Should I have spent the last two weeks dress shopping instead of binging sad romcoms over a tub of ice cream? Maybe. Was waiting until only five days before the wedding to do so a bad idea? Absolutely.

I'd forgotten about buying a dress entirely until I walked into the room I shared with Sir Snores A lot to find him in a suit and tie, checking himself out in the mirror. For a moment, I stood in the doorway, waiting for him to catch my reflection in the mirror and turn with some flirtatious comment.

I'd spent all of high school poking and prying at Bren to go to the dances, to step out of his baggy sweats and oversized shirts for a night and live. Fortunately for me, Mateo was all for it and eventually, between the two of us dogging him, he caved for junior and senior prom. As I watched Mateo shift in the mirror, I swallowed the words that'd been on the tip of my tongue and slowly averted my gaze.

I wished desperately to be able to push down the butterflies that had erupted the second I saw just how perfect the arms of the suit outlined his broad shoulders and biceps. Or the desire to cross the room and unbutton the remaining four buttons of the undershirt. He'd left the top three undone in a purposeful manner, or perhaps he'd gotten lazy trying to maneuver his giant, calloused fingers around the small little buttons. That seemed much more likely given who the man would undoubtedly ask me to help with his tie any second.

"When you are done mentally undressing me, I'd appreciate your opinion on something."

I felt warmth immediately shoot up the back of my neck and spread through my cheeks. "I wasn't. . ."

"You even licked your lips." Mateo was smirking as he left his reflection and crossed the room to me. "I know I'm delectable, but it's somehow very reassuring that you, of all people, finally agree."

I slapped a hand against his shoulder with an eye roll. "Funny."

"You busy?"

"Oh, you mean outside of my mentally undressing of you?"

He slowly lifted his right arm over my head and leaned into the doorframe, brooding over me and nearly causing my knees to give out beneath me. It was an action I'd thought only existed in books and given my muddied feelings over Mateo the last few days, it was doing this to my body I was not keen on expression aloud.

"You're so easy to mess with." His smirk grew into a grin as he pulled at the gray jacket of the tuxedo. "Gray or black? Bren said black is meant for funerals but I wanted a female opinion."

Before I could filter my intrusive thoughts, they slipped right passed my suddenly chapped lips. "You'd look good in anything you wear."

Whatever he'd thought I'd say, it surely hadn't been that. He blinked a few times, as if he were replaying my response in his head, pondering it over, then whispered, "Did you just compliment me? Like, without any backhanded commet in addition to it?"

"I mean, you'd look good in anything you wear if you kept that," I made a gesture with my hand around his mouth. "shut."

He snorted. "Touche, babe."

I raised a brow. "I think we should find me a dress and then make the decision on which color to go with."

He didn't look surprised I was doing it last minute. "Of course you don't have a dress yet."

I swear the temperature rose the moment he shouldered off his jacket and started to unbutton his undershirt. As if he were well aware of my hormones and how out of whack they were this week, he winked and asked, "You want to help?"

*

If someone would have told fourteen year old high school freshmen Madison Hewitt that popular junior and her older brother's best friend Mateo Morales would be seated front row while she paraded around in a variety of dresses in front of the woman's dressing room, she would have laughed herself to tears. Even now, it was almost comical. He sat on a small black sofa, encased in racks of women's dresses, one of his legs crossed over the other, an arm stretched out across the back. He looked so out of place, but he hadn't reached for his phone once. His full attention was on me.

After what seemed like an eternity in the hot dressing room trying on over a dozen dresses, I finally found a knee length gray, off the shoulder dress with lace sleeves that I liked. As soon as I stepped out of the room and out into the store, I found the associate talking to Mateo, no doubt trying to make her move with the flirtatious smiles, giggles, and batting of her lashes. I cleared my throat, did a three-sixty, then asked the million dollar question, "What do you think?"

"Gorgeous." the associate answered before Mateo could. "I'd kill to have your figure. The dress was made for you, girl."

I thanked her quietly, and hearing a bell signaling another customer, she bid us goodbye and scurried off. Once she was out of eye and ear shot, Mateo leaned forward, elbows digging into his knees, and said, "Turn again for me."

I followed the demand, then realizing there was probably a reason for the order, I asked, "What's wrong? Does it not look okay from the back?"

"It looks great from the back." he fell against the seat with a satisfied smile. "In fact, I'm enjoying the view. That ass looks great in that dress."

I gasped, blushed, then hugged my arms around myself, "Mateo!"

