by Noelle Adams
the mistake
Bad Bridesmaids, Book One
NOELLE ADAMS
Table of Contents
Title Page
about The Mistake
prologue
one
two
three
four
five
six
seven
eight
epilogue
excerpt from The Mission
about Noelle Adams
about The Mistake
AMANDA GRIFFIN HAS made a mistake. Or maybe a long series of them.
First, she gets drunk at her sister's wedding and shares all her guilty secrets with Robert Castleman, the worst possible man. Then, at her cousin's wedding, she ends up in bed with him. At her best friend's wedding, they have a big, embarrassing fight. And then she gets stuck with him on the world's most annoying road trip. Her heart has always belonged to a man she can never have, so it's not like she'll ever fall for Robert. It's just that she can't get away from him, and now she's not sure she wants to.
Robert has lived his life watching from a distance and never investing in relationships that will end up hurting him. So the last thing he should do is hook up with his niece's best friend. She's too young. Too beautiful. Too clever. And already in love with someone else. But since he can't keep his hands off her, he'll at least be smart with his heart. After all, it would be a huge mistake to let himself fall for her.
But it's a mistake he can't help but make.
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead, is coincidental.
Copyright © 2021 by Noelle Adams. All rights reserved, including the right to reproduce, distribute, or transmit in any form or by any means.
prologue
AMANDA GRIFFIN WAS all dressed up and had nowhere to go.
Okay, she wasn’t all dressed up. She was looking good but not overdone. After all, she had to walk the line between gorgeousness and date expectations.
Because this wasn’t a date. It was simply a meal with a friend. A really good friend. One of her best. Dave Williams. She’d gone to school with him at their upscale private school in Richmond since childhood, and they’d always been close. They’d studied for exams together. Gone to football games and concerts together. Hung out at each other’s homes. He’d helped her say no to her mother’s pressure to do beauty pageants and debutante crap, and he’d been at her side through her parents’ messy divorce.
They were twenty-four now. He was finishing law school, and she’d gotten an MBA and a great entry-level job in a marketing firm. They weren’t as close as they used to be since adulthood and their careers had created some unavoidable distance, but she still considered him one of her best friends.
The truth was she’d always wanted more from their relationship, and tonight felt like the moment the shift might happen.
When she told him about her new job, he’d been happy for her. He’d said they needed to go out to celebrate, so she’d suggested dinner at her favorite restaurant. They’d had to alter the date twice since he was overloaded with studying, but they had finally settled on tonight. She’d been hoping they could drive there together, but he’d said he had a study session that afternoon, so he’d just meet her at the restaurant.
That was fine. It wasn’t a date. He didn’t have to pick her up.
But it felt like tonight was going to be special. He’d been really sweet with her lately. She was sure she’d seen a new look in his eyes. He’d always been the prince of her daydreams, and now that they were all grown up, she had real hopes that her dreams might come to fruition.
So she was in a state of suppressed jitters as she waited on a bench outside the restaurant, three minutes before the time they were supposed to meet. It was a warm evening in June. She wore snug-fitting dark red capris and a sleeveless black top with a low V-neck. She looked good—but also mostly appropriate for a dinner with a friend.
She tried not to glance at her phone every few seconds. Dave was usually on time or a few minutes late, so no need to worry yet.
When her phone vibrated with a text, her heart stopped for a few seconds, but she let out a breath when she saw it was just a message from her mother to both Amanda and her younger sister, Stacey, complaining that she didn’t have anything to do this evening.
Her mother had always been needy, and the complaint was a hint for one of her daughters to come over and keep her company.
Got plans. Sorry, Mom! If Stacey is busy, maybe you can find a movie to watch. Amanda tapped out the text quickly, trying to get her response in first so she wouldn’t carry the burden of disappointing her mother.
I’m not doing much. I’ll come over! That was Stacey, right on the heels of Amanda’s message.
For a moment Amanda felt guilty. Yes, her mother was constantly whining and asking for attention, but she was still her mother. Maybe she should have been as willing as Stacey to come over at a moment’s notice and entertain her.
But she did have plans tonight. And she did a lot to help their mother—as well as their father and his new wife. She wasn’t a bad daughter. She didn’t have to drop everything the moment her mother fired off a complaint into the void.
Stacey was sweeter by nature than she was. Amanda had always had a quick tongue and sharp edges, but that didn’t mean she didn’t love her family.
But right now she was having a big dinner with Dave.
If he ever got here.
“Waiting for someone?”
The voice surprised her. It was vaguely familiar but definitely not a voice from her close circle of friends. Male and cool and articulate. Intelligent.
She raised her eyes to see Robert Castleman standing next to the bench where she sat.
She recognized him immediately since she’d met him for the first time a couple of months ago. He was the uncle of one of her good friends from school. He’d been living in Europe or somewhere for a long time but had recently moved back to Virginia. Amanda had met him for the first time at a cookout and encountered him a few times since then.
He was a handsome man. Mature and affluent-looking. Dark eyes and hair with a hint of silver.
