Beyond Promise (18 page)

“I can’t wait to show you some footage of
Emily, Gabby, and Brandy singing their hearts out,”

“To what?” Jason asked, completely
intrigued.

Gabby giggled. “None of your business.”

“Why don’t you guess?” Brandy hiccupped.

“Dinner catching up with you?” Aaron asked,
amused.

“No,” she said exasperated, but another
hiccup snuck out and we all laughed.

“So we’re walking down the aisle in a matter
of days,” I began. “And Gabby’s walking down the aisle in
December…”

Brandy glanced at Aaron awkwardly. “Yeah?
What are you getting at?”

“I was wondering when you guys are going to
get married? Still thinking of summer?” I asked.

Aaron’s gaze fell to the floor before
connecting with Brandy’s, and my pulse raced. This wasn’t quite the
reaction I thought I’d get. I expected to hear none of your
business or, yeah, next summer.

“We…we haven’t really had time to talk about
it,” Brandy said, her eyes avoiding mine.

“Really?” Gabby was suddenly interested. “I
find that hard to believe.”

“It’s true,” Aaron replied. “Since we got
back from Paris, I’ve been playing catch up and Brandy’s been busy
with—”

“No need to make excuses,” Emily assured
them both. “When you get around to it, you’ll figure it all
out.”

Ayden squeezed me confirming my sense of
things. Brandy hadn’t complained about one single thing with Aaron.
In fact, since they’d returned from Paris, I’d say things were
stronger than ever, but now I wasn’t so sure.

It definitely felt like they were hiding
something from us, something big, and it bothered me. I glanced
around the room, and Jason and Derek were already back playing, and
Gabby was snacking on potato chips. Now was definitely not the time
or the place to bring it up.

“And I thought we sucked at hiding things,”
Ayden whispered so low I almost didn’t hear it.

I nodded slowly in agreement and watched
Brandy and Aaron remain a little distant as the night went on.
Maybe this had been building, and I missed it because I’d been so
busy with my own whirlwind life of baby, wedding, and fight.

Not to mention what happened after the
fight.

A shiver ran through me and Ayden squeezed
me harder.

“Are you okay? Too cold? I can get a
blanket?” he asked.

“No. I’m just perfect, but I’m crashing
quickly.”

“Even though no one knows a thing, I’m sure
they’d all be understanding if you made it up to bed,” Ayden
offered, and I shook my head.

Instead of leaving the guests, I fell asleep
on them right in Ayden’s arms. It wasn’t until I vaguely remember
being carried down the hall that I realized I’d even been out. I
heard goodnights and saw the reflection of lights flick on upstairs
as everyone found a place to crash for the evening.

My head lolled back into Ayden, and I felt
him glide me into the sheets.

“I could take advantage of you right now,”
he murmured.

I smiled and held my finger to his lips.
“You wouldn’t dare.”

He grinned and shook his head as he pulled
the covers up to my chin.

“I’m going to take a quick shower. Love
you,” he whispered, giving me a kiss before heading into the
bathroom. Maybe I’d surprise him with some sexy time after all.

And that was the last thing I remembered
until morning; that and the odd sensation something wasn’t right
between Aaron and Brandy.

Brandy and I were in Seattle walking along
the sidewalk. The holiday decorations were already making their way
onto light poles and in storefronts. I was bundled in a goose down
jacket, an oversized sweater, and leggings. The upper half of me
was plenty warm and the lower half thought I’d jumped into the
Pacific.

I glanced inside a small boutique and
noticed several necklaces with matching earrings that looked
intriguing and like the perfect gift for Ayden’s mom, but I was
grateful to have Brandy by my side in case I veered off the
path.

We stepped inside, and the jingle of the
bell notified the salesperson customers had appeared as I beelined
to the necklaces hanging on the plastic forms.

“Anything I can help you find?” a woman
asked. She was around fifty with a pleasant smile and short
haircut.

“Just browsing,” I replied. “Thank you.”

“If you need any help, please let me
know.”

“Thanks.” I turned my attention to a
beautiful malachite and pearl beaded necklace. The contrasting
green and ivory was stunning, and I totally saw Brandy’s mom in
it.

“Do you think your mom would like this
one?”

Brandy took a step closer and examined the
necklace. “I think she would love it. The necklace is so her.
Stunning, really.” She flipped the price tag over and looked a
little stunned. “You don’t have to spend that much on my mom.”

“Well, this is kind of a big event, and I
want her to have something she’ll always treasure.”

“This necklace would accomplish that,”
Brandy laughed. “She’ll be thrilled to acquire another daughter
with exquisite taste.”

We walked toward the saleswoman, and I
explained I would like to purchase the necklace. She quickly came
onto the floor to retrieve and wrap up the gift.

“How’s my brother doing?” Brandy asked. “Any
problems with his memory or headaches?”

“No. I’ve asked, and he promises his
headaches have gone away, and he doesn’t seem to be having any
issues with memory. Granted, he could be a good faker. Kind of like
you.” I winked at her.

Her brow furrowed as I handed the saleswoman
my debit card.

“Me?” Brandy asked.

I didn’t answer until we went outside. The
cold air chilled my bones again, and I couldn’t wait to land in
Bermuda.

“I can tell you’re hiding something.” I
glanced at Brandy.

“I’m not hiding anything.”

“I think both you and Aaron are hiding
something.”

“Why would you say that?”

“Both Ayden and I can tell.”

“I need a swimsuit,” Brandy said, pointing
over at Nordstrom.

“You’re avoiding my questions.”

“I’m not ignoring your questions. I answered
them. We aren’t hiding anything.”

The crosswalk light changed, and we made our
way over to Nordstrom. I probably should be looking for a swimsuit
too, but I wasn’t going to fall for her techniques. I invented
them. Avoidance was my signature move until Ayden.

