Page 14 of The Anti-Bachelorette (The Anti-Bachelorette 1)

Angela lowers her voice to a whisper so Erika can’t hear. “John cheated on Erika. She called off the wedding.”

My mouth falls open. “What!”

Angela sighs. “I know. I still can’t believe it. I’m here with her now. When do you get off work?”

I look at the clock. “About another hour, but I’ll try to leave now.”

We spend the next couple of days trying to comfort Erika. We bring over junk food and wine every night, and we trash talk the hell out of John and bring up every single thing wrong we can think about him. By the time Thursday comes around, we are almost unable to come up with any more reasons to hate him.

We are all sitting on Erika’s couch eating ice cream. I take another bite, and then Angela pipes up. “Oh! One time John only tipped 10 percent because he said it was all the cash he had on him. What a cheap ass.”

We all laugh. Erika especially. “You guys are really pushing it now.”

I push on her shoulder. “Hey all you need is us girls anyway. Screw the boys.” We all laugh again, but then Erika surprises me. “Can we not cancel my bachelorette party tomorrow?”

I look down at her. “Uhm...are you sure?”

She nods. “Yeah you guys already planned it, and honestly, I just want to get out. I’m sick of wallowing in bed every day.”

Me and Angela hug her and agree. “I’ll text everyone now.”

Group Text: The Girls

Me: Party is still on for tomorrow. Erika wants to get out.

Kelly: Sounds great! I will just add an “Ex” in front of bridesmaid on my sash.

Erika: Haha! Good idea Kelly. We can call it my Anti-Bachelorette party.

Jess: Oh good! I still have the bachelorette dare game. I’ll bring the cards.

Angela: Still meeting at Finnegans at 10. See you all there!

I get up and hug Erika one more time. “I’m going to get home. Got to get some sleep tonight so I am not too tired after work tomorrow.” We all say our goodbyes, and I head home.

???

The next day I am trying to leave work early so that I have plenty of time to get ready for tonight. I don’t have much going on, so I decide to go find Alaric and tell him I am heading out. I head into the job site, but I stop when I see him.

It was an extra hot day today, and he has his shirt tucked into his back pocket. He is in nothing but his jeans, work boots, and hard hat, and I swear it feels like I am walking into a porno or something. I glance around and don’t see anyone, so I just stand there taking in the view for a few minutes. He is framing in a wall, and his back flexes every time he reaches up to use his drill. My eyes drift lower and take in his tight ass. Suddenly, my gawking session ends when he clears his throat. “Do you need something Emory?”

He somehow knew I was here without ever turning around. I clear my own throat then. “I’m about to take off. Just wanted to let you know.”

Before he can respond his phone rings, and he glances down at it. “It’s your dad. Did he tell you he’s going to be gone the whole weekend?”

I turn my head in confusion. “No? Why?”

Alaric just answers the video call. “Hey, what’s up?”

I hear my dad’s voice through the phone. “Hey Alaric. Is Emory still around?”

Alaric glances over to me. “Yeah, she’s right here. Did you need to talk to her?”

My dad shouts through the phone, “Hey sweetie!”

“Hi dad!” I shout back.

He continues. “Not sure if Alaric told you yet, but I am going to be gone until Sunday. I have a special job request up a few hours north. Going to head up this weekend to quote it out for them.”

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