Chapter 2

A staff member passing by noticed Hugh kneeling in front of Zoey and teased them with a smile.

"You two are such a sweet couple. Giving her a foot massage right here in public? You're making me blush."

Zoey's cheeks immediately turned pink.

Hugh gave an awkward laugh but didn't correct her.

I didn't say a word. I turned around and went back to my seat. My eyes stung, but I held it together.

Zoey snuck a glance at the display board. The moment she realized we'd missed our turn, her cramp seemed to disappear.

She pulled Hugh to his feet, then turned to me with a sheepish smile. "Lynette, I'm really sorry. I made you miss your turn again."

Hugh helped her settle back into her seat before turning to glare at me. "Why did you have to keep rushing us? Look what happened. Zoey's foot cramped up. Couldn't you just wait a little?"

Zoey gave his sleeve a couple of halfhearted tugs, as if she were trying to stick up for me.

"Hugh, don't say that. Lynette's just eager to make it official with you. It's just... you guys are going to have to take another number now."

I didn't answer or even look at them. I got up, walked over to the ticket machine, and took another number.

The staff member beside the machine recognized me and sighed.

"Miss, you've already missed your turn several times. Don't let it happen again. This is the last batch of numbers we're giving out this morning. If you miss this one, you'll have to come back this afternoon."

I glanced back at the waiting area. Hugh was leaning in to whisper something to Zoey. Whatever he said had both of them laughing so hard their shoulders shook.

"I understand. Thank you."

This was the last chance I was giving Hugh.

Ticket in hand, I went back to my seat. A moment later, my phone started ringing inside my bag.

It was Mom.

I answered.

"Lyn, are you and Hugh married yet? Didn't you leave at 8:00 am.? I've reheated the food twice already. Why aren't you home?"

I looked down, not knowing what to tell her. The silence dragged on long enough for Mom to realize something was wrong.

"Zoey's there too, isn't she? Is this her doing?"

My eyes stung, and all the hurt I'd been holding in hit me at once.

"Yeah. Because of her, we've missed our turn twice."

Mom took a deep breath.

"Lyn, once is one thing. Twice is bad enough. But don't let there be a third time. If he can't even take this seriously, getting married isn't going to make things any better. Put Hugh on the phone. I want to talk to him."

I turned and held the phone out to him. "My mom wants to talk to you."

Hugh had been in the middle of an animated conversation with Zoey. His expression tightened at the interruption, but he took the phone anyway and softened his voice.

"Jennifer, what's wrong?"

"You two aren't married yet, so it's still Mrs. Gearhart to you. Lyn got up early, did her makeup, and headed out first thing because she wanted you two to get the first number and be the first couple to make it official.

"You showing up late was bad enough. How have you two gone through all this and still not gotten married?"

Hugh shot me a glare. "Did Lyn complain to you again? It's really not a big deal. Zoey had something come up, so we missed our number. We already got another one. We just have to wait a few more minutes. It won't hold us up."

His casual tone immediately set Mom off.

"Not a big deal? Missing your turn when you're supposed to be getting married isn't a big deal? Hugh, you're there to marry Lyn. Why did you bring another woman along and let her cause all this trouble?

"And what is Zoey doing tagging along when someone else is getting married? Does she have no shame?"

Mom was yelling loud enough for Zoey to hear every word.

Zoey's eyes immediately welled up, and tears started rolling down her cheeks. She leaned toward the phone.

"Mrs. Gearhart, I'm sorry. I really didn't mean for any of this to happen. Lynette and I have been friends for years. She's getting married, and I just wanted to be here to see it for myself. I honestly didn't mean any harm."

The moment Hugh saw her crying, his tone sharpened.

"Mrs. Gearhart, please show Zoey some respect. She's Lynette's friend too. She meant well. This isn't that big a deal. There's no reason to blow it out of proportion and start yelling at me."