With the quickness of a star quarterback, Jack grabs the already-loose pants on Tommy’s rented suit and pulls them down to his knees. Then he moves directly in front of the camera lens. “Dan, today is your day, my friend. We are happy to be here to share it with you. Tommy even wore his lucky boxers.” He reaches out and forces the camera onto Tommy and his favorite boxers, the ones with bacon all over them and the phrase Bacon makes everything better written in various places.
Tommy pulls his pants up and then backs away to redirect the camera off his boxers. He aims it back at Jack.
“We love you, brotha!” Jack screams.
“Don’t mock the bacon boxers,” Tommy says with pretend seriousness.
“Never. Only respect.”
“That’s right. Now, you gonna come upstairs?”
Jack shrugs. “We still have an hour.”
“Where’s our main man?”
“He’s all tuxed out. Stopped by a few minutes ago for a beer.”
The fridge in Jack’s hotel room is probably as full as the bar up on the rooftop.
“Did you charge him?” Tommy jokes, turning off the camcorder and buckling his pants back up. “You almost broke the button, you moron.”
“It’s nice to see you in a suit, looking all responsible. You should try it out more often and burn those concert tees.”
“You already sound so corporate. When’d you turn so old?”
“One of us has to,” Jack says as Tommy leaves the room.
Tommy finds the comment ironic. Out of all of them, Jack is the one who seems least likely to grow up. He doesn’t mind playing the game of being a manager at a financial company—a position his father helped him get—but he still isn’t about to suddenly “grow up.” Whatever that term even means.
“I’m going to find our groom before he decides to call everything off,” Tommy says over his shoulder.
Jack only laughs, knowing Dan wouldn’t call anything off. Knowing that if Skylar suddenly decided to do something like that and run away, Dan would follow her. He would do anything for his lady.
It’s a nice thought. Doing anything for your lady.
One day maybe I’ll be able to do anything for someone.
One day maybe.
But today is not that day.
Dan Wilson’s perfectly styled hair is the first thing Tommy sees when he enters the men’s room directly off the rooftop hallway. Tommy is already recording and aims the camera at the soon-to-be groom.
“How you feeling, buddy?”
Dan’s head pops up, and his surprised look soon turns to annoyed amusement. “This better not make it into my wedding video. You can stop shooting while I’m in the bathroom.”
The groom looks tall, dark, and handsome in his black tuxedo. Tommy isn’t about to ruin this glorious moment by shutting off the camera. “I left my car running outside just in case you want to bolt,” he jokes.
Tommy pans the camcorder to the mirror behind a set of sinks. Dan enters the picture and stands next to him. As always, Dan looks calm and collected. Tommy would be sweating by now if his own wedding ceremony were only an hour away.
“Your car’s a hunk of junk,” Dan says. “We wouldn’t make it out of the parking lot.”
“We can hijack the limo, then.”
“You know what you need? You need to find a good girl like Skylar,” Dan tells him, washing his hands.
Tommy moves his head away from the viewfinder and looks into the camera in the mirror. “Groom wisdom. Nice.”
“There’s nothing better than being in an honest, committed relationship. I think—”
“Seems a little hard to take relationship advice from the dude who just joined a church because his fiancée wouldn’t marry him otherwise.”
Dan smiles. “The girl gets what she wants.”
Both men hear the sound of a toilet flushing. The door to one of the stalls opens, and the handsome older man stepping out greets them with a confident smile. “Gentlemen,” Skylar’s father says with quite a bit of irony in his voice.
Mr. Chapman makes Tommy feel a bit nervous anyway, and now this.
Tommy and Dan both greet the bride’s father as he starts to wash his hands. Dan gives his groomsman one of his look-what-you-did-now glares, then uses Tommy’s suit as a towel for his wet hands.
Tommy shouts out a hey but gets promptly ignored by the groom, who heads out of the bathroom.
For a second Tommy contemplates interviewing Mr. Chapman, then gives him a courteous smile before following Dan. He figures he’s got enough bathroom footage for one day. He still has to interview the rest of the bridal party and get their candid thoughts before the big event begins.
It still blows him away that he’s here—that they’re all here. His best friend is getting married. And so it goes. Life happens and you can’t help it.
You just hang on for the ride.
It’s going to be a memorable day. Tommy plans on enjoying every single moment.
2
THE BRIDESMAID
“Isn’t it the bride or the groom who usually end up having second thoughts about the wedding?”
Lauren Hall rolls her eyes and wants to throw her cell phone across the room. But that would require too much effort. Right now she’s frozen and can’t move. Blake’s on the other end trying to talk some sense into her.
Lord knows I need a little sense right about now.
“Lauren, we were just talking about this last night.”
“And now we’re talking about it today.”
“Do you want to be late?” Blake asks.
She doesn’t need to hear the obvious. Yes, sure, she might be late, but what she really wants is not to go. This thing has been building up for a year now, and even though the strange nightmares and visions seemed to go away, lately they’ve been back. With a vengeance.
