27. Bailey

"Sooo, how was last night?"Birdie asked as we sat on the floor in front of the full-length mirror, and she applied the finishing touches to her makeup.

"It was fine. I crashed out."

The last thing I remember was lying down on the bed to wait for Cole to come back with my sandwich. Then, this morning, when I woke up, Cole was sound asleep beside me. I crept out of bed, grabbed my stuff for the wedding, and headed to my sisters' room without waking him.

I'd been in my sisters' room all day working. Birdie had been sleeping, but in fairness, she'd just gone to bed when I arrived just before seven this morning. Her artistic brain always came alive at night. Billie had been out all day at meetings with possible vendors that we could collaborate with and only arrived back in time to get ready, which we were all doing now.

Billie was already dressed, her makeup and hair done, and was sitting on the couch on her phone. Birdie was dressed, her hair was done, and she was beside me applying her makeup. I was the one running late, as always. Even though I'd had the entire day, my hair was the only thing done. I was still in sweats and a T-shirt as I curled my lashes and hadn't even begun to put my makeup on.

"What was Cole up to today?" Birdie asked.

"He went to the gym, and then he took a walk around the property." Which I knew because he'd been texting me all day, asking if I wanted lunch or to go exploring with him. I replied that I had to work.

I wasn't trying to avoid Cole, per se, but I'd decided that sleeping with him again was a very bad idea. No more hanky-panky on this trip. Sex with Cole was too…addicting. It was more than I could handle emotionally. It felt too right, too real. I feared that if I continued to spend time with him while we were here, I'd have a lot of trouble distinguishing reality from make-believe. At least my heart would.

"That was sweet, Cole, coming and getting your food last night." Birdie smiled as she applied another layer of mascara.

"Yeah, it was." I nodded in agreement. "I was asleep when he got back."

"What a waste," Billie remarked as she stared down at the phone in her hand.

"I ate the sandwich this morning," I explained.

"I'm not talking about the food. I'm talking about the dick," Billie replied bluntly.

"You guys still have tonight," Birdie chirped in a hopeful tone.

"I'm not…that's not what this weekend is about."

Billie lifted her head from scrolling on her phone. Her eyes met mine in the reflection of the mirror. "It might not be what it's about, but it's a very nice ancillary benefit. And if you don't indulge in it, you'll regret it later."

When I didn't respond, she looked back down and continued scrolling. A second later, her expression changed, and I knew something was wrong.

"What? What is it?" I asked.

"Mr. Knight passed away."

"Adam's dad?" Birdie questioned.

"Yeah."

Adam Knight was a couple of years older than Billie and lived next door to my grandparents when we were growing up. His dad, Mr. Knight, was a mountain of a man. He towered over my grandfather, who was six-two, with broad shoulders and a mustache. He was the cross between Tom Selleck and The Brawny Man.

I remember wishing that Mr. Knight was my dad after my own father died. Or maybe even before. It had always been hard for me to understand why my dad left us in the care of our grandparents. Now, as an adult, I could appreciate that he was young when our mom died. Only twenty-four. At that age, being left to raise three daughters under the age of three as a single parent would have been hard. But he could have at least stayed in the same city, state, or even the same coast as us.

Instead, he moved to New York, and we only got to see him for a few weeks during the summer and a handful of Christmases. He would always tell us the same story. That once he got ‘settled,' whatever that meant, we could go live with him. I used to be so mad that he'd died before that had happened. But now, I knew that would never have happened, even if he'd lived to be a hundred.

Birdie turned around to Billie. "What happened?"

"Heart attack," Billie replied.

"Were he and Adam close?" Birdie asked.

"No. Not really. At least not when we were growing up."

I glanced up to try and see if I could get a hint at what Billie was feeling at the mention of Adam, but she was very difficult to read. I'd always thought that she had a thing for our neighbor, not that she ever admitted she did. It was just—I don't know—the way she was around him. He could make her laugh and smile easier than anyone else. It was like when she was with him, she let her guard down.

Birdie placed her hand on her chest as she gasped and turned back to the mirror. "Do you remember Mr. Knight's wedding? It was like a fairytale!"

I did remember it. It was the wedding I went to that made me fall in love with weddings. It was magical.

Adam's mom was never in the picture. From what I remember, she'd left when he was little. His dad dated a lot but then suddenly got married when I was around sixteen or seventeen. The bride arrived at the church in a Cinderella-style carriage. She wore a princess-style gown with a twenty-foot train. At the reception, there were more flowers and candles than I'd ever seen in my life. Mr. Knight and his bride sat on thrones that were on a platform overlooking the ballroom. A six-string orchestra played contemporary songs, sort of like the soundtrack of Bridgerton. The entire affair had a very royal feel.

"I remember," Billie said somberly.

Birdie finished applying her lipstick, then spun around to Billie. "Oh, wait, didn't you catch the bouquet?"

Billie's expression remained unreadable, but she took in a slightly shaky breath. "Yes."

"And didn't Adam catch the garter?!" Birdie enthused.

"He did."

There was a faraway look in Billie's eyes, as if she were transported back to that night. Before I could ask her if anything had happened, a loud knock sounded at the door.

I jumped up and rushed to the bathroom, where my dress was. "It's Cole. He said he'd come to pick us up. I have to get dressed."

"I'll get it." Billie stood.

"I'll zip you up," Birdie offered as she followed me in and closed the door behind her. My dress was backless, so the zipper was low, and I didn't need help, but I appreciated the company.