Amanda had no idea how old he was. Definitely out of her range. He was someone’s uncle. Not friend material.
“Oh. Yeah. I’m meeting someone for dinner.” She glanced around. “What about you?”
“I’m meeting someone too. Can I join you while we wait?”
She hesitated, not because she had any problems with Robert but because she preferred a little privacy to control her jittery excitement.
Evidently she hesitated a little too long. He arched thick, dark eyebrows. “I can wait on the other side of the door if you prefer.”
“Oh. No. Sorry.” Her cheeks grew hot, which was annoying. She was usually very composed. In fact, she was known for being in control and always having a clever zinger at the ready. So why did she suddenly feel flustered? “Please sit down. I’m just kind of distracted.”
He nodded and sat on the bench beside her, stretching his long legs out as he did. He wore well-tailored gray trousers. And very expensive leather shoes. “Date?”
She hesitated again but then admitted the truth. “No. Just dinner with a friend.”
“You don’t sound sure about that.”
She frowned. Maybe the comment could be interpreted as friendly and natural, but his tone made it sound kind of presumptuous and sardonic to her. “I am sure. It’s dinner with a friend.”
“Okay.” His eyes glinted
, and his mobile mouth twitched slightly.
Her shoulders stiffened, but she managed to keep her voice as cool and dry as his was. “I don’t think I asked whether you thought it was okay or not. And what about you? Is yours dinner with a friend?”
“Oh no. Mine is definitely a date.”
She sniffed. “Girlfriend?”
“No. I don’t have girlfriends. Just dates.”
She should have found him obnoxious. He was, in fact, slightly obnoxious. But she was also intrigued. He was different from anyone else she knew. Like there was so much more going on beneath his utterly cool surface. “That sounds pretty impersonal.”
“It is impersonal. That’s the way I like it.” He raised his eyebrows again. “Does that offend you?”
“No. Why would it? You’re a free agent and can have any sort of relationship you want. As long as a guy isn’t trying to date me like that, I really couldn’t care less.”
“Ah. Understood.” He smiled. A small one but real. “My date is late. What about yours?”
“My friend...” The correction was automatic as she glanced at her phone. “Is six minutes late. But he’ll be here. He’s a great guy.”
“Is he?”
“Yes.”
“From your tone, I assume you’re distinguishing him from me and making it clear he doesn’t indulge in impersonal dates.”
She tried not to laugh. She really did. But his dry, lofty tone was simply too amusing. She choked on a little giggle and managed to keep a straight face. “Exactly. Some guys are actually nice, you know.”
“Are they?” His eyes moved from her face, down her body, and back up again. “And some guys aren’t late for dinners with friends who have gotten all dressed up for them.”
“I didn’t get all dressed up for him!” She looked down at herself, suddenly worried she’d overdone it after all. “I like to look nice. Since you don’t know me, you have no way of knowing whether I’m dressed up special tonight or not.”
“If you say so.”
“I do say so.” He wasn’t quite so funny anymore. She made a face at him. “Are you always this obnoxious?”
“Usually. You’ll get used to me eventually.” He smiled again, his handsome face softening in a way that was ridiculously attractive.
“So you’re sticking around Richmond?”
“Yes. I’m sticking around.”
“Great,” she muttered.
Dave better get here soon. Robert Castleman was ruining her night, and it hadn’t even really started.
Her phone buzzed again, and she looked down at it, assuming it was her mother.
It wasn’t. It was Dave.
Hey—we’re still studying. Rain check for dinner?
She stared down at the words, all her jitters chilling into a frozen weight that sank from her chest to her gut.
“So your nice guy bailed on you?” The question was just as cool as before, but it was gentler somehow. Like he’d managed to see how crushed she was even though she hadn’t moved or changed her expression.
“He didn’t bail,” she said, lowering her phone and standing up. “Something came up.”
“If a guy can’t prioritize dinner with you, then he’s not worth putting much hope in.”
“I didn’t ask for your advice.”
“But I’m offering it anyway. It’s universal. Friend or date or husband or acquaintance, if a guy doesn’t make you important in his life, then you’re not important to him.”
“Oh, shut up!” She didn’t usually snap like that. But the last thing she wanted was for this arrogant man to see how upset she was.
She shouldn’t be upset.
It had just been a random dinner. She was the one who’d made it significant, and Dave wouldn’t know she felt that way about it.
But—as annoying as Robert was—maybe he was right. It did feel like she was investing a lot more in her relationship with Dave than Dave himself was. She’d seen other women do that—always resulting in heartache—and she didn’t want to fall into that trap.
So maybe this wasn’t the right time. She still cared about him as much as she ever had, but now wasn’t necessarily when things would happen. She’d work on focusing on other things, other men.
If things were meant to be with Dave, they’d work out eventually. She didn’t have to force it.
For now she could let him go.
After all, she had a good job. A promising career. And plenty of really good friends.
She didn’t need Dave to fall in love with her right now.
