Page 225 of Bridesmaid Undercover
I hear the makeup and hair artists leave the room just as Polly and I sit on the couch, Maple coming to sit right next to me as well.
“I’m sorry,” I say as Polly hands me a tissue. “This wasn’t supposed to happen. I came here with every intention of being professional and not bringing my personal issues into this wedding…but the moment I saw you two, I was just…reminded. I’m sorry.” I dab at my eyes. “Just give me a second.”
“You don’t need to apologize,” Polly says. “I’m the one who pulled you into this mess. If you need to cry, then you cry.”
“No, it’s your wedding day.” I take a deep breath and swipe at my eyes with the tissue. “I’m not going to sit here and cry. We are going to celebrate.”
Maple places her hand on my leg. “Everly, we are not going to bypass the fact that you’re upset. You’ve helped us so much these last two months, and now it’s time for us to help you.”
“Seriously, it’s not?—”
“He’s fallen for you,” Polly shouts over me.
“Huh?” I ask.
Maple stands and walks over to Polly’s side where she takes a seat on the arm of the couch, so I can look at them both at the same time. With a serious tone and a sincere expression, Maple repeats, “He’s fallen for you.”
“What…what are you talking about?” I ask, even though I know exactly what they’re talking about.
“Hardy,” Polly says. “He has fallen for you. He told us last night at the rehearsal. He’s miserable, pathetic, and beyond regretful for how he treated you. He was a real downer last night and told me he promised to be better today, but I know the minute he sees you, he’s just going to return to the depressed state he was in last night.”
“Depressed state?” I ask.
Polly slowly nods. “Yes, Everly. When I say I’ve never seen him like this, I’m not lying. He’s so far gone where you’re concerned and truly believes that he’s lost any chance at being with you.”
“Has he?” Maple asks.
I look between the both of them, their hopeful faces making me feel sick to my stomach. “Uh…I just…I can’t.” My eyes well up again and I hate myself for it. Come on, Everly, get it under control.
“You can’t what?” Polly asks. “Talk about it or be with him?”
“Both,” I say while Maple hands me another tissue.
Silence falls between us as Polly gently rubs my back.
After a few seconds, she says, “Well, that’s…that’s unacceptable.”
“What?” I ask, wiping away another tear.
Polly shakes her head. “This is not what I signed up for. This…this pursuit, it can’t end like this.”
“What do you mean it can’t end like this?” I ask.
“She means, you’re supposed to be with him. Simple as that,” Maple puts in. “All of this happened for a reason—you trying to help him to get close with me again, when in reality you two were forming a deep bond. This wedding brought you two together. I saw it with my own eyes the night of the double date. You have a connection that is unlike anything I’ve seen before, and he knows it. He feels it. He wants it. It just can’t end like this. You and Hardy belong together.”
“You do,” Polly adds. “And I know he hurt you. We arenotforgetting that part because your feelings are valid, but…he apologized, right?”
I slowly nod. “He did.”
“And even with that apology, you can’t forgive him?”
I twist my hands in my lap. “I’m just…I’m scared,” I admit and then look up at both Polly and Maple. “You don’t know this, but I’ve liked Hardy for a while now.” I clear my throat. “Uh, was crushing on him hard when he asked me to help him get back together with you, Maple.”
“Wait…really?” she asks with a concerned expression. “You were helping him get close with me when you were crushing on him?”
I nod again, more tears flowing down my cheeks. “When he initially asked me to help, I thought he was asking me out. It was sort of a blow. Either way, I said yes, and the more time I spent with him, the more I hoped and wished that he was going to maybe see me for who I was, not just the girl helping him get back together with his ex. And then when he finally did see me, it was…” I dab at my eyes with the tissue. “It was everything I hoped for, an actual dream becoming reality, only for the reality to come to a crashing halt. I was so hurt, so damaged that it scared me. It still scares me because I like him so much. I can’t stop thinking about him, but I don’t want to feel that pain…this current pain. I hate it.”
Polly takes my hand in hers and rubs her thumb over my knuckles. “I’m so sorry, Everly. We had no idea.”
