Jared is standing in front of the bar, drinking a pint of beer, talking with two other guys. They all smile over at us as we step up next to them.
“Started without us?” Theo gives them all a handshake/chest-bump greeting and then introduces me to his brother Jared; his brother-in-law, Chris; and one of Amy’s best friends, Tim.
Jared’s handshake is a firm grip as he nods a hello to me, and Tim is grinning from ear to ear and already looks a tad drunk.
“Where’s the soon-to-be Mrs?” Theo asks Jared as he waves to get the barman’s attention.
“Causing mayhem, as usual.” Jared motions off to one side with his pint.
I notice that his eyes soften when he does, and a small, wistful smile twitches at the corner of his mouth when he looks at his fiancée. That’s what love looks like. It makes my heart ache.
I look over too. There are three women standing and laughing together. I pick out their sister, Emily, immediately. They all have the same shape to their noses and the same warm, rich brown shade to their hair. My eyes rake over the other two—one is tall, the other short. My eyes zero in on the tall one, and I nod in understanding. She’s gorgeous. Her make-up is on point, cheeks and nose contoured flawlessly. Long, shiny raven hair cascades around her face and down her back. A tight dark purple dress hugs her body to perfection, showing off long legs and a flat stomach.
Now, I know what Theo’s type is—stunning.
Theo grins and cups his mouth, shouting over the music playing in the background and the other people standing around the bar, talking. “Oi. Don’t I get a hello? Rude! I mean, I am the second-most-important man in the wedding, you know!”
The girls’ conversation stops immediately. His sister and the gorgeous model-like girl send him a wave. The other one, the short girl with the pale pink hair, beams and marches over excitedly; she’s all bouncy steps and flouncy arms. Her smile is radiant; it’s one of those contagious smiles that you can’t help but reciprocate. She’s wearing Converse, jean shorts, and a short-sleeved grey top that says, Warning: may contain alcohol. I already like her.
“Hey!” she greets, throwing her arms around Theo. As she pulls back, her eyes meet mine, and they sparkle excitedly. “Ahh, you must be Lucie! Oh, bloody hell, I still can’t believe you got stuck with this one in a lift for almost an hour. How did you not murder him?” she jokes, teasingly elbowing Theo in the stomach. “I would have done it if he’d basically guilt-tripped me into giving up my doughnuts.”
Theo chuckles and rolls his eyes, and Jared wraps his arm around the girl’s waist, gently pulling her to him. Her hand goes to his stomach, and she strokes absentmindedly, as if she can’t keep her hands off him, as he leans in and drops a kiss on the top of her head.
The metaphorical penny drops with a loud clang. This girl is Amy, not the tall, leggy girl with the perfect make-up and killer dress. No, this shorter, gorgeous, smiley girl is the one who has Theo tied in a knot.
Hmm, interesting.
I take her offered hand and give it a shake. “Hi. Yeah, it’s nice to meet you. Thanks for letting me crash your wedding. Though it’s not like I had much choice in the matter; he basically wouldn’t let me say no,” I joke, rolling my eyes.
“You’re welcome,” Theo chirps, winking at me.
The other two girls come over then. The tall stunner I incorrectly assumed was Amy steps up close to Tim and leans against him. I’m introduced to everyone again, and finally, the barman stops at our group.
Amy’s smile widens. “Guys, it’s Thursday. Seeing as it’s a special occasion, I think, just this once, we can extend the tradition to include all of you. What do you think, Hev?” She nudges the raven-haired beauty.
Heather nods in agreement. “Just this once.”
I frown in confusion as Tim and Jared both wince and turn their noses up.
“Tradition?” I ask.
Amy excitedly rubs her hands together, her blue eyes twinkling. “Tequila Thursday. Let’s get them shots going. One shot every fifteen minutes. First one to puke loses.”
One hour and four shots later, the first one to puke is their brother-in-law, Chris. Emily escorts him back to their room, and we all playfully boo and shame them out of the bar. I’m having a great night. Amy and her friend, Heather, are hilarious, and Theo bounces off the two of them like they’re in a sparring word match.
As I watch the group interact, it’s a little strange to see Jared and Theo sitting next to each other. While they look exactly the same, Jared, I’ve noticed, is quieter and more reserved than his loud, outgoing twin. Don’t get me wrong; Jared is funny, too, but his jokes and one-liners are delivered in perfect precision for maximum impact rather than Theo’s all-round friendly banter that doesn’t seem to stop. They’re so different but yet the same. It’s kind of fascinating to witness.
And Amy? Well, let’s just say, I can see why Theo is attracted to her. She’s gorgeously cute and witty, and she never stops smiling. I might even have a tiny crush on her myself by the end of the weekend. She’s amazing and the type of girl you want to be best friends with.
I’m also relieved to finally be able to stop worrying about Theo’s intentions in bringing me here. Seeing them all together, it’s clear that Theo really doesn’t seem to want to disturb or cause problems with the loved-up couple. I now believe he genuinely just didn’t want to come to the wedding on his own and brought me here under innocent pretences. Thank the Lord for small mercies because I really didn’t fancy jail time for murdering him.
At around half past ten, the tequila shots and travelling seem to be catching up with me, and I can’t stifle my yawn, so I try to discreetly hide it behind my hand.
“Tired?” Theo asks, leaning in, his hot breath blowing down my neck as his fingers brush across the top of my shoulder.
I nod and turn my eyes to his, seeing he looks exhausted too. His eyes are slightly droopy. It’s a good look for him. “Yeah.”
“Let’s call it a night and get some sleep. Then, tomorrow, we can do something fun,” he suggests. “There’s this little village I Googled that’s not far away. They do all sorts of water activities there, like kayaking or paddle boarding or waterskiing. Fancy that?” he asks, but then his face falls, and his eyes tighten. “Or do you just want to be away from me and sunbathe on the beach or walk in the woods on your own? Like I said, your time is your own. If you don’t want to hang with me, that’s fine, honestly.”
Water sports? Oh, heck yes. I’m more than up for that.
I used to love that kind of stuff and never really got to do it with Lucas. He didn’t like activity days. Our holidays were more the sunbathe and dip your toe in the pool type. He wouldn’t even let me ride the banana boat last time we went away—too dangerous, he said. You can imagine how much I rolled my eyes at that. Lucas’s idea of danger was ordering something from the Thai menu that he’d never tried.
“Hell yes! Let’s do that. And if I’m too hungover tomorrow to do anything, we can get a two-person kayak, and you can paddle me around the loch while I hurl over the side and feed the fish.”
Theo’s grin dazzles me. “Great. It’s a date then.”