Chapter 2-2
2345 Words
Everything about the ceremony is beautiful. The weather is perfect, and the decorations are simple yet stunning. The bride and the entire wedding party are gorgeous. My little black heart even melts when they read their own vows, which causes everyone—including the wedding party—to wipe their eyes. When the bride and groom finally kiss, there’s no doubt how much they care for each other. Everyone erupts in cheers, then it’s over and time to party.
“Seeing Alex cry when he first saw River walking down the aisle made me tear up,” Kiera says as we walk into the tent. The DJ is already playing music. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen a Bishop boy cry.”
“You could really see how much he loves her,” I add, leading us to the bar for cocktail hour. “He looked at her like she was his whole world.”
“They’re sickly in love.” She places a hand to her chest and sighs. “And their six-month-old son all dressed up in a tux with a little cowboy hat was the cutest thing ever!”
We grab a flute of champagne off the bar, and when we spot the appetizers, we walk toward them, eyeing the shrimp cocktail shooters. Just as I’m stuffing my face, people walk up to Kiera and hug her. We’re greeted by her parents shortly after, whom I’ve met several times before, so at least I know them in case Kiera goes MIA later.
“Yee-haw!” I hear shouting in the background with lots of clapping. More people are filing into the tent, and I can’t tell where the cheers are coming from.
“Oh lord,” Kiera says, laughing. “That’s Dylan. He’s Alex’s best friend.”
I look around the crowd and recognize a man who was in the wedding party waving his arms over his head like he was roping cattle. He’s hootin’ and hollerin’ as the rest of the party watch the bride and groom take pictures.
“He looks like he could be the fifth Bishop brother.” I chuckle, watching his antics as I take another drink.
“Definitely. He’s another Jackson, though,” she states. “Parties and sleeps around.”
“If I didn’t know any better, I’d say cowboys are worse than the high-profile men I’ve dated.”
She gives me a look that tells me I’m not far off.
When I look back at Dylan, I see he’s wrapped his arm around a brunette woman. He pulls her into his side and presses his lips to hers. She adjusts his tie and smiles sweetly up at him.
Hmm. Looks like the Jacksons of the world might actually settle down after all.
We mingle and chat while music softly plays in the background. Kiera introduces me to as many people as she possibly can, and by the time the wedding party introductions start, my head is spinning from information overload.
The DJ gets everyone pumped and excited before announcing the bride and groom. They hold hands walking in, but after a few steps, he pauses and lifts her up in his arms. She squeals as she wraps her arms tightly around his neck and holds on as he walks them to the dance floor. The rest of the party is already waiting for them.
Once the music fades, the DJ announces the newlyweds’ first dance as John Mayer’s “Slow Dancing in a Burning Room” begins to play.
“I love this song,” Kiera whispers to me as we take our seats and watch.
“It’s not really a love song,” I whisper back, curious as to why they’d pick this one as their wedding song.
“No, but apparently there’s a special meaning behind it. Alex and River met in Florida a year and a half ago, and I remember something about this being the first song they ever danced to,” Kiera tells me.
“Aw, that’s kind of sweet.” I beam, jealous of these two strangers’ love.
Kiera’s parents are seated by us, and I learn the other couple next to us are friends of the Bishops. We make small talk while we eat and drink. The bride and groom walk around to chat with their guests, and Kiera and her parents wait anxiously for them to approach our table.
“Alex!” Kiera squeals, wrapping her arms around him. “I can’t believe you’re married!”
He smiles and hugs her, holding River’s hand who’s holding their son on her hip.
“Congrats, you guys!” Kiera gives the bride a side hug and kisses the baby on the head. “You three are serious family goals.”
Alex chuckles, and when his eyes lock with River’s, the love soars between them. It’s strong and fierce and everything I imagined I’d have one day.
“This is my friend—” She starts to introduce us, but we get interrupted by the baby. He starts to fuss, so they excuse themselves.
Once dinner is finished, I grab another drink, but this time, I order something much stronger. I’m going to need it if I want to get through this night of happy couples.
“Whiskey neat,” I hear a deep voice next to me order as I reach for my glass. Out of the corner of my eye, I see he’s wearing a tux and a scowl. His dirty blond hair is pulled back, and when his hand brushes through his locks, it looks perfectly messy. I turn slightly to assess him further, and that’s when I recognize him from the wedding party. Checking his left hand, I see his ring finger is bare and wonder if he’s one of the Bishop family members. I don’t get the chance to find out because as soon as he grabs his glass, a woman approaches and hangs off his arm.
Go figure.
Taking my drink, I walk back to the table and see it’s now empty. I look around for Kiera but don’t see her anywhere before searching for Jackson. Knowing my friend, she’s somewhere near him.
Emily: Where’d you go?
My text goes unanswered, so I send another one a few minutes later.
Emily: You better not be ditching me, or I swear to God I’m marching right up to Jackson and telling him you’re secretly in love with him.
Emily: I mean it, Kiera…
Emily: I’ll even tell him your new s*x toy is named after him.
Kiera: OMG! You wouldn’t.
Kiera: I’ll be right back.
Emily: You better.
I end up back at the bar ten minutes later grabbing another drink. I can’t believe she ditched me. When I see Jackson surrounded by other women, I speculate Kiera is in the huddle somewhere, but then I step closer and see she’s nowhere near him.
What the hell?
Emily: Where are you exactly?
Emily: Are you okay? We can leave if you want.
I send her another round of messages. If she saw Jackson and his entourage, she could be crying in a corner somewhere.
Kiera: No! LOL! I’m fine, I promise.
I furrow my brows at the screen, wondering what she’s doing. Or maybe, who she’s doing? I chuckle to myself at that last thought. The alcohol burns through my veins, and I know I’m on my way to becoming tipsy.
