The Best Man Plan

always know the right thing to say,” Erin said. “But honestly, I’m a wreck.”
“All my girls are beautiful, even when you cry,” her mom said. “But Brenna’s right. A mask on your eyes will get rid of the puffiness. And God knows, Erin, you needed to cry it out.”
Erin nodded, then turned to Brenna. “Is that what you did when your marriage to Mitchell ended?”
Brenna nodded. “For days. And days. And then I never cried again. You need to get it out of you, Erin, or you’ll end up breaking down at the grocery store one day. Or the hair salon.”
“I know. And I do feel better now. Still sad, but better.”
“I imagine you’re going to feel sad for a while,” Honor said. “You planned a life with Owen. And he let you down.”
She took a deep breath, then let it out. “No more talking about Owen. Is everything set for the party tonight?”
Her mother nodded. “Everything’s set. Nearly everyone reconfirmed their attendance. Obviously, some of the people Owen works with won’t be attending. And some of his closest friends and his family said they won’t be here.”
Some of Owen’s friends were her friends, too. That one stung, but she understood. It would be awkward on both sides and the only thing she wanted tonight was fun. “That’s fine. I expected that.”
“But Jason’s coming,” Brenna said.
Erin smiled. “He told me he’d be here. I mean, he was my friend before he was Owen’s friend.”
“This much is true,” her mom said. “Anyway, I have to go supervise the table setup. You sure you’re all right?”
She smiled up at her mother. “Fine and ready to party.”
“Good.” Mom leaned over to kiss her cheek. “It’ll get better, cailín leanbh.”
She smiled at her mother calling her “baby girl,” as she often did with her daughters. “Thank you, Mom.”
After her sisters left her room, she got up and went into the bathroom, staring at her tear-streaked face in the mirror.
Her hair was a mess, her eyes were swollen, and she looked just like everyone was going to expect—a bride whose groom had left her.
Well, she wasn’t going to give them the satisfaction. She went in search of the mask that Brenna had told her was in the freezer, grabbed it and tried her best to lie still on the bed. But lying still forced her to think, and her head filled with thoughts about getting married and packing for her honeymoon. And walking down the aisle next to her dad, with Owen standing there at the other end waiting to marry her.
She felt the prick of tears again and inhaled. She pulled the mask away long enough to turn on music. Loud, heart-pumping music. To hell with relaxation. She needed something that would keep her brain occupied, that would make her want to sing and would keep her from dwelling on things she couldn’t change.
She moved her head back and forth while she waited for the mask to do its job, and the only thing in her head now was how much fun she was going to have tonight.
So much damn fun.

CHAPTER
•  •  •  •  •  •
three
JASON FELT STUPID wearing the tux, but if it was what Erin wanted, then that’s what she was going to get. At least her dad was wearing one, too, and so was Finn, a friend of the family who also worked on the vineyard.
The ceremony was supposed to take place outside, followed immediately by an hors d’oeuvres and wine bar near the grapes.
Obviously, there wasn’t going to be a ceremony, but Erin’s dad told him everything else was going to happen just the way they’d arranged it.
“Erin insisted,” Johnny said with a shrug, tugging on the collar of his tux. “At least it’s not a hundred degrees out here.”
“She told me she wanted May because it wouldn’t be too hot yet like it might be in June.”
Johnny laughed, his cheeks puffing up. “Yeah, my girl isn’t the sentimental type. She couldn’t have cared less about that whole June-bride thing. She was just afraid it might rain on her weddin’ day.”
The day had dawned bright and sunny without a cloud in the sky. It would have been a perfect day for a wedding. Too bad his best friend had turned out to be a total dick.
He and Owen were going to have words when he got back from Aruba.
Owen must have left his phone off, because Jason had tried calling him again, and the calls still went straight to voice mail.
Jason took a sip of wine. You can run, buddy, but you can’t hide forever.
He ran into Finn Nolan at the bar. Finn looked even more uncomfortable in his tux than Jason felt.
“How long do we have to wear these suits?” Finn asked.
“Eh, you can suck it up for one night. For Erin.”
“Yeah, I guess so. She’s like my little sister. If I had a sister. Which I don’t. But, you know, if I had sisters, she’d be one.”
Jason laughed. “What time did you start drinking today?”
“Noon. Weddings aren’t my thing. Too much frilly shit and standing around and not nearly enough whiskey.”
“I hear that.” Jason paused. “You have whiskey?”
“Dude, I’m Irish.” He pulled a flask from his coat pocket and handed it over to Jason.
Jason took a swig and let the liquid burn its way down his throat, then screwed the top back on and handed it back to Finn. “Good.”
“Hell yes it’s good. Made it myself.”
“Yeah?”
“Yeah. Johnny’s letting me experiment in one of the barns.”
“So now you’ve got a winemaking and whiskey business?”
“Well, I don’t make the wine. I’m just a carpenter and I help Johnny out. The whiskey’s just for fun. And okay, maybe someday. Ya know?”
Finn Nolan had lived here since his senior year of high school. His mom and Maureen Bellini had been friends back in Dublin when they were kids, and when Finn turned eighteen his mom passed away. With no other living relatives, Maureen brought him over to