Advice from a Jilted Bride

by Rayne, Piper

  I bring the phone back up to my ear. “Um.”

  “Yeah, I agree. She’ll take it better from you.”

  “Okay?”

  “Thanks. Tell her not to hurry home, we’ve got it handled and we’ll let her know as soon as we hear anything.”

  My eyes search her out. Haylee’s next to her, the two smiling and talking like they’re lifelong friends. How did I ever question if she’d fit into my world? She fits in better than me. And now I have to strip that smile off her face. Strip us of this time away, discovering what we could be together.

  “You know as well as I do, she’s on the next flight. I’ll message you when I have our flight information.”

  “It was worth a try. I know you and Brooklyn are… well… I just didn’t want to interrupt the two of you, but like I said, I got overruled.”

  “It’s okay, Rome. Thanks though. I’ll be in touch and I’m sorry about Denver. I know they’ll find him.”

  “Definitely, he’ll probably stroll up to the house in a day or two with some MacGyver story about how he saved himself.”

  His tone doesn’t match his words, but I can’t imagine what it must be like for him. It’s not just his brother, it’s his twin.

  “For sure. Give everyone my best.”

  “Thanks, Wyatt.”

  “No problem.”

  I hit end and I tuck the phone into my pocket. I watch how happy Brooklyn seems. If it was up to me, we would have left after the obligatory rituals, but Brooklyn insisted we stay until the end. That it’s our job to help with presents and whatever Haylee needs at the end of the evening.

  “Wyatt,” my dad says from next to me. “Come by my home office after brunch tomorrow and we’ll talk.”

  I turn my focus to him. “I can’t. Brooklyn and I have to return to Lake Starlight tonight.”

  “Tonight?” He sips his drink.

  “Her brother is a bush pilot and he’s missing. I have to tell her and then I’m calling the airport to see what flight we can get on.”

  He exhales a displeasured breath. “Why don’t you send her on the private plane and then it can come back tomorrow and get you after our talk?”

  I pull my phone back out because I’m going to find us airline tickets now. “Because she’s going to be broken and needs someone there for her.”

  He nods his head toward the corner that will offer us more privacy. I follow.

  “Don’t you think this is going too far? I get that you like her, but you’re not exactly cut out to be a support system.”

  My jaw clenches. “Thanks for the vote of confidence.”

  “I went over the numbers you sent, and she’s given you blinders. There are about three employees who are redundant and should be fired.”

  “How can you talk about business right now? I just told you her brother is missing. Are you that heartless?”

  He shakes his head to himself. “You always think the worst of me.”

  I lean in close, so no one hears—not for his benefit but for my mother’s. “You want to talk about me not being a support system? Your wife was battling cancer and you were fucking some whore right under her nose.”

  He stares at me and for once I get the reaction I want. Utter shock. I could almost smile except that it comes at the expense of my mom, so I just feel dirty.

  “So, excuse me, but I’m going to be the strong one and get Brooklyn home to her family.”

  “You don’t even know what you’re talking about,” he says to my departing back.

  I turn around. “I saw you. As I was trying to make her smile and laugh every day you were…” I shake my head not even wanting to think about it anymore. “You’re an asshole who likes to keep others down, but I have your fucking number.”

  “You need to watch the way you’re talking to me.” His eyes narrow.

  “Do I? Why because maybe one day if I do enough backflips and fall to my knees in front of you enough, you’ll grant me part of the company? Stop holding the carrot in front of me.”

  “I wouldn’t have to if you could be responsible once in a while.” He downs his drink and holds it in his hand at his side. “You’re a fuck up, plain and simple.”

  I look him dead in the eyes. “Fuck you.”

  “What is going on over here?” My mother rushes over, holding her dress so she doesn’t trip.

  I turn to find a few tables around us trying to act like they’re eating their cake and didn’t hear anything we discussed. I hope they didn’t hear the part about my dad’s infidelity. It would break my mom.

