Chapter 2

Linny

“Can we change before we go to dinner?” I glance down at the wrinkled tank top and the tulle skirt that now has a tattered hem. I don’t have to look in a mirror to know that I resemble a wreck. The plastic tiara on my head isn’t doing my appearance any favors.

The only consolation is that we’re in a casino and since this is Vegas, we haven’t gotten more than a half dozen second glances. Most people have passed us by without even looking in our direction.

Kendra Baldwin, the soon-to-be-bride, shakes her head vehemently as she scans a row of blackjack tables. “You can’t possibly know how much it means to me that my three best friends went to all this trouble. Besides, I’m the one who looks the most ridiculous out of all of us.”

I quickly glance at my fellow bridesmaids, Harmony Curry and Priscilla Mata. They’re dressed in outfits that match my own. The only difference between the three of us is Harmony’s shirt. She’s bunched the front of it into a knot just below her breasts so she can show off her toned stomach.

Kendra looks like a dream in a short white lace dress. There’s a pink sash draped over her shoulder with the words The Bride written in red lettering. That’s courtesy of Priscilla. She had it tucked in her suitcase.

The tiara propped atop Kendra’s long red locks is semi-real. It was a gift from a long lost relative of hers that descended from royalty. It’s crafted from silver and a handful of small diamonds that are lost among the dozens of round cubic zirconia stones that sparkle in any available light.

Harmony insisted that Kendra bring the tiara to Las Vegas. She told her that she wanted to get a closer look at it after seeing it in the engagement picture. It was all part of our plan to surprise her. Harmony demanded that Kendra wear it as soon as we got to our hotel earlier. It hasn’t left her head since.

“You look like triplets.” Kendra takes a sip of the margarita in her hand. Priscilla ordered it an hour ago. It’s in a plastic souvenir cup that’s shaped like the Eiffel Tower in honor of Kendra’s honeymoon destination. She’ll be jetting off to Paris the day after the wedding for a weeklong adventure in the City of Lights.

Harmony steals a quick glance at Priscilla and me. “We’re all brunettes. We’re all wearing the same outfit. That’s where the similarities end.”

She’s right.

“I choked up the minute I saw the three of you in the airport this morning.” Kendra’s voice quivers. “Maybe you don’t look like triplets, but you do look like the three best friends a girl could ever ask for.”

Those words held more weight eight years ago than they do today. That was before we graduated from our Manhattan high school. Back then on the last day of classes, Kendra made the three of us a promise that we’d be bridesmaids in her wedding.

I was sure she’d forgotten about it until she called me the day after her engagement to remind me that I would be in her bridal party, standing alongside Harmony and Priscilla. Kendra’s sister, Daphne, is the matron-of-honor. The only reason she’s not living it up in Vegas with us tonight is she gave birth to her first baby a week ago.

The sound of a slot machine ringing an alarm blares in the distance. We all steal a quick glance in that direction. It’s a sign of someone’s luck. Unfortunately, the four of us didn’t fare as well. We each brought extra money to Vegas to play the slots, but one-by-one we left our machines empty-handed. I only lost twenty dollars. Kendra’s toll so far is seventy-five dollars gone.

“You didn’t even notice us when we got off the plane, Kendra.” Priscilla sighs. “You had your back turned to us and didn’t hear me when I called your name. What the hell were you staring at?”

Kendra’s cheeks turn pink as her gaze drops to the carpeted floor. “I shouldn’t say.”

That’s Kendra code for push me to confess .

She used the same line on us back in twelfth grade when we cornered her at lunch to ask if she’d hooked up with Danny Keller after prom. She had. She’s marrying him less than a month from now.

‘ I shouldn’t say’ has been her go-to every time she’s wanted to tell us something but needs some subtle persuasion to get the words out.

“What were you looking at, Kendra?” I ask in a gentle tone. “You know you can tell us. We’re bound to secrecy.”

We’re not bound to anything but the ties of our friendship. They’re still solid, although time and distance have weakened them. This is the first time the four of us have been together since Priscilla’s wedding two years ago. Before that, we reunited the day Harmony said I do.

Although Harmony lives in New Jersey and Priscilla calls upstate New York her home now, we rarely get together. Their lives consist of husbands, kids and their careers. Their free time is precious and even though they’re on summer break right now, it still took some coaxing to get them to agree to drop everything to jet off to Vegas for twenty-four hours.

