Page 2 of Never Not Friends

Agonizing mistake.

The groom version of Vinny Brooks is quite a dream.

My dream, actually.

Tailored black suit that accentuates his shoulders, tapering into his slim waist and legs. Black tie. Brown, sandy hair curling over his brow. He holds Juliet’s hands, looking back at her, face unreadable, even for me, as he listens to the words said.

And it hits me again.

Oh. My. Gosh.

He’s getting married.

It’s really happening.

The thought makes my stomach swirl with nausea.

My bottom lip trembles with swelling emotion. I catch it between my teeth to stop the shake. But the raw anguish of losing Vinny for good has to go somewhere. It rushes to my eyes, flooding them with tears full of unsaid declarations, regrets, what-ifs, and a deep sadness like I’ve never known.

And I thought I knew sadness.

I lift my chin, rapidly blinking up at the sky to stave off the floodgates. One tear trickles without permission, then another on the opposite side, marking my cheeks with grief. Fixing my face, I look forward, focusing on Juliet’s veil. But just because my expression is fixed doesn’t mean the tears have stopped.

One after another, they slowly leak down my cheeks, rolling over my chin and neck, wetting my chest and black bridesmaid dress. A steady stream of heartbreak.

Juliet’s happiness has always mattered more than mine. Funny how easy that belief was, right until the moment it asked me to lose Vinny forever.

Eternal happiness is a lot to give up for your best friend.

Another wave of emotion hits me, and now I’m quietly sobbing.

Sobbing!

Blair discreetly reaches for my hand, peeling it back from my bouquet. She squeezes it tightly. Two pumps, because she knows how hard this is for me.

The preacher looks at the crowd. “If anyone here knows of any reason why these two should not be wed, let them speak now or forever hold their peace.”

I despise that sentence and how it teases my fragile heart.

But I’m resolute in my decision to fall on the sword for my best friend’s happiness.

However, I make one tiny mistake.

My gaze pulls to Vinny.

He’s already looking at me with a heavy frown etched between his brows and a question lingering in his stare. It’s the same look he gave me last night—sadness mingled with regret. He gave me one last chance to finally say how I feel. Like a get-out-of-jail-free pass.

In another life, I would’ve taken it.

I would’ve done everything differently.

So many opportunities I let pass me by the last twelve years so that Juliet could have her happy ending.

Our gazes hold as the tears continue to spill down my face.

His brows lift.

My heart pounds—loud and demanding—insistent that I do something.