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“You know I wouldn’t miss it.” I begin to stand and hug him.
“Don’t get up.” He puts his hands out to stop me. “I heard about your ankle. How’s it looking?”
“Good. I’ll be playing again soon.”
“Glad to hear it.” He turns to Ali, his face lighting up. “Oh, you must be Marc’s girlfriend! I’m Liam.”
I watch as Ali’s olive-toned face pales simply from the statement.
“Um...” she hesitates. “No. I’m Ali. Marc’s friend.”
I furrow my brows at her response. The words alone are fine, and they’re true. But the way Ali said them doesn’t sit well with me.
“Oh,” Liam says, taken aback. “Well, it’s nice to meet you regardless.”
A half-smile forms on Ali’s guilty face.
“Hey, I finally met Logan.” Liam turns towards me. “She’s adorable.”
“Yeah, man. She’s the best.”
“Liam Jones!” Gabe yells out. “Come dance with me!”
“That’s my cue. Damn, that name sounds good!” He shimmies towards his husband, waiting on the dance floor.
I take a nice long swig of my champagne before turning to Ali. “So, do you mind giving me a heads up before you go and break my brother’s heart? I just want to be prepared for when it happens.”
“What are you talking about?”
“You know what I’m talking about. You’re going to break things off.”
Ali’s faux confused expression instantly falters.
“When did you decide?” I ask.
She takes a deep breath. “Yesterday. After skiing.”
I don’t have the words to say, so I just shake my head in disappointment.
“Maddison, I’m not Logan. I can’t do this. I’m not ready to be in a relationship again.”
“Again?”
“What?”
“Again,” I repeat. “You said ‘again.’”
She doesn’t answer me, but her skin seems to have paled a bit.
“I don’t know about the rest of that, but you’re right about one thing,” I continue. “You’re nothing like Logan. You’re like me. The old me.”
Ali picks up her glass of bubbles as she begins to chug.
“And thankfully, Marc is like Logan. So, let me tell you from experience, he’s exactly what you need. Just give in to it.”
“I can’t. I can’t be in a relationship right now. I can’t explain exactly why, but I just can’t do it.”
“Fuck, Bertoli.” I hang my head in frustration. “Come on. Really? You’re making that decision now? After you probably just confused the hell out of my brother by holding his hand during our cousin’s vows? What the fuck?”
