Page 32 of Mr. Swoony

Tristan is cornered, looking like a scorned teenager, by two older adults I assume are his parents.

This isn’t how I thought this would go.

Fourteen

Eloise

“Where do you want to go?” Jade asks, continuing to drive out of Winnetka.

“I feel like you two are Thelma and Louise up there, but who can I be?” Kyleigh asks from the back seat.

I turn to face her. “I’m so sorry you got hit.”

She shoos me off. “It’s my brother’s fault. Can I tell you how sorry I am that he ruined your wedding?” She cringes.

“And do you want to explain exactly why Conor is objecting to you marrying Tristan?” Jade asks, side-eyeing me and pulling onto the freeway.

I keep my attention on Kyleigh. “You don’t need to apologize. Something tells me Conor always does what he wants no matter who tells him differently.”

“Truth.” She rolls her eyes.

Turning around to face forward, I lean back into the seat. “I didn’t want to involve you guys, but since you’re in the getaway car, I’ll bring you up to speed. I met Conor at my bachelorette party last weekend.”

Jade makes a sound of frustration, and her hands tighten on the wheel. “I was so mad when the airline told us they couldn’t do anything to get us home. I’m sorry. You had to wear that sash and shirt.” Her shoulders sink further and further.

I shake my head. “You don’t have to apologize. But I was alone in some random people’s VIP section that Penelope got us into, and Conor was in the VIP section next to ours. He came over.”

“Did he hit on you?” Kyleigh leans forward and peers between us. “What a sleaze. And now he ruins your wedding? Turn this car around. I need to give him a piece of my mind.”

“Relax, killer,” Jade says.

I shake my head. “He didn’t hit on me. I think he felt bad for me. It was pretty easy to tell I wasn’t having the best time, and he came over to cheer me up. Then Penelope got wasted, and he saved me from having to put her on a luggage cart to get her out of the cab and into our room.”

“He went to your hotel room?” Jade asks. “How am I just hearing about this right now?”

I stare out the window, watching cars whizz by us. “I was embarrassed, I guess. I let him help me with Penelope, then these girls were camped outside the room trying to get a picture of us together. So, we devoured the minibar, and he found my list.”

“List?” Kyleigh leans in farther.

Jade glances at her and back at the road. “Eloise and I wrote down a bucket list of thirty things to do before we turn thirty.”

“Oh, I like that.” Kyleigh smiles.

“And I found mine when I was moving out of my apartment. Conor read it and asked me to go stargazing with him.” I bite my lip in fear of their judgment.

“And you went?” Jade asks with some hesitation.

“I did. Nothing happened between us. It wasn’t like that. It’s hard to explain.”

Kyleigh’s phone rings, and she pulls it out. “It’s Rowan.”

“Yeah, Henry’s been calling me nonstop. Tell him his baby is fine.” Jade pats the dash.

“Is that why we’re driving so slow?” I shake my head at her.

“I have to be careful. Henry would kill me if anything happened to his car.”

“Henry wouldn’t care. There are two things he cares about—you and Bodhi,” I say.

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