Page 29 of Talk About… Secrets
“Good, good. Busy with all the wedding stuff going on, of course,” I said. My voice was higher pitched than I meant it to be but I disguised it with an unhinged laugh.
Great, he probably thought I lost my mind.
“Where are my cousins!” Bianca’s poorly timed entrance had me wincing.
“I’m sorry, I have to go protect Hailey. We’ll catch up later,” I promised. My hand brushed his arm and a low growl echoed from somewhere nearby. My fingers tingled where I’d touched him, and I was confused and stunned as I faced off with my cousin.
Her dark hair was twisted in a bun, her makeup overdone already and of course, she was wearing a white skirt and blazer that made her look older than she was.
I’m sure she thought it was stylish, but it was too much like Miss Trunchbull to be cute.
“Bianca, it’s so good to see you,” I gushed, giving her air kisses on her cheeks like she did to me. It was a well practiced dance I hated.
“Bianca,” Hailey greeted, eyeing the suit but giving her a pinched smile.
“Ah, radiant as ever, Hailey. You’re going to be such a beautiful bride. I can’t wait to see it,” she exclaimed. “Celine should be along shortly.”
“Oh good,” I said, wishing I felt it.
Then I heard our mother. I swear this was the day that just kept giving.
“Oh, my baby is getting married!” Mom yelled out, pushing through the crowd to pull Hailey into a hug. I could see how tense my sister was already.
“I’m glad you made it, Mom,” she said until my aunt butted into the conversation, the same vibes as Bianca, just with more wrinkles.
“It was a long drive. This is such a… quaint, little location,” she said with full judgment in her voice.
Mom sighed and plastered on a smile like she always did. “It’s lovely. Reminds me a bit of home.”
“Of that tiny, little backroads town?” Aunt Cassidy said, raising one overly-manicured brow.
“It does,” I agreed with mom. “I love Rockwood Valley.”
That got both of their attention on me like I wanted, giving Hailey a chance to escape. She slipped away without a word.
“Oh, are you still there?” Aunt Cassidy asked me, grasping her non-existent pearls. “Though, I heard Hailey is escaping soon. At least she has a good head on her shoulders.”
Even though her comment was rude, my chest ached at the thought of Hailey moving away. I’d tried to avoid it the best I could and definitely didn’t let my sister know.
She loved her job there and I liked having her close, I was still holding out hope she’d change her mind.
“I am,” I said. “They just launched a new omega apartment and I was sharing it until my roommates ended up packed up, so now I’m staying at Hailey’s place until I figure out what house I want to buy.”
“How can you afford that?” Bianca scoffed. “You just do little designs on your computer, right? You know, I bet Bianca could get you an entry level job at the firm.”
Like Bianca had any sway at her corporate job. She was also low on the totem pole.
“And you do what? Nothing at all?” I shot back. “My job more than pays my bills and cushions my savings, not that it’s any of your business.”
“Oh, no need to get so defensive,” she said like I was the problem. Her eyes lit up as someone stepped up to my side.
“Hello, ladies. Just checking that everyone has everything they need.” Beck’s smile was well-practiced as he glanced around at us all, not lingering on me for longer than necessary and fuck I hated that. Especially when facing off with my aunt.
“Oh, and who might you be?” Cassidy purred at him. It took everything in me not to let my omega out, though she was gnawing at the bars of her enclosure at the moment, begging for me to put this bitch in her place.
“Best man,” he answered. “Nolan is my brother.”
“Oh, such handsome men in your family,” Bianca praised. He had all three of them eating out of his hands.
