Not Quite A Bride by Kirsten Sawyer Read Free Book Online Page A

party is actually a huge deal for me and I’m bubbling over with nervous anticipation. Unlike Brad and me, Justin and I have seen each other very often and talked on the phone at least once a day. We have our story straighter than an arrow.
    Like we agreed in the beginning, we stick to as much truth as possible, and only shift things slightly to make our relationship a romance, not a business deal. Each time we had a “meeting,” we chose a different romantic restaurant so that if questioned about where we have gone on dates, we had good answers, experiences, and food comments on hand. The truth is, I’m having the best time!
    Justin is a fantastic person. He is smart and funny and has led a really interesting life ... and having a gay man as a boyfriend is really ideal in every way except that you never get sex. He isn’t at all distraught by the hours of shopping and was instrumental in helping me pick out the perfect dress for the party, plus he totally understands why I need to look better than Claire. It’s like we are back in junior high school, creating our very own secret club ... we have deep, touching conversations and are so silly that I laugh until I cry talking about everything from Justin’s “coming out” to the awfulness of Claire Reilly to the wedding (of course). And again, his flawless taste is going to be extremely helpful in planning the wedding. This fake relationship is better than any real one I’ve ever had!
    The night of Brad and Claire’s engagement party, Justin and I are dressed to the nines and ready to make our grand entrance. Most of the important people in my life will be there (except big-mouth Logan): Jamie and Bryan, my parents, Alex and Steve, Lauren and Rob, and, of course, Brad. Justin looks amazing in his black suit, and the black strapless dress he insisted was the one to steal Claire’s spotlight really does look like it will be able to do the trick. Don’t get me wrong—we are both nervous (Justin calls it stage fright) but we’re also excited.
    The party is at a restaurant supposedly owned by a friend of Claire’s family. Justin and I arrive just fashionably late and the party is beginning to get going. I take secret joy in how angry Claire must be that half an hour after the time on the invitation the room is only half full. Justin and I clasp our hands and enter the room, where we are almost washed over by the wave of my family and friends ready to pounce on him. Jamie reaches him first ... either she’s fast for a pregnant lady or the others felt uncomfortable shoving a woman with child out of the way.
    Justin looks at me and smiles his dazzling smile; under his breath he says, “Here we go.” Before I realize what hit me, I’m standing behind a mob of people crowded around poor Justin ... I can just see the top of his head. I figure I’m not needed and make my way to the bar in hopes of being able to say hello to Brad.
    From the bar I have a good view of the party. About 95% of the guests are Claire’s family friends. The few guests Brad was allowed to invite are our good friends from college, and my family. Brad really is an honorary Harrigan. Since his family is across the country and he’s not that close to them (they didn’t even come “all the way to New York for one weekend” for the party). Beginning back in college, he would always come home with me for holidays and long weekends, and to this day, he still shows up for these events. My mother thinks he is adorable, my father loves talking sports with him, and both Logan and Jamie treat him like a brother. I think in some ways, it means more to him to have them here than his own parents. Besides the hive of people I know who are buzzing around my poor hired beau, almost everyone else at the party is a stranger to me.
    Claire looks stunning, but there is something icy about her bleached-teeth smile. Maybe I am starting to