We hardly knew each other.
Yet…Melanie Carmichael knew more about me than anyone else in the world. She knew about my past as well as my present. My coworkers knew only my present. My father and uncle knew only my past.
Melanie was about the closest thing I had to a friend.
She was probably thinking the same about me.
And while I didn’t really relish a vacation, time spent with Melanie and the Steels would give me a great chance to question them about…things. Though they probably wouldn’t want to talk about that kind of stuff in the middle of a wedding. A wedding was a happy time.
Happy.
Now there was a word I wasn’t very familiar with.
I’d grown content with my life. Content with my work.
Content.
But never happy.
Never full of joy.
Never flying to the fucking moon.
Nope, not in the cards for me.
“…come along and be my maid of honor?”
Yep, there it was.
“I don’t know…”
“Look, I know we don’t know each other very well, but you’re honestly the first person I thought to ask. I understand if you can’t make it, but I’d love it if you could come.”
For a minute I let myself think about it.
Jamaica.
Beach. Sand. Sun. Swimming.
Relaxation.
Another word I wasn’t very familiar with.
Of course, the Steels wouldn’t do anything halfway, and I could never afford to do it their way.
“That’s really nice of you to ask. I’m honestly flattered.” And I was. “But there’s no way I’d be able to afford to go, Melanie.”
She laughed. “It’s all on me. Seriously.”
“I couldn’t let you do that. We don’t know each other well enough for me to let you treat me.”
“Please. I want to. I have some savings, and the Steels are paying for the big stuff. The wedding and all. I have a feeling no one has offered to do anything for you in a long time, Ruby. Let me. Please.”
She had the truth of that. A vacation… Suddenly the idea didn’t seem so scary.
“That’s really generous of you, but I can pay my own way. I mean, as long as you’re not staying at the Ritz Carlton or anything.”
“No,” she laughed. “We’ll be spending a week at this all-inclusive resort in Negril. All of the rooms are the same price, and Jonah’s sister was able to book us all in one bungalow. But I really wish you’d let me—”