Fairy lights strung through the hundred-year-old oak branches lined the walkway. An arch comprised of flowers welcomed the guests into the backyard. A four-piece band and tables clothed in white linen hung to the floor. Due to a wrong turn, Monica and I were late. We’d missed the part of the wedding where Mallory and her now husband were introduced to the crowd as Mr. and Mrs. I was banking on Mallory’s euphoria to overlook our faux pas. Monica made a beeline for the buffet table while I hung back. A substantial amount of people crowded the dance floor, surrounding a glowing Mallory. Her ivory-white wedding gown enhanced her curves and looked more beautiful than it did on an iPhone screen. The wonders of technology had allowed me to be at the dress fitting after I’d moved to California.
Mallory’s husband twirled then dipped her to thunderous applause. Upside-down, she caught my eye and grinned like a manic. Back on two feet, she rushed to toward me.
She threw her arms around my neck, giggling. “You are here! I can’t believe it. I was so worried that you wouldn’t show up for some reason.”
“Of course I’m here. I wouldn’t miss your wedding.”
“You did miss the beginning.”
So it hadn’t escaped her. “Monica was in charge of Google maps, which was an awful idea FYI. She got her lefts and rights mixed up. We ended up on this guy’s thousand-acre property. Thankfully the owner pointed us in the right direction.”
Mallory dismissed my excuse with a flick of her wrist. “Whatever it doesn’t matter. Nothing exciting has happened yet, besides my uncle getting drunk and attempting the splits.”
“That sounds… painful.”
“It was. He is currently icing his crotch on the sidelines.” Her gaze flittered to a paunchy older man, his feet propped up on a chair. “Poor thing realized he wasn’t twenty anymore.”
Monica joined us with a plate full of food. She munched on a chicken leg as if she was at the state fair. “What are you guys chatting about?”
“The demise of our twenties,” I responded.
“Oh yeah, totally sucks.”
Mallory laughed as she grabbed my hands. Jumping up and down, she let out a whoop. “I’m finally married! Can you believe it? I have been waiting to become Mrs. Mcloy since we met. He is so utterly perfect and is going to be an even more amazing husband.”
Her joy was contagious. I found myself leaping into the air with her while Monica stared at us like we had three heads.
Mid-bite, Monica’s eyes grew wide. “Shit.”
Mallory and I stopped leaping. Mallory followed Monica’s gaze to somebody over my left shoulder. Their expressions grew pale.
When I went to turn my head, Mallory screeched. “Don’t look! I’m so sorry, I totally forgot to tell you.”
“Are you kidding me?! How did you forget?” Monica yelled.
“I don’t know. I got lost in the wedding planning then the caterer canceled last minute. It slipped my mind, ok?”
Their panic was beginning to freak me out. “Will somebody for the love of God tell me what is going on?”
Mallory’s hands steepled in a praying position while her eyes begged for forgiveness. “You are going to hate me but I had to. He launched my career as an artist. My sketches have been flying off the shelves and I have my first gallery opening next month.”
“I’m incredibly proud of you Mallory but who is….” Suddenly, it hit me like a thousand pound Mack truck. She was referring to Andrew. Andrew was at the wedding. “How?” My tongue twisted as I fought to find the words. “Why? Really? Where?”
Mallory’s sight lifted. She mouthed another apology before swishing back into the crowd. Monica was about to do the same when I grabbed her arm.
“Don’t you dare leave me,” I bit out.
“Hello, Haven.”
My body locked up and my grip loosened. Monica slid away faster than a panther, abandoning me with the man who’d obliterated my heart. I knew I had to turn around, but there was a difference between knowing what you’re supposed to do and being able to do it.
“I’m guessing since you haven’t returned any of my voicemails, I’m the last person you want to see but….” Irritation edged into his voice. “Damn it! Will you just face me?”
The sensation of moving through syrup enveloped my limbs. My head turned first, followed by shoulders, and then my feet. Andrew appeared exactly the same he did three months ago, except the signature sparkle in his eyes was lost.
“Happy?” I asked. “I’m facing you.”
“It doesn’t have to be this way.”
“Yes it does, because you are married. I shouldn’t even be talking to you.” A waiter passed by with a tray of champagne. I grabbed a flute and downed it one gulp. “Speaking of marriage, where’s your wife?”
Andrew had a matching expression of misery on his face. He dug his hands into his pockets and sighed. Even to my own ears, I sounded like a bitch. That couldn’t be helped though. Seeing him again brought a confusing mixture of love and resentment to the surface. I hated the fact after all this time he still had that effect on me.
“We got divorced,” Andrew said.
His confession tilted the earth off its axis. My heel tripped on an imaginary rock and I sent my hands foreword to cushion my fall. Right before my face ate the grass, Andrew’s arm snaked around my waist. His signature woodsy scent hit me square in the gut.
“I got you,” he murmured. “It’s ok.”
It wasn’t ok. Nothing was ok. Andrew was divorced or at least said he was. I didn’t know what know that meant or if it meant anything at all. His dark eyes captured mine. The feeling of being back in his arms again turned my brain off and my hormones on. I knew it wasn’t the correct response, but my body huddled closer into his embrace. The warmth from underneath his shirt burned my skin, sending a trail fire between my legs.
Andrew’s gaze flickered with residual affection. “My sweet Haven,” he murmured. “I have missed you.”
I pushed him off, my head reeling. I’d played and replayed the moment Andrew and I would meet again over and over in my mind until it merged into my dreams. It got to the point where I looked forward to falling asleep. Only then my restless soul was at peace. However, divorce didn’t cure our broken relationship. Andrew had withheld the truth from me when he made me believe he was an open book. I didn’t know whom the real Andrew was and that twisted the knife to the bone.
“Is that another one of your lies?” I sneered. “Because if so, I don’t want to hear it.”
He winced as if my barb literally struck him in the heart. “Fuck, Haven. This is not who you are. You are not this mean, bitter person and the idea that I’m the one who turned you into this shadow of your former self….” He shook his head, unable to complete the sentence.
“Don’t give yourself too much credit.”
The lid flew off Andrew’s anger. I took a step backwards as his face contorted into a mask of anger. “Do you want to know what a lie is? This!” He gestured to me. “This cold, heartless bitch act is a lie, because our love was real as the grass underneath our feet and the clouds floating above.” He smacked my hand against his chest where his heart resided. “It still is,” Andrew whispered. “I love you, Haven, always and forever. I will not give up on us until you are mine again.”
Tears pricked underneath my eyelids. “You already gave up because you never fought for me in the first place. That day I left you kneeling in the snow, you know what you did? You went back to your wife and played house. Those once a week phone calls were a half-baked attempt and we both know that.”