The door we used landed us in the makeup
department, and I glanced around the endless sea of glass counters
staffed with women and men pushing the latest and greatest beauty
products. Another department I should probably hang out in before
the trip.

“Brandy, I love you to death. I do. But I’m
telling you that I know you’re not being honest with me, and it
hurts my feelings.”

She stopped abruptly in the purse department
and spun around to stare at me.

“I could say the same thing, but I’m
not.”

“I think that’s because we know my secret
ought to make itself known fairly soon. There’s no secret there. We
just haven’t announced it.”

Brandy wouldn’t make eye contact with me.
Instead, she stared in the direction of the escalator. It felt like
she was casting me away, and it felt off, unlike anything Brandy
would ever do.

“Is everything okay between you and Aaron?”
I pressed.

“Of course. He’s amazing. Ever since
Paris…”

I smiled and her gaze came back to mine.

“He’s sensational.”

“Would you please just tell me so we don’t
spend the rest of the day with me begging you to tell me, and you
denying there is anything to tell.”

Brandy’s jaw tensed. “I’m getting a little
stiff. Do you mind if we find a seat?”

I saw a seating area by the escalator with
four velvet chairs on an animal print rug and motioned for her to
follow me over. We both took a seat and she stretched out her
leg.

“Are you in pain?” I asked.

She shook off the question with a wave of
her hand, and I knew the answer was yes.

“I’ll tell you, but I don’t want to do it
here, and I’d rather have Aaron with me.” She had a faraway look in
her eyes and it unnerved me.

“It must be serious.”

“It’s complex.”

I sat back in the chair and looked around at
all the busy shoppers. It seemed like the world always scurried on
by barely stopping to allow even the slowest members to catch
up.

“So at our dinner tonight, you’ll have Aaron
tell me what’s going on?”

“He’s not going to be happy about it, but
yeah, I’ll have him fill you in.”

She stood up and stretched. “All better. Now
let’s do some shopping.”

“Right. It’ll be so easy to focus when I’m
dying to know what my best friend is hiding from me.”

I followed Brandy to the escalators.
Sportswear and swimsuits were up a floor. Truthfully, I hadn’t even
thought about swimming and fitting in a suit. It was probably a
good idea to not assume I could still fit in the ones I had at
home. Maybe the visual of me in a suit would be distracting enough
to keep me occupied until dinner.

Racks of yoga pants, leggings, sports bras,
and tube tops occupied the space and made me extremely aware of my
ever-changing body. It was the body I couldn’t keep up with. I
ignored the last thought and stood on my toes, finally spotting a
tiny section of swimwear.

“It probably isn’t the best season to buy a
swimsuit,” I muttered.

“Beggars can’t be choosers.”

“How does that apply?” I chuckled.

Two racks of suits backed against the wall.
There were several string bikinis, purple flowered two-pieces,
skimpy monokinis, and a few one pieces that appeared to be shaming
themselves so we wouldn’t have to do it for them.

Brandy picked up a cute sherbet orange
two-piece. The bottom was high-waisted with stripes and the top was
polka dots.

“That is super cute,” I gushed, my hand
landing on a one-piece.

I pulled it off the rack and examined it.
The world was full of beautiful and sexy one-piece suits. How in
the world did I find the one rack in town that made me feel like I
was on the high school swim team?

Brandy eyed it suspiciously. “That’s an
interesting choice.”

The royal blue stripe running down the
center did nothing for the imagination. It did nothing for life
itself. I pushed the suit back into the rack, hoping the other
suits would eat it alive as I skimmed across the other fabrics.

“What about this?” I asked, pulling out an
ivory one-piece with shells twisted on the straps and a rope that
tied around the waist.

“That’s cute. Is it lined?”

I looked in the crotch. “No, but it seems
like thick material.”

Brandy’s boisterous laugh turned some heads
in the department. “You want to trust important bits to thick
fabric? Let me paint this visual. You’re feeling good about life.
Your long, wet hair is cascading down your back. You’re taking a
few steps out of the water, the warm breeze kissing your skin.”

“Doesn’t sound all bad.”

“As you continue to emerge from the crystal
clear water, more eyes turn toward you. Men are smiling, and women
are blushing on your behalf. You glance down at your body and you
see everything. And by everything, I mean down to nipple
color.”

Laughter erupted from my gut. It wasn’t a
small burst of laughter. It was the feel good, change-your-day kind
of laughter as I heard Brandy relay her own personal experience
exchanged with the “you” pronoun.

“And then their eyes slip south.” Brandy
continued. “And it only gets worse.”

“So it sounds like I should put this suit
back.”

“Swim at your own risk. That’s all I’m
saying,” Brandy teased. “Why not this one?”

She pulled out a cute two-piece, teal fabric
with white piping.

Flashing a grateful smile, I shook my head.
“Maybe if we can find it up a size. That’s my old size.”

She slid the suit back in and began checking
tags.

“How about this?” Her brows shot up in
excitement.

“It looks pretty tiny.”

“Nah. The top might be a little tiny, but
the bottoms have full coverage. See?” She twirled the red suit
around and pointed at the back.

I thought about everyone who was coming to
the wedding. Did it really matter if someone saw me in a two-piece
with a belly that no longer sucked in? No. And I certainly didn’t
care if some stranger saw me.

I snatched the suit out of her hands and
carried on looking through the racks. I found a black suit with a
top that zipped in the front and a pale pink suit with a floral
design.

One of the sales associates led us to our
dressing rooms. Brandy still only had the one suit to try on. I
assumed she was pretty confident in her choice. I, on the other
hand, had absolutely no idea what I was getting myself into.