“Yours is in town, isn’t he? I saw him over at the bar the other day, he was talking to a couple of suits,” Brandon said. Of course his father would be in there. Another place I was looking to avoid.
I only had enough room on my plate for one Graves.
“Yeah, he’s been looking over the business, making sure I’m ‘handling’ it his way.” Wyatt had a way of making men at ease, and Brandon was not immune to his charisma.
“I hate that. I can handle the responsibility, you know?” He leaned back in his chair and let out a long low sigh.
This should’ve relaxed Jess, but it didn’t. Rather than settling in she stood up, tears in her eyes and said, “I need a minute.”
She beelined it right for the bathroom, I could almost hear her sob as she went.
“Oh what the hell now?” Brandon asked. “She’s been a mess of tears for weeks. I don’t know how to talk to her anymore.” He looked so helpless but that didn’t keep me from wanting to smack him across the head. Didn’t he understand what she was going through? Weddings were hard enough for the bride without the groom being unsympathetic.
I rose, “I’ll go see if she’s okay.”
I didn’t hear what the gentleman said because I was too busy weaving through the tables of families and awkward dates.
I bet out of all of them mine was the most awkward. We’d win the award, I was sure of it, if not the Olympic medal.
I wondered if I could be able to convince Wyatt that this date should count for two. Double the date, double the trouble.
I heard Jess crying as soon as I entered the bathroom, she was in the far stall on the left. She wasn’t exactly quiet.
“Honey, are you okay?” I asked as I grabbed some tissues out of my purse. “Do you want some tissues, gotta be better on your eyes than toilet paper.”
“Yes, please,” she sniffled. I passed them under the stall and gave her a moment.
“What’s the matter, honey?” I asked.
“It’s like he doesn’t care. He just doesn’t care. I told him this was important to me. Told him that it was a big deal, you know? We haven’t been out on a date in so long. And on top of that I wanted to give you a chance to get to know Wyatt, you know?”
“Jess, I already know Wyatt,” I answered. I didn’t want to come out and tell her this was a bad idea, but it was a bad idea. One that I was already starting to regret.
“You don’t. You don’t know the man he has turned into over the years. If you did I know you would give him a real chance, you know?”
“What do you mean?” I asked. I wanted to keep her talking, get her to stop crying.
“He’s been a real help around town. He pretty much guided me through community college.” She sniffled and then blew her nose.
“What do you mean?” I asked.
“He came in to the store and talked to me. Usually tried to find out information about you, at least at first. Not that I knew anything.” She hiccuped and I fought the urge to open that door and pull her into a hug.
“It wasn’t because of you, Jess. Everything was just so messed up.” I was messed up. I was hurting and I didn’t want to share that with anyone.
“Well, anyway, he was the one who convinced me it was worth it to go. I got a private scholarship, no idea where it came from, but I have a feeling it was from him. He’s been a good friend, to me and Brandon. Even offered up his lake house for the wedding. And you won’t even give him a chance.”
I had no idea that he’d done all of that. It wasn’t something I expected of him.
“If I promise to give him a chance will you stop crying?” I asked.
“Depends. Do you mean it?” she asked.
Hell, I didn’t want to mean it, but I didn’t seem to have much of a choice.
“Yes.” I really would, for her sake.
And a man who could do all that couldn’t be the same man who betrayed me all those years ago.
The truth was, I caught him kissing another woman while we were together. I didn’t ask for an explanation, I didn’t need one. I just packed up all my stuff and I took off.
Never looked back.
“Just give me a few minutes, will you?’ Jess asked. “I need to get the last little bit of crying out.”
I nodded, but I realized she couldn’t hear me, of course she couldn’t hear me. “Sure, hon.”
I stepped out of the bathroom to see Brandon standing there, hovering over the door.
A woman approached it and give him a look.
“What you’ve never seen a nervous fiancé before?” he asked her. She shook her head then turned around and walked away.