Page 15 of Off Camera
“Emmy is going to kill you,” I say. “And it’s going to be fun to watch.”
“Bold of you to assume Emmy wouldn’t wave too,” he says, flicking the back of my head. “Now shut up, Plant Daddy. Our girls are heading our way.”
The precession starts with June, Dallas and Maven’s daughter and our goddaughter, walking down the aisle. Emmy follows behind her, and Maverick whines when he sees her form-fitting dress and the smirk she tosses his way. Four other women approach the flower arch, then Maven appears at the entrance of the ballroom.
Everyone stands. Dallas covers his mouth with his fist as she gets closer, and a choked sob racks his shoulders.
“God, she’s beautiful,” he says. “Look at her. I get to wake up to that face for the next fifty years, and I’m going to want fifty more.”
“Shit.” Maverick drops his head back and sniffs. “Why am I crying? I never fucking cry.”
I wipe my eyes. “Because she’s perfect for him, and all we’ve ever wanted is to see Dallas happy.”
I’m an only child, and for the decade I’ve known these guys, I’ve considered them my brothers. We’d do anything for each other.
When my ex called off our engagement, they took me to my therapy appointments. Helped me find a new place to live and loaded up the moving truck in the middle of summer without a single complaint.
When Dallas became a father, Maverick and I treated June like she was our own daughter. We were there for every diaper change. Her first steps and her first words. We switched off feeding duty in the middle of the night so Dallas could shut his eyes for twenty minutes. All three of us walked around in an exhausted daze the first two years of June’s life, but we’d do it again.
And when Maverick realized he loved Emmy, the first woman he’s ever had feelings for, we talked him through the scary shit. Now those two are next to tie the knot, and my god, I’ve never seen him so happy.
I wasn’t sure if the dynamic of our group would change when Dallas and Maven started dating. It was always the three of us, and adding a new person to the mix left room for someone to feel left out.
Maven was the missing piece.
She’s compassionate and kind. Funny and light-hearted, but she knows when to be serious. She brings out a side of Dallas that disappeared when he became a single dad trying to juggle all of his responsibilities, and I’ll never be able to thank her for breaking him out of his shell.
I love her so fucking much.
It almost feels like she’s becoming a part of Maverick and me too. The sister I always wanted but never had. Someone to protect and encourage and cheer on. Another best friend andanother person in my corner. A lifetime with her around doesn’t feel like enough.
Dallas’s shoulders shake when Maven climbs the stairs and reaches for him.
“Hi, honey,” he says softly, and she touches his cheek.
“Hi, sweetie,” she says. “Are you okay?”
“Better now that you’re up here with me.”
“I guess I shouldn’t tell you about the runaway bride act Reid and I were going to pull, huh?” Maven jokes, and I bark out a laugh.
Dallas looks at me and smiles. “If I was going to lose you to anyone, I’d be okay with it being him.”
“Wow,” Maverick grumbles. “That’s fucking rude.”
“You win everything else. Let me have this one,” I say, and he rolls his eyes.
Dallas reaches for me, asking for the rings. I shove my hand in my pocket and pull out the boxes, carefully handing them over.
“Thanks,” he murmurs.
“Happy for you, man.”
His eyes flick over to Maverick, then back to me. “Do I need to put him on a leash?”
I snort. “Don’t think it would help. Stop staring at me, Dal. Maven is way hotter, and she’s the star of the show.”
“Yeah.” Dallas smiles. “She is, isn’t she?”