Emily: Do you plan on coming back anytime soon?
Fifteen minutes later, I’m still drinking solo at my empty table with an empty plate of cake that I shamelessly demolished.
“I’ll take that as a no…” I mutter to myself, checking my phone again and still no new messages. I’m going to kill her.
The DJ announces the bride is about to throw the bouquet and calls all the single women to the dance floor. Girls shuffle to the middle, throwing elbows and trying to find their perfect spot. I throw back the rest of my drink and scoff.
“C’mon ladies… last call to come out!” the DJ calls. I watch as Alex escorts River out to the dance floor and spins her around in circles. People chuckle as they watch the two of them play around.
“You’re going to miss out…” the same deep voice from earlier says next to me. Blinking, I look over and see the same dirty blond hair and sleek black tux as before. He’s holding a glass of amber liquid, and his lips are turned up in amusement as he studies me. He’s even better looking now that I see his full profile.
“I doubt I’ll miss much,” I retort, wondering why he’d even care. His sky-blue eyes are hard to avoid as they burn into mine.
“Figured chicks lived for catching the bouquet,” he states matter-of-factly, taking a seat next to me without an invite, and my heart races the closer his body is to mine.
“Not me.” I shrug, gazing over at him. He’s hard to read, yet his demeanor intrigues me to continue the conversation. “Are you going to go out there to catch the garter next?” I challenge.
He half-laughs, half-snorts.
“Why not?” I ask, smirking.
His eyes lock on mine, the question left unanswered. “I’ll do it if you catch the bouquet.” He nods his head to the dance floor where River is seconds away from throwing it, but then one of the bridesmaids tells them to hold on while she grabs a few of her friends.
I arch a brow and narrow my eyes. “A dare?”
He shrugs casually. “You’ve been sitting here by yourself for the past thirty minutes. What do you have to lose?”
The fact he just admitted to watching me doesn’t go unnoticed. My cheeks heat, and I’m shocked my body is responding this way. The alcohol buzzes in my system, and if it wasn’t for the last two drinks, there’d be no way I’d take him up on his offer.
Pinching my lips together, I bend down and slip off my shoes. “Okay, you got yourself a deal or rather a dare.” Seeing this tall, brooding man fight for a garter will be entertaining at least.
He stands when I do, and that’s when all the alcohol rushes to my head. I nearly stumble over my own feet, but I gracefully catch myself. He follows me through the maze of tables and chairs until I’m on the dance floor blending into the large crowd of overly excited women. I don’t know anyone but him watching me fuels my adrenaline.
Once I secure my spot, I find him flashing me a sly grin. I don’t know who this guy is, but he just turned my night around. Considering Kiera completely bailed on me, I’ll take his company over sitting alone.
“It’s time, ladies!” The DJ walks out onto the floor with a microphone. “You ready?” He tilts his head toward River, and when she nods, Alex grabs her shoulders and spins her around again. She closes her eyes and squeals when he spins her faster.
The moment she stops and raises her arms over her head, my vision clears, and I want nothing more than to fight for this bouquet. I couldn’t care less about the meaning behind catching it, but for some strange reason, I want to prove to this guy that I’m a badass who follows through with dares. Normally I’d brush it off, considering he’s a complete stranger, but the intense way he looks at me drives my actions.
When the bouquet flies into the air, everything seems like it’s in slow motion. I’ve always been a logical person, so I tend to see things differently—even buzzed. She threw it high versus directly behind her, which means it’s not going to launch very far to the back. Taking notice, I flee to the front of the group and eye it carefully as it descends toward the left side of the floor.
Something comes over me, and I push the girl next to me out of the way a second before the bouquet lands on my chest. I secure my arms around it and hold it tightly against my body. Two girls started running toward me as soon as they took notice it was aiming this way, and unable to slow themselves down, they smack directly into my side and knock me over.
I hear squealing and the DJ laughing into the microphone. Girls fall over each other, and we become a huge pile on the floor. A knee’s in my gut, and someone’s lying on my hair.
The weight finally lifts off me, and when I look up, I see the guy holding out his hand for me. I can tell he’s trying hard to hold back his smile, and when I scowl up at him, he chuckles.
Taking his hand, I let him pull me to stand. I’m quick to adjust my dress so I don’t moon the entire room and embarrass myself more.
“That was… epic.” He smirks, leading me off the floor as his hand remains in mine. Some of the women are staring at me, giving me death glares, and I can only imagine what they’re thinking right now.
“You mean… humiliating. I can’t believe I let you talk me into that.” I scoff, taking a seat and setting my destroyed bouquet down.
“It wasn’t very hard to talk you into it, so you must’ve really wanted to do it.” He winks as he takes the seat next to me at the empty table.
Shaking my head, I pinch my lips together and remember that he’s up next. “Well, you’re up.” I nod my head to the dance floor where the DJ is setting up for the garter toss. “Hope you brought your A game.” I cross my legs in anticipation.
“Oh, I always do.” He shrugs off his jacket and winks. Once his jacket is secure on the back of the chair, he leans down to my ear. “What’s your name, darlin’? I’d like to know who I’m winning this for.”
The closeness of his lips steals my breath away. My entire body shivers, and I hate that this man has an effect on me. Though I have no idea who he is, he’s already made me reconsider my no men ban. Dangerous—that’s the only way I can describe him. I don’t trust myself around him, and I most definitely don’t trust him. After already making a fool of myself, I’m not about to tell him my real name so it can come back to bite me in the ass later. I’ll never have to see him again after tonight, so I blurt out the first name that comes to mind.
“It’s Stella.”
- Writer
