One of the Guys

by Jessica Strassner

  The throng of guests was split down the middle, forming an aisle. The Justice of the Peace was waiting to perform the ceremony and Jackson, his friend James, Kevin, and Max were standing alongside her, grinning. Each of the guys was wearing charcoal gray pants and pale pink shirts the color of Lucy’s dress. She and Jackson smiled widely at each other and Kevin winked at her. She hadn’t seen Max in ages, and he smiled warmly at her. As Kate descended the stairs onto the beach, she couldn’t help thinking how handsome they all looked. She walked down the aisle and took her place next to Bridget. Maggie followed behind her, also now trying her hardest not to cry.

  The music faded into silence for a moment and the bridal chorus began. Everyone standing on the beach turned back towards the house and watched as Lucy and her father made their way carefully down the porch steps and down the aisle. Lucy looked amazing.

  Mr. Wheeler bent and gave Lucy a kiss before turning to Jackson and giving him a big hug. Maggie took the bouquet from Lucy. Lucy and Jackson clasped each other’s hands and stood beaming at each other. Mr. Wheeler stepped away stood next to Lucy’s mom, and the ceremony began.

  As Lucy and Jackson said their vows, Kate had to fight not to start crying. It was silly, really. These two had loved each other all through high school and were meant to be together. It was obvious that they would end up together someday, but Kate couldn’t help feeling emotional. This is what love looks like, she thought. This is what ‘meant to be’ looks like. Feeling her eyes threatening to spill over yet again, Kate quickly looked down at the sand. She looked at Maggie’s short, fluffy bob haircut floating off of the back of her neck in the breeze. She looked anywhere she could besides at Jackson and Lucy, professing their love for each other in front of everyone. Her eyes came to rest on Kevin’s face, and he, too, actually looked a little emotional. He visibly let out a deep breath, and they smiled at each other.

  And then, without even realizing what had happened, Lucy and Jackson were kissing and, just like that, their wedding ceremony was over. They were officially husband and wife. Kate clapped and cheered with everyone as the music started up again and Jackson and Lucy strolled through the crowd and back towards the house. Maggie took Jamie’s arm and followed them. Then Kate and Kevin linked arms and trailed along behind them. “You held it together like a champ up there,” he said.

  Kate grinned at him. “I was trying so hard not to cry.”

  “Me too. I didn’t want my mascara to run,” he joked.

  “That’s why you should wear waterproof,” she said, squeezing his arm and giggling.

  Chris gathered the bridal party together and took a massive amount of photos. The group posed in every possible combination on the beach near the water, in the sand, on the steps going up to the back deck, and on the stairs inside the house. When Chris finally announced that he’d gotten a sufficient amount of pictures, Lucy and Jackson threw their hands up in celebration and started circulating through the house, hugging people and thanking them for coming.

  Kate helped herself to a glass of champagne and stood back to admire the party. Aside from the massive wedding cake on the dining room table and the bottles of champagne on the kitchen island, it looked like it could be a regular party at Lucy and Jackson’s. Because the ceremony was going to be so short, they insisted on keeping the party casual and comfortable for their guests. Coolers were stocked with ice, beer, and sodas. The kitchen counters were covered with platters of homemade fried chicken, three different kinds of pasta, salads, sandwiches, and a variety of cookies, brownies, and sweets. Rather than hire a DJ, Jackson had his iPod hooked up to the stereo outside and people were already beginning to dance on the deck.

  “Excuse me. You’re Kate, right?”

  Kate turned to see who was addressing her. She was startled to see Max’s girlfriend, the tall, gorgeous blonde from Lucy and Jackson’s engagement party. “Yes, I’m Kate.”

  “I’m Max’s girlfriend, Candy.” Kate batted her eyelashes, not believing what she’d just heard. Candy? There are really people named Candy? “I can’t believe we haven’t met yet!” She reached out her hand and Kate shook it.

  “It’s nice to meet you,” Kate said, attempting to sound sincere.

  “What a great wedding. This is exactly how I’d do it someday,” Candy said.

  Again, Kate couldn’t believe what she’d just heard. This girl’s 21st birthday gala looked like something you’d see on MTV. “Lucy said that she wanted a very simple wedding.”

