One of the Guys (15 page)

Lucy
saw him before Kate did and gasped. Kate’s eyes snapped away from Kevin’s and
she focused her attention on Lucy and Jackson. He’d already lowered himself
down onto one knee and was reaching for her hand. Kate glanced up again, this
time at Chris, shooting away with his camera. Suddenly, she realized that she
was going to be frozen forever in Lucy and Jackson’s engagement photos if she
didn’t hurry up and get out of the way.
 

Kate
stepped forward to take the bottle of wine from Lucy. Lucy thrust the bottle
into Kate’s outstretched hand without even casting a backwards glance. Kate
retreated meekly, only half-hearing Jackson’s proposal as tears of happiness filled
her eyes. She made her way up the stairs, hugging the bottle of wine and the
orchid to her chest. Kevin and Max made room for her at the railing, so she
could look down and watch as Jackson completed his proposal.

Jackson
slipped the ring on Lucy’s finger, they kissed, and everyone in the loft
showered them with confetti and streamers. Max and Kevin each brandished two
cans of silly string. They squirted the newly engaged couple as the guests
poured down the stairs to congratulate them.

The
huge sliding glass doors were opened, people started pulling platters of food
out of the fridge, and someone turned on a stereo that was sitting on the floor
in the living room.

Wiping
her eyes, she turned to smile at Chris, one of the last guests still standing
in the loft with her. He was so busy with his camera that he didn’t even
realize that he’d brushed right past her as he headed downstairs. He paused to
lean over the railing, study the shots on his camera, and then continue
shooting. He was so intent on his job, that he didn’t look back or look around
for her. Now she was standing alone in the loft with Lucy’s orchid and the
bottle of wine.

Downstairs,
Kate placed the flower pot in the middle of the kitchen counter, running her
hands along the smooth, cold marble. She placed the bottle of wine in the
refrigerator and then looked around. Lucy and Jackson were still surrounded by
people. Chris was wandering around with his camera glued to his face. She
decided to head out onto the back deck.

Several
coolers were lined up against the railing, filled with beers and sodas. She
helped herself to a beer, popped the top, and looked around as she took her
first sip. She was surprised to see Max talking to some tall, leggy blonde that
she didn’t recognize. The girl was beautiful to begin with, but she was wearing
an impossibly tight pair of jeans and knee-high boots with huge heels that made
her almost taller than Max. The Amazon woman was wearing a cropped red sweater
that showed off her ample (and probably fake, Kate guessed) bust and enviously flat
stomach. Her bright red lips parted as she laughed at something Max said and
Kate felt a tinge of jealousy. They were flirting. And she was watching. She
felt herself getting angry.

A
heavy hand landed on her shoulder. “Hey,” Kevin said, turning her around and
pulling her into a hug. “That was quite the entrance.
Congrats
on pulling that off.”

“Thanks,”
Kate said, grateful for the diversion. She took a long gulp of beer. Over the
top of the can, she could see Kevin’s eyes flicker behind her, in the direction
of Max and the supermodel. She glanced over her shoulder. “Who the heck
is
that?” she asked.

“That’s
some girl Jackson knows through work. We were talking to her earlier. I forget
her name. Sounds like a stripper name. I don’t remember.”

“How
do you forget a girl like that?” Kate asked.

“She’s
kind of a dipshit. Crazy rich, though. Her family owns the Davenport Hotels. So
I guess, in a way, Jackson kind of works for her.”

Kate
nodded at Kevin’s description. She remembered that Julia had organized the
girl’s 21
^st
birthday bash a few years ago. Her elaborate celebration
had brought more of a profit to Bride Ideas than some of the bigger weddings
Kate and Julia had put together.

Kevin
shrugged. “But Max seems to like her.”

