Ronnie nodded. "Yes, please." She straightened her dress as she stood, hoping she could make it home without throwing up. "Would you please tell Will that I said good-bye? And that I won't be seeing him anymore?"
Tom nodded. "Yeah," he said. "I can do that."
*
She didn't throw up and didn't cry, but she didn't say anything in what had to be the longest car ride of her life. Nor did Tom, though that wasn't exactly surprising.
The house was quiet when she got home; the lights were off, and both Jonah and her dad were sound asleep. From the hallway, she could hear her father breathing; it was deep and heavy, as though he'd had a long, hard day. But all she could think as she crawled into bed and began to cry was that no day could have been longer and harder than the one she'd just endured.
Her eyes were still puffy and sore as she felt someone shaking her awake. Squinting up, she saw Jonah sitting on the bed beside her.
"You've got to get up."
The images from the night before and the things Susan had said came surging back, making her suddenly feel nauseated.
"I don't want to get up."
"You don't have a choice. There's someone here."
"Will?"
"No," he said. "Someone else."
"Ask Dad if he can handle it," she said, pulling the covers over her head.
"I would, except that he's still sleeping. And besides, she asked for you."
"Who?"
"I don't know, but she's waiting for you outside. And she's hot."
After throwing on a pair of jeans and a shirt, Ronnie stepped cautiously onto the porch. She hadn't known what to expect, but this certainly wasn't it.
"You look terrible," Megan said without preamble.
She was dressed in shorts and a tank top, but Jonah was right: Up close, she was even prettier than she'd been at the wedding yesterday. She also radiated a self-confidence that made Ronnie instantly feel years younger.
"I'm really sorry about ruining your wedding...," Ronnie began.
Megan held up a hand. "You didn't ruin the wedding," she said with a wry smile. "You made the reception... memorable..."
At Megan's comment, Ronnie felt tears beginning to form.
"Don't cry," Megan said gently. "I don't blame you. If it was anyone's fault, it was Marcus's."
Ronnie blinked.
"Yeah, I know what happened. Will and I talked after my mom was finally finished with him. I think I'm pretty clear on everything. So like I said, I don't blame you. Marcus is insane. He always has been."
Ronnie swallowed. Though Megan was being ridiculously forgiving about the whole thing--or maybe because she was being so understanding--her feelings of mortification only intensified.
"Umm... if you're not here to yell at me, then why did you come?" Ronnie asked.
"Partly because I talked to Will. But the main reason I came is because I want to know something. And I want you to tell me the truth."
Ronnie felt her stomach roiling. "What do you want to know?"
"I want to know if you love my brother."
Ronnie wasn't sure she'd heard right, but Megan's gaze was unwavering. Yet what did she have to lose? Their relationship was over. Distance would make sure of that, if Susan didn't do it first.
Megan had asked for the truth, and in light of the kindness she'd shown, Ronnie knew she had no choice.
"Yes, I do."
"It's not a summer fling?"
Ronnie shook her head fiercely. "Will and I..." She trailed off, not trusting herself to speak, knowing that words were inadequate to describe it.
Studying her face, Megan slowly began to smile. "Okay," she said. "I believe you."
Ronnie frowned in consternation, and Megan laughed. "I've been around. I've seen that look before. Like this morning when I looked in the mirror. I feel the same way about Daniel, but I have to say it's a little odd to see that look on you. When I was seventeen, I don't think I even knew what love was. But when it's right, it's right, and you just know it."
As Ronnie registered her words, she decided that Will hadn't been fair when he'd described his sister. She wasn't great, she was... way, way better than that. She was the kind of person Ronnie wanted to be in a few years, in practically every way. In a matter of minutes, Megan had become her hero.
"Thank you," she murmured, unable to think of a better response.
"Don't thank me. This isn't about you. This is about my brother, and he's still crazy about you," she said with a knowing smile. "Anyway, my point is that since you're in love with him, then you shouldn't worry about what happened at the reception. All you did was give my mom a story she's going to tell for the rest of her life. Believe me, she'll get a lot of mileage out of it. In time, she'll get over this. She always does."
"I don't know..."
"That's because you don't know her. Oh, she's tough, don't get me wrong. And protective. But once you get to know her, there's no one better in the world. She'll do anything for anyone she cares about."
Her words echoed Will's description, but so far, Ronnie hadn't seen that side of Susan.
"You should talk to Will," Megan said, lowering her sunglasses into place as she prepared to leave. "Don't worry. I'm not suggesting you go to the house. And besides, he's not there."
"Where is he?"
She motioned over her shoulder, toward the pier in the distance. "He's at the tournament. Their first game starts in forty minutes."
The tournament. In the wild rush of all that had happened, she'd forgotten about it.
"I was just there, but when I left him, he was really out of it. He was so upset, I don't think he slept at all. Especially after what you told my dad. You need to make things right." Her voice was firm.
Megan was about to step off the porch when she turned to face Ronnie again. "And just so you know? Daniel and I postponed our honeymoon for a day so we could watch my little brother play in the tournament. It would be great if his head was in the game. He might have downplayed it, but doing well in the tournament is important to him."
After showering and dressing, Ronnie raced down the beach. The area around the pier was thronged, much as it had been on her first night in town.
Temporary bleachers that sandwiched two courts had been set up on the far side of the pier, jammed with at least a thousand spectators. Even more were massed along the pier, which provided a bird's-eye view of the game. The beach itself was so packed, she could barely make her way through the crowd. There was no way she'd be able to find Will in time, she fretted.
No wonder winning the tournament was so important.