Had To Be You (3 page)

“
As was I, with Philip,”
Sarah concurred wryly
. “
But that didn’t magically turn him into a prince. Nor did it give him anything resembling George Clooney’s ass, circa season three.”

Rory smiled. “On that note, I think I’m going to say goodnight.”

“And I should head to bed, too. I’ve just about wrapped up the nineties medical dramas here. Soon I can transfer from Cook County General to Seattle Grace and watch the first season of Grey’s Anatomy on Netflix.”

“Thanks again for getting my mail.”

“Not at all. And if you feel like heading out to the gym on Saturday morning, give me a ring. I’ll promptly dissuade you of that idea, and we can go out to breakfast and shopping instead.”

“Okay. Goodnight.”

“Wish me sweet McDreamys.”

Although she originally intended to ask her friend to come downstairs, in need of some moral support, now Rory only felt a little foolish and kind of sad. No one could help her avoid the inevitable.

Her smile slowly faded once she placed the phone down, eyes drawn back to the envelope. Taking a deep, shaky breath, she finally slid her thumbnail under the flap, tearing it open right along with her heart.

TWO

Sucking in a soft, shaky breath, she listened as the phone rang again and again. Finally, someone picked up.

“Trevor?”

“Yeah.” His voice was low and groggy, tangled up in sleepy confusion. “Is this
Rory
?”

“Yes,” she said and sniffed, wiping the hot tears that leaked out onto her cheeks. “Is Jill there?”

“Ah, yeah.” He coughed as if to clear the drowsiness from his throat. “I hope she is, anyway. Everything okay?”

Rory’s bottom lip trembled. “I just really need to talk to her.”

“Oh, here she is, on the couch.” Trevor sounded relieved. Then his tone shifted, softening as he addressed his girlfriend. “
Babe
?
You okay
?”

Rory could hear Jill say something about being uncomfortable and unable to sleep.

“You should’ve woken me. Is there anything I can do?” Trevor asked her.

This time Jill’s reply carried through more clearly.

“If you could grow a uterus and take over here for these last couple of months, that would be great, thanks.”

Rory might have been able to smile at this, but his next words caused her eyes to fill with tears again.

“Hey—Rory’s on the phone.” He neglected to mute the volume on his whisper.
“She sounds upset. And maybe a little drunk.”

“Rory?” Jill was immediately on the line. “Is everything okay?”

“No.” She sniffed again, empty bottle of wine on the floor at her feet, a tissue clutched in her phone hand and the ripped, cream-colored envelope crumpled in the opposite fist. She gulped back a choked sob. “It’s here!”

“What’s here?”

“The invitation!” Rory cried, and then tried to compose herself. “I never thought he was
really
going to marry her!”

Jill’s reply held a slight touch of dismay. “Oh, dear.”

“I can’t let him do it.” She swallowed back her tears, shaking her head defiantly. “I can’t let him go.”

“Aw, sweetie…” Jill sighed. “You already kinda did. A long time ago.”

“No. No, I have to tell him.” Rory straightened, taking a deep breath. “I have to tell him he can’t—that I still—I can’t let him get married! I’m going back home tomorrow.”

“Look, I know you’re upset, but let’s not break with reality here. The last thing you ever want to do is turn your life into a Julia Roberts movie. You cannot do that to him. Matt has always respected your happiness, Rory. And, I know this is hard, but you’re really going to have to try to do the same. If you care about him at all, you need to think very carefully before you do something that could be devastating to both of you. Don’t let an overly emotional moment—not that I’m saying you’re not entitled to one, by the way—ruin a whole lifetime of friendship.”

Rory closed her burning, achy eyes with a shaky sigh of resignation.

“Do you want me to come over?” Jill asked.

“No…it’s okay.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah, really,” she said. “I feel bad enough right now that I even woke you up. And please tell Trevor I’m sorry for calling so late. Let’s just forget this ever happened, okay?”

“Already forgotten,” Jill assured her. “It will go right in the vault along with the time our washing machine broke down and Trevor had to wear a pair of my maternity panties to work.”

