Family Ties

TwentyFour - Darrin

The snow melted enough so we could get out the next day. We greeted everyone at the main cabin, and it had been a whirlwind since. I couldn't help but sneak glances at Roxy. I caught her looking at me more times than not, but when I smiled at her she would just look away. She looked so sad. I'd fucking done that to her. I didn't know exactly where her head was at, but I knew I'd been the one to upset her.

"What did you do? I've never seen Roxy so down." Hunter whispered to me, while Andie had a conversation with the Paster.

"I didn't...I don't..." I sighed, "I fucked up."

"Did you two...?"

I shook my head, "No, but I really wanted to. I forced myself to stop."

"Why? You've always had one goal, to bed the pretty girl, be damned the consequences. So why stop this time?" He asked, but his tone made it sound like he already knew the answer.

I shrugged, "I don't know."

"Huh, well, I hope when you figure it out, it's not too late." He clapped me on the shoulder and rejoined his fiancé. I frowned after him. What did that mean? Too late for what?

"Alright everyone. Let's run through it one more time." The Paster suddenly announced, and I bit back a groan. I was, of course, paired up with Roxy and it was pure torture.

We settled in line, waiting for our turn and Roxy gently tucked her hand into my arm. I reached up and covered her hand with mine and her gaze snapped to mine. I tried to give her a reassuring smile and whispered, "Are you ok?"

"Sure." She said and turned back to the front.

"Because you kind of seem upset."

"Nope." She said, popping the P. "I'm good."

I frowned and commented, "You're good? Is that why you're grinding your teeth?"

"Drop it, Dare."

I sucked in a breath, "You called me Dare."

"That's what you like to be called."

"Not be you."

She closed her eyes and a tear slipped out. I froze seeing that tear. She was seriously hurting, and I was the cause. She confirmed it, when she said, "Stop it. Just stop. You're making things so much worse. One minute you can't stand me. The next you're kissing me, but then telling me that you can't with me because you don't do relationships. Now you're giving me even more mixed signals. So, I think it's best that we just stop talking all together."

I was about to argue when it was our turn to move. We walked down the aisle and I went through the motions of the ceremony. Luckily, I wasn't the star of the show because I had no idea if I did everything I was supposed to. I moved on autopilot, but I couldn't stop staring at Roxy. She wouldn't look at me, though.

"Alright, I think you've got it. See everyone tomorrow for the big day. We're not predicted to get any more snow, so everything should work out perfectly." The Paster announced.

Before I knew what was happening, Andie, Sophie, and Roxy had disappeared. I was frowning, looking for her, when Hunter joined me, "Andie doesn't want me to see her before the wedding, so the girls are staying in the main cabin tonight. We won't see them until the ceremony tomorrow."

Fuck! I needed to get Roxy alone so that I could undo every wrong that I'd done. I wanted my Roxy back. Not this sad zombie that I'd turned her into. Justin clapped me on the shoulder, "So where are the strippers? It's my last night as a bachelor and you didn't get strippers?"

I blinked and then frowned, "Huh?"

Hunter snorted, "You've got it so bad, and you don't even realize it."

Justin nodded, "Let's go get a drink in the bar before we head back to our cabin."

Hunter grinned, "Yea, I could use a drink."

I glanced between them, they were being weird, but shrugged. A drink couldn't hurt. We ordered and I joined them at a table in the corner. My two best friends were watching me with a mixture of a little bit of shock and a whole lot of amusement. I finally snapped, "What?"

"The bartender." Hunter stated, like that answered everything.

"What? What about him?" I frowned without turning around.

Justin laughed, "Her. The bartender is female, very pretty, was clearly into you, and you didn't even see her."

Roxy words came rushing back to me.

I guess you just haven't met the right girl yet. The one that you want so badly that you'd never cheat because it would hurt her. The one that makes you stop seeing every other woman as a conquest, because she's the only one you want. When you meet her, you'll know and she's all you'll see.

My eyes widened. Holy fuck! It had happened to me, and I hadn't even realized it. I was so stuck on Roxy that I hadn't even been aware that another woman was present. I wanted Roxanne Blankley like I'd never wanted another woman. Not just that, I needed her. I half-choked and said aloud, "Holy fuck, I think I'm in love with her."

My friends thought that was hilarious. The jerks. I'd really fucked things up, worse than I had thought. I literally had her in my arms the night before and now she couldn't even look at me, I'd screwed up so badly. How in the hell could I fix this? Especially since I wouldn't even see her until the wedding. Well, the good news was, I had time to really think about what I needed to say to her. Hopefully I could get the words to come out right when the time was right. I couldn't afford to mess up further and risk losing her forever.