Brandi straightens my tie and gives me this almost sensual grin and a shake of the head, chastising me about how I can’t tie a tie straight to save my life. “I don’t see why I’ve got to wear this,” I say, and she laughs at me.

“You look great,” she says.

“No, you look great,” I say, taking a moment to admire her in that floor-length gown she had bought just for this occasion. We’ve having this big engagement party at the mansion, and she’s really eager to make our entrance down into the party that is already happening. Her red dress fits her snug, and it’s got a low back that is driving me insane. She’s got her hair curled and down which she rarely does since she’s so used to pulling it up in a tight bun. I sometimes forget how long her hair is since she always pulls it up.

She kisses my lips and drapes her arms around my shoulders for a moment, allowing me to drop my head to kiss her throat for a second and admire the new perfume she had just sprayed on herself. “Everyone is waiting,” she says when I linger on her longer than I should.

“I don’t care,” I say and run my fingers along the curve of her back. “I didn’t even want to have a party. I’d rather just stay home with you and-”

She traces her fingers across my lips to tell me to shut up while still keeping a flirty tone. “You’re going to have to get used to parties, sweetie. There’s going to be a bridal shower, a bridal luncheon, my mom’s stepsister wants to throw me a lingerie shower; then there’s the bachelorette and bachelor party and the rehearsal dinner-”

“Lingerie shower?” I interrupt her in mid-sentence, and she grins and leans forward.

She whispers in my ear, “You’re not allowed to come to that one, baby. But trust me, all of those gifts will be for you.”

“That’s not fair. Besides, half of those parties sound like things I’m not even going to be invited to,” I say.

She laughs again, and I can feel her breath on my neck before she pulls away from me, still tracing her fingers across my knuckles. “Well, all the more reason for you to enjoy this one. Come on, let’s go.”

Brandi drags me out of the room, and we head down the hall and then down the enormous staircase and into the party. Everyone is dressed up in their finest suits and dresses. There’s music and an open bar too; you would think that this was the reception. Brandi has always had expensive taste, but she’s never been greedy with my money. I think the wedding and everything leading up to it is probably going to be the exception to her normally modest financial behavior. Her parents are putting nearly 10K down on the wedding, but Brandi and I will be covering the rest ourselves… and there is a lot more to cover if we’re going to get even half the shit on her wish list. I don’t care, though. That’s my girl right there, and she’s going to get the wedding of her dreams. I smile, kind of liking the idea of being Brandi’s prince charming on our big day.

All the guys are here with their dates, and I grin slightly to see that Gabe has actually brought a chick. He’s always the single guy of the group. Brandi is standing arm and arm with me when I spot Gabe with this woman who I got to say is a looker. I beam somewhat proudly at my kid-brother character to see him standing with his arm around this woman’s waist. Brandi lets out a loud shriek suddenly, and I jump a bit. I had forgotten that I had had her best friend from high school flown in to surprise her. “Jonathan, did you have anything to do with this?” she asks as this overweight woman comes running up to her and the two share a ridiculously tight hug.

“He flew me in so I could make it to the party!” the woman, Stacie, exclaims, and Brandi gives me this big kiss. Suddenly Brandi and Stacie disappear, probably to find a corner amongst the group of party guests so that they can catch up. I’m sure that Brandi is going to introduce Stacie to the other bridesmaids.

I hurry up to Gabe while I don’t have Brandi hanging on me, curious to meet this sexy young woman he’s got on his arm. Marty and Tyler and their girlfriends are already standing by Gabe when I make my approach. Gabe introduces the woman like Michelle, and she smiles at me and congratulates me. Damn, Gabe, she’s hot! I’m so weirdly proud of him right now. She talks and she sounds intelligent when she speaks too. Where did he find this girl?

Michelle along with Marty and Tyler’s girls all wind up departing after Marty’s girlfriend announced that she needed to find a restroom. I don’t know why women flock to the bathroom together, but now it’s just the four of us guys standing awkwardly at the bottom of the stairs. “Damn, Gabe,” I say as soon as the women are gone.

“I know, right?” Marty gets in, “I said the same thing when he came walking up with that on his arm.”

Gabe’s face is red as we give him hell. Gabe attempts to change the conversation by congratulating me on the engagement, but that shit isn’t going to fly. “How did you nab that one?” I ask him, taking a little enjoyment on putting him on the spot.

When he doesn’t answer right away, Tyler butts in and elbows Gabe in the side, “Go on, Gabe, tell em.”

Damn, so Tyler’s already heard the story? Not cool. “Well?” I question.

“I just met her at a bar,” Gabe says.

