Page 28 of Something Borrowed

“I’m shocked,” he muttered.

Caroline cleared her throat. “We never got to finish our last game to decide who won the summer lamp.”

“Don’t you think we’re a little too old for games? Besides, no one is going to want that in their house now,” Delaney said.

“No one ever wanted it in their house. That was the whole point,” Brigid replied.

“True. But it comes with a monetary prize as well.” Caroline consulted her notes. “We had already upped our summer prize money that last year. I saved it all and added to it. The winners receive one thousand dollars, and the loser gets the summer lamp.”

“I’ll pay you a thousand dollars to throw that piece of shit away,” Anna grumbled.

“I think it would look lovely in your house, Anna,” Delaney replied, saccharine sweet.

Anna glared at her. “Maybe you should display it for your next Fine Home magazine spread. Oh wait, they don’t do apartments.”

Delaney’s faced reddened, but she remained quiet.

Wyatt lounged in his chair across from Anna, lips twisted in a sardonic smile. “Anna, it would be perfect on the set of your show, don’t you think?”

The conversation went downhill from there as voices rose and tempers flared. Matthew slammed his hand on the table, cutting everyone off mid-sentence. They all looked at him.

“You all agreed to be in the wedding. This is part of your duties.” Matthew scanned the table, resting a firm gaze on each person. Satisfied that everyone agreed, he nodded to Caroline.

“Yes, Dad,” Ethan grinned.

Matthew shot him the one-fingered salute, and Brigid snorted.

Caroline smiled with a forced expression. “Thank you. As I said, the grand prize is a thousand dollars and the decision of who gets the lamp. Now, in the past, the rule was you had to display the lamp in your house for the entire year. Back then, it was a source of pride. Now, well, we can all admit it’s a bit overdone. As this will be the last year for the Whitby Summer Challenge, you may dispose of the lamp as you see fit.”

She walked around the table, laying a piece of paper and an envelope at each woman’s place. “This event is a scavenger hunt. Each team has a list of items you need to get, along with an allotted budget. You must produce a receipt for everything on your list, except one thing, and you cannot go over your budget. Oh, and no cars. You have until ten tonight. Grady, I assigned you with Brigid. Any questions?”

“Why am I stuck with Grady?” Brigid asked, still peeved about his refusal this morning and sexual tension riding her hard. Working with him on this stupid event was going to push her harder, undo all her work at rebuilding her walls with him. She couldn’t risk it.

“Because you’re in the wedding together and you need a partner.” Matthew spoke up. “Consider this event a way to get to know each other.”

“I think I know him well enough already,” she grumbled, better probably than most in the room realized. How was she going to survive a full night with him, knowing he wanted her but wouldn’t do anything about it?

“Gee thanks, darlin’. I feel all warm and fuzzy inside.” Grady drawled next to her, but she caught the flash of hurt covered by his sarcastic words.

“Shut up, Grady,” Matthew said mildly.

Delaney scanned her list of items. She raised her hand. “Do we all have the same items?”

“No. I selected your items carefully—items or tasks that mean something to you or said something about you. You cannot use anything you brought with you, and you must prove the provenance of every item. You are allowed one item that is not paid for but must prove that you got it here on the island tonight. A picture or video will suffice as proof.”

Brigid scowled at their list. This was going to be impossible. On the bright side, she’d have her phone.

“Wait. How are we going to figure out who wins? A point per item, right? But who was in the lead before?” Ethan asked.

She frowned and consulted her paper. “Um, I think it was Ethan and Delaney. But Anna and Wyatt were close behind, by a couple of points.”

Grady leaned over and whispered, “You suck at this. I want a new partner.”

“Go for it.” Brigid retorted.

“Exactly. Are you all ready?” Caroline asked.

Delaney glanced at the other girls, who nodded. “Not quite. We assumed your plans when we saw this thing. So, we have our own challenge for you.” She pulled a folded sheet out of her pocket. “Here is your list, for you and Matthew.”

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