“I’ve got a better idea. Come with me.” He took her hand and left the bathroom.

  She tried to tug her hand away, but he had a firm grip and wouldn’t let go. And with every step they took toward the backyard, her panic rose higher and higher.

  They stepped outside.

  “Hey, everyone. I have something to say.”

  The crowd was loud; Owen, however, was louder, so everyone quieted and turned their attention on him. And on her. And the fact that they were holding hands.

  “Honor and I are dating. And there’s dessert in the kitchen, so help yourselves. I’ve already tried the chocolate mint cupcakes and they’re awesome.”

  She was going to die of mortification right there on Owen’s back porch.

  CHAPTER

  twenty-two

  OKAY, SO EVERYONE stared at them—for about ten seconds. Then people got up and headed toward the kitchen. After all, dessert was way more important than Owen’s dating life. Though Finn stopped to pat him on the back and mumble, “I sure hope you know what you’re doin’, bro.”

  He had no idea what he was doing. He was just trying his best to protect Honor from the onslaught of family drama.

  A few people stopped to congratulate them. Honor was great about it, accepting the hugs. No one questioned them or asked for any details. And her family steered clear, her parents and sisters huddled up together at a table.

  Jason and Clay came over, though. Jason hugged Honor, then held out his hand to Owen. “I’m shocked. You and Honor, huh?”

  Owen shrugged. “It just . . . happened. Kind of suddenly.”

  “Hey, if you two are happy, then I’m happy. Have fun with each other.”

  Owen grinned. “We are.”

  “Thanks, Jason,” Honor said.

  “I like that you’re keeping it in the core group,” Clay said. “I was getting kind of tired of vetting those losers you’ve been dating, Honor.”

  She shot Clay a look. “Hey.”

  Clay laughed. “Just kidding. Mostly. Not really. They were bad, honey.”

  “Don’t you have some dessert to get to?”

  “Now that you mention it . . .”

  They wandered off, leaving Honor and Owen alone.

  She turned to face him. “I can’t believe you did that. You didn’t even talk to me first.”

  “We did discuss it. You said you didn’t want to tell everyone we were married.”

  She cocked her head to the side. “So you decided—on your own, by the way—to tell everyone we were dating. Which we aren’t. Not really, anyway.”

  “Well, I guess we can now.”

  He could tell from the irritated look on her face that maybe they should have talked this out a bit more. But he’d had enough of the two of them hiding in the shadows. “And this big meeting at Erin’s later. You knew that was going to be about you and me. I figured announcing it before Erin had the chance to drop a bomb on everyone was the smartest thing to do.”

  She gave him a pained look, then said, “I guess you’re right, but now my family’s all staring at us.”

  He took her hand. “Then let’s go answer any questions they have.”

  She tugged on his hand to stop him and he turned to reassure her. “Look, I know it’s complicated, Honor. We’ll figure it out. One step at a time, right?”

  She nodded. “Right. Dating. Just dating.”

  “Yeah, right.”

  He just wanted her to be okay. Married or not, she was his to protect, and he planned to do that no matter what, even if it meant protecting her from her own family. Though he doubted it would come to that. Surely, they couldn’t be upset about the two of them dating, could they?

  They made their way to the table, where everyone suddenly went silent.

  Owen slid into a seat. Honor stood.

  “Honor, sit down,” her mother said, so she took the seat next to Owen.

  “How long have you two been seeing each other?” her father asked, his attention focused solely on Owen.

  “Not long. About a month.”

  “And why didn’t you tell us?” Maureen asked, her focus on Honor.

  “Because if we were just going to go out once or twice, I didn’t want it to be a whole third-degree thing, like it is right now.”

  “Obviously it’s more than that, though, isn’t it? I mean, a month is a long time for you, Honor.”

  “Thanks for that, Brenna,” Honor said, shooting her sister a scathing look.

  “I didn’t mean it that way. I only meant that with your dating record and all . . .”

  “I get what you meant.”

  “It’s the truth, though,” Erin added. “Most of your relationships burn out after a week or two.”

  Tension rolled off Honor in waves. He could feel it, and could see the way her shoulders rose toward her neck. He wanted to reach out and rub away the stress he knew she was feeling.

  “Well, this time is different. Owen and I are—”

  Everyone looked at her and for a second there, Owen thought that maybe she’d tell them about Vegas.

  “You’re what?” Erin asked, her voice tight.

  She finally gave a nonchalant shrug. “We’re having a good time together, and I wanted to keep that to myself for a while.”

  Erin stood. “I can’t believe this. I can’t believe you’re going out with him. Of all the guys, Honor.”

  Honor laid her hands on the table and leaned toward the opposite side. “Why should it matter who I date?”

  Owen knew why it mattered. Because it was him.

  “Normally it wouldn’t,” Erin said. “But you know why this matters.”

  Now Jason stood. “Wait a minute. Why does this matter, Erin?”

  Erin flipped her attention to her husband. “Because . . . because . . . it just does. You know what happened with Owen and me.”

  “Yeah. But it’s over now and I thought that was all behind us.”