  “Oh, just the usual. I’m a fuck up and Dad’s perfect. Right?” I shrug my shoulders, leaning over and kissing my mom on the cheek. Her eyes are pinning my dad with a death glare. “Brooklyn and I have to go. She has a family emergency.”

  “You’re leaving tonight?” She turns in my direction, frowning.

  “Yes, I’ll call you.”

  She nods. “I hope everything’s okay.” She looks at her watch. “You’ll never get a plane. Use the company jet.”

  I laugh. “That offer’s only good if Brooklyn heads back alone.”

  My mom stares at my dad. He pulls his own phone out of his pocket. “You have an hour before takeoff,” he says, walking away.

  “I wish the two of you could be civil for one night.”

  “I’m sorry, Mom.” I hug her.

  “I know. Brooklyn’s the important one now. Go to her.” She pats my back.

  “Thanks.”

  I weave through the tables to where she and Haylee sit. When my sister brings her head up to look at me her smile falls. “What?” she asks.

  “I just need to talk to Brooklyn.”

  Brooklyn looks at me. “You look way too serious for a wedding, Wyatt.” She puts a forkful of cake into her mouth. “This is orgasmic.” Her eyes roll back, and she moans.

  Haylee laughs, but she knows me well enough to know something is wrong.

  “Mom can fill you in. Can you give us a minute?”

  Haylee stands. “Of course.” Her eyes fall over the reception and she must spot my mom because she grips my hand right before heading in the direction I just came from.

  I sit in the chair she departed. Brooklyn’s too busy enjoying the cake to notice the look of dread on my face at what I have to tell her.

  Thirty-Nine

  Brooklyn

  “Seriously, try some.” I hold the fork in front of Wyatt’s mouth, but he doesn’t open. “Fine. More for me.” I slide the sugary goodness into my mouth and my taste buds say thank you in a resounding chorus.

  “Can we go into the hallway for a second?”

  I glare at him. “Tell me here.” I use my fork to point to my cake.

  “No.”

  I narrow my eyes. “What is it?”

  “Come on.” He takes my hand and I allow him, but when he goes back and grabs my clutch from the table, then tugs me through the room, the hair on my neck stands on end.

  “I get that I’m hot and you can’t wait to strip me bare, but I told you we’re staying until the end.” My attempt at making a joke falls flat.

  He continues walking until I stop firm in my tracks, literally digging my heels into the carpeted floor.

  “What is going on?”

  He turns back around, looks around me and then back the other way, moving us to the side and takes my hands in his one since he’s holding my pink clutch.

  “Rome called. Denver’s plane went down.”

  My throat dries and my stomach drops like an elevator whose wires were snipped.

  “They don’t know anything yet except that he’s missing.”

  I stare at Wyatt. Here I was going on and on about cake and he was trying to tell me I might be burying another family member?

  “Come on. We’re taking the Whitmore jet back to Lake Starlight. We have an hour to get to the airport.”

  I step forward and follow Wyatt to the elevators, down to the ground floor and into a taxi in a surreal daze. I’m
not sure I process anything as we pack our bags, he locks his condo and we head to the airport in another taxi. Wyatt shuffles me onto a private plane and minutes later we’re in the air.

  “What if?” I say, staring through the window out into the darkness. It’s the first words I’ve spoken since he told me.

  “Mr. Whitmore, we have about a ten-hour flight. We have no attendant because of the short notice, but I had the plane stocked with snacks and drinks.” Chris, our pilot, comes on over the speaker.

  “Thanks, Chris,” Wyatt says, unbuckling his seatbelt and mine, taking us over to the sofa along the other side of the plane. “Why don’t you sleep?” He pats his lap and grabs a blanket from a compartment and puts it over my body.

  “I’m not tired.”

  “You’ll need your energy when we get there.”

  I lean my head on his shoulder and his hand finds my thigh. “If something happens to him…”

  “You can’t think about that now. You’ve told me before how resourceful he is. He’ll find a way to survive until they find him.”

