Side Squeeze (Jasper Falls 6)

When they reached the ballroom, her eyes found him—bowtie already undone and a glass of red in his hand as he laughed hard at something Uncle Frank said.

She caught Harrison’s arm and paused. “Look at them. Two best friends.”

“Brothers,” Harrison corrected.

She scanned the crowd for Giovanni and found him carrying two plates back from the crepe station, one glowing, very pregnant wife in tow. Harrison followed her stare and smiled at the two of them.

“I’ll wait with them while you dance with your dad.”

“Okay. You and Erin are next.”

As soon as she set foot on the dance floor, her father’s eyes found her. He passed his glass to Uncle Frank and met her in the middle as the DJ played the classic “Daddy’s Little Girl” by the Mills Brothers.

“You look beautiful, Mariella.”

“Thank you, Daddy. For everything.”

His acceptance of Harrison hadn’t come easily, but once Harrison made a commitment, there was no going back. The men in her family gave him a second chance and found commonalities with her husband more than differences.

It wasn’t that her father and Giovanni ever hated Harrison. They just really loved her and loathed to see anyone break her heart, which Harrison had done.

But just as her husband’s struggles had made him stronger and kinder, their journey helped them grow as a couple. They understood the value of their love was immeasurable, and the history of their connection too complicated to explain or ever fully write down. They knew what they shared, knew how precious it was, and knew nothing could ever come close to matching their bond. And for that, she was grateful.

It might have taken Harrison more than a decade to tell her he loved her, but once he found the courage and the words, he made sure to tell her every day.

“He makes you happy,” her father observed.

“Incredibly so.”

“Good. Then I won’t have to kill him.”

She laughed and kissed her dad’s cheek as the song ended. “I love you, Daddy.”

“I love you more, bambolina. Enjoy your night.”

The DJ called Harrison and Erin to the dance floor. Harrison reluctantly escorted his waddling sister away from her crepes so they could dutifully dance.

“They hate this.” Giovanni chuckled, as Mariella took the seat beside him.

She barely ate a bite of her dinner so she picked at one of the many assorted plates at Erin’s setting. “But they’ll appreciate it later, when they see the video. Look how adorable they are.”

Jason Mraz’s voice came through the speakers, poetically coloring all their beautiful imperfections as they danced to “I Won’t Give Up.” Tears welled in Mariella’s eyes, so taken by the perfect picture they made.

Over just a few months, Harrison had transformed into an amazing brother and friend. Erin once told Mariella she now had everything she needed—a family that loved and accepted each other through thick and thin.

Her brother’s hand closed over hers. “I never did thank you.”

“For?”

“Bringing another best friend into my life. He’s awesome, Mar.”

She glanced back at the dance floor and smiled. “I know.”

The only person who had trouble seeing Harrison’s greatness was Harrison, but she supposed that was the way it worked for most people. “If only we saw ourselves through other people’s eyes.”

“The right people.”

She nodded, once more wishing Harrison and Erin’s childhood could have been different. “They’re with the right people now.”

The rest of the guests joined them on the floor, luring Mariella and Harrison into the middle. Everything swirled in a beautiful blur. Her Clooney and McCullough relatives surrounded them in a sea of smiles, and the night floated on a cloud of love.

Sometime toward the end of the evening, she realized she was the last of their generation to get married—the last of her cousins. Next would come the children—probably Frankie then Hannah, then possibly Tallulah and all the rest would follow.

What felt like an ending to some was actually just the beginning to others. Everything always came full circle, again and again.

Watching her older relatives smile and enjoy the night, she wondered if they realized this too. She wondered if that was the secret that kept them laughing after so many years. No matter how many ups and downs came, they would somehow survive because they had each other. That’s what family was all about—having someone there to catch you when you fall and help you up when you’re on the ground.

She thought back to the day she stumbled into Harrison’s life again, falling head over heels for him just like she had before.

“What’s that smile?” Harrison spun her across the dance floor, pulling her close.

“I was just thinking how humiliated I was the day I fell in the hotel lobby.”

“Right at my feet,” he joked, then kissed her nose. “Do you know what I was thinking, ten seconds before you came tumbling through that door?”

“What?”

“I was thinking, God, send me a sign that I should stay, and you literally appeared.”