Page 93 of Bending Under Pressure

Keelan leans over, his lips brushing my ear as he whispers, “Doing okay?” I nod and he chuckles. “You’re a terrible liar, Hales.” He releases my hand to wrap an arm around my shoulders, pulling me closer to him. I’m grateful to have him here with me as a source of comfort, even if my grandparents eye him like he’s poison or something. “Want me to distract you?”

“How are you going to do that?” My gaze falls to his lips.

He grins. “Keep your mind out of the gutter. So, when I met Natalie for lunch last week, she was being Natalie and tried to convince me I should see my birth father.” Keelan has been actively avoiding talking about it. So much so that his mom even called my house and asked if he’d discussed it with me. I didn’t tell him she called, but it made me worry about him more. He continues to tell me what happened, keeping his voice low. “I’ll probably tell my parents tomorrow because I haven’t yet, but I feel a lot better about it.”

I don’t get to respond in any way before the groomsmen are taking their place as well as my father and the pastor. Dad smiles at me, but that’s it. Granted, he can’t do much right now either. In no time at all, the bridal party is coming up the aisle. I squeeze Keelan’s hand when I see Carly. I have to admit that she looks cute in her dress and I begin to wonder what she’s like. We stand once the music starts for the bride and Keelan takes my hand again.

This is the first time I’m getting a good look at Tonya. She’s beautiful in her dress, unfortunately. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve come to be happy that my parents aren’t together because Walter is good for Mom and they really love each other. However, this woman still played apart in ripping us a part. How could she do that to someone else’s family, especially when she has one of her own? Does Carly know how her mom and my dad got together?

Will my dad cheat on Tonya like he cheated on my mom?

Should I be thinking about this during their wedding?

Probably not.

My mind shuts down in a numb sort of way as I watch my father marry this woman. How can he do this? How can these vows mean something if he broke them once already while he was married to my mom? How can he be a good stepdad to Carly if he’s a terrible dad to me? This is wrong on so many levels. I shouldn’t even be here. I don’t support it and I hate my dad for what he did. I don’t even think he’s truly apologized for his actions.

Even if he did, how can that mean anything when he still forgets about me?

The church erupting into clapping and cheers snaps me out of my daze in time to see him kiss his new bride. I wish my mom were here. I wish someone could tell me what to feel or help me sort out how I feel instead of feeling a little bit of everything. After the wedding party left, someone stands at the front of the room and gives instructions on how to get to the dining hall where the reception will be held.

“Let’s sit here for a minute,” I tell Keelan, while everyone seems to converge in the same direction all at once, including my grandparents.

“How are you doing?”

“Wishing I hadn’t come,” I confess.

“Do you want to skip the reception?” His eyes light up with heat and desire. “I’m sure we can find a way to fill in the time before we’re expected back home.”

“What happened to making sure we don’t do anything to risk getting grounded again?”

“Right. You make me want to take the risk.” He sobers and rubs his thumb over my knuckles. “Do you want to talk about it?”

I shake my head. “Do you?”

“I already did.”

I roll my eyes because he did not talk about it. He simply explained what happened and briefly commented on his feelings. The crowd has thinned, so I stand, pulling him with me. “Let’s go to a reception.”

My grandparents seem to have left already because I don’t see them anywhere. We find an unoccupied table and take a seat. A couple approaches the table with nice smiles.

“Mind if we sit here?” the man asks.

“No,” I answer with a shake of my head.

They sit down, and the woman turns to me with a smile. “So, who do you know? The bride or the groom? I think I would know

everyone on the bride’s side, but I keep being surprised.”

“Oh, the groom. I’m his daughter, Haley, and this is my boyfriend, Keelan.” Both of their jaws drop in surprise. “What about you?”

“The bride is my sister. I, um, didn’t realize Tonya would be getting a stepdaughter. Carly must be excited though. You don’t live with your dad then, right? Otherwise, I’m sure we would’ve met by now.”

Pain explodes in my chest. They didn’t know I existed. How could they not know? Dad didn’t talk about me at all with his new relatives? Before I can think better of it, I curtly respond, “No, I don’t live with him. When he cheated on my mom with Tonya, I decided to live with Mom instead.”

That shuts them up, but by the surprise in their eyes, they must not have known about how the couple came to be. A waiter, who I assume is with the catering company they hired, comes to pour water in our glasses and ask them if they want something alcoholic to drink. Thanks to having family of the bride at our table, two more relatives sit down. It’s obvious by their surprise as well that they didn’t know my dad had a daughter.

I fold my arms over my chest, pissed off and wishing I could pout like a kid. What’s the point in me coming when no one aside from my dad knew who I was? Keelan rests an arm on the back of my chair, his thumb rubbing back and forth over the lace on my shoulder. I shoot him a grateful smile. He looks down at his pocket and pulls out my phone, handing it to me.

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