Harley Merlin 12 by Bella Forrest (story books to read TXT) 📗

Jacob ran a nervous hand through his hair, his mouth set in a sad line. “So I’ve been told.”

Poor guy. Having a first girlfriend like Suri would put anyone off for life. Or they’d end up going for unattainable women, to lessen the risk of getting hurt again. Unrequited love would always be easier to bear than getting in deep with someone and having them torn away.

Harley and Wade arrived, completing the chain of couples. Wade wore a slick blue suit, and Harley matched him in blue pants and a silky blue shirt. Ordinarily, I’d have commented on it, calling them out as one of those couples, but they looked too damn happy for me to rain on their parade. Giddiness exuded from them, and they both looked flushed.

“It’s not like you to be fashionably late,” I said with a wry smile.

“We wanted to make sure everyone arrived before we came in,” Harley explained, the words tumbling out of her mouth a mile a minute.

Wade chuckled. “Seriously, we’ve been sitting in Daisy for the last half hour.”

“I told you that was Harley’s car.” Dylan nudged Tatyana playfully.

“But there was no one in it when we passed,” Tatyana replied, confused.

Harley chuckled. “Yeah, we may have ducked down in case you saw us.”

“Is that what the kids are calling it these days?” Santana flashed her friend a wink.

“Brother, sitting right here!” I protested.

“So, what’s the occasion?” Saskia leaned her chin on her hand. “Someone getting married?”

I snorted. “Yeah, good one. You think I’d just be finding out now, if my only sister was getting hitched?”

“Actually…” Harley lifted her hand, where an enormous diamond glinted. “Wade and I have something to tell you all.”

Nine

Finch

“Bet you feel a little stupid now, huh?” Saskia folded her arms, giving me the full Cheshire Cat treatment.

I ignored her and gaped at Harley. “You’re… engaged?”

“Wade asked me yesterday, and I accepted.” Harley flushed with delight, intertwining her fingers with Wade’s. He gazed at her like he’d won the jackpot, leaning to kiss her. A whoop went up from the table, Santana leading the riot of congratulations. Everyone else followed suit. I resisted asking where Wade had gotten the ring; Mr. Abara had given me a whole new perspective on diamonds.

“Mi hermana! You pinned the sucker down!” Santana hollered, clapping loudly.

Raffe stared into his drink. “Yeah, congratulations, both of you.”

You fancy mustering a little more oomph there? His odd brooding didn’t give off congratulatory vibes. Then again, I couldn’t talk. I was still wrangling my gremlins into submission so I could actually get on board with the celebrations.

“My dudes! Major congratulations!” Dylan joined in, his applause splintering through my skull.

“I knew you wouldn’t have scheduled dinner for nothing.” Saskia smiled smugly. “I don’t wear the glitz and glam for just any occasion.”

Tatyana left her seat to hug the affianced. “This is amazing news, guys! I’m so happy for you both.”

“We’re pretty happy, too.” Wade lifted Harley’s hand and kissed it.

“Very happy. Seriously, I can’t remember being this happy before,” Harley agreed, her smile so wide I worried her cheeks would crack.

“Congratulations.” Garrett stole a glance at Astrid, whose eyes swam with joy. Ah man, this is going to start a chain reaction of weddings, isn’t it?

“That’s just… so… wonderful!” Astrid stumbled over her words, clearly overwhelmed. Someone had caught the love bug while I’d been away. I shifted awkwardly, unsure what to do with myself. I looked at Ryann, who seemed ready to explode.

“Aaaaaaah! I can’t believe it—I could kiss you both! Mom and Dad are going to be over the moon,” she gushed. “You better brace yourselves for wedding magazines and a million texts about flower arrangements and cake tastings and menu choices. You know Mom will want to be involved in everything.”

Harley grinned. “I hope she’ll want to help out. Give me monsters and evil minions; I know what to do with those. Wedding planning stumps me. Naturally, I’ll bug you about it, too.”

“Bug away!” Ryann raised her glass. “Let’s toast the happy couple.”

Everyone clamored for their glasses. I did the same, not wanting to be the odd one out. I hoped nobody had noticed that I hadn’t actually said congratulations yet. Don’t get me wrong, I was happy for them, but I didn’t know how I fit in this picture. Everyone’s lives had moved on without me while I’d been away. I hadn’t expected them to wait around or anything, but I felt like I was playing a losing game of catch-up.

“Three cheers for Wade and Harley!” Santana hollered, drawing amused glances from other tables as everyone unleashed a trio of mighty cheers. The other diners applauded, feeling the love. You just had to look at the couple to see how much they adored each other. They’d survived so much and come out of it more in love than ever. And… I admired them. So much that I decided not to bother with self-pity. They deserved this, probably more than anyone.

As everyone settled down, Tatyana leaned over the table. “Don’t keep us in suspense. How did he propose? Was it insanely romantic? Candlelight, roses, the whole nine yards?”

Saskia wrinkled up her nose. “That’s tacky.”

“You’re high-maintenance,” Tatyana retorted. “You wouldn’t be happy unless the entire room dripped diamonds and you got a rock as big as your head. I pity the poor guy who wants to marry you.”

“Who says I want to get married? It’s not the be-all and end-all,” Saskia huffed. “Not that this isn’t great news. I just mean, it might not be for me. Divorce seems like a lot of hassle, and I see myself as the divorcing sort.”

“Saskia!” Tatyana complained. “Let Harley tell the proposal story!”

Harley gave a teasing glance to Wade, who’d already turned beet red. “Well, he took me to the Aquarium at midnight last night. He’d arranged the entire thing with Tobe, who was there when we arrived.”

Tobe knew before me?! I forced myself to smile and listen. That stung a