Page 24 of Ricochet

CHAPTER ELEVEN

Don’t fall.

Don’t fall.

Don’t fall.

Adelia had one goal today.Don’t fall.It had been on her mind since she woke up, and even though she knew exactly what she had to wear—perks of being a bridesmaid—she had still torn her apartment apart, fidgeting and searching for things she had no need for.

Maybe she needed a strapless bra. Perhaps she needed those pasty things thatcovered nips instead of wearing a bra.Hello, since when had she ever used, worn, or even owned those things? Band-Aids did the trick just fine. But she hadn’t remembered that until her search-and-destroy mission had transformed her not-so-organized room into a mess.

Why was she so nervous? Adelia peered at herself in the mirror. “Because you’ve never been in a real wedding.”

And that was thetruth. Mayhem weddings didn’t count. No wedding counted where guys backed their bikes to make an aisle, or the officiant was self-ordained off the Internet.

Adelia scowled at the woman in the mirror and pointed a finger at herself. “We both know that’s BS.”

It was. All of those were real weddings. What was her deal?

She grabbed a pillow and retreated to the couch, staring at the pictures aroundher apartment that were mostly of her with Seven and Victoria. This wedding was different because it was for people she cared about, and that was… “Scary,” she finally whispered to the empty room.

It didn’t matter if she fell walking down the aisle at Seven’s church wedding. Jax would find it hysterical, Seven would get a kick out of it, and one of them—or Victoria—would jump out to help herup.

Nothing was going to change because Seven married Jax in front of family and friends. If anything, it officially welcomed him to their little group—as if he hadn’t already planted himself there anyway.

Her cell phone buzzed from the kitchen, and she jumped off the couch to read the text message.

VICTORIA: We’re downstairs. Let’s get our girl hitched!!!

Adelia squealed, all nervesgone, and spun, her ankle wobbling. She caught herself laughing. “Not the worst thing that could happen today.”

Purse in hand, she rushed downstairs so Victoria could drop off Adelia at the church and take Seven to get her hair and makeup done. They each had their checklist of action items, courtesy of Victoria. Seven would have her dream-princess wedding and float through the day without a worry.

Adelia got into Victoria’s car and listened to the chatter as they drove. They dropped Adelia at the front, and she gave kisses and well wishes. Next time they’d see each other, the three of them would be in a side room and ready to strut their stuff up the aisle.

The car zoomed away, and Adelia drank in a deep breath of the fresh day then headed inside. Everything should have been in place already—theflowers hung, the programs laid out. All Adelia had to do was make sure there weren’t problems, unpack the extras, and remain the point of contact for unexpected headaches.

Blossoms framed the doors. Everything was exactly where they had requested. “This is easy.”

She pushed through the final set of double doors. A lone churchgoer sat alone toward the front row, and she guessed that was fine.They had plenty of time before folks arrived. The pianist wasn’t even there yet.

The bag of supplies was under a small table, and she pulled out the finishing touches, distributing them throughout the church, finally placing the wedding candles Seven and Jax would light on the altar. She turned, and her eyes narrowed on the man in the second row.

His elbows were propped on the pew in front ofhim. His head ducked toward his chest. But his clothes—or rather, the suit jacket and broad shoulders—stuck out.Over dressed and out of place.He didn’t seem as though he was praying, and she crept closer.

He picked up his head.

“Colin?”

It was late in the afternoon, and the wedding didn’t start for a couple hours. “You’re here early.” She left off the part where it looked as if someone haddied. It wasn’t as if he’d been crying, and even if he had, she knew enough to never mention that, but the man looked beaten. Simply destroyed.

He rubbed his nose and ran a hand over his eyes. “I got tired of waiting in my hotel room.”

“Well…” She glanced around the church. “There are a lot of guests in town, people getting together—”

“Wasn’t in the mood for people either.”

“Oh.” She gavehim an apologetic smile, backing away. “I’ll let you have your quiet.”

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