The Best Man Read online

  “Emelia, I don’t want to fight with you. Shit. I’m so sick of fighting with you!” Samuel pulled a hand from his jeans and demonstrated how his hair had gotten in its wild state by pushing his hand through it angrily. “I came over to apologize. Please...”

  “I don’t want to hear it,” I snapped. “What in the hell did you think you were doing, coming through my window like that?”

  “I figured you wouldn’t answer your door. Or you’d have your dad tell me that you were sleeping or something. I’ve seen Andy climb the trellis about a million times. So, I thought I’d give it a try.”

  “Big difference,” I huffed. “Your brother is welcome in my room!”

  Samuel’s face looked pained for a moment before he dropped his chin and stared at the floor. His shoulders slumped forward, and he took in a deep breath.

  “Okay. I deserved that,” Samuel said quietly. “And I deserve to be called a prick too. Or anything else you want to call me. I’ve treated you deplorably. I honestly just wanted to come over and apologize. I’m sorry, Emelia. So sorry.”

  My body rocked back until I could lightly lean against my dresser behind me. Angry words were held behind my teeth and started to dissolve on my tongue when I took in Samuel’s defeated posture. I wanted to hold on to my anger. It was easier to keep Samuel at arm’s length while wearing boxing gloves. But as it always did, my forgiving nature moved in and started controlling my emotions. I felt the stiff frame of my shoulders slump tiredly.

  “What are you sorry for?” I asked quietly. Samuel’s head jerked up, and he looked surprised I was willing to allow him time to speak.

  “Should I make a list?” he asked. The corner of his mouth drew up in a small, apologetic smile. “I can’t seem to do anything right by you.” Samuel shook his head. “But tonight...”

  “That was pretty low,” I muttered. “I mean, it was a great idea. It’s absolutely perfect for Andy. But you had never even heard of that band before. It wouldn’t have occurred to you to try to make plans like that. I just wish I didn’t feel so taken advantage of.”

  “That’s pretty much the running theme between you and me lately,” Samuel said darkly and looked down again. “But that’s for another time.” I tilted my head and wondered at his cryptic statement before he raised his eyes to mine again. “I tried to tell you about my final plans. I know it doesn’t make it right. But I did feel bad for not giving you credit for my initial idea.”

  “You’re his brother,” I said quietly. “The only thing I had going for me is the fact that I know him so well. You stole that from me.”

  “You’re his best friend,” Samuel replied. “And you do know him better than I do right now. Which is why...I told Andy I want you to be the best man at his wedding.”

  My mouth fell open in surprise. But when I should have felt happy or excited or something...I couldn’t. It didn’t feel right. I didn’t want to win that way.

  “No.” I shook my head. “I meant what I told Andy earlier. I’m out. The competition was supposed to be fun.”

  “I sucked the fun right out of it,” Samuel scoffed with a little laugh.

  “Yeah. You kinda did,” I teased in return. “But you are his brother. If I hadn’t given him a guilt trip about a promise we made a million years ago, he wouldn’t have felt like he needed to decide between us.”

  Samuel looked deeply into my eyes, and I felt nearly scorched by the heat in his stare. Suddenly I was all too aware that I stood there dressed only in a towel that was tied under my arms.

  “Can you forgive me?” Samuel asked in a husky voice. I bit my lip and thought for a minute, wanting to be sure that my reply would be honest.

  “Yes,” I whispered. Samuel let out the breath he had been holding, and his facial features relaxed into a soft smile.

  “Thank you, Emelia,” Samuel said. “You have no idea...how horrible I’ve felt. I can’t stand the thought of hurting you. It kills me.”

  I immediately wondered if he wasn’t only speaking about the competition now. I took a step toward him. Samuel matched my movement, leaving the wall next to my window. Slow steps brought us closer to one another in the center of my small room. Words tumbled around in my head, trying to put themselves in proper order to be spoken. Samuel watched me and seemed to be trying to read my expression.

  “We...need to talk,” I said finally. “About us. About...” I licked my lips. “About what happened the other night.”

  “I know.” Samuel nodded solemnly. “There’s so much...”