With that resolved in her mind, she looked back over at Robert, who was watching her with what would have been casual interest if there hadn’t been something sharply observant underlying his gaze.
When his phone chirped, she asked, “Are you getting stood up too?”
“Could be.” He glanced down at his phone. “No. Guess not. She just parked and is on her way.”
“Great.” Naturally his date would show up when hers didn’t. “Well, have a good time with your impersonal, meaningless dinner.”
His smile was almost feral. “I will.”
“Oh, shut up.” With that, Amanda collected what remained of her dignity and walked away.
one
four years later
AMANDA GRIFFIN WAS so exhausted her eyes were throbbing, but she managed to keep a smile on her face.
That was what she’d always done. Smile even when she felt like crying.
Her sister had just gotten married. It was supposed to be a bright, happy day, and it was... for everyone but her.
Stacey had married Dave Williams.
So Amanda pulled her mouth into a wide smile as she circulated the mingling crowd in the tastefully decorated reception room. The flowers were perfect. The food and champagne were perfect. The ceremony had been perfect. And the bride looked perfect. Everything was perfect except for Amanda’s bridesmaid dress and what she was hiding in her heart.
The dress was the least important thing. The pale silvery-lavender color did make Amanda’s blue eyes look almost violet, and the fitted bodice did make her boobs look particularly impressive. But Stacey had wanted the silhouette of the bridesmaid dresses to match hers, so the nicely fitted bodice was paired with way too much flouncy fabric in the skirt.
Amanda’s mother had put her in glitz beauty pageants as a child, so she wasn’t a stranger to ridiculous outfits. But still...
The day was hard enough for her. She didn’t need to be wearing this dress.
“Mandy!”
Amanda turned toward the voice, knowing it was her sister even before she laid eyes on the approaching woman. Stacey was the only person in the world allowed to call her Mandy.
Widening her smile, Amanda hugged her sister, taking care that the excess chiffon in both their skirts didn’t get stuck together in the embrace.
“Everything is good, isn’t it?” Stacey asked. Her big blue eyes were a lot like Amanda’s, only a slightly paler blue. Her blond hair was a little darker, her figure a little less curvy. Otherwise, the two sisters looked very much alike.
That was where the resemblance ended, however. At twenty-six, Stacey was quiet and shy with a kind of simple sweetness that was impossible not to love. Amanda was two years older and anything but sweet.
“Yes. It was a beautiful wedding, and the reception is going so well. Everyone seems to be loving it.” Amanda made sure her smile made it to her eyes. Stacey might not be as clever or cynical as she was, but she definitely wasn’t stupid. And she’d be very upset if she discovered that Amanda wasn’t as happy as she was today.
“I can’t believe I married Dave! It’s a dream come true. Like a fairy tale. Isn’t it?”
Amanda nodded enthusiastically and squeezed her sister’s hand. “It is a fairy tale. Exactly like one. You’ve always deserved to end up with your prince.”
Stacey was convinced by that. She giggled and wiped away a few tears before giving her another hug.
Amanda managed to hold on to the pose of unadulterated joy until she turned away from her sister. Then she took a ragged breath and swallowed over a painful lump in her throat.
Stacey might have had a crush on Dave—her sister’s best friend—for most of her life. But Amanda had been in love with him. He had always been the prince of her daydreams too, but she didn’t get the fairy-tale ending.
Because two hours ago he’d married her little sister.
A server walked past her just then with a tray of filled glasses of champagne. Amanda grabbed one and took a couple of gulps.
It was the lower quality champagne that they’d switched to after the first hour of the reception, but it was decent. The dry, bubbly liquid hit her tongue and then her throat. She took another deep breath, feeling more like her normal, poised, always-in-control self.
She was prepared to face the day again. She only had a couple of hours left before she could escape.
She could do this.
She didn’t really have a choice.
In the middle of her mental pep talk, her eyes happened to land on a man standing alone across the room. He was leaning against the wall, sipping a glass of what appeared to be whisky.
He was watching her, and for some reason she knew he saw more than she wanted him to.
He saw everything.
She was hit with a wave of uncomfortable vulnerability. A feeling she wasn’t used to at all. She’d never spent a lot of time thinking about Robert Castleman, although she could remember almost every conversation she’d ever had with him, starting with that night outside the restaurant. Mostly he’d been Taylor’s uncle in her mind but also someone who made encounters strangely exhilarating. Although their families had always been friends, he’d been living in London while Amanda was in high school and college, so he hadn’t even been on her radar back then. But ever since he’d moved back to Richmond four years ago when his father died and his mother needed extra help, he’d been part of Amanda’s extended social circle.
She saw him semiregularly. At weddings and funerals and birthday parties and occasional random run-ins. She’d always labeled him in her mind as smart and kind of exciting but distant. She could always have a fun conversation with him. About books or politics or movies or people. But he also always seemed to see inside her. Too deeply. Too intimately. If she thought too much about it, it made her uncomfortable, and the only way she’d come to deal with it was knowing that he saw the world through a standoffish, impersonal lens.