“Are they?” His eyes moved from her face, down her body, and back up again. “And some guys aren’t late for dinners with friends who have gotten all dressed up for them.”
“I didn’t get all dressed up for him!” She looked down at herself, suddenly worried she’d overdone it after all. “I like to look nice. Since you don’t know me, you have no way of knowing whether I’m dressed up special tonight or not.”
“If you say so.”
“I do say so.” He wasn’t quite so funny anymore. She made a face at him. “Are you always this obnoxious?”
“Usually. You’ll get used to me eventually.” He smiled again, his handsome face softening in a way that was ridiculously attractive.
“So you’re sticking around Richmond?”
“Yes. I’m sticking around.”
“Great,” she muttered.
Dave better get here soon. Robert Castleman was ruining her night, and it hadn’t even really started.
Her phone buzzed again, and she looked down at it, assuming it was her mother.
It wasn’t. It was Dave.
Hey—we’re still studying. Rain check for dinner?
She stared down at the words, all her jitters chilling into a frozen weight that sank from her chest to her gut.
“So your nice guy bailed on you?” The question was just as cool as before, but it was gentler somehow. Like he’d managed to see how crushed she was even though she hadn’t moved or changed her expression.
“He didn’t bail,” she said, lowering her phone and standing up. “Something came up.”
“If a guy can’t prioritize dinner with you, then he’s not worth putting much hope in.”
“I didn’t ask for your advice.”
“But I’m offering it anyway. It’s universal. Friend or date or husband or acquaintance, if a guy doesn’t make you important in his life, then you’re not important to him.”
“Oh, shut up!” She didn’t usually snap like that. But the last thing she wanted was for this arrogant man to see how upset she was.
She shouldn’t be upset.
It had just been a random dinner. She was the one who’d made it significant, and Dave wouldn’t know she felt that way about it.
But—as annoying as Robert was—maybe he was right. It did feel like she was investing a lot more in her relationship with Dave than Dave himself was. She’d seen other women do that—always resulting in heartache—and she didn’t want to fall into that trap.
So maybe this wasn’t the right time. She still cared about him as much as she ever had, but now wasn’t necessarily when things would happen. She’d work on focusing on other things, other men.
If things were meant to be with Dave, they’d work out eventually. She didn’t have to force it.
For now she could let him go.
After all, she had a good job. A promising career. And plenty of really good friends.
She didn’t need Dave to fall in love with her right now.
With that resolved in her mind, she looked back over at Robert, who was watching her with what would have been casual interest if there hadn’t been something sharply observant underlying his gaze.
When his phone chirped, she asked, “Are you getting stood up too?”
“Could be.” He glanced down at his phone. “No. Guess not. She just parked and is on her way.”
“Great.” Naturally his date would show up when hers didn’t. “Well, have a good time with your impersonal, meaningless dinner.”
His smile was almost feral. “I will.”
“Oh, shut up.” With that, Amanda collected what remained of her dignity and walked away.
one
four years later
AMANDA GRIFFIN WAS so exhausted her eyes were throbbing, but she managed to keep a smile on her face.
That was what she’d always done. Smile even when she felt like crying.
Her sister had just gotten married. It was supposed to be a bright, happy day, and it was... for everyone but her.
Stacey had married Dave Williams.
So Amanda pulled her mouth into a wide smile as she circulated the mingling crowd in the tastefully decorated reception room. The flowers were perfect. The food and champagne were perfect. The ceremony had been perfect. And the bride looked perfect. Everything was perfect except for Amanda’s bridesmaid dress and what she was hiding in her heart.
The dress was the least important thing. The pale silvery-lavender color did make Amanda’s blue eyes look almost violet, and the fitted bodice did make her boobs look particularly impressive. But Stacey had wanted the silhouette of the bridesmaid dresses to match hers, so the nicely fitted bodice was paired with way too much flouncy fabric in the skirt.
Amanda’s mother had put her in glitz beauty pageants as a child, so she wasn’t a stranger to ridiculous outfits. But still...
The day was hard enough for her. She didn’t need to be wearing this dress.
“Mandy!”
Amanda turned toward the voice, knowing it was her sister even before she laid eyes on the approaching woman. Stacey was the only person in the world allowed to call her Mandy.
Widening her smile, Amanda hugged her sister, taking care that the excess chiffon in both their skirts didn’t get stuck together in the embrace.
“Everything is good, isn’t it?” Stacey asked. Her big blue eyes were a lot like Amanda’s, only a slightly paler blue. Her blond hair was a little darker, her figure a little less curvy. Otherwise, the two sisters looked very much alike.
That was where the resemblance ended, however. At twenty-six, Stacey was quiet and shy with a kind of simple sweetness that was impossible not to love. Amanda was two years older and anything but sweet.
“Yes. It was a beautiful wedding, and the reception is going so well. Everyone seems to be loving it.” Amanda made sure her smile made it to her eyes. Stacey might not be as clever or cynical as she was, but she definitely wasn’t stupid. And she’d be very upset if she discovered that Amanda wasn’t as happy as she was today.
“I can’t believe I married Dave! It’s a dream come true. Like a fairy tale. Isn’t it?”
Amanda nodded enthusiastically and squeezed her sister’s hand. “It is a fairy tale. Exactly like one. You’ve always deserved to end up with your prince.”
Stacey was convinced by that. She giggled and wiped away a few tears before giving her another hug.
Amanda managed to hold on to the pose of unadulterated joy until she turned away from her sister. Then she took a ragged breath and swallowed over a painful lump in her throat.
Stacey might have had a crush on Dave—her sister’s best friend—for most of her life. But Amanda had been in love with him. He had always been the prince of her daydreams too, but she didn’t get the fairy-tale ending.
Because two hours ago he’d married her little sister.
A server walked past her just then with a tray of filled glasses of champagne. Amanda grabbed one and took a couple of gulps.
It was the lower quality champagne that they’d switched to after the first hour of the reception, but it was decent. The dry, bubbly liquid hit her tongue and then her throat. She took another deep breath, feeling more like her normal, poised, always-in-control self.