  I nod and Wyatt’s gentle hand on my leg eventually becomes mesmerizing and all the late nights of the past few days catch up to me, my eyes drifting closed.

  * * *

  “Brook.” Wyatt nudges me and my eyes pop open.

  “I fell asleep?” I ask, but the drool on the side of my face is a clear indication that I did.

  “We’re about to land.” He tucks a strand of hair behind my ear.

  I have no idea what we are. How Wyatt and I are classified and whether I should ask, but right now that’s not a priority. Getting to my family is the priority.

  “Once we land, I want to go to Holly and Austin’s,” I say, sitting up.

  “Well, it’s late now, or early depending how you look at it.”

  “They’ll be up.” I get off the couch and go over to my seat and strap myself in, digging my phone out of my purse. If I’d been with it before we left, I would’ve called but Wyatt was getting me from one place to the next so fast I couldn’t wrap my mind around the fact my brother was missing.

  Wyatt reaches over after he buckles himself in and holds my hand.

  The plane lands smoothly and I look around, wishing I could’ve enjoyed this more than I did. We’re up and out of our seats before it taxis and comes to a stop.

  I dial Savannah knowing she’ll be in the loop.

  “Brooklyn,” she answers. “We’re at Austin’s. Are you back?”

  “Just landed so we have an hour drive or so. We’ll be there as soon as we can.”

  “Okay, no word yet. They’ve called off the search until the sun’s up in the morning.”

  I nod, knowing they would have. Tears prick my eyes for the first time, but I swallow them back. Not now. There’s nothing to cry about. Denver will come out of this like he always does.

  “Do you know what happened?”

  “Not really. They say something happened with the plane’s engine. You know Denver, his ego can get the best of him sometimes. Maybe he tried to push it too far.”

  “It’s that ego that will get him out of this,” I hear Kingston yell in the background.

  “I’ll be there as soon as I can.”

  “Okay,” she says, and I hang up.

  “Mr. Whitmore, we’ve arrived.” The pilot comes out from the front, leaving the co-pilot to do whatever he does. Your father informed me that you’re returning to New York first thing in the morning. Due to guidelines—”

  “My father was mistaken. I won’t be going back with you.” I look over to Wyatt and he rolls his eyes.

  “Okay then. I must have gotten it wrong.”

  “Thank you, Chris. I appreciate this so much.” Wyatt shakes his hand.

  “I can’t thank you enough. Here.” I open my purse trying to find what I’m looking for, a small bottle of lavender and chamomile vial. “I’ll send you something more, but hopefully this helps you sleep tonight.” I put the vial into his palm and hug him tightly to my body.

  “Thanks,” he says and smiles.

  “She makes potions,” Wyatt says, his hand on the small of my back to say let’s go.

  The stairs drop down and we exit out into the Alaskan fresh air where there’s a car waiting for us.

  “What about your car?” I ask, walking toward the dark sedan with tints.

  “That was a rental and I told them I’d grab a new one when I returned. They aren’t open, so this is it.”

  The driver puts our luggage into the trunk, and we slide into the backseat.

  “A girl could get used to this life.” I lean on Wyatt and kiss his cheek. “Thank you for all this.”

  “You’re welcome.” He kisses me back on the lips. “Let’s get you where you belong.”

  I watch us pull away from the airport and make our way across the dark highways of Alaska toward Lake Starlight and wonder where I really do belong. I liked New York. Enough to live there? I don’t know. But I’m starting to think that it will be hard for anywhere to feel like home if Wyatt’s not there with me.

  Forty

  Wyatt

  Brooklyn’s out of the car before it has a chance to fully stop, running up the stairway and through the front door. I guess the whole knocking thing only implies when we’re invited over.

  I get the bags, tip the driver and walk up the stairs following Brooklyn in since she left the door open. There’s mumbling in the other room, and I place our bags by the front door.

  Myles saunters around the corner, gets a gleam in his eye when he sees me and then runs toward me.

  Shit.

  I clamp my legs together, but he gets me from behind his snout pushing up my ass.

