The Best Man Plan

finish his last year of high school and attend college, so he lived with the Bellinis and started working at the vineyards. He and Jason had become friends at school and often hung out together, along with Owen.
“Well, you make some fine whiskey, Finn.”
“Thanks.”
“This is a damn hot mess that Owen got us all into.”
Jason turned to see his other best friend, Clay Henry, also dressed in his tux for tonight. Clay and Jason and Owen had all grown up together, had hung out and gotten in trouble and had one another’s backs for everything.
He didn’t have Owen’s back for this, though.
“Have you talked to him?”
Clay shook his head. “Tried to call him a few times, but all my calls go straight to voice mail. Now his mailbox is full.”
“Same.” Owen was going to have a lot to answer for when he got back home. First, he would have to answer to Erin, of course.
Jason gathered Clay, Finn and a few of the other guys together, determined to make sure that tonight was all about Erin. He also wanted to be sure that the guests didn’t hit her up with comments like “I’m sorry” and “Oh, poor Erin” or pummel her with questions about Owen that she didn’t have answers for. So he told the guys to greet everyone as they came in and make sure they didn’t ask those questions, and just had a good time and enjoyed the food and the music and one another. That way Erin could enjoy tonight.
The Bellinis had done an amazing job of decorating the vineyard, making it look nothing like a wedding and more like a party. Colorful lights were strung all across the front entrance to the vineyard, and the barn was lit up with bright lights and spring flowers. There was seating for plenty of people, and there were bars set up both in the barn and around the vineyard, so people could walk and enjoy the spring weather and still stop and get something to drink.
Music was playing, something lively and entertaining. Definitely nothing romantic, and Jason would bet Honor Bellini had everything to do with that. As the wedding planner, she’d made sure to obliterate anything having to do with a wedding reception so her sister wouldn’t have to even think wedding. She’d done a great job.
Now that the guys were greeting the guests, he planned to hit up one of the bars.
But then he saw Erin walk out of the main house and stopped dead in his tracks.
She wore something silver that sparkled. It was short—sinfully short, showing off magnificent legs that were accented by heels he had no idea how she maneuvered in. Her raven hair was down, long waves falling over her shoulders. And as she walked down the steps, she took his damn breath away.
Owen was the dumbest fucker on the planet for letting Erin get away.
He went over to her and couldn’t help but let his gaze roam over her. From a distance, she blew him away. Up close, the dress was hardly a scrap covering her magnificent body. If she was out to prove a point to her nonexistent fiancé about what he was missing, she was proving it. She looked nothing like a bride tonight. She looked like a seriously sexy single woman who had no intentions of getting married.
And there were a lot of single guys here tonight.
Shit.
“What do you think of the dress?” she asked.
“That’s barely a dress, Erin.”
Her lips lifted. “It covers the vital parts.”
“As long as you don’t move too fast.”
She laughed, and her eyes sparkled in the flicker of torchlight.
“I need champagne,” she said. “Care to escort me to the nearest bar?”
“Happy to.” He held out his arm and they walked toward the barn.
“You look seriously hot in your tux.”
He was sweating in the damn thing, more due to the sight of Erin in her almost-dress than anything else. “Thanks.”
“Thank you for wearing it.”
“Anything for you. I want you to have a good time tonight.”
They made it to the bar and she grabbed a glass of champagne, took a sip, then another. “Oh, I intend to have a very good time tonight.”
And he intended to stay close.
•   •   •   •   •   •
IT HAD TAKEN everything within Erin to muster up the courage to come outside and greet her guests. Fortunately, her sisters had surrounded her, as well as her parents. She’d fully expected to have to do a round of “Oh my God, Erin, what happened?” explanations, along with having to endure hours of “I’m so sorry” and “How could he do that to you,” but, shockingly, no one had said a word other than to tell her she looked beautiful, the vineyard and barn looked amazing and they were happy to be there.
Something was up. She didn’t know what it was, but someone had gotten to all the guests in advance and told them not to say anything to her about Owen. Not that she minded. In fact, she was utterly relieved.
“Where did you get that dress?”
She smiled at her friend Alice Weatherford. Erin and Alice had become fast friends after Alice had been snowbound at their house last winter. And then Alice had fallen in love with Clay Henry, who’d also ended up stuck in the house along with them during the snowstorm. The two of them had had a whirlwind romance, and even though Alice had a matchmaking business in LA, she commuted back and forth between LA and Clay’s neighboring ranch.
“I found it at a shop online, fell madly in love with it and ordered it about six months ago. It fit me perfectly and I’ve been saving it for a special occasion.”
“This is a great occasion to wear it, because you look like a sex-bomb queen lording it over your subjects tonight.”
Sex-bomb queen? That wasn’t her intent, but she appreciated Alice’s take on it. “Ooh, thanks. Now I feel even better.”
Alice laid her hand on Erin’s arm. “You should feel better. It looks like half