Five Years and Still Second Best

"Nora, if anything comes up, call me."

I didn't answer.

The last time something came up, it was cramps so bad I could barely sit upright.

There was no painkiller in the house.

My head was swimming, and half out of my mind, I called Austin.

"Nora? Skylar's drunk, I'm taking her home first. I'll call you back later."

He never called back.

Calling him when I needed something was useless.

Austin didn't wait for a reply. He shut the door.

The apartment went quiet, just me and the cat.

I checked the time and got ready to head out.

The wedding was a month away.

There was a long list of things to cancel on short notice.

Cancel the venue. Call the planner and pull every service.

And return the gown.

I'd barely reached the bridal shop when Skylar's newest post slid into my feed.

She was in the passenger seat, flashing a peace sign, Austin behind the wheel.

In the back seat, Lavinia leaned forward, beaming from ear to ear.

The caption read: 【My rock, forever. My favorite Austin.】

I tapped like.

At the front desk, I gave them Austin's number.

The clerk smiled at me.

"You're a friend of Ms. Henson's, here to pick up her gown?"

I went still for a moment.

"Ms. Henson?"

"Yes, Ms. Skylar Henson. Sorry, I should call her Mrs. James now."

The clerk's face was full of envy.

"Mr. James dotes on her. They're so in love."

"We revised the gown several times to her taste. The day she came in for the final fitting, she walked out in it and Mr. James took one look and teared up."

She swiped to a photo on her tablet.

"They make such a perfect pair. They even agreed to let us display this as a sample in the shop."

In the photo, Austin held Skylar's hand, his eyes bright.

Skylar's gown was flawless white, a smile in her eyes.

The two of them gazing at each other like nothing else existed.

It was a different clerk who'd helped me before, and she'd mixed me up with Skylar.

Austin hadn't corrected anyone.

I'd chosen the gown after a single fitting.

Austin had said he'd handle this part, that I shouldn't trouble myself over it.

So the gown had been remade into something Skylar liked.

My gown, and she'd been the first to wear it.

My fiancé in a bridal photo with another woman, hung up in the studio for all to see.

"I need to return the gown, please. I'll pay the cancellation fee."

The clerk looked startled.

"Return it? But Mrs. James said her wedding is set for July thirteenth."

"There won't be time to return this and order a new one—"

Skylar had come home to get married.

She said her wedding was set for July thirteenth.

My wedding was July thirteenth too.

Austin had picked the date.

He'd said he'd consulted someone for a lucky date, that this was the only good day.

I called one of Austin's friends.

"Nora? Why the sudden call?"

"Is Skylar's wedding on July thirteenth?"

The other end stammered out a yes.

A ridiculous, absurd suspicion rose up in me.

"Austin's and my wedding is July thirteenth too. What does that mean?"

"Nora, don't read too much into it, it's nothing."

"It's just a promise from when they were kids playing house. Skylar insisted on marrying the same day as Austin."

So after five years together, Austin had stalled and stalled, unwilling to marry.

Then in three months, he'd raced to propose and locked down a date.

All because of Skylar.

I hung up.

My stomach kept turning, a revulsion I couldn't put into words.

I called Austin.

"You took Skylar to try on my gown?"

He froze.

"Nora, you—"

"Our wedding's the same day as Skylar's. What does that mean?"