Page 13 of Trial and Error

On the short walk to our table, he told me his brother’s name is Oscar and his fiancée is Isobel and they’re expecting their second child.

Natalie watches the two of us with curiosity, and I know she’s waiting for me to slip up, but like the supportive sister she is, she says nothing as she shoots me a look that tells me we’re about to have a long talk about this on the way home.

Lorna was thrilled to see all of us joining them at the same table, and I noticed the way she struggled to keep her eyes off Elias. Not that I mind—that much, anyway.

Seeing her and Tom together, laughing and fawning over each other, causes my stomach to flip uncontrollably and the only thing that seems to keep me grounded is the stranger sitting beside me. The way Elias’s index finger is drawing circles on the top of my thigh has my mind doing cartwheels, but at least I’m not thinking too much about the elephant in the room.

Even if his eyes remain on the two of us as Oscar wraps up his speech.

Elias must sense it, too, because as soon as I begin to fidget, he lifts his hand from my leg and drapes it around the back of my chair.

Lorna, the sweet angel, is completely oblivious to the tension around the table, and when her gaze meets mine across the table, she smiles wholeheartedly before leaning into Tom’s shoulder.

Oscar returns to the table and makes his way over to Elias, wrapping an arm around both of our shoulders. He presses a chaste, yet polite, kiss against my cheek and winks down at me.

“I’m so glad you could make it, Bridget,” he says, like we’re old friends. “Isobel was worried she was going to be bored out of her mind without you here.”

Isobel nods from across the table as she sips on her Sprite. “It’s true. I couldn’t handle the thought of having to deal with these two buffoons without you.”

Oscar pats us both on the shoulders then takes his seat in between Elias and Isobel. As soon as he’s seated, a flurry of servers make their way into the room, holding trays with canapés.

Elias leans back in his chair and looks over at me, moving his hand from behind my shoulders to brush my hair over my shoulder.

I haven’t really noticed just how attractive he is until now. When we were at the club, I only saw him in a dimly lit bar from across the dance floor, and even though he looked incredible, nothing could’ve prepared me for how seeing him up close would be a million times better. His dark eyes gleam almost mischievously as he looks over at Tom and flashes him a grin so beautiful I feel it deep in my bones.

He’s a sight for sore eyes, that’s for sure, with a thin, straight nose and full lips that look softer than the satin of my dress. His dark hair is lightly gelled back with a few strands falling forward onto his forehead. He looks just as decadent as the two pieces of tuna nigiri that is being placed in front of me.

“So,” Lorna starts as she leans forward, “how long have you two been together? Nat said nothing about her sister being engaged.”

Tom raises his brow at the question, his own curiosity getting the better of him. “About six months,” I reply, looking up at Elias with a smile, to which he gives one in return. “We wanted our engagement to be an intimate affair, you know? With it happening all so fast, we wanted to just keep it between our closest friends and family.”

My fiancé nods in agreement. “We didn’t feel like it was necessary for the whole world to know.” He looks over at his brother who is watching us intently. “Only close friends and family, like Bids said.”

I look up at him, and realize I enjoy the way my childhood nickname rolls off his lips a little too much for someone who barely knows me. My grandma was the one who came up with it days after I was born and it stuck. She rarely ever called me Bridget unless I was in trouble and if she did, it was always followed closely by my middle name. Bridget Evangeline. Bridget, because my mom adored the name after hearing it once on some British baking show, and Evangeline after my grandma.

Lorna hums and takes a sip of the wine in front of her. “That’s so lovely.” She looks over at Tom. “We should’ve had a small engagement party, rather than the big shindig your mother insisted on having.” Her laugh is airy.

Natalie scoffs into her glass of merlot. “Sounds about right,” she mumbles under her breath, and I shoot her glare as Lorna looks over at her with a confused frown.

Tom isn’t smiling, though. He doesn’t think it’s lovely or sweet, and he doesn’t seem to care that his wife is running her hand up his arm in hopes of a small ounce of attention. He doesn’t even notice when she looks between us with a frown.

He doesn’t notice anything that’s happening because his gaze is laser-focused on Elias and me, like he’s waiting for us to slip up somehow. And honestly, I’m waiting for it, too. “I really thought your mom would’ve told mine, Bridget,” Tom speaks as he leans back in his chair, and I feel Elias’s hand on my thigh once again as he begins to stroke it calmly. “Seeing as they’re good friends and all.”

I shrug as I slip my hand up Elias’s arm and onto his shoulder. “Hmm, I guess she didn’t feel like it was important news to share with your family.” My hand curves around the nape of Elias’s neck and rests there. “It’s not like it’s any of your business, really.”

“Do you know each other?” Lorna asks, her voice a lot quieter than before.

“Vaguely,” Tom tells her, his tone soft and reassuring, but my sister’s bark of laughter does nothing to settle her nerves that are apparent in the way her shoulders hunch ever so slightly. “Okay, maybe more than vaguely.”

“They dated for years, Lorna,” Natalie tells her like it’s nothing.

I sigh. “It was a long time ago,” I tell Lorna, offering her a small smile.

The one she returns is tight, and I can tell that this conversation is going to be spoken about when they get home.

“Thank god it’s over, though.” Oscar laughs awkwardly as Elias curls me into his side. “Otherwise these two lovebirds would never have met, and my brother would be even more insufferable than he already is.”

Everyone laughs except Lorna and Tom.