Save the Date Read Online Free PDF Page A

wandering over to the mantel, which was lined with various picture frames. “Mind if I check out your photos?”
    “Sure, go ahead,” he called from the kitchen.
    I started on the left, picking up a framed photo of Ethan and a group of guys on a boat. I recognized the background with its vast sapphire-blue water enveloped with the brown mountain cascade, splattered with vibrant green pine tress. “This was taken in Tahoe. Right?”
    “Yep.” He returned, holding empty wine glasses in one hand, and an unopened bottle in the other. “The two guys on the left are associates at my law firm. We own the boat together.”
    “Sounds fun.” I set the frame back on the wooden mantel, turned, and accepted the glass he held out. Remembering the serene feeling as we glided across the lake last weekend, I smiled. “Being on the water is so peaceful and relaxing. I love it.”
    “Then I’ll have to take you.” He twisted the wine opener into the cork, then pulled the stopper out with a little pop . “The weather forecast is nice this weekend. How about Saturday?”
    “Saturday’s my birthday.” I was turning thirty and seriously hoped the next decade would start better than this one ended. “A bunch of us are going up to Folsom Lake if you’d like to save the date.”
    The invitation slipped out, and I held my breath.
    “Absolutely.” He smiled, his gorgeous brown eyes twinkling, then he filled our wine glasses. “I can bring my boat if you’d like.”
    “Sure, if you don’t mind. With a large group, two boats would be better than one.” My stomach fluttered at the thought of Ethan coming, and I immediately felt guilty. This must be why I blurted, “You should totally bring Dana, of course.”
    His brows furrowed. “Why?”
    I stared at him blankly. “Don’t you want to?”
    “No.” He shrugged. “She has a life of her own, just like I do.”
    Shocked, I fought to keep my jaw from dropping to the floor. The way he spoke, it sounded like they led separate lives. Not at all how I pictured Ethan in a relationship. Weird.
    And disconcerting, for that matter.
    He lifted his glass, and his eyes lit with excitement. “Are you ready for the secret?”
    When he clinked his glass into mine, I took a sip so long, I’d need a refill shortly. Tucking my hair behind my ear, I wandered back toward the mantel. “I’m feeling weird about this whole secret thing.”
    His took a step toward me. “Why?”
    I guffawed. “Because you said nobody else knows.”
    A confused look crossed his face. “I trust you.”
    His words warmed my insides, so I turned away from him, fingering the frames on his mantel. “Does Dana know about the secret?”
    He set his wine glass on the coffee table, then put a finger under my chin to tilt my face toward his. “Kristen, what’s going on? Why do you keep asking about Dana?”
    With his deep brown eyes peering into mine, butterflies went wild in my belly—which was so wrong I made an exasperated sound. “It just matters. A lot.”
    He shook his head, like he didn’t get it, then he finally said, “Yes. She knows about it.”
    “I’m glad to hear that.” Instead of relief flowing through me, my chest ached with jealousy.
    “Wait a minute.” He made an incredulous sound. “Do you think Dana and I are dating?”
    Suddenly, my eyes came to rest on a silver framed photo—of Ethan and Dana. Without thinking, I picked up the picture of them. “Well, aren’t you?”
    “No.” His voice was deadpan. “Dana is my sister .”
    It was an honest miracle I didn’t drop the frame. If Dana was Ethan’s sister, then my judgment had been way off. Like light years off—again. Then, tingles sprinkled up my arms as I realized what else it meant.
    Ethan was single.
    ****
    I’d barely started my workday on Tuesday, when Ellen appeared in front of my desk. She’d left me two voicemails last night (while I’d been at Ethan’s), and both were about how I needed to call Rach and reassure her