“Sweetie, you’re going to be fine. You’re just anxious about your friend getting married and about letting her down—”
“I’m afraid of thinking I’m losing my mind,” Lauren says.
She holds up a perfectly manicured hand that got done earlier this week. She and Allie went with Skylar for a fancy day of getting all spoiled. It was part of Skylar’s gift to them for standing up in her wedding.
“Skylar’s going to lose her mind if you don’t show up.”
Lauren knows that’s true. Yet she still doesn’t want to get up off this bed. She doesn’t want to go downstairs. She doesn’t want to pick up her dress and then have to go through everything that will follow.
I don’t want to let anybody down. Especially Skylar.
“Lauren, remember what I told you?” Blake asks.
Such an assured and confident voice. She loves him so much.
“You told me a lot.”
“Let’s say the world does end.”
“Oh, that,” she says. “That wasn’t very helpful.”
“I’m being honest.”
“Don’t be honest.”
“Let’s say the world ends tomorrow. What can you do about it? Huh? Tell me.”
She shakes her head and stands up. Well, it’s a start.
“Nothing,” she says.
“Absolutely. Nothing. You can’t live in fear of tomorrow. You have to celebrate today.”
“Who said that?”
“I’m saying it. What? You think it’s a quote?”
“I’m sure it’s a quote.”
“All right then, I’m quoting someone. Mr. Anonymous.”
“Okay, okay, I’m heading out of the apartment.”
“Well, that’s good. I was afraid I was going to have to come and carry you out.”
She grabs her purse and keys. “Well, I’d prefer that. Can you still do that?”
Soon Lauren is in her car and driving.
“Look, I need to go too,” Blake says. “I’ll see you shortly, okay?”
“Thanks for talking me off the ledge.”
“There’s no ledge here. Only na
tural anxiety.”
“The end of the world is not ‘natural anxiety.’”
Blake’s laugh is like his voice. Calming. “Just make sure you save me some champagne before everything blows up.”
“Not funny,” she tells him before hanging up.
She knows Blake is only trying to cheer her up, but it’s definitely not amusing. She wonders if she made a mistake telling him about the nightmares. They finally began to stop days after coming back from the trip to the beach last summer. Soon they were long gone, and she felt comfortable enough to tell him about them. He didn’t have any sort of big explanation or even much to say at all related to it. He just told her she didn’t have to be so guarded about things like that. Not with her friends and especially not with him.
A week ago, the nightmares began again. For no apparent reason. They’re the same as they were before. Images of her friends all trapped and dying and suffering. That’s the part that bothers her most. Hearing and seeing her friends hurting and suffering is painful.
The drive to downtown Wilmington takes longer than usual. There’s a lot more traffic than there used to be when she lived here. She’s staying with her father, who lives outside the city. Skylar offered her a room at the hotel but Lauren said this would be a nice opportunity to get some time with her father. She still sometimes feels guilt for not living closer ever since moving away a few years ago.
She turns the radio up to shut out her thoughts. It’s a good thing she looks at her phone because she didn’t hear the incoming text message.
Are you almost here?
It’s Allie. Again. She keeps pestering her.
Lauren speaks her message back into the phone, a slightly safer way to text while driving. But she’s stuck on the bridge anyway. It looks like they must be doing some construction up ahead.
Almost there. Traffic.
Hurry up! Allie writes back.
For the moment, Lauren’s car is stopped on the Cape Fear Bridge. She looks up and realizes this bridge is a lot like her father. It’s always been around. She’s so accustomed to using it and passing over it and seeing it in the background. It’s a fixture in her life.
Just like her dad.
It took her mother passing for Lauren to finally wake up and realize how important her parents were. It’s like being forced to stop and examine the bridge. She had to slow down and stop in order to realize this very important thing was right in front of her.
She closes her eyes and reminds herself she needs to get her dress from the bridal shop before arriving at the hotel.
When she opens her eyes, the sky above her has darkened. It’s an angry shade of purple. There are things flying down from the heavens—dark, hideous things.
What is happening this can’t be happening I can’t be seeing this.
The flying specters are swarming straight down toward her. Lauren holds her breath and covers her face and expects to feel some kind of violent impact.
A car horn makes her open her eyes.
The lane in front of her is empty. The sky is blue again. The bridge intact.
Nothing is flying toward her from above.
She moves her car forward even as she feels the pounding in her chest.
This is ridiculous.
Maybe Allie can give her one of her Xanax pills. That and a glass of wine would do nicely right about now.
God, what is going on? Are these visions from You? Why are You showing me these things?
She gets all the way to the bridal shop before her heart stops racing. She’s only minutes away from the hotel. Lauren knows she has to get her act together. Now.
She’s got a dress to put on and a friend to support. Her meltdown is just going to have to wait until another day.
3
IT’S TIME
Allison Costa can see the Cape Fear River from her hotel window. Looking out over the rooftops of Wilmington, she sees the familiar sight of the bridge in the distance. The image seems inviting to Allison right now. How appropriate would it be if she got in her car right now and drove over a river with fear in its name? Crossing the bridge toward an unknown future far away from this North Carolina city, far away from all the frustration here?