"What?" he laughed. "You're a head turner, Mads. The sooner you accept that you are so far out of that piece of crap's league and always have been, the sooner you'll learn to love your body. Love yourself. Then you can start venturing out and seeing that not all men are cheating trash."

I smiled weakly, "It really looks good?"

"Babe, it looks so good I bet Sarah's going to have an aneurysm the second she sees you. Half the groomsmen will probably be staring at you all night." he had slowly stood as he spoke and in a few strides was in front of me. He tucked a strand of my hair behind my ear and leaned down to whisper, "But it won't matter. Because as far as everyone is concerned, you're mine."

*

As soon as Mateo and I stepped foot inside the beach house, we found Ashton and Bren on the couch talking. There was a long, tense silence before Mateo kissed my cheek, close enough to say, "Head to the room. I'll see what's going on."

I didn't need to be told again, and quickly swept my bag dangling loosely from his fingers and quickened my pace until I was in the room. Unfortunately I'd just walked from hell right into the arms of another.

Sarah sat on the edge of the bed, her right leg bouncing up and down anxiously. I made a scene of knocking on the door, making sure to straighten so she couldn't see just how much I wished to knock her out-or curl in a fetal position and cry.

She jumped to her feet, wiped her hands on the bottom of her sun dress, and jerked her chin toward the door. "Can you shut it? I wanted to talk."

"There's nothing to talk about."

"Madison, please." she pled. "Five minutes."

I crossed my arms, my eyes dancing from her to the door to my back, then to her once more. My inner child eventually caved and I kicked the door shut with my foot, then followed behind at a distance. She sat again, patted the spot next to her, then bowed her head when she saw my expression and that I was unmoving in my position over her.

"What do you want, Sarah?"

Some part of me, the hopeful inner child, thought she might apologize for all that she had done. That maybe she was remorseful and she couldn't live with the thought of me not in her or her child's life.

Instead, she asked, "When did you and Mateo get together?"

"Excuse me?"

"The last I knew, you hated him and he hardly tolerated you. Now you two are suddenly in a relationship?" she stood so we were eye to eye. "Are you doing this because you think it'll make him jealous?"

"Jealous? Who?" it took me far too long to realize she was referring to Ashton. "Wait, hold on. You think I got with Mateo to make Ashton jealous?"

"It's the only logical explanation for you and Mateo suddenly being a thing."

I was at a loss for words. Thought there was a very small fraction of reason being to piss of Ashton in this fake relationship, it'd never been for that purpose. It'd been to keep Mom off my back, to try and get through these two weeks.

"We aren't "suddenly a thing" Sarah." Mateo's soft rasp filled the room. "I've been in love with Madison since we were kids."

We both spun to face him as he pressed the door shut behind him. Seeing the skepticism in my sister's expression, he went on with his meticulous lie.

"Think about it, Sarah. When was I ever not watching out for her? How many little boys did I scare off so they'd leave her be? So she could be with your weasel of a fiancé in peace?"

My eyes widened a fraction as I eyed Mateo, trying to find even a slight dink in the armor, any way to see if he was lying. The words sounded so truthful I was even considering believing them.

"I don't know why our relationship concerns you, Sarah. All you have ever done is sit in envy over your little sister." Mateo's words held bitterness, malice, and I could see with every word that left him, my sister cowered into herself further. "We will see out the wedding, but I can assure you that as soon as we board that plane back home, that you will never hear a word from either of us again."

Sarah frowned, "Mateo, you can't—"

"I can." he interrupted her before she could finish. "Your parents once told me I was part of your family. I still hold that close to my heart. Therefore, whatever you do to hurt one of us, hurts all of us."

"That's not fair!" Sarah huffed like a toddler throwing a tantrum, crossing her arms. "Mateo, you were friends with Bren and me first. You—"

"I love Madison." he cut in again. "You broke her in every way that you can break a person. And though we can eventually forgive, we won't ever forget."

If there had been any question on how well Mateo Morales could lie, it vanished into the tense air between the three of us that very second. My sister bought every word that left him, and given that there were tears dampening my cheeks, I must have too.

"Get out." Mateo snapped. "Please leave the room."

I watched as Sarah stared him up and down, then shook her head and stormed out of the room, slamming the door behind her.

Mateo waited until she was gone for good to meet my eyes again, and for a moment I considered asking him if he'd meant what he said. If there had been even a little truth in it. But he didn't give me a chance, and if I were being honest with myself, I wasn't sure I wanted to know. He opened his arms and I didn't hesitate to fall into them and barricade myself in his embrace.