Chapter 3

Blaine

I had to say, there was something completely miserable about donning a suit on a Saturday, and a really fancy one at that. The wedding was starting in just an hour, and I needed to get to the location so that Caleb would get off my case. I looked at my freshly washed black hair in the mirror and pushed it down, realizing that I probably could use a haircut pretty soon since my cow lick was starting to fight back against me. I put some pomade on it and smoothed it down, checking my rustic five o’clock shadow in the mirror and deciding that it fit me. I knew that was me being too lazy to shave, but I had to admit that every time I went out with this rough shave, I picked up a lot more women. I didn’t know what it was, but they seemed to be attracted to the well-groomed man that looked like they forgot to shave.

I pulled my shirt over my shoulders and reluctantly buttoned it up, tucking it in before grabbing my silver tie. I placed it around my neck and tucked it under my collar, feeling the cool silk fabric between my fingers. Most days, I really enjoyed putting on a nice suit, but today, I just wanted to sit around and watch television. I knew I had to let it go. There was no getting out of it, so I took a deep breath and smiled at myself in the mirror. My fake grin quickly diminished, and I grabbed my jacket and walked into the bedroom. I pulled on the coat and stood in front of the mirror, admiring how good I looked. Call it cocky if you want, but I was a pretty good-looking guy.

I hated weddings. The glitz, the flowers, the giggling bridesmaids, and the little children running around in fluffy dresses was all a bit too much for my single guy mentality. That being said, there was free food, free booze, and plenty of women that would chomping at the bit to find a single guy to hook up with for the night. There was something about weddings that opened a woman’s legs, and I had a hard time believing it was because they were hoping to find Mr. Right in the caterer’s closet with her panties around her ankles. Either way, who was I to deny these beautiful babes the chance to feel pretty and special for one night, at someone else’s happily ever after?

I picked up my keys and my cell phone and put them in my pocket, hoping that I wouldn’t be coming home, but instead, shacking up with one of Caleb’s sister’s hottie girlfriends in the hotel later that night. I whistled as I walked through to the kitchen, grabbing a bottle of water and drinking it before heading for the door. If I was going to be drinking heavily, I needed to make sure I was hydrated. No one wanted a hungover Blaine waking up next to them in the morning. I tended to be a bit grumpy.

“Lights off,” I said loudly, watching as all the lights dimmed except for those lining the windows.

“Have a good night, Mr. Butler,” the computer AI replied in the sultry voice I created for the system.

I bowed my head at the invisible woman and walked out the front door, listening to the locks click shut behind me. It was pretty awesome being able to navigate the technological world like I could, but no matter how cocky I was, I was never into letting on just how smart I really was. It tended to push people away a bit. I went down to the bottom floor and hopped in the car, heading off to the wedding.

When I arrived, I was ushered into the large ornate complex where the wedding and reception would be held. Everything was draped in rich fabrics and covered from floor to ceiling in floral arrangements. A little girl brushed past my leg, giggling as she ran past me and toward her mother scowling at her from across the room. I did my best to keep the irritation off my face and looked over beside the doors to the ceremony room where Caleb was standing, looking dapper in his expensive Armani tuxedo and shiny shoes.

“Hey, you came,” he said, reaching out and shaking my hand.

“I wasn’t aware that I had an option,” I whispered, turning and looking out at all the guests arriving.

“You didn’t,” he replied. “But I know how you like to do your own thing.”

“That is very true my friend,” I said, smiling at a tall blonde walking past. “How is your sister?”

“Completely calm, which is shocking because she is like the most nervous person that I know,” he said, chuckling.

“Yes, I remember,” I groaned. “You forget that I helped her plan your twenty-fifth birthday surprise party. I thought she was going to have a complete meltdown when the cupcakes had blue icing instead of ‘aqua.’”

“Oh, yeah, I forgot about that,” he said, laughing. “You were a real trooper for not killing her.”

“Thought it would be rude since it was your birthday,” I replied nonchalantly.

“Yeah, blood red birthday surprise probably would have put a damper on our friendship,” he said. “But I’d still visit you in the clink and bring you some better sheets for your cot.”

“You are a real pal.” I laughed, patting him on the back. “So, how much time until this whole thing goes down?”

“Uhm,” he said, looking down at his watch. “We will be seated in about ten minutes.”

“I want you to know how much I hate weddings,” I said, leaning against the wall. “It’s all a bit much just to celebrate the fact that the government now controls your relationship, along with everything else in your life.”

