Never a Bride: A Short Story Read Free Page A

staying so Zen. Don’t you want a glass of wine?”
    “Too nervous to drink. The seltzer calms my stomach. The bubbles.”
    Lisa put her hand over her belly.
    Sheena narrowed her eyes, feeling like an idiot for not realizing sooner. “Really?”
    Mouth round, Lisa nodded. “Nerves. That’s my story and I’m sticking to it.”
    Mrs. Conner would have a conniption if the baby came before the wedding. Single mom wanting to prove to the world she did a good job raising her all-star daughter. “Got it.”
    What would it be like to have a baby? She’d wanted a family, had imagined her and Jared singing around a campfire and roasting marshmallows. He’d said one, no more than two, kids. Now? Her heart cracked open, feeling the ache of betrayal all over again.
    Could she ever forgive him? She’d meditated on it, gone to therapy. In order to get through the day without falling apart she’d had to cut off her emotions. Cut Jared from her life as if he’d never existed. It got easier, incremental breath by breath. Pretending.
    To see him over the past few days tore open old wounds. She’d gotten back in the habit of crying herself to sleep. She’d lied when she’d told him she was over him. She’d never be over him.
    Her heart leapt for joy at his announcement of love.
    Hope flared like a spewing volcano.
    Until she remembered the pain of his desertion and the wine tasted like ash in her mouth.
    “Let’s go take our seats,” Lisa said, pulling Sheena toward the dining tables. “I’m starving. Your idea of Chicken Marsala for tonight’s dinner was brilliant.”
    “I’m glad I could help.”
    All of the wedding preparations Sheena had done came in handy for Mike and Lisa’s wedding. They’d been engaged for two years and six months ago decided to actually tie the knot.
    Prodded by Jared’s proposal and Sheena’s subsequent bridal frenzy, no doubt. God, had she really been so bad?
    Lisa seemed more relaxed regarding her nuptials, keeping the guest list fewer than seventy-five. Family, mostly Mike and Jared’s, and friends. She’d kept everything comfortable, just like she and Mike. She hadn’t changed into another person.
    Maybe, Sheena considered, I went overboard. Was that so wrong?
    Must be. Mike was sticking around for the wedding day, while Jared flew the coop.
    Sheena nodded at Mike and Jared’s parents, feeling awkward. The Langleys had accepted her into their family. Jared rejected her.
    They’d done the hug thing a few days ago; Jared’s mom whispered that she was so sorry. Sheena was sorry, too.
    This was life. Sometimes things were shit. End of story.
    She took her chair, knowing when Jared was behind her by the way the air charged between them. He scooted her in, putting his hand on her shoulder, his thumb at her nape.
    She hadn’t wanted to date him. When he’d first asked her out, she’d said no. He’d been surprised. Intrigued. She wasn’t playing a game – she’d been protecting her heart. She was pretty, she knew that, but Jared was gorgeous.
    She’d made all sorts of wrong assumptions about him based on his looks. He’d called her out on it. Proved her wrong, right up until the bitter end when he’d torn out her heart and stomped it to bloody shreds.
    “Sheena,” he whispered, his words warm against her cheek. “You look beautiful tonight. You’re wearing my favorite color.”
    Nobody could charm like Jared. Determined to maintain her indifference, she poked Lisa in the side. “Did you hear something?”
     
    * * *
     
    Jared noticed the trail of goose bumps along Sheena’s skin. No way did he believe she was completely immune to him. He knew her, from the hitch of her breath to the weather vane of her blue eyes – stormy weather to clear.
    Now that she was out of the clutches of wedding fever, she’d returned to the woman he recognized.
    Had she been so awful? His tender heart had thought so. His bruised pride. His overactive ego. He’d gone from being the center of her