  “Well, maybe it’s not.”

  Shit. Owen’s stomach sank. “Erin, do we need to talk about this?”

  “You and I do not need to talk about anything. How dare you date my sister?”

  Now Maureen stood. “That’s enough, Erin. You can sit down.”

  “I’m not sitting down. I’m leaving.”

  She walked away, storming through the yard and into the house.

  “I’m really sorry,” Jason said, giving them both a sympathetic grimace before going after Erin.

  “Well, this was a hell of a day,” Brenna said. She walked over to Honor and folded her into her arms. “I’m here for you, no matter what.”

  Finn patted him on the back.

  “Let’s go get some dessert,” Brenna said. “Family arguments make me hungry.”

  Finn snickered and they walked away.

  Honor’s parents got up next. Johnny left without saying anything, which pained Owen more than he could say. Losing his relationship with Johnny after he and Erin had broken up had been one of his greatest hurts. It had taken a lot for them to make amends, and he’d felt such relief when things had gotten back to normal. Now it felt like they were back to square one.

  “We’ll figure it all out,” Maureen said. “I just wish you had said something to me, Honor.”

  And then they left.

  Owen couldn’t have fucked this up more if he’d planned it. And now Honor looked miserable and unhappy and completely broken.

  He shifted in his chair to face her. “I’m sorry.”

  “It was bound to happen. There was no way to tell them that wasn’t going to upset someone.”

  “I get Erin being upset,” he said. “Though I don’t know why she’s so angry.”

  “Me, either. I’ll talk to her.”

  “No, I will. I’m the one who broke her heart. It should be me.”

  Honor shook her head. “Honestly, I think a little distance is probably the best right now.”

  He didn’t like the direction this conversation was going. “Distance from . . . the family?”

  “No, you and me. I need some time to think, Owen. To process all of this and come up with a plan.”

  “Which we should do together, don’t you think?”

  She shook her head. “I just need some space. This was a lot. My family is really shaken up right now, and I’m responsible for it.”

  He reached for her hand. “You didn’t do this alone. We did it together. So we’ll figure out a solution together.”

  She went silent for a minute, and he gave her that time to wind through her thoughts. Finally, she lifted her head and he saw tears shimmering in her eyes. He hated that he’d put them there.

  “Just give me a few days, okay?”

  He’d never deny her what she needed. “Sure.”

  But he worried that the more time they spent apart, the more she might realize she was better off without him.

  And it would also give the family more time to convince her of the same thing.

  Maybe they should have continued to keep their relationship a secret, because he might have just screwed up the best thing that ever happened to him.

  CHAPTER

  twenty-three

  MEETINGS FOR THE past week had been tense. Honor had never felt more uncomfortable at work—which was also home. The family had clearly taken sides in the Honor-versus-Erin battle, and every day that passed made Honor more upset.

  Erin had been quiet and sullen, and while Honor had done her best to understand her reasons for it, she wished they could talk things through. But she couldn’t ask her sister any questions, because she and Erin were barely on speaking terms. Erin only broke her frosty silence when it was absolutely necessary to discuss something work-related. Now, as they all sat at the dining room table, no one said a word. There was a lot of shuffling of papers and typing on laptops and phones. Normally, they’d all be catching up and talking over each other. Instead, there was just painful silence.

  It was brutal.

  At first Mae, who always attended the meetings, had tried making small talk, but no one took the bait. Then even the always-cheerful Mae had fallen into the same routine of uncomfortable silence.

  Mom cleared her throat. “Erin, would you like to start the meeting?”

  Erin looked up from her laptop, a flat expression on her face. “Fine. Honor, the budget for the Xavier/Latham wedding isn’t finalized yet.”

  Honor went to her spreadsheet and pulled up the wedding details. “We’re still waiting on a quote for floral and cake. I should have cake in by next week. One of our grooms, Max, is undecided about which floral setup he wants. He’s changed his mind about their choice, and he and our other groom, Brandon, would like to peruse other floral options. We’re meeting with Florals by Beth on Thursday, who I think would be a great fit for their wedding.”

  Erin was making notes in her laptop. “We’re just about to hit the five-month mark on their wedding date. We should be finalizing all sections.”

  “I’ve got it covered.”

  Erin made another note. “I’ll follow up in a week on that wedding. Next up is the Barnett/Green wedding. They’re late paying their deposit. It was due two weeks ago. I assume you’ll contact them about it? You told me in last week’s meeting you were going to discuss it with them when you met with them to go over invitations.”

  Honor had extensive notes that she kept for every meeting, so she pulled them up. “And then you said to forget it, you’d contact them before more time passed.”

  Erin perused her laptop. “Hmm. I don’t recall having that discussion and it’s not in my notes. You must be mistaken.”

  “Well, I was in that meeting and you did say that, Erin,” Brenna said. “It’s in my notes, too.”

  Honor resisted a smile, while Erin flat-out looked irritated.

  And poor Mae just sat back, made notes and stayed quiet. She’d known the family for years, but Honor was sure that Mae was wildly uncomfortable to be sitting in the middle of this war zone.

