Page 103 of Runaway Bride's Guide to Love

For the next twenty minutes, Emmett and I go back and forth as we tell Simon everything that he needs to know. How we met. The day, and night, I ran. Florida. How Florida didn’t start like this, but as time went on, we grew closer. How we meant to keep it in Florida. But when I came here to work, it threw everything into shambles. Emmett even admits to being MIA last week because of me.

We don’t, however, tell Simon about yesterday. That we’re going to take to the graves.

Simon’s silent when we finish the recap. I hold my breath as I wait for him to say something. Anything. For some reason, Iexpect him to grill Emmett, so I’m shocked when he turns to look at me.

“He was the clothes?” It takes me a second to remember that Simon’s referring to the day after the wedding. “When you showed up at Mom and Dad’s and were wearing a guy’s clothes, they were his?”

I nod. “Yeah. They were his. But I swear, at that point, I didn’t know you knew him. He was just the guy at the bar who took care of me.”

Simon looks over to Emmett. The anger in his eyes has tempered, which lets me breathe for the first time in a while. “I always wanted to thank the guy she was talking about. We didn’t know where she was. We knew she needed her space, but we were worried at the same time. So, thank you. Thank you for watching out for her.”

“You’re welcome,” Emmett says. “But you don’t need to thank me. I…there was no way I was leaving her that day. Turns out there was really just no leaving her. Ever.”

I feel a tear start to form as Emmett gives my hand a squeeze. The way he’s looking at me right now, and how I know I’m looking at him, it’s like Simon isn’t even in the room. But I know he is, which is why I refrain from kissing him.

“Wait,” Simon interrupts. “Is this…are you two like actually in love?”

Love? Are we? I don’t know if either of us know how to respond to that. I mean, we’ve never said those words to each other. I’ve thought it, but also it’s so soon. Like way too soon.

Love isn’t on a timer…

Except before I can say what I feel, even if it’s too soon to say thing, Emmett speaks up.

“I don’t want to speak for Stella, but I know I am.”

He is? The man who up until days ago was a never relationship guy?I mean, I love him too, but…wow. I wasn’t ready.

“I love you too,” I say, not able to keep the tears back anymore.

He brings my hand up to his mouth, placing a kiss on it that maybe means more than one on the lips could right now. “Stella Banks, for years I didn’t think I could do this. I was scared that I didn’t have the relationship gene in me. And I still don’t know what I’m doing, I just know I want to try and get it right. For you. For us. Because a life without you? I don’t even want to think about that.”

I’m about to lean over and kiss the hell out of this man, Simon be damned, but that’s until I hear an audible sob coming from the other side of the table.

“Simon? You okay big brother?”

Simon nods, wiping away his tears. “You guys are in love. My baby sister and one of my best friends are in love, and it’s all because of me!”

“Excuse me?” Emmett asks. Which I’m glad he does. Because…excuse me? “How is this because of you?”

“I’m your matchmaker!” Simon says enthusiastically. “Think about it. If I wouldn’t have hired Emmett last year, he never would’ve been in Florida. I told him to check on you. I didn’t realize he was going to take such a thorough interpretation of that order, but here we are. If it weren’t for me, this wouldn’t have happened.”

Leave it to my brother to somehow make this about him.

“What about me running from the wedding and seeing him at the bar?” I ask. “That was complete random happenstance.”

Simon waves me off. “Doesn’t matter. Same outcome would’ve happened. All that matters is you’re in love, Emmett’s going to one day be my brother-in-law, your firstborn child will be named either Simon or Simone, and it’s all because of me! Best matchmaker ever!”

“I—”

Emmett puts his hand on my forearm and shakes his head. “Let him have this. It’s the best outcome we could’ve hoped for.”

He’s right. I didn’t know what Simon would think. The man has become a romantic sap since Charlie came into his life, butI’m sure it’s also weird thinking about your best friend and your sister together. I didn’t think punches were going to be thrown, but I expected a good amount of curse words.

At the end of the day, I’ll take it.

“This is amazing,” Simon says as he pulls me into a vice grip hug. “Wait! Who else in the family knows?”

I take a step back into Emmett’s waiting arm. “Actually no one.”

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