Another car pulled up. It would be Leo and Gabby and Dani, which was Max’s cue to leave. He stuck his head into Marie’s car and whispered, “Break a leg, my friend.” She made a kissing gesture at him, and he hightailed it into the church. They had decided that despite the gender-swapped best woman and man of honor designations, they would hew to more traditional roles for the ceremony, which meant Max would join Leo at the front of the chapel and Dani, along with flower girl Gabby, would process behind Marie.

He still didn’t want to see Dani. Well, he wanted to. But he couldn’t.

Not that he could avoid it. After a few moments, a string quartet began playing, and Marie and her father appeared at the head of the aisle. Marie’s dress didn’t have a train, but Dani smoothed the back of her knee-length veil as she set off. Dani smiled at Gabby, and the two of them started walking.

Oh dear god. The record skipping in his chest had been replaced by an anvil. It was hard to breathe.

Dani spent the first few steps of her procession looking at the back of Marie’s dress, probably to make sure everything was in order. When she started to lift her gaze, he knew somehow that her eyes would find his first.

He looked away before they did, forced himself to keep his eyes on Marie, who was looking very princessey in a dress with a huge, poufy tulle skirt.

He tracked Marie’s progress down the aisle, staying with his strategy of not looking at Dani. He needed to not miss his best friend’s wedding.

And he needed to stop staring at what he could never have.

Chapter Eighteen

Where the hell was Max?

Dani looked around the ballroom. She was seated at a head table on a raised dais, so she had a bird’s-eye view with which to confirm that the answer was nowhere. She had survived the wedding—it had been lovely, but she’d been nervous—and now all that remained of wedding-party duties were the toasts. Which, as she eyed the dwindling receiving line Marie and Leo were helming, were supposed to happen soon.