  “Maybe you just forgot to add that notation, Erin,” their mother said. “You know how our meetings go. There are always so many details flying back and forth.”

  “Hmmm. Maybe.” Erin frowned at her laptop, clearly flummoxed.

  “Anyway,” Mom said, waving her hand. “I can follow up on that item. I need to have a discussion with them about another financial matter anyway.”

  Honor looked to her mother. “What detail is that, Mom?”

  “Oh, nothing for you to concern yourself with.”

  “Actually, every wedding detail is something I concern myself with.”

  “Not this one, Honor.” Her mother shot her a “Mom” look, the one she had been giving the girls for as long as Honor could remember, the one that said the subject was no longer open to discussion.

  “Okayyy,” Honor said.

  Erin slanted a smug smile in her direction, making Honor want to throw her shoe at her sister. Erin was getting on her last nerve today.

  The rest of the meeting flowed without incident, thankfully, because ten a.m. was a little too early for a large glass of wine. When they finished, everyone headed to their respective offices.

  Mae stepped into Honor’s office and closed the door. “Well. That was intense.”

  “You could say that.” Honor laid her things down and took a long swallow of her now-cold coffee, grimacing at the harsh flavor. She pushed the offending cup to the side.

  “Do you want me to get you something cold to drink?” Mae asked.

  “No, thanks. I’ll go get something in a minute.”

  Mae slid into the chair in front of Honor’s desk. “I don’t get it. Shouldn’t Erin be past all this by now? Maybe she could have been a little miffed that you didn’t tell her you were dating her ex-fiancé. I get that part. But it’s been a week. She should have yelled at you, the two of you could’ve talked it out, and then done, right? I didn’t grow up with any siblings, but I know your dynamic and everything. Isn’t that what you all do?”

  “Typically, yes. But she won’t talk to me. I’ve tried.” She’d tried a lot, and at every attempt, Erin slammed the door in her face—sometimes literally. “It’s like she’s deliberately dragging this whole thing out to cause even more drama. I know she’s pregnant and hormones may be at play, so I’ve tried to be sensitive and back off, but . . .”

  “But you’re irritated.”

  “Yes.” At least Mae understood.

  The door opened and Honor held her breath, part of her hoping it was Erin, the other part of her not ready for some type of confrontation.

  Fortunately, it was Brenna. “Oh, hi, Mae. Am I interrupting?”

  Honor shook her head. “No. Come on in.”

  Brenna shut the door and took a seat in the chair next to Mae. “So. Are we talking shit about Erin?”

  Honor lifted her chin. “We are so not.”

  Mae looked over at Brenna. “We are.”

  “Dammit, Mae.”

  Mae winced. “Sorry.”

  “Hey, I’m happy to join in. She came at you hard during the meeting today and it was totally unnecessary. What bug crawled up her ass about Owen, anyway?”

  “I don’t know.”

  “I get that she’s upset you didn’t tell everyone you were dating Owen. But why does she even care if you’re seeing him? I thought we were all friends now?”

  “We are. We were. I’ve tried talking to her, Bren, and she won’t let me.”

  Brenna raised her hands in the air. “Then I don’t get it. How are you supposed to fix it if you don’t know what you’re supposed to fix?”

  She’d never been happier to have her sister in her corner. “That’s it, exactly. I don’t know what I’m supposed to do. And it’s extremely annoying.”

  Just then, Erin walked past her office, spotted them all in there and opened the door. “Oh, and I suppose this is about me.”

  “Why?” Brenna asked. “Are you feeling vibes of guilt over your pissy behavior in the meeting?”

  Erin glared at Brenna. “Butt out. This isn’t about you.”

  Honor stood. “Erin. Let’s go talk somewhere. Just the two of us.”

  “I don’t have anything to say to you. You had your chance to talk to me and you didn’t, so we’re done.”

  Honor’s stomach sank. She walked around her desk. “If we could just—”

  Erin raised her hand. “We just can’t. And I’d really appreciate it if you all would stop talking about me behind my back, because it’s pissing me off.”

  She stormed off, but Honor followed. So did Brenna.

  “Maybe we wouldn’t have to talk about you behind your back if you’d let Honor have a conversation with you.”

  Erin stopped in her tracks and pivoted. “Did you not hear the part where I said this is none of your business?”

  “I heard you just fine. But I also have to put up with your attitude at work, and with you being shitty to our sister, so I’m voicing my opinion.”

  Honor had always been the peacemaker between Erin and Brenna, and always hated it when they fought. Now they were fighting about her, which was even worse. “Please stop, both of you. Erin, if we could just talk—”

  “I told you, we have nothing to talk about.”

  “Yes, we do.” She deliberately kept her voice low and calm, hoping it would defuse this escalating situation.

  But Erin came toward her. “You know what I want? I want you to leave me alone. Unless it’s business related, don’t speak to me.”

  Honor could only take so much. “Now you’re being childish, and we’re not children. If we could just sit down and have an adult conversation, I’m sure we could—”

  “I said no!”

  Erin had yelled that last sentence. Mom came out of her office.