The music swelled as Kyle, followed by the first of the groomsmen and bridesmaids, walked down the aisle. Riley and Olivia were after Eve and Baxter, two more of Kyle’s friends. Brandon watched as they moved into the dazzling sunshine, and waited several beats before stepping “on deck” with Cheyenne Christensen.
“I can’t believe he’s going through with this,” his partner muttered as she slipped a hand through the crook of his arm.
Her words surprised him. Kyle’s friends were so loyal to him that they generally ignored Brandon when he was at home.
“What did you say?” he asked.
She turned distressed eyes on him. “I feel like someone should stop the wedding.”
“And that someone should be...”
“How about you?” she responded, but she grinned when she said it and he couldn’t help chuckling.
“It’s too late to save him now,” he said.
She ducked her head, presumably so that the guests twisting around in their seats, trying to catch a glimpse of the rest of the wedding party, wouldn’t see her disapproval. “I know.” Then they stepped into the sunlight, too, and pandered to the crowd and Callie’s camera as they approached the minister, where they separated.
Brandon thought he saw Olivia looking at him as he released Cheyenne. He smiled to see if he could get her to smile back, but she glanced away so quickly he wasn’t sure she’d really seen him. He caught Kyle glaring at him a second later so he moved on without missing a beat.
Once the line was assembled, the traditional wedding march blasted from the speakers and Noelle appeared on her father’s arm. As she glided toward her waiting groom, Brandon thought maybe he should speak up. He would have, if he’d believed it might make a difference.
But Kyle wouldn’t thank him for it. His stepbrother was determined to go to the guillotine, so Brandon kept his mouth shut as the two repeated their vows, kissed and exchanged rings.
The congratulations came next but, in Brandon’s opinion, they were rather subdued. Does anyone think this marriage has a chance?
Kyle held his bride’s hand, but his gaze strayed almost immediately to Olivia, who seemed determined not to look in his direction, either.
As soon as Callie Vanetta had finished taking pictures now that the men and women were together, Brandon made his way over to Olivia. “Everything’s working out perfectly,” he said. “You’ve done a great job.”
When she turned to face him, he again tried to get a read on what she was feeling. But she didn’t give him the opportunity. “Thanks,” she said and moved away.
Olivia knew people were keeping a close eye on her, wondering if it was breaking her heart to see Kyle marry her sister. She could hear them murmuring. “Poor thing... Can you believe he went through with it?” and “She even planned the whole wedding!”
She did her best to bear up under the scrutiny. Their pity humiliated her. But she’d expected as much and couldn’t focus on it. Not with Brandon in the room. It was all she could do not to head straight over to him, especially since he seemed so confused by her withdrawal. He’d tried, several times, to approach her.
He was kind to show his support. She appreciated his attempts to make this god-awful night a bit better. But she feared that if she spent even two seconds in his company he’d realize he’d been right all along—she wasn’t cut out for casual sex. She couldn’t say how it had happened, but she’d somehow lost a piece of her heart in that encounter, which was definitely information she didn’t want him to have.
So she avoided him at all costs.
“Are you seeing Brandon?”
Cheyenne stood at the candy table next to her. Olivia had been so busy refilling the jars she hadn’t noticed her. “No. Of course not.” She cleared her throat. “We’re just friends.”
“Does he know that?”
She swallowed. “Pardon?”
“I’ve never seen him look at a friend the way he looks at you.”
Following Cheyenne’s line of sight, she saw Brandon leaning against the wall with a drink in one hand. He had a frown on his face and that didn’t change when their eyes met.
She nodded politely, but this time he didn’t respond. “He’s been very...supportive,” she said, forcing herself to turn away.
“I’ve always thought he’s not as bad as people make him sound,” Cheyenne said. “A lot of that criticism stems from jealousy, don’t you agree? People have a hard time accepting someone who soars so high. Someone who dares to break all the rules.”
Olivia wondered why Brandon was on his feet and wished he’d sit down and give his leg a rest. “It’s great how much he enjoys the things he loves.”
“I think he’d like to enjoy you, too.” Her lips curved in a conspirator’s grin, but before Olivia could say anything, the toasts started and Cheyenne moved back to her table.
The best man, Noah Rackham, spoke first. He talked about the length of his friendship with Kyle and how Kyle’s marriage would make their group of friends larger.
Olivia flinched at that. She’d always thought she’d be the next official member of their clique. Then Nancy got up—Ham wasn’t the type—and told her new son-in-law how excited she was to have him as part of the family. She related a cute story about Kyle coming to her rescue once when her car wouldn’t start. Everyone smiled because it was endearing, and they’d expect nothing less from Kyle, but Nancy didn’t add that he’d done it when he was her boyfriend, not Noelle’s.
Kyle’s father got up after Nancy and said he’d always been able to depend on Kyle and how proud of him he was.
As the toasts wore on, Olivia began to see a pattern. Everyone had praise for Kyle, but no one had much to say about Noelle.
Determined to be big enough to overlook the circumstances that had brought them to this point, Olivia retrieved her glass from