“At least you get a tax cut,” he said, shrugging. “But yeah, I don’t understand why we have grown accustomed to throwing these massive parties, spending thousands and thousands of dollars, all for one day.”

“Not to mention half of them end in divorce, which is where I really think the party should be thrown,” I said, laughing.

“Come on, man. You don’t see yourself ever tying the knot?”

“I’m sure I will,” I sighed. “And knowing my dating history, I’ll be forced into one of these giant parties, but I will fight to the death for elopement before I give in. I have to go down with some of my dignity intact, not that it will happen for a very long time.”

“I feel you,” Caleb sighed. “Women are all the same, and I tell you what, from the ones I’ve seen frequenting our favorite spots lately, I don’t have a very good feeling that I will be taking the plunge anytime in the near future.”

“Agreed,” I said, staring at a red head’s ass as she passed. “The girls at the bar are good for one thing. The marrying girls are already married, divorced and bitter, or hiding out because they don’t want to meet guys like you.”

“Hey, I resemble that remark,” he said, laughing. “But it’s not like you are the most charming man I have ever met.”

“It’s not my fault that I am too smart to hold a conversation with the bimbo at the bar.” I laughed. “Maybe if the smart girls started to come out, you’d see a completely different side of me. I don’t want to end up with another Katerina experience.”

“Oh, yeah, I forgot about her,” he said, shaking his head. “She was fucking hot. Dumb as a box of rocks but hot. Whatever happened to her?”

“She got a modeling contract out of LA and wanted to get hitched, so we could stay together,” I replied. “I pictured my life flying back and forth from LA, Katerina forgetting how to tie her shoes, and me trying to keep up with the latest fashion trends. It was terrifying, so I broke it off with her.”

“I’m sorry, man,” he said.

“I’m not,” I replied. “Her tits kept me in the relationship, but I was tired of explaining every little thing to her. My AI freaked her out every time she came into the apartment.”

“That’s because you would program it to freak her out.” He laughed.

“Only near the end,” I said. “I thought maybe humor would brighten our relationship, but it was not even close.”

“Alright man, we better take our seats,” he said, leading the way into the room. “I’ll hit you up at the reception.”

I nodded my head and took a seat midway down the line, smiling at the older woman who was sitting next to me. The smell of her perfume was overwhelming, and I turned my head toward the aisle for some air. There was a pink satin runway all the way up to the altar where the groom and six of his closest assholes were standing, looking worse for wear after, I was assuming, one hell of a bachelor party. The groom looked okay, though, and I could only assume that Caroline had threatened his manhood if he showed up at the wedding hungover. As the music started to play, everyone turned in their seats to watch the bridesmaids make their way down the aisle in strapless, floor-length, pink silk gowns. They smiled and blushed as the crowd oohed and awed at their presence.

When the wedding march started, everyone stood up, and I turned to wait for the bride to make her grand entrance. As my eyes panned past the people across the aisle, they stopped, landing on a beautiful girl dressed in a dark teal dress and clutching her purse in front of her. She had long, sandy blonde hair and dark green eyes that stared lovingly to the back of the room. Her curves were smoking hot, and the way her pencil skirt hugged her body was making me weak in the knees. I was so obsessed with staring at this girl that I didn’t even realize that Caroline was approaching until she blocked my view with her giant tulle skirt and sparkling jewelry.

By the time she had passed, the girl was facing the front, and I continued to glance over at her, even after we had all been seated. She smiled as the officiant talked about true love, forever, and all that other stuff that went along with getting hitched. I could tell she was a dreamer from the dewy-eyed school girl look on her face. There was no way that I was going to let this event go by without talking to her, and maybe if I played my cards right, she could be the wedding zombie girl that I ended up taking to bed that night. However, I couldn’t shake the feeling as I looked over at her, that she was different in some sort of way. Maybe it was the nervous way she rubbed her fingers across the satin of her purse, or the fact that she was probably the most stunning woman I had ever seen, but either way, there was something about her that screamed secret.

I turned myself back toward the front of the room after several nasty looks from the people around her. I caught Caleb’s eye as he glanced back at me, nodding his head and rolling his eyes. I stifled a laugh and watched as Caroline married Troy, the man she had been obsessing over for years. Maybe they would be happy, maybe they wouldn’t, but either way, they just gave me a really good excuse to be at my best when I entered that reception hall.