Wedding Party Collection: Always The Bachelor. Barbara Hannay

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      The second they were shown to a table inside the bustling, noisy café, Deidre said something about needing to freshen up, then dragged Ivy with her to the ladies’ room. Her grip on Ivy’s arm was so tight she was cutting off the circulation. When they were safely inside with the door shut Deidre finally let go.

      Ivy shook the blood back into her tingling fingers. “All right, what’s going on?”

      “I hate them,” Deidre spat with a ferocity that was completely unlike her. Angry tears pooled in her eyes.

      “I hate the Tweedles and I hate Blake’s brothers.”

      Deidre didn’t hate anybody. She was too sweet. But apparently even she had limits.

      “What happened?”

      “After I got hit, Blake went to go get the rental car. While he was gone, the four of them were—” Her voice broke and tears dribbled down her cheeks.

      Ivy rubbed her shoulder. “They were what? What did they do?”

      Deidre sniffled loudly and wiped the tears away with the heels of her palms. “They were…making fun of me. They were whispering and laughing.”

      Was it possible that they could be that rude? That cruel? “Could you hear what they were saying? I mean, May be you misunderstood. May be they weren’t talking about you.” As she said the words she suspected they weren’t true.

      “They were looking right at me, and I heard Dale say it was my own fault for standing too close while she putted.”

      No, this was Ivy’s fault. She had been afraid that antagonizing the Tweedles at dinner last night would only make things worse. That they might retaliate. She never should have lowered herself to their level.

      And who had encouraged her to do that?

      Dillon.

      It didn’t excuse her behavior. Or make her any less accountable, but in a roundabout way this was as much his fault as hers.

      The thought made her feel a little bit better.

      “Does Blake know about what they said?”

      She sniffled and shook her head. “He already feels so bad. This would only make things worse.”

      Ivy didn’t know if things could get much worse. That would take a tropical storm or a tsunami.

      “She didn’t even say she was sorry.” Deidre wiped her eyes. “What did I ever do to them? Why are they so mean to me?”

      “It’s not you, Deidre. It’s like I said at dinner last night. They’re insecure. Cutting you down makes them feel better about themselves.” She stepped into one of the empty stalls, pulled a length of toilet paper off the roll and handed it to Deidre. “It’s also very possible that they’re jealous.”

      “Yeah right,” Deidre said with an indignant snort. She dabbed at her eyes and wiped her nose. “I’m sure they’re both dying to be overweight and have my lousy skin. I’m like an ugly duckling next to them.”

      “It has nothing to do with looks or weight. They’re jealous because no matter how skinny they are, or pretty they are, or how blond they dye their hair, they’ll never be as happy as you and Blake. Hell, I’m jealous and I don’t even want to get married.”

      Deidre shrugged.

      “I’m serious. Blake is crazy about you. Anyone can see how happy you two are, how much you love each other. And no matter how mean and nasty the Tweedles are, they can’t take that from you.”

      A grin teased the corners of Deidre’s mouth. “You really think they’re jealous?”

      “I honestly do. Those two may be aesthetically attractive. May be even beautiful. But on the inside they’re the worst kind of ugly.”

      “Blake’s brothers don’t think so.”

      “They’re no better than the Tweedles. I sometimes wonder how Blake turned out so normal when the rest of his family is completely wacky.”

      The smile spread to her cheeks. “Wacky? Is that an official diagnosis?”

      Ivy laughed. “Absolutely.”

      Deidre may not have been conventionally beautiful, but she had a warm, genuine smile and a good heart. Ivy hoped Blake realized just how lucky he was.

      And May be somewhere deep down, she was a little jealous. But not everyone was lucky enough to find what Deidre and Blake had.

      Some people weren’t capable.

      Deidre wiped her eyes one last time and tossed the tissue in the trash. “You know, no matter how lousy things seem, you always manage to make me feel better.”

      “It’s what I’m trained to do.”

      “No, it’s always been that way, even when we were really little. It’s a gift.”

      If that were true, Ivy wished she could bestow that gift on herself.

      “That’s the reason I got you and Dillon together,” Deidre admitted. “I wanted to help you the way you always help me. I wanted you to be happy.”

      “I am happy.” The words spilled out automatically, but they sounded dry and hollow. Like May be she wasn’t so convinced anymore.

      “Speaking of Dillon,” Deidre said, “what’s really going on with you two?”

      Ivy shrugged. “Just like I said, we bumped into each other.”

      “You’re sure about that.”

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