Allison turns away from the striking view and notices another one. The dark-haired beauty facing her in the mirror across the room is quite a strange sight. She doesn’t really like getting dressed up, and she especially doesn’t like being a maid of honor. But for her best friend, it’s the least she can do. She’ll gladly wear these high heels and this violet strapless dress. Some brides might fear a dress like this on someone like Allison would overshadow them. But Skylar has no fears.
And there’s no overshadowing Skylar Chapman.
Allison looks at the time and knows she needs to get up to the rooftop pavilion to help out with last-minute details. She’s the maid of honor, but she’s already failed miserably with her responsibilities. The bride is the one who’s supposed to be on an emotional roller-coaster ride, right? The bride is the one who’s supposed to get all weepy and sappy in front of people when saying thanks and telling them one of the many good-byes? But last night, it was Allison, not Skylar, who fell apart.
As she touches up her makeup one last time, she still feels embarrassed. She can still hear herself babbling on, becoming emotional about losing a best friend, then getting choked up talking about this day they all knew would happen eventually.
This day . . .
A text comes to her cell phone. For a second she thinks it must be Lauren telling her she’s finally arrived, but it turns out it’s Jack.
Did you decide to bail on us?
That’s not funny, she texts back.
After your speech last night, I’m not sure.
Shut up. I just had too much wine, Allison writes.
Yeah, right. Easy excuse. You coming?
I’ll be there in a minute.
Tommy’s on the loose, Jack says. Be on the lookout.
I always am.
She slips the phone in her purse and glances back outside for a moment. She takes a deep breath and lets it out.
It’s going to be fine. I’m going to be fine and I’ll make it through today and tomorrow we’ll see what happens.
That river and that bridge aren’t going anywhere. Allison, on the other hand, just might be.
She has to see what happens today. She has to see about a lot of things.
Allison finds Skylar’s door ajar and slips in to try and find the bride. Skylar’s suite on the twentieth floor has a large living room and kitchen area right next to the bedroom. The front rooms are empty and messy, with clothes on the couch and the backs of chairs. A buffet of appetizers sits out in the kitchen, but most of the plates look untouched. The table in the kitchen has a variety of makeup and hair products on it.
“You look fabulous,” Skylar calls out when she enters from the bedroom.
The bride still has her hair pinned up, and she hasn’t put her dress on yet. She wears a short silk robe over a pair of sweatpants.
Allison hugs her friend and gives her a big smile. “How are you feeling?”
“Anxious. There are a hundred things that need to be done. Have you seen Lauren?”
Allison shakes her head. “Not yet. I texted her earlier. She was picking up her dress this morning. It needed an alteration after she tried it on last.”
“That girl—always waiting till the last minute.”
Skylar’s makeup looks extra glamorous today. “Good job,” Allison tells her, circling a finger around her face.
“My mother helped. You know what a perfectionist she can be.”
Allison knows because Skylar takes after her mother. Even in the designer sweatpants, Skylar looks like a Miss America contestant.
“Have you seen any of the boys?” the bride asks.
“No.” For a second Allison hesitates to share what she’s thinking, but she knows she has to. She has to get it out in the open before the rest of the da
y happens and the moment is gone. “Sky—I’m sorry about last night.”
The puzzled look on Skylar’s face tells her she doesn’t understand. “What do you mean?”
“What I said. My mini breakdown.”
“Oh, girlfriend.” Skylar gives her a hug but avoids messing up their makeup. “So far, that’s been the highlight of this weekend.”
“Great. Seeing me totally get all mushy.”
“I thought it was sweet.”
Allison moans. “I just—I feel so stupid. Jack was laughing at me all night.”
“Jack is the last person who should make you feel bad about what you said. Seriously.”
“I know; it’s just . . .”
Skylar comes over and takes her by the hands. “Listen to me. I’m not going anywhere. You’re going to be seeing plenty of us. We’re not planning on moving out of the city or state, you know. So, what about you? Do you have some bit of news you need to tell me?”
Allison can feel the emotions coming on again.
Stay away tears get away from my perfectly done eyes don’t even think about it.
“Well, you know,” Allison says, “I do have a secret to tell you.”
“Oh, really?”
“Yes. I’m pregnant, and Jack and I are eloping. To Vegas.”
Skylar laughs. “Yes. The place you elope to when you’re pregnant.”
“I’m going to become a card dealer in a casino. Seems like a great place to raise a child.”
They both howl out in laughter.
“Maybe that’s why you have this glow about you,” Skylar says. “You’re expecting.”
Allison grunts. “At this rate, I’ll be lucky to be pregnant by the time I turn forty-five.”
A call comes in on Skylar’s phone and she takes it.
“Can you help me?” the bride asks her maid of honor after the brief conversation. “They need us in the reception hall. Some last-minute arrangements.”
“That’s why I’m here, right? To help and support. Not vice versa.”
Skylar puts an arm around her. “We’re here for each other and always will be. Understand that?”
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