The weeks just kept ticking by til suddenly I found myself in the middle of an August that was nearly unbearable, in terms of heat. Wisconsin just didn’t see weather like this and frankly that was just fine. Nick told me I needed to toughen up, and I started to, but still ran for air conditioning whenever I could.
I started noticing a strange trend over at Brian’s. Although Lily was still over almost constantly, things seemed...not as polished somehow. His yard started looking a bit overgrown, his house not so immaculate. The few times I stopped by I noticed that his usual staff was never there. When I asked Nick about it he shrugged.
“He got paranoid.”
“About what?”
“Lily.”
“What do you mean?” I asked. Nick rolled his eyes.
“Carra, Bri’s having an affair with the fiance of one of the biggest up-and-coming lawyers around. Jason’s firm is always in the news. Not to mention, Brian’s a Backstreet Boy. We’re, like...” Nick laughed. “We’re, like, the Backstreet Boys! You think he can risk having gossip circulate?”
“Was his staff talking about him?”
Nick shrugged again. “Does it matter?”
Sometime before Labor Day Nick came to me with a strange request. Apparently we were being invited to accompany Lily, Brian and Jason for a day out. How on earth that got planned was beyond me, and it certainly wasn’t something I was at all sure was a good idea. However, it was also not something I felt I could pass on, and Nick was so excited he could barely contain it.
“This is going to be great,” he mused gleefully as we headed for Lily and Jason’s. I stared at him. He kept looking ahead for a moment, then turned to look at me. “Don’t you think so?”
“You’re not serious.”
“Why not? Weren’t you ever a soap opera fan?”
“In college...why?”
Nick laughed. “Because, Carra, this is like the greatest soap opera you could ask for.”
I shook my head. “But these are real people, Nick, it’s different. Aren’t you afraid Brian’s going to get hurt?”
“He probably will,” he agreed, shrugging. My eyes narrowed.
“Don’t you care? He’s your best friend.”
Nick shrugged again, ambivalent. “Sure I care.”
I turned to look out the window rather than attempt to argue. Nick simply turned up the radio and sang along. We reached my cousin’s soon enough and Brian’s bright blue BMW already sat gleaming in the driveway.
“Hey there!” Lily greeted at the door, hugging me and placing a feather-light kiss on Nick’s cheek.
“Thanks for inviting us,” he said. Lily waved her hand.
“Of course. Come on in.” We followed her out onto the sun porch where Brian and Jason sat and stood, drinks in hand. Brian’s features lit up at the mere return of Lily, but he rose to kiss my cheek as well, then smack Nick on the back. Jason simply nodded, looking irritated.
“So what exactly are we doing?” he quizzed, looking mostly at Lily. She laughed and melted gracefully into a chair, gazing over at Brian momentarily before giving Jason an innocent smile.
“Oh, I don’t know. Haven’t given it much thought.” Brian laughed faintly and Lily winked at him.
Jason sighed. “It seems silly to invite people over without knowing what you’re going to do with them,” he stated flatly. Suddenly the phone rang from in the house. “I’ll get that. Try and have a plan for when I come back, maybe?” He shot a very forced smile Lily’s way and stepped into the house.
As soon as he was out of sight Lily rose again and came over to Brian, dropping a deep kiss on Brian’s lips, running her hand softly over his face. Nick laughed as the two smiled at each other.
“Such a slick chick you are,” he teased. Lily shot him a teasing look back.
“I don’t care,” she declared, spinning and coming to grab my hand, pulling me down on a sofa next to her. “Come kiss Carra too.” Nick obliged, almost causing me to blush with the passion he put behind it. Afterwards he kissed my nose lightly, then grinned at Lily.
“Feel better?”
“Mmm, yes,” she said, reaching over to run her left hand lightly over Brian’s right. He wrapped her tiny hand in his, and I couldn’t help but notice how he kept running his thumb around her glittering engagement ring. She stared at it too, then up at him. Just then Jason returned. Lily didn’t snatch her hand out of Brian’s but pulled it back slowly. Jason noticed - I saw his jaw tighten and his brow furrow - but again he pasted on a smile.
“Sorry about that. We decided yet?”
“Yes,” Brian announced, surprising us all. “Let’s go downtown and rent a hotel suite.”
Lily laughed. “What’ll we do with it?” she wondered.
“We can figure it out when we get there,” he said, standing.
“Why rent a suite when we have perfectly nice houses?” Jason asked sharply, but it was barely heard. Lily stood as well.
“I like it.” She turned to Nick and I. “You in?”
“Absolutely,” Nick answered, standing too and offering me a hand.
“Carra?”
“Why not?” I replied, putting my hand in Nick’s. Jason looked as if he wanted to protest further but instead just clamped his mouth shut and followed the parade heading out of his house. Once out front Brian wrapped an arm around Lily’s shoulders.
“Lil and I can take your car, if that’s all right?” he proposed. Jason stared at him.
“Why? And why not take--”
“Fabulous idea,” Lily seconded, trotting around to the passenger side.
“God damnit,” Jason muttered, but tossed Brian the keys nonetheless. With one of his classic smiles Brian tossed his keys back to Jason and climbed behind the wheel of the sleek black Lexus. Jason glanced at the X5 in disgust. “Who in God’s name would pick this color?” he questioned, shaking his head.
“Follow us!” Lily called, poking her head out her window and waving. We had no further time to contemplate just how ugly Brian’s car was if we wanted to keep up. I sat half on Nick’s lap as we tore after the two.
“Doesn’t this seem stupid to you?” Jason polled as we drove.
