Better Than My Ex novel · Chapter 14 of 24

Chapter 14: The Toast

Bryson talked about Christopher for six minutes.

He had the room in his hand by the second one, because he was good at it.

He spoke about a best friend who flew into storms with a joke on his lips, and the hangar nodded and wiped its eyes.

"And I want to thank the woman who carried Chris to the very end," Bryson said, and held out his hand toward table one. "Lydia. You are the bravest person I know."

Four hundred people stood up and clapped.

Lydia pressed her fingers to her lips, and tears stood in her big brown eyes on cue.

Beside me, Mrs. Hartnett did not stand.

"Go," she said, so softly only I heard it. "Now, while they're all on their feet."

I got up.

Levi's hand brushed mine once and let go, as we had agreed.

I walked to the stage steps in the green dress, and the clapping thinned out as people noticed where I was going.

Bryson saw me coming at the last moment.

His voice caught on a word, and then he said brightly into the microphone, "Mara. This isn't the time, sweetheart."

"I know," I said. "I only have one question."

I put my hand on the stand and he couldn't take it back without a scuffle in front of his whole airline.

He stepped aside, and the microphone was mine.

My voice came out of every speaker in the hangar, and it was steadier than I was.

"Bryson, in four years, why did you never bring me to one of these?"

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