Page 6 of Deal Breaker
“Ha, longer if Jodie’s in charge of directions.” I half giggled, half grimaced. I’d been on enough road trips with Jodie to know we needed to add at least another half an hour onto our trip time. She had an uncanny knack of gettingcloseto a place, but not actually to it. There had been plenty of times we’d driven past where we were meant to be simply because she couldn’t work out how to get us there. “Do we have a map?”
“Didn’t you get the ton of information Brianna sent with the invite? I reckon there’s a map in there with directions from every state in the US!” Autumn laughed.
I thought back to the day the invitation pack had plopped onto my doormat. Thicker than a college acceptance pack, it contained every single piece of information about the day. Not to mention a few pictures of throwbacks to the proposal, engagement party, and bachelor and bachelorette parties. Apart from finding out the date, I’d shoved the rest of it in a drawer in my kitchenette. I was still finding glittery horseshoes in my apartment weeks after the damn invite had been delivered.
“Well, good. Because with Jodie driving, we’ll probably need them!”
Out of the corner of my eye, I spotted Tim hovering by his office door. The last thing I needed right now was for him to catch me still chatting to Autumn. I glanced at my computer screen to see Laura had replied to my message and was on her way to see me.
“Look, Autumn, I have to go. I have a ton of work to finish before Friday. I’ll call you later, you can tell me how your date went.”
“You got it! We might need to make room in the car for him.”
Once Autumn had hung up, I reluctantly turned my attention back to work.
Anything to take my mind off the thought of seeing Max Coady again.
Chapter Two
Max
The sun beat down, and I wiped sweat off my forehead. Normally, working in the sunshine was a pleasure, but today was hard work. The construction site was buzzing with activity as usual, the house beginning to take shape. I loved starting a build, seeing how it grew from the plans on the page to an actual, real-life, livable space. It was good, manual labor, and I enjoyed every minute of it.
My phone vibrated in my back pocket. Turning off the drill I’d been using to break through some old plaster, I put it down, pulled out my device, and squinted at the screen.
Joshua Smith, groom extraordinaire.
“Joshua, buddy, how are you? Nervous yet?” I chuckled down the phone.
“Not at all,” replied Joshua. “Checking in on all the groomsmen, making sure you’re all ready for the weekend.”
“Absolutely. Got theWorld of Warcraftall packed, ready to have a game or two.”
Joshua laughed. “Ha, the amount of time we used to waste playing that.”
“And talking about the crush you had on Brianna.”
“Hey, that was never a waste of time. Look at where we are now.”
He had a point. After ten years, he and Brianna Ashurst were on the verge of getting married, committing to each other for the rest of their lives. The whole gang was headed up to the Holiday Springs resort on Friday in preparation for the wedding of the year. My liver already protested at the thought, no doubt reliving the bachelor party that had included almost all the bars in New York. Honestly, I was delighted for them, but going to the ceremony solo and then watching all the other happy couples filled me with dread. Sure, I’d have the other groomsmen for company, but once they paired off with their other halves, I’d be alone.
“Are you bringing a date?” Joshua asked, almost as if he read my thoughts. “I kept your plus one open.”
The majority of people who would be going I already knew; Joshua and Brianna were high school sweethearts. There was a smattering of college friends I was aware of, but no one new.
“No. I haven’t exactly been dating anyone long enough to invite them along.”
That much was true. I wasn’t short of dates, and I’d been out with three women in the last month. Nothing lasted longer than a couple of nights out, a dinner, drinks, and a movie or a gig. We’d had a good time, even a kiss, but nothing more.
“Maybe you’ll meet someone at the wedding.”
I laughed. “Yeah, maybe.”
Given I’d be sharing a cabin with my sister and her friends, the thought of meeting someone and trying to bring them back to my room was a laughable notion. Not to mention that one of those friends was Sophie Hale. A niggling thought that she was the reason I couldn’t find anyone to date hit me squarely in the chest. Because no one compared to Sophie, even after all these years. Plus, as the big brother, I had to be the responsible one. No crazy assed behavior. No showing up the groom. And definitely not too much drinking.
“You’ve got all the directions? And you’ll be there for the rehearsal dinner?”
“Joshua, I’ve got directions from every state in the country! And it’s less than two hours from New York. With my GPS, I’ll be fine.”