“Bullshit,” Tyler says, “We all know you aren’t twenty-one yet, kid. And you don’t carry a fake ID. Tell him what really went down.”

“Man, shut up,” Gabe says embarrassingly and then spills the beans. “We were at Chuckie Cheese, all right?”

“Oh my God!” I laugh so hard and loud that I snort. Marty is laughing too at this discovery. We always pick on him for being the youngest in our group of friends, so this is just more ammunition for us to use.

“It’s not like that, jackass. You know I got a little sister,” Gabe says.

“What was she doing there, though?” Mary asks, “How old is she?”

“She’s my age, asshole,” Gabe says and then finally lets a small laugh emerge from his throat. “All right, all right, she’s the fucking mouse, man. She’s a student at the university, and she had been working there while she is going to school. My sister stepped on her tail and yanked her bottoms down and ripped the costume and her boss fired her because…” he suddenly laughs really loud and then quickly looks around to make sure Michelle is nowhere in sight, “because she hadn’t been wearing pants under the costume.”

“Oh damn!” Marty practically shrieks.

“I felt so bad. I gave her a ride home. I asked her why she hadn’t been wearing any pants under the costume, and she just said she got hot under that thing… but damn, you guys, the whole fucking costume ripped in two.” Gabe’s cheeks are red as he recounts the tale. “She was so embarrassed, but I guess I had been nice, and she thought my little sister was cute because she kept apologizing over and over again and crying about getting her fired.”

“Can I borrow your little sister sometime so I can get me a pretty thing like that?” Tyler jokes.

“Man, you got a girl,” Marty says.

“She’s a hoe, though,” Tyler says, “Gabe’s sister found him a looker who’s going to school for… what was it, Gabe?”

“Political Science,” Gabe said.

“See? She’s smart. Did any of you ever go to school?” Tyler questions and he knows none of us had any of those sorts of aspirations. We’re boxers, and Gabe just works at the gym.

“So…” Gabe says, eager to draw the attention off himself, “You ready for your match against Donte?”

“Hold the phone,” Marty says and spins towards me, “Donte? As in Donte Evans?”

“That’s the one,” I say.

“That guy almost killed you last time you two boxed. You barely got him on points, and then he tried to kick your ass in the parking lot when you were being put into the back of an ambulance. Are you out of your mind?” Marty hisses and then smacks me in the arm like he thinks I’m a complete moron.

“I still beat him, and that was one of my most watched matches. People want to see a rematch, and that match is pretty much going to pay for the wedding by itself. Do you get paid that much for a match? No, and neither do I. I took it in a heartbeat. Even if I lose, and I doubt that will happen, I’ll still be bringing in more money than I do for most of my matches,” I smile, “I can handle Donte.”

“I wish you wouldn’t,” Marty grumbled slightly.

“Thank you, Marty,” I hear Brandi’s voice behind us, her arms crossed with a pout on her face. She comes up and hooks her arm in mine. “I’ve been trying to talk him out of it all week.”

I yank my arm away from Brandi. We’ve been going rounds all week about this match, so I definitely don’t need her getting anyone on her side with this one. “Babe, enough,” I snap.

She looks pissed. “Don’t get an attitude with me, Jonathan. Not today. Marty and everyone else in this room knows that match is a bad idea. But you’re going to do it anyways because you’re a stubborn dick.”

“Geeze, Brandi,” I say and do my best not to roll my eyes. I bite my tongue. I don’t want to get into it with her today, so I swallow my pride. I make it a rule not to get too sappy with Brandi in front of the guys, but it is our engagement party. I can take giving them some more ammo against me. I put my arms around her hips and pull her close to me. “I think it’s cute how worried you are about me,” I say it with a genuine smile on my face, and she rolls her eyes at me. I give her a flirty peck on the cheek. “Awe, come on, baby, don’t be mad at me. I love you,” I kiss her neck, and she laughs.

“Fine, Jonathan, you win, today,” she pulls away and leaves to go check on her mom’s stepsister to make sure she’s not drinking herself silly.

“Awe, I love you, Brandi. Don’t be mad at me, Brandi. Aren’t you adorable now that you got a ring on her finger? What’s the matter, Jonathan, you afraid she’s going to give it back to you?” Tyler teases.

I just shake my head. The guy’s taunts won’t bother me today. I go to the party, playing host. The night goes on as planned. I smile when I see Gabe leave with his date. There’s this excited look in his eye that sort of reminds me of myself when I had first met Brandi. It’s youthful, and even Brandi comments on his nervous infatuation as he’s leaving with her. Brandi and I head up to my bedroom once the party is over; we’re both too tired for anything frisky, but we still curl up together and fall asleep with our heads lying next to one another on the same pillow.