Kate
guzzled more beer and groaned inwardly as Chris sauntered up to Max and the
girl. He introduced himself to her, said something funny, and she tossed her
hair, laughing. Chris gestured with his camera and she and Max posed for a few
photos. Kate scowled as Max slipped his arm around the girl’s waist. She placed
one hand on her jutted-out hip, angling herself expertly towards the camera. Kate
couldn’t help snickering at the girl’s camera-ready poses.

Chris
shook the girl’s hand again and then turned towards Kate and Kevin. He held up
his camera and Kevin’s arm landed squarely around Kate’s shoulders. “I think
blondie
over there likes Max,” Chris said, snapping a
couple pictures of Kate and Kevin. “C’mon, smile.”

Kevin
squeezed her shoulder and she straightened up, tilting her head towards Kevin’s
and pasting a smile on her face. Chris snapped a few more pictures and before
Kate could even say anything, he slipped away to take more photos of the guests.
Kate turned around to see what Max and the blonde were up to, but they’d
disappeared. She turned back around and Kevin had started talking with Mark, Lucy’s
brother-in-law. Alone and with no one to talk to, Kate headed back over to the
coolers. She helped herself to another beer and then hopped up onto the railing
to people-watch. She recognized some of Lucy and Jackson’s family members, but
she wasn’t in any mood to make small talk with people whose names she didn’t
remember.

So
she people-watched and drank beer.
After beer.
After beer.
After beer.

Occasionally,
Lucy and Jackson would appear on the deck and make the rounds, talking to their
guests. They were always together, side by side. They were smiling. No, not
just smiling; they were beaming. Lucy was glowing with pride and happiness.
Why?
Kate thought.
Like she didn’t know they would end up together eventually?
 
Kate had suspected this would happen when
they had first gotten back together.
For Lucy to get
reacquainted with Jackson behind her boyfriend’s back, and then cheat on him…
 
Lucy wouldn’t just cheat on someone to do it
and get away with it. Lucy and Jackson had gotten together because they were
really in love. They were meant to be together.

This
thought should have made Kate happy for her friends. Things had all worked out
for them, the way they were probably supposed to happen originally. Instead, it
soured Kate’s mood. While Lucy was walking around on the arm of her new fiancé,
Kate was sitting on a railing by herself, while her only two recent dating
prospects were wandering around the party without her. She had seen Max and the
blonde girl take off for a walk down the beach. Chris was chatting with Lucy’s
aunt Janet. So far, neither one of them had paid much attention to her.

“You’re
still here?”
 
Kevin hopped up on the
railing next to her. “Every time I’ve come out here to get a beer or see what’s
going on, you’ve been in this same spot. Are you enjoying the party?” he asked.

“Oh,
yeah,” Kate said. “It’s great.”

Kevin
nudged her. “What’s wrong?”

She
sighed. She didn’t know what was wrong with her. She’d been so mixed up lately.
“I don’t know. Nothing like your best friend getting married to make you
realize you don’t have your priorities in order.”

Kevin
chuckled.
“Priorities?
 
What are you talking about?”

She
shook her head, scraping the hair back off of her forehead. “I just mean, she’s
getting married. I’m single. They’ve got this big, beautiful house. I still
live in my parents’ house. They’re going to be going and doing all that married
people stuff, and we won’t have anything in common anymore.
Especially
if they start having kids.”

Kevin
looked at her sideways, and Kate felt slightly ashamed. She hopped off the
railing, grabbed two beers out of the nearest cooler, and hopped back up again.
“I’m happy for them,” she said.
“Really.
I am. It just
makes me feel like I’m not where I’m supposed to be in life.”
 
She handed him a can.

“You
think you should be married and settling down?” Kevin asked. He opened his beer
and took a thoughtful sip.

“I
guess. I don’t know. I’m in my thirties, right?”
 
She opened her beer and sucked the foam off
of the top.

“So
am I,” he replied.

“Well,
yeah, but you’re a guy.”

“What
difference does that make?”

“It’s
different for guys,” she said. When she saw his raised eyebrows, she asked,
“Isn’t it?”

