Total pages in book: 91
Estimated words: 84322 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 422(@200wpm)___ 337(@250wpm)___ 281(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 84322 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 422(@200wpm)___ 337(@250wpm)___ 281(@300wpm)
“Look, I know it’s all complicated. And I don’t need to know everything in this moment. Right now, what I do need, is my maid of honor. And my brother. Tomorrow is the most important day of my life, Jaz,” she said, smiling as her eyes filled with emotion. “And I’m counting on both of you to be there — really be there.”
I swallowed, looking down the beach at where everyone was still gathered. My gaze caught on Tyler, who was standing at the edge of the shore with his father, lost in conversation.
“So, please,” Morgan begged when I looked back at her. “Whatever is going on, figure it out.”
I sighed, taking her hands in mine where we stood. “Morgan, I’m here. Okay? I promise. I know tomorrow is your day, and I love you and Oliver so much. I’m honored to be the one standing by your side. And I promise, everything is fine. Okay? Yes, there have been some… complications,” I admitted. “Between me and Ty. But we’re both here for you, and you’re what is most important. I feel that way, and I promise you, he does, too.”
She nodded, her little mouth pulling to one side. “Thank you.”
I smiled, pulling her in for a hug before we made our way back down the beach. She was instantly back in wedding mode, going over our agenda for the next day as we walked, and she steered us right toward where her brother and father were standing, no matter how subtly I tried to turn us.
When we made it to them, Morgan pulled her dad away on the pretense of needing him to fix a situation with the drinks that were available to the guests, but she gave me a pressing look over her shoulder as she left me alone with Tyler.
And when they were gone, the air crackled to life, and I turned to find Tyler staring at me in a way he never had before.
Pain was etched into every feature, and even though he wore sunglasses, I could see how tired he was. His mouth was flat, his jaw tense, hands in the pockets of his board shorts. But where there had always been a longing in his gaze before, I only felt anger rolling off him now.
It was as if I disgusted him, as if my mere presence was the bane of his existence.
“Morgan said she can tell something is off between us,” I said, and I wanted to crawl out of my skin, talking to him like nothing had happened in my room just two nights prior. “I feel like we’ve been doing a pretty good job avoiding each other, but maybe we should put on our happy faces. At least for the next couple of days. And af—”
“Why isn’t Jacob here?”
His words sliced through mine effortlessly, and I stood there with my mouth open, mid-sentence, completely forgetting what I was going to say.
Tyler’s gaze didn’t waver. It pierced through me even with the dark lenses of his shades shielding me from those deep brown eyes of his.
“Jasmine,” he said, his voice low, and I shivered at the sound of my name rolling off his tongue the way it had the night he took me in my room. He stepped forward, into my space, his calm demeanor somehow more threatening than if he were screaming. “Why. Is. Jacob. Not. Here?”
He said each word slowly, with punctuation and assumption, and I swallowed, looking out over the water as my ribcage squeezed painfully around my lungs.
“Because I broke up with him.”
I kept my eyes on the water for a long time, waiting for a response, but none came. My chest burned with every passing second, something between a longing for Tyler to hold me, and a need for him to never look at me again warring with each other inside my soul.
When I finally turned to look at him, his expression was unreadable.
He was stoic, as always, and I hated him for being so unaffected.
I sniffed, crossing my arms over my stomach as I pulled us both back to what was important. “Tomorrow is the biggest day of your sister’s life, okay? And she needs us. So, let’s just… let’s be here for her.”
I didn’t wait for a response this time, just looked at him once more to drive my point home, and then I turned on my heel, making a beeline for my beach chair.
I flopped down into it with a sigh of relief, squeezing my eyes shut as my heart hammered in my chest. I even pressed my fingertips into my hot, oiled-up skin that covered my heart, as if that would somehow help, as if I could physically relieve the pressure with the right touch.
When I opened my eyes and reached for my drink, I found my aunt looking at me with that same arched brow I’d left her with.