Slowly, she shakes her head. “Why would I be mad? We all love Jax, and you’re getting married. This is a big day for you.” Then her eyes narrow as she asks, “If we hadn’t directly confronted you, would you have even told us before our wedding?”
Sloane just stares at her sister, as Jax clears his throat. “The plan was to tell you all after your ceremony. We have no intentions of interrupting your big day.”
“You haven’t,” Lanie assures her as she reaches across the table and squeezes Sloane’s hand.
“Leave it to Sloane… planning something like this,” their dad grumbles, effortlessly breaking the tension in the room, causing us all to laugh. “It’s a good thing I took a few weeks off for leave. Now I’ve gottwo girls getting married this week.”
“Oh, she’s got things planned.” Jax chuckles. “Trust me.”
Conversations around the room continue, but my attention is drawn to Raven and her sister when I notice Raven tilther head at Sloane and stare expectantly. I swear an unspoken conversation passes between them, and I’d give anything to know what’s being said. The moment passes quickly when Sloane breaks the silence as she looks between her sisters.
“I’d really like the three of you to be in the wedding party, like we’ve planned forever. Raven, you’ll still be my maid of honor, right?”
Each sister agrees in their own way, but my attention stays on Raven, whose eyes shimmer with unshed tears. Reaching under the table, I squeeze her hand to let her know I’m here for her.
“Of course, I will, Sloaney. You know I wouldn’t miss it for the world.”
“Do you have a dress picked out?” Mable interrupts, drawing my attention to her. “Or do we need to see if Stella can rush you something?”
Sloane shrugs almost impishly. “Yeah. I found one… and I may have picked out some for each of you as well… I’ll show you all tomorrow once Mom arrives.”
“Hopefully, her flight won’t be delayed. I know she’s got to be beside herself for missing Lanie’s fitting today,” Mable adds as she walks to the island to dish up cobbler. “Anyone want ice cream with their dessert?”
“Here, let me help you with that,” Mr. Lancaster says to Mable as he joins her in the kitchen.
Conversations start around the room as dessert is passed out. Most are digging in, but Raven’s just staring at her bowl, pushing the fruit around. She hasn’t joined any of the conversations around her and is clearly stuck in her head.
This isn’t like her. Something’s definitely off.
Maybe she needs a break?
Not wanting to call her out on it publicly, I whisper so only she can hear, “Hey, wanna take this outside?”
Startled, she looks from her dessert to me and shrugs. “Come on,” I say, standing, then taking her bowl in my hand. “I could use some fresh air. Mind if we finish this on the deck?”
I don’t look around the room. Instead, I focus on balancing her bowl on my forearm so I can still hold mine and reach for her with my free hand. Thankfully, she takes it and follows me out the sliding glass doors with ease.
Once we’re alone and sitting on the rocking swing that faces the ocean, I hand her back her dessert. She whispers, “Thanks.”
Never being one to avoid a problem, I look her over with care and ask, “Everything okay?”
“Yeah.” She blinks a few times. “Why wouldn’t it be?”
“I don’t know. You tell me. You’ve been stuck in your head since your sister dropped that bomb in there.”
She lets out a sound like a cross between a snort and a harumph. “Just trying to take it all in. It’s a lot to process. I couldn’t be happier for Sloane and Jax, but I never expected she’d want to get married so soon.”
“It’s a rather short engagement, but I get why they’re doing it.”
Raven’s brows scrunch together adorably, as she asks, “You do?”
“I was with them in close quarters while on tour. They’re madly in love and when we go back on tour later this year, I’m sure their life will only get crazier. If they want to take a moment for themselves and share it with your family while they’re home, I don’t blame them.”
Sighing heavily, Raven smiles weakly. “Don’t get me wrong. I’m so happy for them. I love my sister, and Jax is the best. It’s just a lot of… change.”
Wrapping an arm around her, I pull her into my side. On her next heavy breath, she sinks into my chest, and I feel her relax into me. Neither of us says anything as she takes a few bitesof her dessert, and we stare out into the waves in the distance. Eventually, she breaks the silence by tilting her head so she can look me directly in the eye and ask, “How did you know I needed this break?”
There are so many ways I can answer this question. Knowing she’s strong-willed, stubborn, and could read a lot into each answer, I go with the most direct response. “It’s simple. I paid attention.”