  He looked as nervous as I felt. I clutched the soft cotton of my pajamas in my fingers in front of my stomach to keep my hands from trembling, and I took a deep breath.

  I was close enough to drown in the swirling depths of Samuel’s chocolate eyes, and I was held captive under the weight of his stare. The strange pull between us seemed to radiate from the center of his chest and beckon me forward, but I locked my knees and struggled to remain standing. I was afraid...so afraid to let my walls down again.

  This time, Samuel might smash the walls completely and leave me standing in the ruins.

  Yet somehow, I knew I would never be able to move on or move forward until I willingly gave him the power and let him decide what to do with it. He could build me up, or he could tear me down. But I had to know, once and for all.

  I opened my mouth to speak but was silenced by a bang and a loud grunt from my window. Samuel and I both turned our heads at the sound and saw Andy climbing through the small space while rubbing the spot on his head that he had just bumped against the window frame.

  “Hey, guys,” Andy interrupted sheepishly. I took a shaky breath in the sudden moment of reprieve and stepped backward. I felt like I had been granted a stay of execution. Samuel sighed and turned away from me too. “Can we talk?” Andy asked.

  “I...should get dressed,” I mumbled. Quickly, I turned and fled the room. In the bathroom, my trembling hands went under the cool water stream in the sink, and I splashed my face furiously to calm down. I had been so close to telling Samuel everything that I felt...everything that had been on my mind. But fate had stepped in. Clearly, we were meant to speak at a different time. Delayed nerves were making themselves known. I cupped the cool water in my hands and drank deeply from my palms, trying to soothe my terribly dry throat. Then I patted my face roughly with a towel, dressed in my pajamas, and went back to my room.

  Samuel and Andy stood together in the center of my room, talking quietly. Both men turned to look at me when I stepped back in to join them, and I quietly shut the door behind me.

  “Oh, I see how it is,” Andy teased. “You didn’t mind standing there half naked with my brother in your room. But as soon as I got here, you had to run and cover up all the goodies.”

  “Shut up,” I laughed and slapped at his arm. I felt my cheeks turn pink and refused to meet Samuel’s eyes to see if he noticed as well.

  “I need to talk to both of you, so sit,” Andy instructed. He grabbed me by the shoulders and swung me around until I stood side by side with Samuel. Then he placed the fingers from each of his hands high on our chests and pushed us lightly until we stepped back together and sat on the edge of my bed. I tried to ignore the feeling of Samuel’s thigh pressed into the side of my own. Or the fact that Samuel was sitting on my bed. Andy looked very serious, so I turned my attention to him. “This competition was a shit idea,” Andy announced suddenly. “I honestly thought that with both of your personalities, it would just be a fun way to spend some time together.”

  “It was fun,” I insisted.

  “Until I screwed it up,” Samuel added.

  “You didn’t.” I shook my head and looked at him.

  “We’ve already discussed this,” Samuel started.

  “But not really, Samuel. You ...”

  “See?” Andy interrupted. “All it did was make you two fight. You’re even doing it now.”

  Samuel shook his head. “I was a jerk, Andy. I told you. I got the whole idea f
or the last event from Emelia. She deserves the credit for it. I’m not fighting anymore.”

  “I’m not fighting either,” I promised. “I’m done.”

  “I don’t want either of you,” Andy said quietly. None of us spoke. His sudden declaration caused Samuel and me to stare at him in shock. I looked over at Samuel then, and he looked at me. It was clear he didn’t understand how things had just shifted any more than I did. “I don’t want either of you,” Andy continued. “I want both of you.” He turned then to pace back and forth across the small strip of floor between my bed and my dresser. Stopping, he turned to us once more. “Sammy? You’re my brother. And Emmy? You’re my best friend. I don’t want a best man. You’re my best men.” Andy cringed and looked at me. “Well, Lily wants to negotiate a different title for you, Emmy. But you get the idea.”

  “Wait. Lily knows about this?” I asked, pointing back and forth between the three of us.

  “I called her after Samuel left the house,” Andy explained. “I told her what I was thinking, and she agrees. You two are important to me, and I don’t want to choose between you. I’m getting married. It’s going to be the happiest day of my life. I honestly don’t care who in the hell plans my bachelor party...or who hands me the ring. I don’t care who stands to my immediate left, as long as you are both at my side.”