Rory managed to laugh a little at this, but the effort was exhausting. Her chest ached with a strange, dull pain, and she was suddenly very, very tired.

“Thanks, Jill. I’ll talk to you later.”

“Okay. Good night.”

***

Jill clicked off the phone and exhaled loudly, shaking her head.

“What was that all about?” Trevor came back into the room and dropped into the chair across from her. He had a pint of ice cream in his hand. “Is she upset because Matt is marrying Amanda? Doesn’t she like her?”

“No, it’s not that, really,” Jill replied, gazing out the window. A smudge of moonlight was barely visible in the nighttime sky above the buildings across the street. “Rory doesn’t even know Amanda. They’ve never met. She’s just upset Matt is getting married,
period
. There’s a long history there, you know. Once upon a time…well, they were pretty close. They were best friends, each other’s first loves, you name it.”

Trevor always tried to play it off like he was barely interested in gossip, above it all even, but when they were alone he definitely took a sort of conspiratorial delight in getting the scoop on Jill’s small hometown crowd. He himself had never experienced just how tight some childhood ties could bind.

“I guess I recall you telling me that.” Swallowing a mouthful of ice cream, he frowned. “So, is she just jealous he found someone else? Or does she still have feelings for him?”

“Who knows?” Jill replied with another yawn, propping her elbow on the back of the couch to rest her head in her hand. “Rory Finn is a very complicated girl. Believe me, she makes me look easy.”

“Maybe we shouldn’t talk about how easy you look, love,” he murmured as he dug his spoon in, trying to hide a grin, “when you’re sitting there all knocked-up.”

“Give me that ice cream and I might just forget you said that.”

***

Matt stepped out of his office, his gaze quickly scanning the polished brass fixtures as he made his way out to the front. He took note of how close they were to being ready to open.

This would only be his second summer in operation, actually his first full summer, since they didn’t open until almost July of the previous year. He threw a huge opening night bash back then, inviting all investors, local merchants, members of his family and friends far and wide. He hoped to do the same this summer on the bar’s first anniversary, but now he had a party of a whole different kind coming up and it required his full attention.

As if on cue, he spotted the lovely brunette making her way up the bright and sunny boardwalk out front. Her hair was smoothed into a loose twist at the nape of her neck and her short dress enhanced her graceful legs; everything about her cool and elegant.

“Hi, hon.”

“Hey,” he greeted her with a grin, bowing his head for a kiss. “I didn’t know you were coming by this morning.”

She reached into her tote to pull out her slim, pink phone. Her fingertip lightly glided across the screen.

“This will be quick and painless, I promise,” Amanda assured him. “It’s the final selections for the appetizer menu and I just wanted to make sure you thought the prices they quoted here are all reasonable before I send it back to the caterers.”

His fiancée came from a very conservative family with old-fashioned values, and her father was insisting on paying for the entire wedding. Matt felt sort of guilty about this, but that was not to say Mr. Benson couldn’t afford it. They lived in a small mansion in Long Island, and their second home here was twice the size of the one in which Matt grew up with a family of six.

Taking her phone, he perused the tiny copy of the priced menu—
sea scallops wrapped in bacon, truffled lobster ancini, pan-seared crab cakes with remoulade, beef en brochette, artisan cheese table
. “Yeah, I’d say this was okay.” A sly grin snuck in. “But I’m not seeing the burritos and Buffalo wings I requested.”

Something close to horror marred her beautiful features for a flickering second before it dissolved into an amused smile of relief.

“Very funny,” she said, tucking the phone safely away in her bag.

He laughed and rubbed her arm. “So what are your plans for the rest of the day?”

“Well, I have tennis at three and then we have second fittings for the bridesmaid dresses at five. I was planning on taking the girls out to dinner after that.”

Slipping his hand around to the small of her back, he lowered his voice intimately. “You could always come by my place later for your very own personal fitting.”

“Matt!” she chided him softly and shook her head with a smile. “I thought you had to close tonight?”

“Yeah, that’s true,” he agreed, furrowing his brow. “I’m probably going to be late, too. I guess I’ll see you tomorrow then?”

