Total pages in book: 93
Estimated words: 89553 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 448(@200wpm)___ 358(@250wpm)___ 299(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 89553 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 448(@200wpm)___ 358(@250wpm)___ 299(@300wpm)
Chapter Two
Hunter
It’s not like I’m not happy for my best friend. I schlepped up here from New York to go to his engagement party, didn’t I?
“Can I get another shot?” I ask the bartender. I’m avoiding everyone. I don’t know Ed’s friends from home, and the only joint friend we have is working in Hong Kong. Making small talk with a bunch of people I don’t know is my idea of perfect hell. And everyone’s so goddamn happy. I can’t take any more “Don’t they make an adorable couple” and “Their children are going to be so beautiful.” It’s all a bleak reminder of my future being flushed down the drain as this party drifts on.
The bartender slides me the tequila bottle. I unscrew the cap and tip a generous pour into the lowball that one of the themed cocktails was served in. It might have been the Something Borrowed . . . No, that was the strawberry one. It was gooood. Maybe it was the Bouquet Toss. No, that was lemon. I know . . . It was definitely the To Have and To Hold. Bit of a spicy kick on that one.
I probably should have asked for a clean glass, but I’m not really tasting the alcohol as it goes down. I just want to obliterate reality for an hour or so until I can go back to my hotel and sleep, then get back to the city to do my job. And Ed’s job. Already he’s not as focused as he usually is. I swear he spent the entire week booking the honeymoon.
“Hey,” Katherine says as she approaches the bar, arm in arm with Ed.
“Looks like you found the bar, dude,” Ed says.
“What can I say? Nothing like the ocean air and a slug of tequila.”
“So . . . what did you think of Lucy?” he asks.
Katherine playfully slaps him on the arm. “You gotta be more subtle than that!”
I get the feeling I’m missing something.
“Did you two vibe?”
Katherine rolls her eyes and picks a speck of invisible lint off my jacket, the way she always does. It’s weird . . . I never spot anything on my clothes, but Katherine always finds something. “We just want the party planning to go smoothly,” Katherine says with a smile.
“It will,” I say.
“We don’t want to end up at a strip club in Vegas,” Ed says.
Katherine gives out a slightly hysterical laugh. “No, definitely no strip clubs. You know we want to stay in Massachusetts, don’t you?”
“Right,” I say, trying to think whether I made any notes when Katherine called me shortly after Ed proposed.
“And it’s going to be a joint thing. So you and Lucy will be working together, doing the planning and preparation. That will be super fun, right?”
I nod and take another swig of tequila. “Lucy,” I repeat. “Super fun.”
On the other side of the lawn, Katherine’s mom appears to be sermonizing to a small group of guests. Enraptured? Held hostage? Hard to tell from this distance. Weirdly, I think I hear her say something about Hunter “possessing a good fortune.” And also about wanting a wife. Her hands are fluttering in the air, underscoring her words, and then she laughs. At whatever she’s saying.
I refocus on the middle distance, where I find a woman barreling toward us with fisted hands and a scowl. “Mom’s started on Pride and Prejudice, Katherine,” she says, her jaw tight.
I’ve definitely been introduced to this woman. I think she’s the sister—the one I’m planning the bachelor party with. My mind is fuzzy with tequila, and my brain is stuck in molasses. I don’t remember thinking Katherine’s sister was hot an hour or so ago when we were introduced, but this woman is beautiful. Bright, big green eyes and hair that’s so glossy I wonder whether she put butter or oil or something in it. Is that a thing? And her breasts are mesmerizing. I’m pretty sure she’s not wearing a bra, yet they’re high and round and . . . Fuck. I might be drunk, but I haven’t had enough tequila not to realize I’m staring at my best friend’s sister-in-law’s chest. At least I’m wearing sunglasses. Hopefully no one noticed.
“There’s nothing we can do,” Katherine says. “You know what she’s like after a white wine spritzer.”
“You can’t blame the wine. She just needs an audience to start bleating on about Austen.” The beauty sighs. “The glass of wine just means Dad’s getting lucky tonight.”
“Eww,” Katherine and Ed chorus.
I watch the happy couple. They’re basically the same people but opposite genders. They both have neat hair and a permanent smile. They both like yoga and goddamn kimchi. I bet neither of them has ever been hungover at work the day after a big night out. Goody-goodies. That’s what Katherine and Ed are.