  I looked over at Samuel again. He was watching me, waiting for my reaction. “I’m going to have a full schedule, focusing on my last year of school.” I shrugged with a small smile. He returned it.

  “I’ll be awfully busy studying for the bar...getting things set up here.”

  “So, what do you think?” Andy asked. “Could you stay in touch this year and plan this stuff together? Do you think you could work as a team instead of fighting?”

  “I’d...like that,” I admitted, still looking at Samuel. His eyes glowed warmly.

  “I’d like that too,” he said.

  “Perfect!” Andy turned and dropped down to sit beside me on the bed. He threw his arm around me, reaching for his brother’s far shoulder. I was thoroughly smashed between the two large, warm bodies on either side of me. “I love you guys. You know that?”

  “We love you too,” I laughed.

  “I should...uh...let you two get back to whatever it is that you two were...uh...talking about,” Andy said then while dropping his arm and standing quickly. Samuel stood too.

  “That’s okay. I’ll follow you out. I’m sure Emelia would like to get some sleep.” I felt a small twinge of disappointment that Samuel seemed so eager to leave. But I knew our moment had passed us by—for this evening, at least. Andy kissed me on the cheek and lowered himself to the trellis outside my window. I stood and watched as Samuel threw his leg over the ledge and contorted his body through the small space as well. I was surprised, however, when he pulled his head back through my window a moment later.

  “Emelia?” Samuel asked. I cocked my head and looked at him.

  “Yes?” I asked.

  “I know tomorrow during the day I’ll be busy helping Mom and Dad, picking people up from the airport, getting things ready. But do you think that maybe you and I could continue our conversation tomorrow night? During the party?” My heart pounded painfully. If I made these plans, I knew I wouldn’t be able to back out of it.

  “Yes,” I said quietly. “I think we should.”

  “Great.” Samuel’s wide smile was the first I had seen on his face in days. “Good night, Emelia. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

  “Good night, Samuel,” I replied.

  When my window was dark and empty once more, I moved forward and pulled it closed. Sighing, I turned off my light and flopped face first on my bed. Tomorrow night, I would go to Samuel’s graduation party. Eventually, Samuel and I would be having a long overdue talk. I wondered briefly if worrying about the imminent conversation would provide me with another poor night’s sleep. But exhaustion quickly overtook me, and I fell easily into a deep and dreamless slumber.

  I bounced lightly around the house the next morning with my ponytail swishing breezily behind me. I felt remarkably refreshed after a run on the beach, and I was eager to start the day. Sunlight poured through the downstairs windows, bathing the rooms in cheerful optimism that my attitude was forced to match.

  Tonight was Samuel’s graduation party. Tonight, at his request, Samuel and I would talk. And for the time being, I couldn’t even find it in myself to feel worried about the possible outcome. I knew that one way or another, things between us would not be the same. I felt more relieved to see an end in sight than nervous about what that end might entail.

  “You look cheerful this morning,” my father noted as I joined him in the kitchen.

  “It’s a beautiful day,” I said with a shrug. I quickly poured and drank a small glass of water.

  “I’m heading down to the diner. Got a few boxes of table settings in the back of my truck for Joy. We used ’em for a firehouse fundraiser. She’s borrowing them tonight. Want to ride with me?”

  “I’d love to, but I can’t.” I smiled, putting my glass in the sink. “I promised Joy I’d make a sign to help direct parking. I need to get started on it. Do you still have plywood out in the shed?”

  “Sure, I do,” my father replied. “While you’re out there, can you do me a favor? Larry asked if he could use a couple outdoor extension cords that I keep in a box in the back. Could you find those for me?”

  “No problem.”

  He grabbed his keys off the peg by the door and grinned over at me. “Should be a pretty fancy shindig. Joy and Larry wanted to rent out a nice place. But you know Samuel. He didn’t want them wasting a bunch of money. So, they’ve worked hard to transform the diner into something special for tonight. You’ll love it.”

