The Unexpected Everything

Bri looked down at the floor, and I could see her lip was trembling and I felt horrible for putting her through this. I told myself firmly that this was for the best—not only for Bri, but for all of us. “I don’t know,” she finally said, in a half whisper.

“That’s okay,” I said, sitting down next to her. “And it’s understandable. You guys are still figuring it out. But since you’re not totally sure it’s going to be a long-term thing . . .” I let my sentence trail off, hoping that Bri would fill in the blanks.

“What if Toby finds out that we were both keeping this from her?” Bri finally asked, looking up at me. “And Palmer, too. How do you see that playing out?”

“I think it’s better than the alternative,” I finally said. “Don’t you?”

I held my breath while I watched Bri struggle with this. She had to be able to see it. Because the four of us, together, was everything. And we had to stay that way—we had to do what we had to to make it happen.

“Okay,” Bri finally said, nodding once.

“It’s for the best,” I said, feeling relief flood through me. “For all of us.”

“You’re sure about this,” she said, not exactly phrasing it like a question.

I nodded, quashing any small voices of doubt that were trying to tell me that I was doing this all wrong and that there was more going on here than just Bri and Wyatt. This was the only way we were going to make it out of this unscathed. And so I nodded and looked Bri right in the eye. “I am.”

Bri nodded, and I felt a weight start to lift off my shoulders. It was all going to be okay. I had the same feeling as when you duck at the very last second and miss something you would have walked right into—realizing just how close you came to danger. And then the relief that followed when you realized you were safe, that everything was going to be fine.

? ? ?

“What do you think?” Clark asked, as he swung his car into the parking lot of the Boxcar Cantina. “I thought it might be nice . . . kind of romantic . . .” He adjusted his glasses, and I saw how nervous he was about his surprise.

“It’s great,” I said, leaning across the car and giving him a quick kiss. We hadn’t been back here since the night of our first date, and I liked that we were going back now, when everything between us was different, on the cusp of another first.

I started to get out of the car, but Clark practically ran around to my side and opened my door for me. “Thanks,” I said, stepping down and taking the hand he offered me. Clark closed my car door and then slid his arms around me.

“Hi,” he said, pulling me close.

“Hi,” I said back. He leaned down and kissed me, and I kissed him back, until we were pressed up against the side of the car, both of us breathing hard, and my pulse was galloping in my throat. “Um, do we really have to have dinner?” I asked, and Clark laughed. But I was only partially kidding. There was a piece of me that wanted to tell him we should skip it, just get back in the car and head straight back to his place.

“So,” he said as he took my hand in his and we walked up to the restaurant, “how was your day?”

“Oh,” I said, feeling myself start to come back down to reality as I thought about the day—starting with Peter showing up in our kitchen and ending with walking in on Bri and Wyatt. I didn’t want to tell Clark that everything was fine—he’d be able to see through me, anyway—I just didn’t want to have to think about these other things tonight. Tonight was about us. I’d been looking forward to it for weeks, and nothing was going to wreck it. “Well—” I started, just as we reached the hostess podium, and took my opportunity to avoid answering the question.

While Clark gave her his name, I felt my phone buzz in my purse and pulled it out.



TOBY



PALMER



Yes! Tonight’s the night!!



TOBY



PALMER



I think Toby wants a picture of what you’re wearing.

Me too.

I smiled as I read these, then sent one of the pictures I’d taken when I was getting ready, mostly because I’d had a feeling this conversation would happen. I was wearing one of my favorite dresses and the fanciest underwear I’d ever owned—Bri and I had bought it together last week, and it hadn’t even occurred to me then to wonder why she was also getting some for herself.



PALMER



You look amazing!!



TOBY



ME



Thanks, you guys.



PALMER



We can meet up at the diner and discuss tomorrow over waffles!

Keep tradition alive and all.



TOBY



I felt my smile fade as I looked at the screen. For a moment I wished I was back where Palmer and Toby were, not knowing any of this—not knowing that Bri had gone through her first time without telling any of us, without talking to us about it, without doing the diner recap. And the thought of that just made me sad—not just for Bri, but for all of us.



ME