  “But it was perfect! So small, so intimate. But still so much fun!” Kate had to nod in agreement. That was what she and Lucy had been going for. “Anyway,” Candy said. “The reason why I wanted to talk to you was because I can’t believe that I still haven’t gotten to meet one of Max’s best friends. He told me that you always used to hang out and play poker with them. I haven’t been invited over there on poker night, but I also have no idea how to play.”

  Kate took a sip of her champagne, wondering where Candy was headed with this conversation. “Those guys take their poker game pretty seriously.”

  “That’s what I figured,” she said. “That’s why I was thinking that maybe you, Lucy, and I could get together some Saturday night. You know, while the guys are playing poker.”

  “That sounds like a good idea,” Kate said. “Get my number off of Max and we’ll set it up,” she said. “If you’ll excuse me, I want to talk to the photographer and make sure he gets some pictures of Lucy and Jackson with their grandparents.”

  “Oh, sure. We’ll chat later!”

  Kate slipped away from Candy. Once she was a safe distance away, she rolled her eyes.

  “I saw that,” Kevin said, coming up next to her.

  “She’s very… friendly.”

  “She’s not so bad, actually. It’s Danielle who’s kind of a snob.”

  “Danielle?”

  “Chris’s girlfriend. She’s really short. Long dark hair.”

  Kate nodded, vaguely remembering her from the New Year’s Eve party. “Thanks for the tip.” She and Kevin split up and Kate moved through the crowd, searching for Chris. She spotted him, taking pictures of Lucy and Jackson’s parents sitting together in the living room. “Hey,” she said. “I just wanted to remind you to get some pictures of the grandparents.”

  “Already did.”

  “Great. Thanks,” Kate replied. Turning to leave, she bumped into Bridget, her fellow bridesmaid.

  “You know, I was telling Lucy last night that you two need to come visit me in Miami sometime. Either that, or I need to make it up here more often,” Bridget said, linking her arm with Kate’s.

  “I’d like that,” Kate said. She’d only hung out with Bridget on a few occasions, but they always got along really well and there was never any of that third-wheel awkwardness that sometimes came along with having a mutual friend. “Lucy would like that, too!”

  “I’d just have to ditch the kids,” Bridget said. “Speaking of which… I left them at home this weekend. Want to do shots with me?”

  Kate threw her head back and laughed. “Why not?”

  “Go get the bride and meet me at the booze,” she said.

  Kate squeezed through the crowd to where Lucy was standing talking to a group of teachers that she worked with. “Excuse me,” she said politely. “The presence of the bride is requested at the bar.” She took Lucy by the hand and pulled her out onto the deck where Bridget was standing in front of a table littered with various bottles of alcohol, shaking a cocktail shaker.

  Bridget expertly poured the mixture into the line of shot glasses that she had arranged on the table. The three girls raised their shot glasses in a toast, tipped their heads back, and drank. Kate had no idea what was in it, but the shot was fruity and delicious. Bridget refilled their shot glasses and they did it again. Kate wiped her mouth and giggled. Just inside the door, she caught sight of her parents. Her mom waved at her, but her dad was busy talking… to Kevin.

  She put her shot glass down and
slipped over to where her parents and Kevin were standing. “Hi,” she said.

  “Hi, baby. We were just talking to your friend Kevin here. He was telling us what a good poker player you are,” her dad said.

  “Really?” Kate raised her eyebrows.

  “Yeah, I was actually just telling your dad that we’re all kind of relieved that you don’t come by anymore. It kind of gives the rest of us a chance to win every now and then,” he winked at her and she knew that he was teasing her.

  “Kevin invited your dad to play with the boys some Saturday night,” her mom smiled. “Isn’t that nice?”

  Kate’s eyes widened. Kevin grinned at her and then turned back to her dad. “The invitation’s open any time,” he said.

  “I appreciate that,” Kate’s dad replied. “But I haven’t played poker in ages.”

  “Then maybe you can join us for karaoke some evening,” Kevin said, giving Kate’s mom an exaggerated wink. Kate rolled her eyes and lightly swatted Kevin’s arm before drifting back into the kitchen in search of something to snack on.