  “Seriously? You have Daisy, go nail her.”

  “Well, she’s still getting over having his babies.” Holly comes from around the corner. “Treat, Myles,” she says.

  Just like days ago he stops, his ears perk up and then he runs toward her, snatching the treat out of her hands before leaving the room.

  “Maybe I should leave them at the door for you.” Holly smiles, though it’s a tired one.

  “That might be helpful.”

  I haven’t gotten a chance to talk to Holly much. What I know of her I learned from Brooklyn or another Bailey family member.

  “I’m trying to give them space.” She sits on the living room couch. “You want to sit with me?”

  “Sure.” On the way here I thought maybe I should go to my apartment because I’m not family, but that seemed insensitive and I don’t want to leave Brooklyn alone.

  I sit and stretch, cracking my neck.

  “How was your sister’s wedding?” she asks.

  “Good. We left before it was over which I’m not complaining about.”

  She makes herself comfortable in the corner of the couch. “How do you like Lake Starlight?”

  I shrug. “I like it.”

  “More than New York?”

  I tilt my head at her. “Am I on trial?”

  She laughs. “Sorry. No. I just was curious. You don't have to answer any of my questions. Austin and I… well, I just wondered if you saw yourself here long term, you know because of Brooklyn.” She shakes her head. “Oh my God, help me, I’m turning into a nosy bitch. Don’t answer any questions.”

  I laugh. “It’s okay. I’m not sure where we stand, to be honest. I like it here, but I’m not sure I’ll be living here for the long haul.”

  She nods but doesn’t respond and I kind of wish she’d say exactly what she’s thinking.

  “Yeah, I can’t say much. Austin was the one who had to make the tough decision to stay put.”

  “Decision?”

  “What he wanted out of life. He had a great opportunity that would’ve taken him down to California. Had to decide if his original dream was worth risking for a different one.”

  I lean back on the couch, exhaustion creeping up on me. “I don’t have a dream.”

  She blanches. “Everyone should hav
e a dream.”

  “What’s yours?” I lean my head back on their comfortable sofa.

  “Mine?”

  I nod.

  “I always wanted to be somewhere that I was loved unconditionally. Somewhere I wanted to be day in and day out where I felt like I belonged.”

  “And that was in Lake Starlight?”

  She giggles and stretches her arms out to her side. “It’s funny. I wasn’t a fan of Buzz Wheel and all the gossip, but this town takes in outsiders with a blanket over their shoulders and a heartwarming smile. It just fit. I can’t explain it. Austin, he’s the bonus.” She glances to a picture of the two of them on the mantle. “More than a bonus.”

  Her smile is wide and glowing. I glance at her left ring finger and find it empty.

  Barking commences somewhere else in the house and she gets up. “Have you seen the puppies yet?” she asks, already rounding the couch and heading toward the mudroom.

  “No.” And I’ll welcome any distraction from talking about where I see myself long term. Way too much self-discovery after traveling for eight hours.

  We enter the mudroom and the puppies are all nursing on Daisy. Myles is outside the gate looking on. “He misses her,” Holly says, petting Myles.

  One puppy comes to the blocked off area and Myles whines trying to lick it through the gate.

  “Why can’t he be in there with them? It’s his family.” I bend down feeling sorry for Myles. Maybe if he could get some from Daisy, he’d leave me alone.

  “The vet said to keep them separated for a few weeks. Next week we’ll have to start finding homes for these little guys.” Holly pets one of the puppy’s heads. He pushes his head into her touch, wanting more.

  “I know one person who will take one.”

  Holly smiles. “Yeah, but Brooklyn’s apartment puts the kibosh on that.”

  I nod. She’s right. No way Brooklyn can have a dog. Joel would have a conniption.

  We sit for a moment, watching Daisy nurse her babies, Myles trying to interact with one of his puppies.

  “I’m sorry about meddling. I shouldn’t have asked.”

  “It’s okay. Maybe I need to figure out some shit before both of us end up hurt.”