“Not
really,” he replied, pushing up his sleeves. “I feel the same way sometimes. Maybe
not the way some of you girls do, but every once in awhile, I think it would be
nice to not have to mess with dating girls that I don’t really have any hope of
having a serious relationship with.”

“Exactly!”
Kate cried.

“And
I think it would be nice to settle down with one girl, but… I don’t know if
I’ve met that girl yet. And it’s kind of hard to meet girls when you’re tired
of going through the same thing over and over again.”

“Exactly!”
Kate echoed. She sat quietly for a moment, surprised that she and Kevin had
never really talked like this before. She hiccupped.

“I
figure there’s nothing I can really do about it for the time being, so I’m just
enjoying it,” he said. “Not complaining about it. I don’t have to get married
tomorrow.”
 
He nudged Kate’s arm. “Neither
do you. Don’t let it get to
ya
, you know?”

Kate
nodded.
“Yeah.
I shouldn’t let it get to me.”
 
She started thinking about Chris and his
indifference towards solidifying their relationship. They hung out a lot with
their friends, made out on her couch, and that was about it. He didn’t want to
spend the night and didn’t seem interested in taking their relationship to the
next level. And then there was Max. Max seemed like he wanted a relationship,
but where was he right now?
 
Walking down the beach with that blonde girl.
They didn’t
seem to be very worried about things, so why was she?

She
leaned her head against Kevin’s shoulder. She took another sip of her beer and
sighed. Just then, she saw Chris wander out onto the deck. He had finally put
the camera down and was walking with his hands in his pockets. He glanced
around, spotted Kate and Kevin, and made his way over. He sat down on the
cooler in front of them and stretched out his legs. “Nice party, huh?” he said.

“Yeah,”
Kevin replied. “Is there any food left?”

“There’s
some. Lucy’s aunt is starting to clean up, so you better go grab something
quick,” Chris said.

Kate
straightened up and Kevin slid down off the railing. Chris got up and leaned
against the railing, right next to Kate. “So, what do you think?” he asked. “You
want to get out of here?
 
Head back to
your place?” he asked.

Kate
took a sip of her beer and looked down at Chris. “Are you serious?”

“Well,
yeah,” he asked, grinning up at her. “Don’t you want me to come over?”

“No.”

“No?
 
What?
 
Why?”

“Because
you haven’t so much as said ten words to me tonight.”

“I
thought you wanted me to come over. I thought you wanted me to stay the night.”

“Would you actually spend the night?” she asked. Chris’s
hesitation was enough for her.

“Forget
it. Don’t bother coming over,” she said. She hopped off the railing and pushed past
Chris to head into the house. She saw Lucy and Jackson standing at the door,
saying goodbye to his parents. She smiled at the sight of the two Mr. and Mrs.
Parkers, and then she saw Max and the blonde girl slipping out right behind
them, turning to say goodbye to Lucy and Jackson and give them both
congratulatory hugs. She whirled around and placed both hands on the
countertop, trying to steady herself.

Kate
wasn’t sure how long she stood like that, but before she could move again, Lucy
clasped her arms around her shoulders. “Thank you so much,” she said.

Kate
turned around and looked at her. “What did I do?” she asked, reaching into a
bowl and picking up a handful of pretzels.

“You
helped Jackson propose!” she said.

“I
just brought you here,” Kate said, stuffing a pretzel into her mouth. “Pretty
sure he’s the one who picked out the ring and asked you to marry him. Not
me.”
 

Lucy
just giggled. “We’re going to make a bonfire down on the beach. Will you stay?”

Kate shrugged
and followed Lucy back out onto the deck and down onto the beach where Jackson
and Kevin were already piling up some pieces of driftwood and flicking a
lighter.

Lucy’s
mom was spreading out a couple blankets that she had found in the trunk of her
car. Kate plopped down on a blanket and watched in amusement as Jackson and
Kevin attempted to get the fire started.