  She walked up to a massive tray of cookies and debated on what to take. “The chocolate cookies with the caramel drizzle are really good,” a girl said, clutching a handful of said cookies in a napkin.

  “Don’t mind if I do,” Kate said, reaching for one. She smiled at the girl and realized that she was Chris’s girlfriend. She popped the cookie in her mouth and smiled. “Are you Danielle?” she asked.

  She nodded in surprise. “Yes. You’re…?”

  Kate finished chewing her cookie and swallowed. “I’m Kate. I’m a friend of Chris’s.”

  “Oh!” Danielle exclaimed. “It’s nice to meet you!”

  “Nice to meet you, too,” Kate said.

  “Chris says you play poker with the guys.”

  “I used to,” Kate corrected. “That got kind of old after awhile.”

  “I’ve asked Chris if I could go with him a couple times, but he says I won’t take the game seriously enough,” Danielle said, almost pouting.

  “Well, those guys definitely take it seriously,” Kate agreed. Danielle didn’t look like the type of girl who would enjoy sitting around drinking beer, playing poker, and listening to the guys’ conversation all night long.

  “Yeah…” Danielle said quietly, nibbling at a cookie.

  “Yeah,” Kate repeated, looking her over. Jackson and Kevin had both said that Danielle was a pain in the ass, but she didn’t seem all that bad. She was just a little quiet, that was all.

  “Hi, Danielle!” Lucy said, coming up and flinging her arm around Kate’s shoulders.

  “Congratulations!” Danielle said. “You look beautiful.”

  “Thanks,” Lucy said. “You guys have been introduced, right?” Kate and Danielle nodded. “Good. Because I was thinking, we really should get together more often. Us girls, I mean.”

  “I’d love that,” Danielle said.

  “Sure,” Kate said.

  “Awesome!” Lucy cried.

  “Smile, ladies!” Chris said, strolling up to them and raising the camera to his face. Lucy pulled Danielle in close and the three girls posed for a few pictures. Chris bent and planted a kiss on the top of Danielle’s head before going off to take more pictures.

  “So, yeah. We should definitely do something,” Lucy said, trying to resume the conversation.

  “We should do some more shots!” Bridget said, approaching them with a plate laden with shot glasses.

  “Did I hear someone say ‘shots’?” Candy asked, squeezing into the small group that was forming.

  “Help yourself, ladies!” Bridget said, holding out the shots.

  “To Lucy!” Kate cried.

  “To Lucy!” everyone echoed, raising their glasses and touching them together. They took their shots and replaced the empty glasses on Bridget’s plate. Bridget disappeared back into the crowd.

  “I hope she doesn’t make more,” Lucy giggled. “I’d like to actually remember my wedding.”

  “It was a great wedding,” Candy gushed. “And this is a great party!”

  “Thanks,” Lucy beamed. “Candy, have you met Danielle?” The two girls smiled at each other and shook hands. “I was just saying that we should all get together sometime. You’re welcome to join us.”

  “That would be fabulous!” Candy said, flashing them all a smile. “I would love to do ladies’ night sometime.”

  “We’ll definitely have to plan something soon!” Lucy said. Suddenly, she spotted a guest in the crowd that she hadn’t spoken to yet and excused herself, leaving Kate with Candy and Danielle.

  “So, what do you guys do?” she asked, reaching for another cookie.

  “My family runs the Davenport Hotel, and I run my dad’s store,” Candy said. “Shark Bait Surf Shop.”

  “I get my bathing suits there!” Kate said.

  “Ask for me when you come in next time. I’ll give you guys a discount,” Candy smiled. “What about you? What do you do, Danielle?”

  “Me? I’m an intern with the sheriff’s department right now. I’m studying forensics.”

  Kate’s mouth dropped open in surprise. “Wow. What do you do?”

  “I assist during crime scene investigations. That kind of thing.” she said.

  Candy shook her head in amazement. “Like CSI?”

  Danielle just laughed. “Kind of.”

