Page 169 of Untying the Knot
“Oh, don’t worry, we know all about our men being clingy,” Kelsey says as she pushes my chair out for me. “You didn’t have to change by the way.”
“I was not about to sit here with you two in these nice dresses while I was in a bathing suit.” I take a seat and Lottie pushes a flight of wine toward me.
“We got this for you. Hope that’s okay.”
“That’s great.” I look between the two sisters. “Although, is there a reason you’re trying to get me drunk?”
Kelsey laughs and shakes her head. “Not at all. We just wanted to talk to you without Ryot. Get to know you better. We have time before the rehearsal tonight.”
“Oh, well, if that’s the case”—I hold up a wineglass—“cheers.”
* * *
“Wow,you really did use his flag as a blanket,” Lottie says as she stares at the Instagram picture Ryot took of the flag many years ago.
“That’s what happens when you mess with the wrong girl.” I finish off my fourth glass just as another flight of wine shows up.
“You are my hero,” Lottie says while handing me my phone back. “And I love that your love story has a strange beginning. I don’t feel so alone.”
“How did yours start?” I ask, realizing I haven’t spent enough time with these two girls.
Lottie dismissively waves her hand at me. “Oh, you know, just the old classic story of having to pretend to be his fiancée for a business deal.”
“What?” I ask with a laugh. “Seriously?”
“Yeah. We met on the corner of the street—not in a prostitute kind of way—and I was lost. He was stomping around trying to figure out his life, and we ran into each other. I needed help, he needed help, we struck a deal, and then, well . . . the rest is history.”
“Wow, that’s way better than how Ryot and I met.”
Lottie shakes her head. “No, I like your story, acting as a wing-woman for your girl and then ending up constantly bumping into this guy who never gave up on you. It’s adorable.”
“It really is,” Kelsey chimes in. “True love at its finest.”
“Yeah, true love,” I say with a smile, even though in the back of my mind, I feel like I’m betraying them, given what is really going on. But I’m not about to open up to them, not with Kelsey’s wedding tomorrow.
“How was it being married to a Major League baseball player?” Lottie asks. “Was it crazy? I can only imagine all the attention he would get, especially from women trying to claw their way into his life.”
“It was crazy, but also . . . fun,” I say, thinking back to when he was playing. “Since he was regularly gone on away trips during the season, we’d get creative to spend time with each other, which meant constant FaceTime dates and virtual sex.”
“Why is that so appealing to me?” Lottie asks.
“Because it’s a different type of intimacy. People who can make their partner come just through their voice truly understand what they need. Ryot was . . . God, he was so good at it. He wouldn’t have to do much, just say certain things to make it seem like I was there with him. And when it came to women . . . well, there was never a doubt in my mind who he belonged to. He let that be known very quickly. I was his. That’s it.”
“That’s so hot,” Lottie says.
“And Ryot seems like the best guy. Very outgoing and sweet, but driven. Huxley and JP are always saying the best things about him. They love working with him,” Kelsey says.
“He likes working with them as well.” A smatter of guilt hits me because he is a good guy. The best, actually. And I’ve never had to doubt where his love for me stood. It’s always been in my hands along with his heart.
“Are you liking California? Big adjustment from Chicago, I’m sure,” Kelsey says.
Maybe it’s the wine, or I’m feeling more comfortable with them, but I don’t curb the truth. “It’s not my favorite.”
“Really?” Kelsey asks, eyes wide.
“The traffic is the absolute pits,” Lottie says.
“Yeah, I guess I just wasn’t quite mentally prepared for the move, and my best friend is in Chicago. I was settled on living there. It was the first place that felt like home since my parents were both in the Air Force, and we moved around a lot.”