“Not particularly,” Nick replied.
“Not even when we already have somewhere ten times nicer than any hotel in the tri-county area?” he pressed.
“Sometimes you need a change of scenery.”
“I’d rather be on my home turf,” Jason countered angrily.
At the hotel I know that I was certainly dismayed to discover that the air conditioning, due to rolling blackouts, had been going in and out all day. This only served to agitate Jason more, especially after we got a suite despite that.
“We have air conditioning at home,” he informed us.
“Yes, well,” Lily replied, looking over at Brian for a reply.
“Let’s call room service - maybe have some drinks sent up?”
“I’m in,” Nick immediately said. Soon Brian was calling in a drink order, but after that the room was eerily silent. Lily sat watching Brian, Brian Lily, Jason glaring at them both, and Nick and I taking in the whole scene as if we were sitting on pins and needles. Finally Lily glanced at Jason and saw him looking so unhappy.
“Turn that frown upside down,” she admonished in a sing-song voice.
“I’m not frowning,” he practically growled.
“You do look a bit upset,” Brian told him, smiling encouragingly. Jason shot him a cutting look.
“Can you blame me?”
It was silent again, then Lily sat forward slightly. “What do you mean?” she asked softly. He glared at her again.
“What do I mean? What do I--” He was cut off by a knock at the door. He stalked over to answer, practically steaming. The busboy picked up on the mood immediately because he was in and out like a flash, not even bothering to wait for a tip. Jason snatched his highball off the cart and came back to join us.
“What do I mean?” he repeated, narrowing his eyes. “How happy can you expect me to be when I have to spend the afternoon with the man my fiance is sleeping with behind my back?”
Like a balloon Lily deflated slightly and sat back again. I watched Brian, who remained stone still. Jason tromped over to him.
“I think I’ve done really well being courteous up until now, Mr. Pop Music - agreeing to go to your party, inviting you to our home...God knows it’s a hell of a lot more courteous than I should’ve been considering all the disrespect you’ve shown me...stealing my fiance away--”
“I didn’t ‘steal’ anything from you,” Brian interrupted quietly, “I was only there for someone that didn’t want to be where she was.”
“Can we please drop this?” Lily requested, almost whispering.
“No, no we cannot,” Jason said, never turning from Brian. Brian in turn held his gaze.
“Maybe it’s time you admitted defeat,” he suggested calmly. Jason’s eyebrows raised.
“’Admit defeat’? How have I been defeated?”
“Because Lily doesn’t want to be with you anymore.”
Jason sneered. “Is that right?”
“Is anyone else hot?” Lily questioned helplessly.
“She and I are going to be together now,” Brian continued as if she hadn‘t said a word.
“I believe she’s my fiance.”
“That can change.”
“Oh really? Is that it?” Jason folded his arms and looked expectantly at Lily, who was wilting. “Is this it, Lily? You want to call off the wedding?”
“She does,” Brian assured him quickly, looking at Lily.
“I want to hear her say it.”
We all stared at Lily, looking tiny amid the cushions of the couch. Brian perched himself on the arm next to her, taking her hand in his.
“Tell him, Lil,” he encouraged softly. Lily looked up at Jason, her eyes glassy.
“I want to call off the wedding.”
“See?” Brian said triumphantly.
Jason cocked his head, staring at her. “You really want that?”
“Yes...”
“She never loved you...did you, Lil?”
Lily shook her head slowly, now staring at her lap. “I never loved you,” she nearly whispered.
“It wasn’t meant to be you and her, it was meant to be her and I. Things just got confused along the way,” Brian explained, grinning confidently and standing. Jason, however, crouched down in front of Lily.
“Lily, that’s not true, is it?” he asked in a gentler tone than I ever though possible, resting his hand on her knee. Lily looked out the window.
“Yes,” she said, sounding so unsure I thought she’d cry. Jason reached out and turned her face toward him. Brian watched like a hawk.
“Sweetheart, please...look me in the eye and tell me that’s not true,” he pleaded. Her eyes were full of tears as she looked into his.
“I...I never really loved you.” But we all knew it was a lie.
“Not even in Tahiti, when I carried you along the beach and we drew hearts in the sand?” he pressed. Lily opened her mouth but a tear finally spilled over and she closed her mouth again. “Not even when I proposed - back home, on Christmas Eve under the stars?”
“No,” Lily breathed. I looked to Brian, whose face was drawn. Jason turned to look at him too.
“I think you’re mistaken,” he ruled as he rose. “I think you’ve made a mistake.”
“You’re confusing her. She’s emotional and you’re taking advantage of it.”
“The only person that took advantage of anything was you. I haven’t been the greatest boyfriend, I know. I’m trying to work on it. Lily understands.”
“Why should she when there are people in the world that would never make her understand anything like what you do? People that are loyal, and honest?” Brian was starting to sound panicked. Jason, however, was growing calmer and calmer by the second.
“We have things to work on, you’re right...but she does love me, Brian.”
Brian turned to Lily, anguished. “Lil,” he pleaded. Lily turned to look at him slowly.
“What else do you want from me, Brian? I said want you wanted. He’s right, though - I did love him. But I loved you too.”
Brian blinked in disbelief. “Loved me...too?”
Jason smiled. “See? Things aren’t as certain as you thought, now, were they?”
“Lily, please, tell him our plan...” Brian was near tears, I could tell, but Lily got up.
“You’re asking too much from me! You’re just...it’s too much!” she cried, running from the room. Brian looked after her, then at us, then bolted for the door, calling Lily’s name.
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