  “I’m sure I will,” I said. I knew Joy and Larry would probably try to rent a room at the Sportsman’s Club, or even some space at the Twelve-Point. I could imagine Samuel stubbornly refusing for them to make such a big deal of things.

  “Are you bringing a date tonight?” my father asked. He might have been expecting me to bring Nick, who was currently on his way to LA.

  “I was kinda thinking of asking the town’s next fire chief to go with me.” I smiled. “I heard he’s single...and very handsome!”

  Dad tipped his head back and laughed loudly. “As long as I don’t have to wear a tie, you’ve got a deal,” he chuckled.

  “I’ll bet they’ve invited half the town. It will be fun.”

  I glanced at my watch as soon as he left. It was already almost noon. I made haste to my father’s shed out back and retrieved a large piece of plywood. Then I stapled white poster board to cover the rough, brown surface. Joy said that the sign didn’t need to be elaborate. But I did want to make it look nice.

  With the sun warm on my back, I laid the board in the grass in my yard and worked over it. I used navy blue paint to create a wide blue border around the edge of the sign. Once that paint was almost dry, I used dark green to make a thinner line against the edge of the blue. As I concentrated on the color, I couldn’t help but compare it to the color of Samuel’s bedroom. My face heated as I happily worked at my task and imagined everything I wanted to say to him. I rubbed my hand across my cheek and brushed my hair out of my eyes. I had to let the paint dry in between adding new colors so that I wouldn’t smudge the borders, which took longer than I imagined it might. After a while, I added crisp lettering to the center of the sign. It looked great. I left it there to dry in the sun, and I walked into the house to get a drink.

  I was hot and very thirsty. The lemonade cooled me considerably. The painting had taken up the early part of the afternoon already. I took time to make a quick sandwich and ate it while standing at the counter. By the time I finished, I realized I still needed to get back out to the shed to look for the extension cords Larry needed. So, I cleaned up my lunch mess and headed back outdoors.

  I frowned when I opened the shed once more. The plywood I had retrieved earli
er had been leaning behind the lawnmower against the side wall and was easy to locate. I could tell by looking around that the extension cords would not be so easy to find. Sighing, I made my way inward. I shoved around greasy old lawn tools, dust-covered boxes, and jars filled with various hardware items. I finally located the two long cords in a box pressed behind a giant bag of mulch. Sweaty, dirty, gross, and still paint-smeared, I stumbled out of the shed with the requested items in hand.

  With the extension cords thrown to lay over my shoulder, I wiped my hands on the front of my grimy shorts. It was awkward to pick up the large board and lug it across the yard, but I managed to do so without leaving dirty fingerprints on the painted surface. I was proud of myself as I pulled the thing up the Daltons’ front steps and rang the doorbell.

  At first, there was no answer. I knew Samuel said he had a busy morning planned. I wondered if Larry might have gone to join Joy down at the diner already. But as I turned to go, I heard a shuffling from behind the door. I reached to smooth my hair that had mostly fallen from my ponytail while the door swung open.

  I was greeted by the image of a beautiful woman in a green satin shirt and white dress pants. Gold sandals showed perfectly pedicured toes, and when I raised my eyes, I took in her smoothly styled white-blond hair. She couldn’t have been older than thirty at the most. Gorgeous and sophisticated. I felt incredibly self-conscious about how horrible I looked.

  “Is Larry here?” I asked. Perhaps she was a relative from out of town? I didn’t recognize her from any of our past family gatherings. I scrunched my forehead and tried to recall the list of people Andy had mentioned might be coming to town for the party.

  “He’s at the restaurant,” the princess said in a bored voice.

  “How about Andy? Or Samuel?”’

  “I think they said Andy went to Seattle to bring back his girlfriend? Samuel’s upstairs getting dressed.”

  “Oh.” I blinked. “Well, I told Joy I would bring by this sign and these extension cords.” I looked down at the dirty offering I pulled from my shoulder and instinctively knew I shouldn’t try to hand them over to the woman in front of me. Her pristine appearance couldn’t be compromised by shed grime. “I’ll just leave these things out on the porch. If you wouldn’t mind telling them I came by?” I leaned the sign against the railing and dropped the cords beside it as I turned to go.