Classy, fierce Catia.
Lovesick, googly-eyed Catia.
The thought came to Dani unbidden and her neck heated, embarrassed at the whiny, unsupportive little voice inside her head. It was just that she’d known Cat most of her life and she’d never known there was another version of her that some cute guy she met in a bar would unlock—one who walked around with hearts in her eyes and blew kisses. But when Cat met Josh, Prince fucking Charming, her best friend became that girl.
The one who’d suddenly gone misty-eyed. Again. For God’s sake.
“Kit Cat!”
Cat sniffed and dabbed at the corner of her eye. “I know. God, I feel like Emma. I’m so emotional.”
As if she’d been summoned by the wedding gods, Emma pushed into their circle, holding four plates of cake in a move only someone who’d waitressed through college could pull off. She passed them out while belting out the lyrics to Jagged Edge’s “Let’s Get Married.”
Emma was in her glory. While Sonya bossed everyone around, and Dani kept them all plied with champagne, Emma soaked in the ceremony of it all.
Emma’s had been the last big wedding—a vintage bed and breakfast with a harp and a Cinderella-style dress, her college sweetheart for a groom. She’d cried pretty much the entire day. But they’d known this about Emma from the start. Cat was a surprise.
Dani filled her mouth with cake to keep from saying anything snarky about Cat’s waterworks. “I’m glad Josh didn’t smoosh this in your face,” she said, though she wasn’t really. That was one of her favorite wedding traditions.
Cat laughed, her tears magically abated by sugar. “He made me promise not to do it to him.”
“No way! And you agreed?”
“I left him guessing until the last minute.”
Sonya shook her head. “You two are something else.”
Dani smoothed her tea-length, navy blue dress, watching her feet wobble on her heels from the tequila. Was she missing something here? How was it that all of her friends had found these perfect guys and she was still bobbing from sinking ship to sinking ship? Her last three boyfriends had worn out their welcome in a matter of weeks.
Truthfully, she hadn’t given much thought to the idea of settling down like this—looking at the same face day in and day out, listening to the same person’s jokes, sex with the same person. Forever. She hadn’t even had the same hairstyle for more than a few months.
And yet here was Cat, practically glowing at the idea of forever.
Dani scooped up more cake with her fork. “Don’t you ever worry that, I don’t know, you’ll get bored?”
Emma made a noise like she was genuinely offended on behalf of love.
“Is that what you think? Josh is boring?” Cat gave her an evil grin. “I know you guys think he’s some sort of Prince Charming, but he’s not always.” She lowered her voice and leaned in. “He has the dirtiest mouth.”
“Oh my God. TMI,” Sonya said.
Dani rushed to swallow her bite of cake, her finger in the air. “Hold up. I’m going to need you to expand on that statement.”
Cat giggled, her cheeks glowing red. “I’m just saying, people have so many layers. You could live with someone for fifty years and probably never discover them all. You’ll only get bored if you decide you’ve seen enough and stop peeling them back.” She scooped some frosting off of her plate with her finger and licked it off. “Besides, if bored is the worst thing that happens between us, I’ll join a book club. I’ve had enough turmoil in my love life. So has Josh. It feels good to have someone who I know will always be there.”
“You had us, though,” Dani said.
“Okay, someone who is always there and who also looks mad fine in his underwear.”
Dani snorted. “Oh my God. Who knew getting married would turn you into a little horndog?”
Cat tipped her head onto Dani’s shoulder, knocking the white orchid she had fastened askew. “Layers.”
Dani pressed her thumb into the corner of her eye, blotting her mascara back into place. Back to keeping things light. Moments like this—teary, loaded moments—they made Dani itch. She fished her phone out of the top of her dress and angled it toward Cat just as she put more cake into her mouth. The flash startled her, and her beautifully done-up face twisted awkwardly around her fork.
“Oh my God! Why?” That sappy look in Cat’s eyes was replaced by the spitfire Dani recognized.
“For the album!”
Sonya laughed. “I hope you’re sharing that.”
Dani had been keeping a file of horribly-timed photos of all of her friends for years. They came in handy for birthdays, anniversaries, basically any event you didn’t want ruined with a slideshow of embarrassing candids. Sonya only found it amusing because she never seemed to take a bad picture. Her skin was dark enough to hide any imperfections and she was a total gym rat so she didn’t have an ounce of hidden flab for anyone to document.
“Don’t worry,” Dani said. “I’ll post it while she’s lying on a beach in Hawaii and tag Josh.”
Cat stuck her tongue out. “I hate you.”
Mood officially lifted.
“Take a real one, Dani,” Emma said. She took everyone’s plates and set them on the nearest table.
“No.” Cat scowled.
“Come on, Kit Cat,” Dani said, maneuvering them into a half-circle. “We need one of all of us!”
Sonya and Emma squeezed in, and Dani came around to Cat’s other side. She threw her arm around Cat’s neck, avoiding all of the curls and lace and fresh-cut flowers. “You’re my bestest friend in the whole wide world, Kit Cat,” she whispered, stretching her arm out to get them all in the photo. “Always remember you loved me first.”
Cat snort-laughed, Emma opened her mouth to say something, and Sonya put on a supermodel grin. Dani snapped the photo.
“Ugh! Dani!”
Jagged Edge faded out and, in a testament to the skill of DJ Hotty Mcfly, blended seamlessly into the first notes of “At Last.”
Dani pushed Cat with her elbow. “You should go find your husband.”
“I should.” Cat squeezed her around the waist. “Love you, Dani.”
“Love you more.”
Dani watched Cat cross the dance floor to her husband. Josh met her in the middle, cupping her face in both of his hands, and kissed her like she’d been gone for years.
When Dani turned back around, Emma and Sonya had both beelined toward their dates. Great. She could feel her good mood waning as the lyrics got more and more romantic and she stood there alone.