Page 109 of Crazy In Love
“There are no baseball bats inside this gym, are there?” I stumble forward and cling to the doorframe, Alana’s ferocious grip dragging me through. “Right? What other weapons should we know about?”
“My fist,” Alana snaps. “I’ve been taking lessons my whole damn life, so watch your pretty lips before I fatten them.”
ROUND TWENTY-EIGHT
CHRIS
It’s not so bad, really. Standing in front of a couple hundred people, everyone’s eyes turned toward us while Alana and Tommy surprised their guests with a wedding instead of… whatever the hell this party was first intended to be.
Sure, people looked at us. And yeah, guyslookedat Fox.
How could they not, when she’s so fucking pretty and so shamelessly stood out in red?
None of this is as horrible as I would’ve expected it to feel had I had six months to overthink the idea of being my brother’s best man.
Six months of suit fittings and practice dinners, wedding talk, and speeches—fuck, I haven’t considered my speech yet. Six months ofwhat if it rains? Andmaybe I could convince Ollie to stand up for me instead.
Honestly, nothing could feel as gut-wrenching as being in the same room as the woman I love… while she considers usjust friends.
“Beer?” Tommy crosses from the makeshift bar with two glass bottles in his hands and his tie already hanging loose around his neck. Music plays, and guests chatter. The space we normally teach kids in, is now a dance floor. People we see every single day laugh and sway. Others, we see once a year… or almost never, join in like they’ve been a part of our world all along.
And then there’s Fox in the middle of it all, gleefully dancing with the little boy who doesnotwant to dance at all.
If that’s not the perfect representation of me and her, then I don’t know what is.
Tommy taps my shoulder with the bottle, plopping into the chair on my left. “Not sure where you’re at with all that, but your staring is kinda obvious. I think even Alana is noticing now.”
“Hmm?” I accept the beer, and because he’s looking somewhere else, I follow his gaze to a not-so-happy Alana, who glares right back. “Why’s she mad at me?”
“Like I said.” He twists the cap off his beer and slides it into his pocket. “She hasn’t said shit to me, but I reckon she knows. Did you do something to hurt her?”
“Alana?”
“No, Fox. People have been hurting Alana her whole life. She’s used to it. If she’s shooting those kind of daggers at you, it’s because you did something to Fox.”
“But I didn’t.” I twist my beer open and take a fast swig of the cold liquid. “Fox and I are fine.”Just friends.But fine. “We drove here together earlier. We welcomed guests and helped them find their seats. We’re a total team. There’s no drama.”
“So maybe you did something else to piss her off.” Sipping, he settles back in his chair and chuckles. “She’s five weeks postpartum. Maybe her hormones are helping her remember all the shit you did when we were younger.”
“You think so?” I drag my eyes away and study the side of my brother’s face. “I’ve already got enough problems, Tommy. I have no room for smoke from fifteen years ago.”
He shrugs, extending his legs and crossing them at the ankles. “Dunno. I guess we gotta wait till she tells us what’s up. You come to any conclusions about the Fox situation yet? She’s leaving soon.”
“Eight days.” Eight sleeps, including tonight. Eight mornings where, if I’m lucky, I might trick her into giving us a little more time.Wishful thinking, dickhead.I drag my thumbnail along the beer label, tearing the moist paper in slow, straight lines. “We’re just… We’re okay. We’re gonna have the week together, and I’m gonna pretend it’s not like counting down to my own execution.”
“I’d laugh at the analogy, except I know exactly what you mean. It felt like I’d died when Alana left, too. Though…” He glances across. “I didn’t know my death was coming. I had no chance to prepare and no opportunity to appeal my sentence. You know yours is coming, so why the fuck aren’t you fighting to change it?”
“Because she won’t stay, and I can’t go.” That’s the crux of it all. Such a small, simple roadblock, but it may as well be entire galaxies keeping usapart. “We might vacation in the Galápagos, though.” I bring my beer up and drink a whole bunch more. “That could be nice.”
“The Galápagos?”
“Mmm. Beautiful islands. Pretty flowers. Old turtles. But if it makes you feel any better, I’mthisclose,” I hold my hand up between us, pinching my thumb and finger almost completely together, “to packing a bag and moving to New York anyway.”
Stunned, he shoves forward on his seat and stares at the side of my face. “What?”
I say nothing. I watch Fox dance instead. Her perfect body, wrapped in a stunning dress. Her hair, bouncing, and her eyes, glittering. She’s unhappy in this town. But fuck, she’s happy when she’s with her family. Franky. Alana.
Maybe even me…
