Page 43 of Big Booze Boss

Brandon comes over and hugs me.

"Brother, you look handsome as hell," he says. "You look like Prince Charming."

He grins, "Where did you run off to last night?"

I grin. "I got the hell away from LuAnn. That girl is an octopus."

He chuckles, "Did you come back to the ranch?" His eyes are honed in on mine, and I see the truth I suspected in them.

I tell him. "You can't ask me that."

"The hell I can't. I'm your big brother."

I laugh, "You can ask, but I can't answer." I tilt my head to the tent.

"OH!" He beams as it dawns on him what I mean. "Hallelujah! Jenny's nearly lost her mind this week."

"What you talking about?" I squint at him.

"I mean. The other wedding venue didn't burn down. She set this whole thing up to force you two together, and every time she talked to Breezy, you weren't here."

"Are you fucking kidding me?" I throw my head back and laugh out loud. "I've been here the whole time."

He joins me, crackling up, and Breezy sticks her head through the slit. "What's so funny? Is everything okay?" She takes one look at my eyes and flees inside. "HANDLE WHATEVER IT IS."

Brandon and I hug, and he says, "Your secret is safe with me."

I laugh with him. "Yours is too, brother."

Summer

I check my phone every five minutes, even though I set an alarm. We are all standing, waiting for the call for the start of the ceremony. No one is talking, everyone's head hurts. I pull the bottle of Blazing Fire out of my bag and unscrew it. "We are ten minutes from showtime."

I tip the bottle back and take a hit, then pass it to Jenny. She does the same and passes it to Tracy, who passes it to Marti, who passes it to LuAnn. I hold my hand out for it, and she hands it over.

I lift it again and say, "Here's to wishing you a life full of all the love and happiness you deserve, Jenny." Then I take another hit, and we pass the bottle around. I put the top back on and hug everyone, and line them up.

Blaze says through the flap. "We're ready."

I pull Jenny back so she can't be seen when the other girls leave. Blaze pulls back the flap, and the music starts.

Jenny tears up, watching Brandon walk down the aisle, and I shake my finger at her. "NO MELTDOWN!"

She laughs and nods.

One by one, the processional makes their way to the officiant. When it's my turn to step out, I look back at my best friend in the whole world and tell her. "I love you."

She smiles and says, "I love you too."

When I step out of the tent, Blaze's eyes ravish me, and he whispers as he pulls my arm tight against his, and my nipple hardens on his arm. "DAMN! I'm speechless."

"You better be!" I mumble behind my smile.

When he escorts me to my spot, his smile as he stares into my eyes says everything to me and to LuAnn. When he turns and walks away, she says, "Well, congratulations to you too."

I smile, knowing in an hour, I won't have to hide that fact anymore. Then I see Jenny coming down the aisle. She is breathtaking, and when Brandon sees her, his smile turns to tears. Blaze hands him a handkerchief, and he wipes them away.

No two people have ever loved each other more.

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