Page 7 of Best Man
“Niko!” Jax shouted, arms spread. The six-foot-six defenseman broke away from the group and mauled his best man with a big bear hug.
“Big Rig!” Niko shouted back, wrapping his arms around his best friend just as tight.
“Aw, such a cute bromance,” Austen joked, earning a small ripple of laughs.
The friends hadn’t seen each other since Jax’s bachelor party—three months ago, to be exact. The day after, Jax drove up to Montana, where he and Piper were busily expanding her family’s farm.
“You really did it, eh? You crazy fucker.” Jax pulled away from the hug to eye the private jet. “You chartered a fuckingG650to my wedding. Unreal.” He pulled Niko back in with a side hug and asked the crowd, “Can you believe this guy?”
“Hey, I’m the best man, aren’t I?” Niko boasted. “Gotta take care of the wedding party.”
Jax poked his finger into Niko’s sternum and said for everyone to hear, “This here is one hell of a best man.” He scanned the crowd. “Hey, where’s Belen?”
“Eh.” Niko hesitated. “I’ll tell you later.”
Jax shook his head, laughing, already knowing. “This guy.”
The group milled around, making more small talk until the flight crew had finished unloading everyone’s luggage from cargo. Once everyone had their bags,Jax addressed the crowd. “Hey guys, you see that shuttle?” He pointed a short distance at the parking lot across the way. “Hop on that and it’ll take you back to the hotel in Kalispell. Check in there, grab a bite to eat if you want, take a nap, whatever—just don’t go too far, because we’re doing the rehearsal later this afternoon at our place.”
Everyone moseyed over to the shuttle, but Niko and Jax hung back.
Niko gestured at the jet. “You want to check out the cabin real quick?”
“Bro.Of course I do.”
***
“What do you think?” Niko asked as they toured the cabin.
“Man, she’s a beaut.” Jax lowered his big frame into one of the leather seats and sighed. “Not gonna lie. I’m a little jealous right now. I’ve always had a boner for this jet.”
“Yeah, I know.” Niko took the seat opposite him, biting down on the insides of his cheek so he wouldn’t start to smile. “It’s too bad you couldn’t fly here with us.”
“I know, man. Trust me, I wish I could’ve.” He gave a shake of his head. “Oh well, what can ya do? We’ve had our hands full up here all summer.”
“How’s everything going, anyway?”
“Good, good,” Jax said. “Just busy as hell, but the dream house is finally finished, at least. We got Piper’s parents moved in, so that’s good. Once the wedding’s done, we can finally kick our feet up and relax for a few weeks—but then it’s time to get ready for the season.”
“You ready to get married?” Niko asked, testing him. “Are you really ready to have onlyonegirl for the rest of your life?”
Jax chuckled. “Fuck, man. I don’t even care if it makes me sound pussy-whipped.I’msoready.”
“Settling down doesn’t scare you at all?”
“Hell no. Pipes is my best friend. You know that.”
“Good for you. You found a good one. Piper is a great girl.”
“She really is.” Jax’s eyes softened and he wore a lovestruck smile. “And I owe it to you, bud. If you never screwed my head on straight? Who knows if Piper and I even get together.”
Niko wasn’t sure how much credit he really deserved—everyonealways knew Jax and Piper were madly in love with each other. They were so good at denying it, though, you were almost tempted to believe them when they claimed to be just friends.
The first time Big Rig brought Piper around, Niko thought she was very cute and pleasant to be around. If she and Jax weretrulyjust friends like they swore? Well, Niko might’ve been tempted to ask her out on a date—but only if Jax was cool with it, which he obviously wouldn’t have been, so it was a moot point.
Not that any of that mattered anymore. Once Piper and Jax started dating, everyone could see they were made for each other, and that was the most important thing. Niko was happy for them both and very proud that he played a small part in them getting together, too.
Jax changed the subject. “Well hey, speaking of being too scared to settle down—what happened with you and Belen?”