Through the closed door, I heard Billie greet Cole as I pulled the dress over my head, and Birdie zipped me up. Nerves were flitting through my belly. I wasn't sure why. Was it because I was about to see Simon marry someone else, or was it because I was about to see Cole again?

If I had to put money on it, I'd say it was Cole who was causing the butterflies.

"You look beautiful." Birdie rested her chin on my shoulder and stared at my reflection in the bathroom mirror. "Are you sure you're going to be okay today?"

"Yeah. I am. I promise."

She nodded and stepped back as I slid on my nude heels. I took one last look in the mirror. My dress fit me like a glove, I'd managed to blow out my hair, and I'd even perfected the smokey eye.

I smiled when, in my mind, I heard my Grandpa Will's voice say, "Well, don't you look about as good as you can." It was something he would say to my sisters and me whenever we were dressed up for a special occasion like prom or graduation.

Birdie looked over her shoulder, silently double-checking before opening the door. I nodded, and we walked out of the bathroom. I was momentarily speechless when I saw Cole. He was wearing a black suit, white shirt, and blue tie that matched his eyes exactly. I'd seen him in a suit plenty of times, but this time was different. Maybe because this time, I knew what was underneath the suit.

"You look…beautiful," he breathed out, then blinked. "You all do."

"Thanks. You don't look so bad yourself." Birdie smiled as she grabbed her clutch and handed me mine. "Ready, party people?"

"Ready." I was as ready as I was ever going to be.

As we walked down to the area where the ceremony was being held, the sun was beginning to set. It cast a golden hue over the green rolling vineyards that went on for as far as the eye could see. Cole kept his hand on my lower back for the five-minute or so trek. His touch made me feel calm and excited at the same time. It was safe and dangerous. My hormones were going wild, but the rest of me felt secure and protected.

We took our seats about a third of the way back and made small talk while we waited for the ceremony to start. After about twenty minutes, I started glancing around, feeling like something was off. I'd done enough weddings to know when the energy wasn't right. Simon and his groomsmen should be in place by now, or at least have walked Mrs. Prescott and Devin's mom to their seats.

I glanced behind me and saw Mrs. Prescott standing beside a large oak tree, scanning the guests. When she saw me, her face lit up. I lifted my hand in a wave. Instead of waving back, she motioned for me to come over to her.

"I'll be right back," I told Cole and my sisters, then stood and walked to Mrs. Prescott. As soon as I was within arm's length, she grabbed me and tugged me behind the tree.

"What's wrong?" I rushed out.

She smiled, but it didn't quite meet her eyes. Her voice was so quiet. I had to lean in to make out what she was saying. "Do you know where Simon is?"

"Simon?" I repeated at full volume.

"Shh." She waved her hands in front of her.

"Sorry," I whispered. "No, I haven't seen him. Why?"

"Well, he's missing."

"Missing?" That wasn't like him. He might have consistently ghosted me over the twenty-plus years I'd known him, but if he said he was going to be somewhere, he was. And this was his wedding.

"Russel and Chris lost him around eight last night, and no one has heard from him since. I thought maybe he had gone to see you and—" Her phone rang, interrupting her. She hurriedly dug it out of her purse and held it to her ear. "Matthew?!"

I couldn't hear what Mr. Prescott was saying, but the relief on Mrs. Prescott's face told me that Simon was no longer MIA.

"Oh, thank god. Okay. Yes. Alright. No, she has no idea. Okay. Bye." Mrs. Prescott hung up the phone. "Crisis averted. He's been found."

"Is he okay?"

Mrs. Prescott nodded. "He's fine. Matthew said he waltzed into the groom's suite a minute ago like nothing had happened."

"Where was he?"

"Apparently, he just had a case of cold feet and needed to walk it off."

"Walk it off?" Walking? That also didn't sound like Simon. But then again, it had been four years since I'd spent any significant time with him.

She shrugged. "Matthew said Simon claimed he was out all night walking."

"Wasn't Devin worried when he didn't come back to the room?"

"They're in separate rooms for the night before the wedding. Tradition, and all that."

"Oh, okay."

She took my hands in hers. "Please don't tell Devin about this."

"No, of course not. I would never." I shook my head.

"I'm sure you've dealt with this a lot in your business."

Grooms disappearing? There had been a handful, and it had never ended well. Even if they did make it down the aisle, the marriage usually didn't last.

"Let me know if you need anything."

"Thank you, but you're off duty. Just enjoy yourself. I'm going to go check on our bride."

Right. I was off duty. I turned and headed back to my seat. As I walked toward our row, as if sensing my presence, Cole lifted his head. All the anxiety I'd felt evaporated the moment our eyes met. His gaze darkened, and his lips curled at the edges. For a wholesome guy, he definitely had a bad-boy edge that I had not expected. With the full power of his predatory grin directed at me, my knees went weak.

Thankfully, I had enough strength to make it to my seat. As I lowered onto my chair, his arm wrapped around my back, and his hand rested on my hip. It was very telling body language. It showed ownership. My inner romantic swooned, but I poured a bucket of cold water over her. This was just for the weekend.

If this was how I reacted after being in his presence for thirty minutes, I'd been right to keep my distance from him today. If I'd spent the day with him, I'd be having fantasies of him standing at the altar and me walking down the aisle. Which, actually…

Cole leaned close to me, the warmth of his breath fanning my neck as he whispered against my ear, "Everything okay?"

I nodded, and he kissed my bare shoulder. When his lips touched my skin, my eyelids automatically shut as a wave of tingles washed over me. Yeah. I was definitely going to need to keep my distance.