Page 5 of Forgotten Desires

“Now you have them,” Addison says with a smile. “However, you have to get out there, you can’t hide out in the bathroom if you want to not look like this bothers you.”

I hear shouting from outside the bathroom and Rowan’s voice cuts through our girl time.

“Charlotte?”

“Go away!” I yell to my brother.

He groans. “I didn’t call for you! Everyone is waiting for us to have our first dance, wife.”

Charlotte looks to me and then the other girls. With a sigh, she answers him. “I’ll be out in a minute. Stall them!”

“Stall?” he asks, confusion in his voice. “How?”

Phoebe replies, “Tell jokes, dance, do a jig, we’ll be out when we can.”

I can’t do this. I can’t go out there. The idea of seeing Crew after I just ran away is horrifying. My stomach churns at the thought of seeing him again, and I break.

Tears start to roll down my face and the girls gather around me.

The door slams and then my brother is there, hands balled into fists as though he can fight the world. “What’s going on? Who hurt you?”

But it’s him I want to fight. He invited Crew and being mad at my brothers is much easier than the hurt I feel inside. “You did!”

“Me? What the hell did I do? I got married!” Rowan looks as though he’s on the brink of losing his shit.

Charlotte steps in front of me, blocking my view and squaring off to her husband. “You invited Carson Knight?”

“You knew the guest list. He’s our new boss. Of course, I invited him.”

Charlotte huffs. “You didn’t tell me he dated your sister!”

He looks around Charlotte, his blue eyes finding mine. “You dated him?”

“Yes, but I didn’t know it was him!”

“Oh my God, can someone please explain what the hell is going on here?” The exasperation in his voice echoes in the small space.

I want to tell him the story, but he’ll never understand. Not only that, he’ll probably flip out because . . . brothers.

So, I need to pull my shit together and stop this crap. I’m stronger than this.

Addison and Phoebe help me to my feet and I shake out my pretty dress.

“I didn’t know Carson Knight was the Carson Knight that you knew.”

He looks like he’s on the brink of losing it. “Brynn, I’m lost, and I really need you to dumb it down for me.”

I move close to him, keeping my voice even. “Do you remember when I went to the Outer Banks in college?”

“I don’t remember what I ate for breakfast.”

Men. I roll my eyes and sigh heavily. “Okay, Row. I went to the Outer Banks every spring break during college. It was my favorite thing I did with my sorority sisters. We rented the house on the beach, and we’d party and whatnot. My junior year, we went and the house next to us was a frat from up north. We hung out, partied with them, and I met Crew.”

“Who the fuck is Crew?”

“Carson.”

He turns to his wife. “Is this some kind of wedding prank? Like, you get my sister to pretend she’s lost her mind and then fuck with me to see if my head explodes?”

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