Page 255 of Face Off

I stand beside Aura with tears dripping from my jaw while the man I love holds our best friend through one of the hardest Nevers of her life. Ryan spent a month thinking about a pain that wasn’t his but understood, recruited the people Bliss loved, found the photograph that captured the moment her life changed, and created something beautiful enough to carry Cindy into tomorrow.

He had done all of it without expecting anyone to know it came from him until the moment required his voice.

My fingers press against my heart and ask myself for the hundredth time this weekend. How the fuck had I ever thought I could survive a world without Ryan Decker?

20

Ryan

The rehearsal dinner ends sometime before the alcohol does.

Most of the older guests return to the castle once the temperature drops, but the rest of us migrate toward a stone firepit near the edge of the western lawn. Employees bring several coolers of beer, blankets, and enough wood to keep the fire alive until someone with authority remembers tomorrow contains an actual wedding.

Charm settles near the fire with Bliss, Aura, and Temple while Cade drags the rest of us toward the outdoor bar to collect another round. My jacket remains around Charm’s shoulders. The black fabric swallows most of her nude-colored dress, but her bare legs extend beneath it while she sits with both feet tucked beneath herself.

She catches me watching.

Her smile is soft, uncertain, and too fucking hopeful for the mess inside my head.

I look away first.

Cade places five empty glasses on the bar. “You okay?”

“I’m standing upright.”

“That wasn’t the question.”

“It should’ve been. I’ve slept approximately twenty minutes since arriving at this castle.”

Briggs leans one elbow against the bar. “You slept last night.”

I look at him.

His eyebrows lift. “Yeah me either.”

Cade accepts the bottle of bourbon but doesn’t pour it. His attention moves across my face with enough patience to piss me off before he speaks again.

“You’ve been off all night.”

“I gave a speech.”

“You gave one of the best speeches I’ve ever heard and spent the rest of dinner looking like you were waiting for someone to tell you it didn’t count.”

My gaze moves toward the fire. Charm has leaned closer to Bliss while Aura says something that makes all three women laugh. My jacket slips down one of her shoulders, and she pulls it back into place without interrupting the conversation.

Cade follows my attention. “What happened upstairs once you calmed down?”

“Several things.”

Briggs turns around and braces both forearms against the bar. “Specificity would strengthen the discussion.”

“This isn’t a discussion.”

“You’re surrounded by people. It became one.”

I release a hard breath and take the glass Cade finally pours for me. “She came to my room.”

“After you went to hers?” Cade asks.