Chapter 22

Quinn was right; our mothers are crazy. Dress shopping is going to be a mistake after this meal. I watch Nate, Tommy, and Bryce shove cake in their mouths and feel a little woozy. Nicole sits next to me, and I grunt as the sofa dips, bouncing us.

“It was delicious. Thank you again,” I tell her.

“My pleasure. Besides, I was worried that Bryce would come out of his skin if he went much longer without seeing you.”

“The feeling was mutual. I’m glad he finally has a place. It’ll be easier on us both, especially next semester. My Fridays will be free.”

“That’ll be nice. Even if he has shift, you can come over and hang with me and TJ.”

“Sounds like a plan.”

We stay silent for a minute, watching Quinn through the back door as she paces, talking to Dean.

“So I heard my brother may have met someone. Do you know anything?”

“Very little. Tommy said it’s new.”

“I wondered if it was Dani but haven’t had time to ask Bryce.”

“No, she’s only a friend. We all love Dani; she’s sweet, but I doubt she’d date anyone on her ship. I asked her to come today, but she had plans. There’s a chance she may stop in later.” She gives me a look, and my stomach sinks.

“With Liza?”

“I’m assuming.”

“Please tell me that Liza wasn’t invited today because of me.”

“Actually, she was asked to join us. The whole crew was invited, but she declined. Then Dani said she also had plans.”

“I guess I need to apologize to Liza even though I don’t want to.”

“It’s none of my business, but I think you did the right thing. No apology needed. There’s always going to be a Liza lurking around. It’s good to stand your ground and stake your claim, especially with the aggressive ones.”

“That’s the thing. She never seemed aggressive in the true term. She’s always been indifferent in her tone, but also condescending, like she was looking down on me. And then there was that picture I found.”

“What do you mean?”

I tell her about the picture on Nate’s phone and never mentioning it to Bryce.

“Devon, I trust Tommy with my life. It’s other women I don’t trust. We’ve had countless conversations about the way women flirt with him, and I’m not only referring to the Navy women.”

“Great.” I throw my head to the back of the couch and focus on the ceiling. “More reasons to feel insecure.”

She pats my hand lightly. “Whatever you’re feeling, talk to Bryce. I’ve seen relationships crumble under the pressure. Don’t become a statistic.”

“What are we talking about now?” Quinn plops down.

“The fact that women are ruthless creatures, and Bryce will be faced with easy temptation all the time.”

“Hmmm, sounds like a worthless conversation. Women may throw themselves at him, but it’s useless on their part. So can we talk about something that won’t set your nerves on edge?”

TJ wobbles in the room, covered in chocolate, and Nicole gets up to grab him. Quinn and I lean into each other, and I struggle to keep my eyes open. The bliss only lasts a few minutes before I hear Tommy answer his phone and then tell the crowd that Dani’s on her way. Quinn and I both tense, knowing that she’s probably not alone.

Thirty minutes later, when the kitchen is almost clean, Liza and Dani come through the back door. Dani instantly gives us a warm hug. Liza acknowledges us with a small wave then walks directly into the living room. Within a few seconds, Bryce is at my side with a worried expression.

“You ready to go?” he asks.

“Right now?”

“Yeah.”

“It’s kinda rude to leave so soon after eating or when other guests just arrived. Don’t you want to watch some of the game?”

“Not really,” he mutters unconvincingly.

Quinn gives me a knowing look then walks out, leaving us alone. I lean into him and kiss along the underside of his jaw.

“If you’re worried about Liza being here, don’t be. I’m fine.”

His eyes scan my face, and he relaxes, slipping his hands into the back pockets of my jeans. “Staying until halftime then we need to leave. Four a.m. alarm is early, no matter what time we go to bed.”

“Ugh, don’t remind me. The bed’s lonely without you. ”

His eyes grow soft, and he leans down, pressing his lips against mine in a sweet kiss. A throat clears behind us, and he straightens. His face hardens.

“Sorry to interrupt, but I need to talk to you for a minute, Bryce.”

I turn partially and see Liza moving to a barstool. She doesn’t give me a second glance.

“What’s up?” he asks.

“We need to talk about Shawn. Had another incident you should be aware of.”

“No, if we talk about Shawn that means we’re talking about work, and I don’t want to talk about work on my day off.” He looks at his watch and then frowns. “I’ll be on base in less than thirteen hours. I’m positive this can wait.”

“It really can’t. Give me ten minutes. Let me brief you then decide if it can wait. If so, we’ll connect tomorrow morning.”

