My Chance (Chance #2) (26 page)

I made it to work on time, and as soon as I walked through the door, I knew my day would be horrible. “What’s going on?”

The look on Mark’s face said it all. He walked me to my cubicle. “Brian is on the warpath because we’re getting some big client today and Julie is out. What’s going on with her? It isn’t like her to call in sick. She told Brian she’d be out all week.”

I didn’t know how much Mark knew. He and Val had left the party early. “I had a feeling this would happen. She has to deal with some news she got over the weekend. I’m sure we’ll be fine with the new client. Let’s just kick ass and get the job done.”

“No way, you’re not getting off the hook,” he said. “What the hell happened? It’s Brett, right? Did he flaunt Nikki in front of her again? Did she show up at your party after we left?”

“No, she wasn’t there.”

“Come on, Aub, I love Julie too. Do I need to go kick his ass?”

I tilted my head back and forth. “You might want to if I tell you what happened, so no, I don’t think I will.”

Mark stared at me. “I swear to God, if you don’t tell me, I’ll go to her apartment and have her tell me. Or better yet, I’ll find Brett and beat it out of him.” The look on his face said he was serious.

“Okay, I’ll tell you, but you have to promise you won’t freak out and go beat up anyone.”

“Fine, spill it.”

I sighed. “Brett thinks Nikki might be pregnant with his baby. Julie found out, and she’s devastated.”

Mark scowled. “I’ll kill him.”

“No, you promised. He doesn’t even know for sure. He said she’ll find out if she’s pregnant in a few weeks, and if she is, he’ll have a paternity test done. He’s pretty upset about it too.”

“He should be. What an asshole. I don’t get people. First, you have to deal with Leah and Alex, then Jessica shows up, and now this? I get that things happen in threes, but this takes the cake. So Nikki should find out right around Christmas? That’ll be great.”

I hadn’t really thought about it, but he was right. She’d find out around Christmas. “Yeah, I guess so. Maybe she won’t be pregnant, or it might not be his.”

“Well, if I know Julie, she won’t care if it is or isn’t. She’s got to be a wreck.”

“She is, and that’s why she’s off this week. So let’s get to work and make sure everything is fine while she’s gone. She doesn’t need Brian stressing her out.”

Mark kissed my cheek and went to his desk.

I sat at mine. I was so happy with my life, but I felt a little guilty about it. It was hard to be happy when my best friend wasn’t.

The next few days at work were the same. Mark and I stayed super busy covering for Julie. Mark’s presentations were spot on, and on Friday, Brian offered him a position as a permanent ad executive. Mark would be in charge of some clients. Brian would hire a new assistant after the holidays, and then Mark could rid himself of those responsibilities.

I hadn’t spoken to Julie all week, and according to Alex, Brett had been MIA too. He hadn’t returned any of Alex’s texts or calls, and Alex was starting to worry.

We were going to meet at the club later that night to celebrate Mark’s promotion. I tried calling Julie, but I got her voice mail. I told her where we would be if she wanted to meet us, but she never got back to me.

I walked into the club with Mark, and I was happy to see Julie, Val, and Alex at the bar. Mark and I must have noticed them at the same time because he stopped and smiled. Once we reached the bar, Mark kissed Val on the cheek and pulled Julie off her stool for a hug.

Alex hugged me. “I’m so glad to see you. Julie has been here since three. Thankfully, she’s been nursing her drinks, so she isn’t wasted.”

“Maybe it wouldn’t be a bad idea if she was drunk. At least she could forget for a while.”

“I don’t think she’d forget since Nikki is here.” He nodded toward the tables near the dance floor.

“Oh my God, why is she here? Is she drinking? If she’s pregnant, she shouldn’t be drinking.” I tried to see what was in her glass.

“No, she isn’t. According to Tyler, she ordered a soda.”

“Why is she here?”

Alex looked defeated. “She’s waiting for Brett. According to Ty, she hasn’t heard from him and wanted to see him. She thought he’d be here, but he isn’t. I’m getting worried. I haven’t seen him or talked to him in a week.”