“Yes, you will.” She leaned up for a kiss before pulling back. “How about coming to brunch with my parents? My dad is making his famous Eggs Benedict.”

“I’ll be there.”

She blew a final kiss over her shoulder and Matt watched her walk away, the sunshine bouncing off her shiny hair as she stepped out onto the sidewalk.

Spurred by a sudden nagging urge, he frowned and hurried out after her.

“Hey, Amanda?”

She turned with an expectant smile.

“Yes?”

He placed his hands on her shoulders, smoothing them up her neck to gently hold her face in place. “I love you,” he said.

“Love you, too,” she replied. Lifting her hand to pat his cheek, she kissed him one last time before turning to go.

He returned inside, his eyes landing on the stunning blonde in a low-cut top now standing by the board, listing the daily drink specials.

“Casey, I didn’t know you were coming in today.”

They had known each other in high school and reconnected in the last couple of years, both settling into that sort of townie life without ever actually admitting it was what they had become. She worked on and off while taking classes, and Matt was more than happy to let her make her own schedule. He actually felt like he was one getting the better end of the deal, since it certainly didn’t hurt business to have a gorgeous female behind the bar.

“I’m covering for Luke. He’ll be in later. And how is the blushing bride-to-be this morning?” she asked, her attention focused on the board.

“Good,” Matt replied off-handedly, moving over to check the ice chests. “Just taking care of a few last details.” He paused, tilting his head back towards her. “Did you get your invitation, by the way?”

“I got it earlier in the week.” She glanced over her shoulder with an arched brow. “I have to say I was a little surprised. Pleasantly surprised, of course, but still surprised.”

He frowned and slid the ice chest door shut.

“Why would you be surprised to be invited to my wedding?”

“Matt, let’s be honest.” She shook her head with a knowing smile. “I’m not exactly your future wife’s favorite person.”

“That is not true!”

“Face it. She doesn’t like me.”

“Yes, she does,” he insisted, a bit agitated, before continuing in a slightly less convincing tone. “She’s just, you know, a little more reserved in the way she shows her feelings.”

“I’ve seen her face whenever I’m within a ten-foot radius of you, and I think her feelings are right there, in plain sight,” Casey noted with sarcasm, though she was still amused.

Matt struggled to think of a response, but realized he didn’t have one.

She continued on with a toss of her hair. “I mean, jealousy can be cute and somewhat flattering up to a point, I know, but believe me, that kind of possessiveness gets old real quick, and can take a nasty turn if you’re not careful. And, well, sometimes she’s—”

“She’s what?” he cut her off sharply, sensing this conversation was taking a different turn.

“Nothing. Forget it.”

He sighed heavily, almost rolling his eyes, recognizing the sound of her voice as it said one thing but meant something else entirely. The sound many women in his life had perfected.

“Casey…”

“I’m just a little concerned for you. That’s all.”

Matt narrowed his eyes in confusion and almost laughed. “What possible reason would you have to be concerned?”

“Maybe I just don’t get the rush. You’re both still so young. I feel like you just met! And I know what it’s like to think someone seems perfect at first, only to later find out they’re not perfect
for you
. There’s nothing wrong with taking your time.”

It was true that Matt felt Amanda was about as close to perfect as one could get. She was educated and refined, but still enjoyed watching a game at the bar. She was beautiful in an effortless way, with sleek hair cut in a perfect angle to brush her shoulders, and amazing skin. She carried herself with the ease of a sophisticated, stylish woman, but could be just as comfortable in jeans.

On top of all that, she loved him. What else did he need to know?

“Amanda isn’t—” He stopped himself there, realizing he wasn’t on trial and didn’t need to defend his life. “Look,” he said, voice changing, “I realize that you’re just coming off a bad experience, but do you think it’s possible you might be projecting some of the reasons why your own relationship didn’t work onto me? While you know I’m all for spontaneity, running off to elope after only a month of dating unfortunately does not come without its consequences.”

Casey glanced away with a contrite frown. “I’m sorry. And you’re probably right. I know you, Matt. I know you wouldn’t be doing this unless you were sure about her.”