  As the three girls stood huddled together, chatting and eating cookies, Kate felt guilty for her first impressions of Candy and Danielle. She assumed Candy was going to be a stuck-up bimbo because of her perfectly highlighted hair and her awesome body. She thought Danielle was going to be a “pain in the ass” just because that’s what Jackson and Kevin had said. She was wrong on both counts. Despite her flawless appearance, Candy was very down-to-earth, friendly, and had a great sense of humor. And Kate suspected that Danielle was probably mistaken for a snob because she was a little on the quiet side. However, the longer they talked, the louder she laughed and the more she shared about herself.

  As the party wrapped up and Kate hugged Candy, and later, Danielle, goodbye, she decided that she was really looking forward to hanging out with them again.

  *

  The following week, Kate was overseeing a late afternoon wedding at a country club. It had rained throughout most of the day, wreaking havoc on her plans, but they were able to hold the ceremony inside the country club’s dining room without a problem. Kate leaned back against the bar, sending rapid-fire text messages to Julia to let her know that everything had gone smoothly and that the bride and groom were completely happy, reassuring her that she had done the best she could despite the awful weather.

  “It’s cleared up enough outside that I think I’m going to try to get the bridal party together for some photos,’ Chris said, placing his camera bag on the bar and looking through it. “I already checked and there’s a walkway throughout the golf course, which means that nobody has to walk in the grass.”

  “That would be perfect!” Kate said. She tucked her phone into her purse, which she was keeping behind the bar. “I’ll get everyone together. Thank you.”

  “No problem. I’ll meet everyone at the doors.”

  “Thanks,” Kate said.

  “Hey, Kate,” Chris said. “Any chance you want to come to poker tonight?”

  Kate flashed him a smile. “Sorry, I can’t. I have a date tonight,” she said, turning on her heel to find the bride and groom. She’d used that line on Chris once before.

  When the wedding was over, Kate hurried home to change and get ready for dinner with Lucy, Candy, and Danielle. She kicked off her heels and pulled off her dress, quickly changing into a lighter and more comfortable sundress and flip-flops. Then she was back out the door and on her way to meet the girls.

  Kate arrived at the restaurant at exactly the same time as Danielle, so the two of them walked in together. They spotted Lucy and Candy sitting in a booth in the corner and joined them. Kate immediately dug into the chips
and salsa already waiting on the table.

  “How did your wedding go with all the rain today?” Lucy asked.

  “It was fine, actually,” she replied. She smiled at Danielle. “I worked with Chris today.”

  “He said he was really worried about the weather this morning,” Danielle remarked.

  “It worked out okay, though. We had to push the wedding inside, but before the reception ended, he got the bridal party together to get some outside shots. They looked good.”

  “I can’t wait to see my wedding pictures,” Lucy said dreamily.

  “Your wedding was awesome,” Candy gushed. “I love that you wore your prom dress.”

  The girls fell into a discussion of Lucy and Jackson’s wedding. Everyone agreed that the ceremony had been perfect – short and sweet! – and that the party had just been a blast. Lucy looked down at the sparkly rings on her finger and beamed. “I just couldn’t be happier!”

  The girls ordered their meals and continued chatting non-stop throughout dinner. Kate felt like they had been friends forever. Candy and Danielle were very much opposites – one was loud and talkative, the other was shy and a little stand-offish at first – but the four of them got along spectacularly and had a great time together.

  When they finished dinner, they decided to forego dessert and instead walk down the street to a little coffee shop. The walk took less than five minutes, but by the time they arrived, they were glad to be back in the air conditioning. The four of them ordered iced coffees and then sprawled out on couches in the corner of the shop. Danielle picked a magazine up off the coffee table and fanned herself with it. “I think we should do this every weekend,” she said.

  “I’m in!” Candy replied.

  Just then, someone’s cell phone rang. All four girls started looking through their purses, but it was Lucy whose phone was ringing. “Hello?” Her eyes widened and Kate watched her with concern.

  “Oh my gosh! Now? Really? Okay. Okay. I’ll be right there!” Lucy quickly snapped her phone shut and got to her feet. “That was my mom. My sister’s having the baby! She just got to the hospital. I have to go!”