He reluctantly agrees by giving her a small nod. She slices her eyes to mine and waits silently. I start to feel uncomfortable and glance up to Bryce.

“Do you need privacy? Is this a confidential issue?”

“Yeah, babe, give me ten minutes and I’ll join you back in the living room.”

“Devon, this may take longer. Warning you now, Bryce, you’re going to want to hear all of it.” She looks between the two of us, and for once, I don’t feel threatened. Her expression is all business.

Bryce must sense this too because he blows out a deep breath and utters, “Shit,” before kissing me on the forehead and stepping back. I pat his chest and try to give him an encouraging smile then leave them alone.

Liza was right. It didn’t take ten minutes; it took an hour. Nate joined them for a little while then came back looking pissed. He sunk back on the sofa and chugged his beer. Tommy, Nicole, and Rick noticed but kept quiet.

When Bryce finally walks back in, Quinn is asleep on my shoulder, and my mind is spinning with possibilities of what took so long. His mouth is in a firm line as he runs his hands through his hair. Liza follows him out, hands him a beer, and then sits on the edge of the sofa, close to him. His eyes land on mine, and my heart falls. He looks so apologetic and torn; my mind clears of the earlier bitterness. Obviously, it was a real problem.

“Everything alright?” Tommy looks between them.

“Yes, work stuff,” Liza answers and focuses on me.

“He looks genuinely upset.” Quinn whispers, waking up.

I nod and catch Bryce’s eye, patting the empty space on the floor next to me. He sits and drapes his arm over my shoulder, tension rolling off of him.

“Babe, I hate to do this, but my schedule just got royally fucked. I need to be on base a lot earlier. We should probably go.”

I get up, and he rises too. Quinn decides to stay back with Nate for a while. She can tell we need some privacy so Bryce can share with me what’s going on.

We say our goodbyes, and I promise to call Nicole with our holiday plans once Bryce and I have decided. Tommy and Rick ask me to give them a shout out if the TV lands on me at Saturday’s game. Bryce groans, but everyone, including Liza laughs.

We are almost to the door, still smiling, when Liza finds a way to ruin my mood again.

“Bryce, you need me to pick you up?”

I stop walking and look at him. He hangs his head and takes a deep breath then turns to her. “No, Liza. I’ve got it.”

“Okay, see you in a few hours.” Satisfaction seeps through her tone.

In a millisecond, my unease returns.

It turns out the problem with Shawn was that he needed help for alcohol abuse and suspicion of drinking on the job. Bryce explained as much as he could that Shawn’s wife had recently left and took their two-year old. She was filing for a separation. A lot of people were concerned and hoped he only needed some help coping.

Bryce left me in bed at one-thirty am Friday morning to go and confront Shawn and start the process to get help. He couldn’t tell me much more, except that he wanted to follow the rules and procedures to the ‘T’. It would consume his time until they decided the next steps.

I haven’t heard from him, except short text messages, since he left two days ago. Nate says he’s basically living on the base, working through this, so I have tried to be understanding. My mom and Michelle know what’s going on and have done everything to keep me occupied. I’ve tried to stay positive, but it’s a losing battle. All I can think of is Bryce working closely with Liza for endless hours. It’s obvious they both have an interest in this guy and his well-being, but no doubt she’s enjoying working with him alone. It’s stupid and selfish of me, but I can’t get rid of the sick feeling that’s settled in my stomach.

The only time I really felt like myself was when Shana found me on the field before the game. We hadn’t seen each other in forever, but she did acknowledge she received my internship application personally. I congratulated her, and she was coy, not talking about the engagement.

When she walked up, patting me on the shoulder, I turned and jumped into her embrace. Quinn joined in, and the three of us twisted and twirled until a throat cleared behind us. I looked over her shoulder to see a seriously HOT Professor Grant in jeans and a black turtleneck, his glasses gone and a few days’ growth on his face. Quinn and I said hello as Shana stepped into him, sliding an arm around his waist.

The minute she did, the sparkle from her hand caught my eye and I gasped. The largest and most ornate wedding ring set was shining off her hand. She blushed a bit but didn’t try to hide it. Instead, she took his hand to show a platinum ring as well. Then I knew why she was so tight-lipped. She eloped.

“Holy Shit! Congratulations!”

“Told you, if he put a ring on my finger, I couldn’t marry him fast enough.”

She hugged me again, promising we’d talk soon. I told her our moms were in the stands, and she promised to look for them. Quinn and I were surprised when the game was over and we saw our moms, Shana, and Professor Grant on the field walking toward us. The women were deep in conversation with hands flying and loud laughter.

