Before Dawn: a Prequel Novella to Where the Stars Fall

10 Strangers ~ Brian

"Look at Kate's baby, Brian. Isn't she adorable?" Susan asks, looking at her husband with a why-don't-you-get-me-pregnant-asshole face. "I can hardly wait to hold my own."

I grab the 3D ultrasound image, a close-up shot of a baby's face, and look at it as if studying each feature. "I don't know, she looks cute but... the nose is a tad too big, isn't it? You sure it's yours, Ethan?"

While the guys let out a hearty chuckle, Kate's brows knit instantly in shock.

Outrage takes over Susan's face too and her hand flies to her chest. "Brian! How dare you say such a thing to a pregnant woman? That's not funny!" She shoots her husband an authoritative look demanding immediate backup.

"Come on, girls. You know I'm joking, right?"

Why do you all of the sudden lose your sense of humour? Is it a fuse that blows on your wedding night or something?

I glance around the table. Mr Wimp and Mr Wuss, who must have lost their balls somewhere along the process, are unable to utter a single word. Beside them, Peter looks catatonic.

Honestly, we should kick ourselves for agreeing to sit at our married friends' table, Pete and I. He's shut himself off from the rest of the world around him and women are talking to me as though I'm a pompous, misogynist prick. Only because I mentioned I don't see myself settling down anytime soon. I guess they're missing a very important detail here: I'd need to meet someone first. Otherwise, my plus one today wouldn't be Pete for sure.

Poor guy. A practical example of what a woman can do you. He shouldn't have come, really. This wedding is killing him, and I suspect that after tonight he'll be crawling after his ex-wife again, throwing his self-respect and dignity into the gutter for good.

I scan the room for the hundredth time, looking for Olivia. She's already given me the wait-a-minute-I'm-coming sign three or four times, but there's always someone coming in the middle wanting to greet and chat.

"She wasn't supposed to come, you know? I heard it was a last-minute decision," Kate leans towards me and says it under her breath, probably after reading the expression of disappointment plastered upon my face each time Olivia sits down at a different table.

"Excuse me? Who?" I pretend I don't understand her remark and get up to grab the bottle for another round.

*

In a desperate attempt to stop the dull ache in the pit of my stomach, I finish my wine with a long swig. After almost two excruciating hours of food that's not worth the price and music so loud you can't possibly have a conversation, I draw my most important conclusion of the day: going to weddings isn't healthy. I've already drunk more today than I do in a whole week.

Running a hand over my stubbled jaw, I try to calm the frustration simmering deep within me. I'm a mess. A goddamn mess.

For a moment, I close my eyes and rub my temple, trying to shove my feelings away, to ignore how my heart began to thump like crazy when I first saw her walking up that aisle earlier today.

I just couldn't take my eyes off her, of her beautiful face and her naked shoulder, as my mind went on reeling from the shock. Of seeing her so unexpectedly. Of the effect she still has on me.

Damn, her smile. And her perfect lips, my eyes became transfixed on them. I wanted to kiss them that very moment. I still do, the pang of longing mixed with desire stabbing at my chest, pulsing in my veins to the point I can't take it any longer.

Enough, I scold myself, determined to put an end to this. It's stupid, just plain stupid, to sit around waiting for... a stranger? Yes, that's what she is. She used to be everything, what I knew best. But now, she's just that. A stranger I know nothing about.