“Do you all know what a hall pass is?” Kendra asks, her tone soft.

Priscilla rolls her eyes. “I thought we agreed not to talk shop in front of Linny. She doesn’t understand teacher lingo the way the three of us do.”

I shake my head causing the tiara to shift slightly. It felt like Kendra jammed the plastic combs on the sides of it into my scalp when she put it back on my head after I took it off two hours ago.

“It’s not teacher lingo,” I scoff, irritated that Priscilla has once again found a way to remind me that I didn’t follow the same career path as the three of them. They all teach in grade schools. I work in advertising. “Kendra is talking about a sexual hall pass.”

“A what?” Priscilla’s brow furrows. “What the hell is a sexual hall pass?”

“Someone you’re allowed to fuck if you get the chance,” Harmony pipes up. “Mine is Trey Hale, the baseball player. Rueben’s is Libby Duncan, the Broadway actress.”

“Your husband’s dream fuck is Libby Duncan?” I grin. “Is that why you asked me if I could get tickets to that musical she was headlining?”

“He’s her biggest fan. She’s as happily married as Rueben and I are, so she’s never going to be his hall pass. I knew he’d get a thrill out of being in the same theatre as her.” Harmony’s eyes light up as she talks about her husband.

I sigh and wrap my arm around her shoulder.

When Harmony texted me six months ago to ask if I could use my connections to find two tickets to Libby’s sold out show, I did. I also offered my place to her for the night she was crossing the bridge into Manhattan with Reuben.

I was in New Orleans for business and I knew that she’d appreciate the chance to leave her two-year-old son with his grandma while she spent an entire night uninterrupted with her husband. When I returned from my trip she told me it was the best night she’d had in years.

“My new hall pass is the first person who walked off your flight.” Kendra fans her hand in front of her face as if she’s cooling herself down. “That was a mighty fine man. Dark hair, sunglasses, gray suit, and a killer smile.”

Priscilla steps forward. “You have to be talking about the guy Linny was sitting next to at the start of our flight. He was already in his seat with those sunglasses on.”

“He was asleep.” Harmony shrugs. “He never had the pleasure of meeting our beautiful Lincoln Dawn Faye.”

“I did meet him.”

All three of my friends turn to look at me.

Kendra is the first one to say anything. “You met him? What’s his name? Is he married or single? Did you get his number?”

I raise both hands in the air hoping to ward off more questions. “Slow down.”

“He woke up?” Priscilla points at me. “Why the hell didn’t we hear about this sooner? We’ve been together all day and you didn’t think to mention it?”

I point a finger back at her. “We’re here to celebrate Kendra’s engagement, not to talk about a random guy I sat next to on an airplane.”

“What’s his name, Linny?”

I glance over at Kendra to see an expectant look on her face. It’s the second time she’s asked me the question, so I answer. “West.”

“West?” she repeats back. “West what?”

I shrug. “Just West.”

“Mysterious,” Harmony says as she takes Kendra’s drink from her and downs a gulp. “Is he from New York?”

“I have no idea.” My lips twitch. “We only exchanged a few words and then I moved to the seat across the aisle from the two of you.”

“Is his voice as sexy as I imagine it is?” Kendra looks me in the eye. “It’s deep, isn’t it?”
I scratch my eyebrow. I’m not going to confess that his voice was the most seductive I’ve ever heard. That will only open another floodgate and a barrage of new questions will be fired my way at ward speed. “He has a nice voice.”

“Did he at least ask for your number?” Harmony fingers the tulle on the front of her skirt as her blue eyes rake me over. “You look like every guy’s dream today, Linny. Tell me he wanted to see you again.”

I blush at the compliment.

“Hold that thought.” Kendra nudges her shoulder into mine. “We have a dinner reservation in ten minutes. We need to pile into a cab and head up the strip.”

“Let’s go back to the hotel and change first.” I clasp my hands together in front of me. “Please, Kendra.”

“That’s not happening.” Harmony slips her hand into mine. “We’re wearing our tutus and tiaras to dinner and we’re keeping them on for the surprise I arranged for all of us.”

“What surprise?” I toss her a skeptical look as a knot forms in the pit of my stomach. I hate surprises. She knows that.

“You’ll have to wait and see.” She tugs on my hand. “I guarantee we’re all going to love it.”