We stood around and talked a while longer until we were forced off the field. My apprehension returned when I got to my bag and saw no missed calls or messages from Bryce. Only a message from Nicole about our wave to them during a TV shot. I tried him one more time, but the call went straight to voicemail.

This morning, I pasted a smile on my face and attempted to seem excited about shopping. Since this was an impromptu visit with short notice, Quinn was only able to get us one appointment scheduled. But a few other places recommended we ‘drop in’ because someone could probably help us.

Admittedly, it could have been my attitude, but the first store has nothing at all that remotely interests me. Neither does the second. By the third store, the three other women are losing patience with me. Quinn yanks me into a dressing room and shoves my phone in my face.

“Look at these!” she demands.

I scroll through my photo album of the last eleven months. Pictures of Bryce and I fill most of them, and I take a deep breath, realizing my misery is unjustified.

“I’m being an idiot, aren’t I?”

“Yes! He’s working, Devon. WORKING! Our moms came all this way with fucking stars in their eyes. This is important to them. Hell, this is important to me. Picking out your wedding dress shouldn’t feel like a funeral. Get a fucking grip. Give us today, let go of the insecurity, and snap out of this funk.”

I lift my head and meet her angry stare. “You’re right. I’m sorry.”

“I’m not the one you need to apologize to.”

I nod and walk back to the small waiting area where Michelle and Mom are flipping through magazines. Instead of coming right out and apologizing, I try to lighten the mood.

“You ladies think this place has any champagne? I’ve always dreamed about trying on wedding dresses while drinking champagne.”

Mom’s head snaps up, and her lips curl into a small smile. “If they don’t, I’ll go buy it. Anything to make this day memorable.”

I crush my lips together hard and swallow down the lump in my throat. She watches and then reaches across the small space, patting my hand.

“Did someone say champagne?” The attendant comes in, clearly eavesdropping.

“We certainly did. I think we’re ready to get started if you have time,” Mom answers.

“I have all afternoon. Do we have any idea what we’re looking for, so I can start pulling samples?”

Everyone looks at me, and my heart swells with love. I motion to Quinn who grabs a folder out of her bag and shoves our torn magazine pages at the attendant, whose name is Mia.

She reviews it and looks at me with a wide smile. “You want a tea length dress?”

“I do. This is scheduled to be a beach wedding if the weather cooperates. I’d like something very romantic.”

Mia doesn’t say another word but rushes out to the floor and starts pulling dresses off the rack. Another associate comes in with champagne. She pours and hands them to us, offering her congratulations. Quinn hands her my phone and asks if she’ll get some pictures.

When Mia returns with an armload of dresses, butterflies swarm in my stomach. I choose six to try on. Mom helps me while Quinn describes what she’d like for her own dress. Pretty soon, we have all three associates helping our group, even suggesting dresses for Mom and Michelle.

I’m not crazy about the first dress, but everyone insists on seeing it, so I walk out to model. Quinn instantly agrees it’s not right, but it helps give Mia an idea of what works for me. She removes the other five from the room, telling me she has a few in the back that were sent as samples that haven’t been put on the racks yet.

As we wait, I sip more champagne and look at the dresses Quinn has chosen. Since Nate and Quinn are the only two in the wedding party, she can pick what she wants. Her words from the beach last January come to mind, and I turn to the sales lady in my most serious, business-like voice possible.

“Do you think we can see this dress in pink, violet, blush, baby blue— anything soft?”

There’s a sharp intake of breath followed by a low murmur that turns into a screech. “YOU PROMISED ME NO PASTELS!”

The whole room goes quiet until I start howling, not able to keep a straight face. Others join in as Quinn turns bright red. Soon, she can’t hide her smile and laughs along.

Mia returns with four more dresses and ushers me into the dressing room, shooing my mom out. She says something about the full effect.

When I get the third dress on, I know immediately. It’s the one. Mia sweeps my hair up off my shoulders and secures it with a clip.

“Perfect,” she whispers. “Give me your phone and wait five seconds before walking out.”

I do what she says, and the minute my crew sees me, an audible gasp flows through the room. It’s obvious, they like it too. Someone hands a tissue to my mom, who clearly needs it for the fat tears rolling down her cheeks. No one speaks until Quinn breaks the silence.

“Hot Damn! We’ve got it!”

I smile in agreement and twirl around, seeing Mia snap pictures. For the first time in days, my sadness is replaced with giddiness. Now, I need to find Bryce to share my excitement.