“I hope he’s okay.” As I said that, I saw Brett walk in.

He looked terrible. Julie stared at Brett before she turned back to Mark and Val. Nikki didn’t take long to notice him either. She ran to him and threw her arms around his neck. He didn’t reciprocate. He just removed her arms from his neck.

He walked up to us, leaving Nikki where she was. “Hey, guys. Alex, sorry I didn’t return your texts. I thought you might be here. If you want to talk, here I am.” He looked at the rest of our friends, especially Julie. “I didn’t know everyone would be here. I can come back.”

Alex slapped Brett’s shoulder. “No, man, you’re my best friend and I want you here. Right, Aubrey?”

“Uh, yeah. I mean, yes, of course. Brett, I know things are weird right now, but Alex is right. You guys talk, and we’ll be at the bar.”

Alex motioned to Tyler, and the three of them went upstairs.

I walked over to my friends. “So what are we drinking?”

Mark looked at his beer. “Mine is obvious. Val is having her usual cosmo. What can I get you?”

“I’ll have a club soda with lime please. I’m in the mood for a cocktail tonight, but thanks to my meds, that’s out of the question. Julie, do you want one?”

She nodded. “Why not?”

Our drinks came, and Mark and I talked about our week and his promotion. We were laughing and having a good time until Alex, Brett, and Tyler came down the stairs.

Julie stopped laughing. “Maybe I should go.” She slid off the stool, taking a final sip of her drink.

“No, don’t go. We all need to co-exist, if nothing else. I’m getting married in two weeks, and I won’t have my friends at odds over some slut. Oh my God. I’m getting married in two weeks!”

Everyone laughed at my sudden giddiness. Julie, Val, and I jumped around like school girls. Alex and Brett walked up to us.

“What’d I miss?” Alex asked. “Why is my fiancée jumping up and down? I hope you guys haven’t been doing shots?”

Julie slapped his arm. “No, we haven’t been doing shots. You know Aubrey can’t drink. She just realized that you guys are getting married in two weeks. Two weeks!”

We started laughing and jumping again.

Alex rubbed his arm. “Damn, Julie, you didn’t have to hit me so hard.”

We all looked at him and laughed.

“She has quite the right hook,” Brett deadpanned.

We stopped laughing, and Julie said, “You deserved it. You deserve everything you have coming to you.”

“Okay, I’m done with this,” Brett said. “Let’s go, Julie. You want to lay into me? Go ahead. You want to punch, kick, or scream at me? Here I am. Let me have it. Get it all out. Will that make you feel better?” Brett stood with outstretched arms. “Come on, I’m waiting. We’re all waiting.”

Just like that, the group went silent.

Julie walked up to Brett. She raised her hand as if she was going to slap him, but instead she placed it on his cheek. “I don’t want to fight with you or scream at you. What’s done is done.” She removed her hand from his cheek.

I walked up to her. “Jules, are you okay?”

She looked at me and then back at Brett. “Yes, I’m fine. I can’t hide or ignore my friends anymore because my heart was crushed.” She looked at Nikki, who was sitting at a table and staring at her. “Brett, I don’t forgive you for being with Nikki, but for the sake of our friends, I’ll forget it for now. I won’t be the dark cloud at their wedding. So… yeah, that’s it.”

Brett just looked at her. He pulled her into his chest and hugged her. My eyes filled with tears as Julie pulled back.

“I love you, Julie,” he said softly. Louder, he said, “Did everyone hear that? Did you hear that, Nikki? I love Julie! This woman right here! I will always love Julie!”

Nikki got up and walked toward us, but instead she turned and walked out of the club. Julie didn’t say a word.

I put my hand on her back. “Jules?”

She was expressionless. “Yeah, okay. I guess you made your point. We can be friends, Brett, but that’s it.”

I think the five of us exhaled, and Alex ordered a round of drinks for our friends.

My parents had arrived two days ago. It was great to see them. I had learned to appreciate my parents after my accident.

I had so much to look forward to. I was getting married tomorrow. My apartment was packed up, but I’d left my furniture there for my parents to use. Alex and I were unpacking my boxes in his apartment. I couldn’t believe all the things I’d accumulated. We finally finished the last one, and we had a pile of things to give to charity. We plopped on the couch and looked at each other.

