The Best for Last by Maria Geraci Page A

took a sip. “So what brings you here tonight?”
    â€œRehearsal dinner for my…for Kitty’s father and his bride to be.”
    â€œYeah, I heard my old man is doing the service tomorrow.”
    Steve nodded.
    Donalan took a couple more sips of the beer, then pushed it away. “I should probably get going.” He went to get up from his stool.
    â€œYou ever been in love?” Steve asked. It was impulsive. And stupid. Because he really didn’t care what Donalan had to say. Did he?
    â€œOnce. A long time ago.”
    â€œBut love didn’t save your marriage.”
    â€œI never said it was it was my ex I’d been in love with.”
    Steve glanced up. “Ah. Hence the reason your marriage fell apart.” Funny. He hadn’t pegged Donalan for a cheater.
    â€œYou got it all wrong.” Donalan reached back for the beer and this time, he drained it. “Doesn’t matter. I messed up. I haven’t seen her in over ten years. But…” He shrugged. “I still think of her sometimes. What might have been. You know.”
    â€œThe proverbial one that got away, huh?”
    â€œYou could say that.” Donalan shifted around in his stool. “Hey, I’m just an asshole who didn’t know a good thing when he saw it way back when. But I like to think that now that I’m older, if I ever have the chance to make it right… I don’t know. I just hope that I’d take a chance this time. You know?” He got up and slapped Steve on the back. “Thanks for the beer, boss.”

CHAPTER EIGHT
    K itty peered out the vestibule. The Whispering Bay Methodist Church was small enough that the few dozen people waiting for the ceremony to begin made the place feel cozy. White gardenias overflowed along the tops of the aisles and a violinist played classical music in the background. Today was her father’s wedding day! She still had to pinch herself to believe that it was happening. And to keep herself awake.
    She’d had trouble sleeping after the way she and Steve had left things last night. Sometime around three in the morning, she’d finally drifted off but then she’d woken back up before five. Pilar had come over to the house to help her get ready and had slathered the area under her eyes with hemorrhoid cream. She claimed it would get rid of the bags but Kitty wasn’t so sure. Her hair and makeup looked well enough, she supposed, but even she had seen the sadness on her own face. Too bad there wasn’t a cream to take care of the man you loved telling you that he liked you a lot.
    She mentally chided herself. Today wasn’t about her . It was about her dad and Sharon and she was genuinely happy for them. Once the shock of their engagement had worn off, Kitty had taken the time to get to know Sharon and she was every bit as lovely as she seemed. So were Mallory and Ginny. And despite last night’s toast debacle, Frank and Greg were okay, too. Once you got them away from one another.
    Shea caught her eye and waved to her. Her husband, Moose, was sitting next to her in the pew. Pilar and Nick and Frida and Ed and the rest of the Bunco Babes and their spouses were present, as well as a healthy contingency from the Gray Flamingos. Betty Jean Collins wore a silver dress and sat in the second row and seemed awfully preoccupied by…
    Kitty turned to see what Betty Jean was so interested in. She should have known it would be Steve walking down the aisle. Wearing a dark suit with a light-colored shirt and the red tie she’d given him for his birthday, he looked exactly the way she’d envisioned him whenever she dreamed of their own wedding.
    A lump settled in her throat, threatening to squeeze her airway.
    They were supposed to talk this afternoon after the wedding. But what would they say to one another?
    Steve looked at her, but his expression was solemn. He broke their gaze, scanning the pews, looking for a row to