Josh makes an animalistic noise and spins her around so he can lift her onto the conference room table. Angel opens her legs and he quickly steps between them before kissing her again.
Liam and I look at each other and smile.
“Do you think they even know we’re still here?” he whispers.
“No. And damn them for getting to the giant table first. I had plans for that.”
He takes my hand and leads me out just as Angel starts pulling at Josh’s clothes. “I have a giant dining table in my apartment. Big. Expensive. Sturdy. Let me show you all the ways I can defile you on it.”
“Sold.”
We nearly run down the stairs and out to the street to grab a cab. It might be my imagination, but just before I close the cab door, I swear I hear Angel scream Josh’s name.
EPILOGUE
Six Months Later
St. Patricks’s Cathedral
New York City
A storm of nerves churns in my stomach as I look down the aisle. The church is packed with friends and family, and down in the front, I can see that my mother is already crying.
God, Mom. No. It’s a happy day. Please don’t cry or I’ll follow, and then my makeup will be ruined for the photos.
I take a deep breath and glance down at the bouquet in my hand. The symmetrical beauty of the flowers calms me a little, and when I look back up the aisle, Liam’s handsome face gazing back calms me even more. He looks at me with so much love, my heart swells.
I step away from the door and turn to Cassie, who’s waiting nervously behind me. She looks absolutely stunning in her ivory form-fitting gown and long veil. I always knew she’d make a stunning bride.
“Everyone’s seated,” I say, and take her hand. “Ready to make an honest man out of my brother?”
She nods, and I can tell she’s fighting back tears. “I’ve been onstage in front of thousands of people, and yet I’ve never been this nervous before. As soon as I see Ethan at the end of the aisle, I’m going to be a sobbing mess. You know that, right?”
“Yep. Don’t worry—I’ll be right there with you.”
Ruby, Cassie’s best friend from college, steps forward. “I have tissues and a flask of vodka. Don’t panic, girls. We got this.” Ruby’s a nice no-nonsense counterpoint to Cassie and me. We all take a deep breath and share a group hug.
When the music starts, we do last-minute checks before taking our positions, then it’s time to take the long trek down to the altar. I go first, followed by Ruby, and then Cassie.
At the end of the aisle, my brother turns. As soon as he catches sight of his bride, his jaw clenches and his eyes fill with tears.
Oh, Ethan.
I well up just looking at him. I can’t remember the last time I saw my brother cry. He used to be so closed off and damaged, and now look at him. I never thought I’d see the day he’d stand in a church and take a wife, looking so handsome in his suit, with so much love on his face I can’t even deal with it.
Beside him is Tristan, Cassie’s other best friend. Tristan is huge, exotic, and gorgeous, and he isn’t even trying to hide his tears. Behind me, I hear Ruby and Cassie sniffling as well.
Man, we’re all going to look like raccoons in the wedding pictures.
As I pass Liam, I reach out and he gently grazes my hand. That tiny touch brings everything into sharp focus. How lucky I am. How lucky my brother and Cassie are. Even Josh and Angel are here. As I make my way to the front of the church, I see old friends from e Grove: Miranda, Aiyah, Lucas, Jack. Zoe is here with a boy who’s mildly famous. Connor Baine, who loved Cassie from afar for years, seems to have a new girlfriend. Even Erika Eden, the head of acting at The Grove, is here. She grips Marco’s hand and lays her head on his shoulder as they catch sight of Cassie in all her glory.
As we take our positions at the end of the aisle, I float between grinning and weeping during the whole ceremony. Ethan and Cassie recite vows they’ve written themselves. By the time they’re done, there’s not a dry eye in the house.
What is it about weddings that reduces us all to romantic saps? Is it the presence of such incandescent happiness and love? The miracle of two souls finding perfection in each other when so much in this world is imperfect and wrong?
Whatever it is, everyone in the church feels it today. Having Liam here after so many years of struggling without him, I feel it more than most.
After the ceremony, everyone decompresses with lots of hugging and laughing, and then we all pose for photos until our faces ache. Cassie and Ethan are radiant in their happiness, and every now and then I see them gaze at each other, and I know that for those few seconds, no one else on the planet exists for them except each other.
I feel the same way when I gaze at Liam. It’s like everything else fades into hazy black-and-white while he glows in brilliant color.
It’s not until hours later, when I finally have my arms wrapped around him on the dance floor, that I can take a moment to just exhale.
“Have I told you how beautiful you look today?” Liam asks as he strokes my cheek.