It's About Time

I am going to be the best man, right?

        Natalie spent a majority of the meal with her eyes fixed on her plate, pushing her lasagna around with her fork.  She quickly learned that Grayson was absolutely nothing like his older brother.  Grayson was always isolated and quiet, creating a bubble around himself.  Logan, on the other hand, was a very outspoken character.

        He had spent the first half of the meal making small talk about trivial things, primarily addressing Grace but occasionally asking Natalie about odd topics, like classes and teachers and work.  Natalie got the feeling that he was trying to give her and Grayson some privacy.  Every so often he would slip in little jabs about Natalie and Grayson dating or being in love.  The most embarrassing being when Grace had made the mistake of saying that her boss had been riding her pretty hard at work.  Natalie had cringed at the poor choice of words, noticing how dirty it sounded.  Apparently she wasn't the only one that had noticed the innuendo, as she heard Logan mutter something about 'Natalie and Grayson know all about that" under his breath.  She couldn't help but to choke on her sip of water, coughing and sputtering while Grayson sent a hard look in his brother's direction.  Logan had taken the not so subtle hint, winking at Grayson and continuing his chat with Natalie's mom.

        Natalie sensed that Logan and Grayson were close, based off of their few interactions of the evening.  Logan seemed to enjoy teasing Grayson and acting foolish, but he kept up a pleasant conversation with Grace in a manner fit for the board room and it was obvious that he was much more intelligent than he let on.  Natalie had also noticed that Logan tended to be a very straightforward person.  He wasn't the type to beat around the bush or sugar coat something; He would tell it like it is.  He reminded her quite a bit of Sabrina and she made a mental note to tell her all about Grayson's attractive older brother.

        As Natalie was finishing her plate of lasagna, Logan spoke up.  

        "So Natalie, how did you and Grayson meet?" He asked, smirking over at Grayson.  Natalie was startled by how familiar his smirk was.  She could see Grayson in so many of Logan's features and it was, frankly, a little unsettling.

        She realized she had been staring and she cleared her throat, dropping her eyes back down to her plate.

        "Um, he- he's in my first block class.  We sit next to each other.  I met him on the first day."  Natalie stuttered, feeling nervous.  This is the part she had been dreading all day.  She had never been one to make a good first impressions and she was nervous that Grayson's family wouldn't like her.  Not that it mattered if they liked her or not, she thought.

        "Oh yeah, I think he mentioned that.  So was it love at first sight?"  He asked, leaning forward and resting his chin in his palm, batting his lashes like a school girl.  Natalie coughed awkwardly and looked back at her plate.  She heard Grayson groan from the other side of the table.

        "Would you please just shut up?"  He asked Logan pleadingly.  

        "I just want to get to know the girl my little brother has a crush on" Logan laughed, winking at Natalie this time.

        "I don't have a crush on her" Grayson said, his jaw clenched.  Logan rolled his eyes and scoffed.

        "Yeah, alright", He said, his words dripping sarcasm.  "I'll be sure to include that in my best man speech at the wedding."  He sent another wink in Natalie's direction and she could feel the heat in her cheeks.  "I am going to the best man right?" He asked innocently.

        Suddenly, Grayson's fists came slamming down on the tabletop, shaking the dishes, causing the ice in the glasses to clink, and causing everyone around him to jump about a foot in the air.  He stood from the table, tugging on the ends of his hair as he looked at his brother.