was in sight.
The Winding Road Barn was a dream wedding venue. A spring wedding had been the perfect choice. There was theceremony space outside of the barn, where a wooden arch adorned with white daisies and greenery was staged in front of rows of log benches. Delicate burgundy accents were woven throughout the decor, the deep red designed to be a tie in with both the bridesmaids’ dresses and Connor’s dress blues.
It was rustic and earthy and everything Abbie had wanted.
Kameron was with Connor in the men’s dressing room. I idly wondered if Connor was also freaking out.
“You’re freaking out,” I said, handing Abbie the water cup. She took the cup from my outstretched hand while looking at me with panicked eyes. I stifled another small laugh. “Your lipstick is waterproof. You’re safe.”
Abbie downed the whole cup in a single gulp. I took it back from her and set it on the table before taking a seat in the chair opposite her.
“Is this what cold feet feels like?” Abbie whisper-yelled. We were the only ones in the room now, the artist having moved on to do Kyrie’s makeup in the next room down.