“Well, future Mrs. Logan, do you have your vows written?”

I hadn’t believed Alex at first when he said that he wanted us to write our vows. He thought that because I was a writer, I had an advantage, but that wasn’t true. “No, I don’t. Do you?”

“Yes, as a matter of fact, I do.” He smiled and wagged his eyebrows.

“Can I read them?” I batted my eyelashes at him.

“Not a chance. I don’t care how cute you are. You can hear them when I say them. You don’t have to wait much longer.”

“I can’t wait to be your wife. So much has happened so quickly, that I can’t believe it most of the time.”

“Well, you need to believe it,” he said. “What do you have left to do? Are the girls all set?”

“Yes, Julie and Val picked out their dresses, so they’re all set. What about the guys?”

“They’re wearing black suits, and I have a tux, so I’m all set. I ordered the flowers. Val took care of arranging the restaurant with Anthony. I spoke to your mom, and she took care of the wedding cake. I booked a DJ and rented a limo to take all of us from the chapel to Anthony’s. We have our marriage license, and the reverend. We really don’t need to rehearse, so we’re all set.”

“Wow, you thought of everything.” I was in awe. I had totally forgotten about flowers and the cake, but I wasn’t going to tell him that.

“I’m not going to let you worry about any of the details. I just want you to make sure you’re there on time.”

“You won’t have to worry about that. Val and I are staying at Julie’s tonight. We’re going to have a girls’ night. I hope that’s okay.”

He kissed my nose. “It sounds great. Maybe the guys and I will go out for a bachelor night.”

I sat up. “You’re going to have a bachelor party?”

He changed his tune quickly. “No. Tyler has to work tonight since he wants the tips. I have Mike working the bar tomorrow, so I won’t have to worry about anything but us on our big day. I think I’ll call your dad, Mark, and Brett. We can have a drink at the club tonight. I do have a question though.”

“What’s that?”

“A honeymoon. We never discussed it. Do you have any ideas?”

“I haven’t really thought about it. What do you want to do?”

He stroked my hair. “I think I can come up with something. We’ll leave after Christmas.”

“Okay. I trust you.”

A little while later, I grabbed my bag, kissed him good-bye, and headed to Julie’s. My mom was going to meet us there for dinner. Julie had called to let me know that Mary had delivered my gown, and I was excited to show it to my mom in person.

I knocked on Julie’s door. When she opened it, my eyes went wide. The apartment had been transformed. White tulle was draped on the ceiling and lit up by tiny white lights. White and silver balloons floated in all the corners, and there was a “Congratulations” banner on the far wall.

I looked at Julie and my mom. “Oh my God, I can’t believe everything you both did!”

“I wish I could take all the credit,” Julie said. “Your fiancé sent some people over, and when they left, this was what my apartment looked like. He’s disgustingly perfect.” Julie smiled, and my mom agreed with her.

I couldn’t believe everything he’d done. There was a knock at the door.

Val had arrived with our dinner. “Holy crap, Julie, you outdid yourself. Your apartment looks amazing.”

We all laughed and told her that it was all Alex’s doing.

“I can’t say that I’m surprised. I went to go pick up dinner, and it had already been paid for.”

We all looked at each other. “Alex”.

After dinner, I showed my mom my dress again, which she loved. I tried it on, and it was perfect. Mary had told me she would be on call in case I needed her, but thankfully I didn’t. We sat on the couch with wine and settled in to watch a chick flick. Julie thought we should watch
Father of the Bride
. We were just about to start the movie when her door buzzer rang. Julie answered it.

The voice over the intercom said, “Delivery for Aubrey Ryan.”

Julie buzzed him in and opened the door.

A young guy with a messenger bag held out a wrapped box. “Aubrey Ryan?”

I went to the door. “I’m Aubrey.”

“This is for you. Congratulations.”

He must have noticed the decorations. I smiled, and Julie tipped him.

She closed the door and turned to me. “Well, open it!”