One week before wedding...

Carley and I are sitting in my living room getting ready to go out. We each have a glass of wine in our hand as we attempt to figure out where we are going to go.

"We shouldn't go out," I moan taking a sip.

"Why not?" Carley asks.

"We have so much work to do. We have to set up the whole Spring display plus we have the asshole's wedding flowers to deal with. How many fucking people are they inviting to this shit if they need 50 of these centerpieces? Are they really going to have 50 tables? Graham never had that many friends." I ramble on and on, my wine spills a little on my brown couch but I ignore it. There must be thousands of tiny wine drips all over this couch.

"I know, Boomer, Graham had less friends than you," I say to the dog who is lazily watching us from his dog bed.

"Stop talking to your dog. It's totally cool to do it when you're alone but I'm here and listening."

"You've never met Graham. Boomer has so I feel like he should be involved," I say getting up to pet him.

Carley rolls her eyes, "Boomer doesn't remember him."

I gasp, "Graham was his father and he abandoned both of us!"

"Okay, okay. No more alcohol for you until we leave."

I sigh and put my glass on the table.

We finally make our way out of the house and to a bar that's walking distance from my house, luckily I live in walking distance of the center of town.

"You need to find a date," Carley says handing me a glass of something that smells like liquor. I drink and it burns a bit going down, but if it does the job I'm cool with it.

"Fuck," I groan.

"Can you not curse for like three seconds?" Carley scolds.

"Mhm. One, two, three. Fuck my life."

"You aren't funny," Carley says taking a large gulp of her drink.

"Where am I going to find a date?" I ask just as two guys come walking up to us.

"It's like fate, Addison." Carley laughs and bats her eyelashes and the two good looking guys.

The guy that is closer to me has a beard, long dark hair, and crystal blue eyes. He looks like a model for some hipster clothing store.

"Can I buy you a drink?" he asks in a deep voice that makes my stomach flip.

"Sure, white wine please," I say giving up on whatever the hell that drink was.

After the four of us get our drinks we find a table towards the back of the bar. The bar is set up in three parts, the first is where the newly 21 year-olds hangout and dance, the second is where we are which is a bit quieter and has tables set on the perimeter, and the last bar is an outdoor deck for smokers. It's an okay place as far as neighborhood bars go.

"I'm Addy and this is Carley," I say introducing us as we all settle in.

"Ryder." Beard guy says

"Gabe," says the other guy.

After initial introductions we seem to split off into two separate conversations, me and Ryder, Carley and Gabe.

It's fun and exciting, we are drinking then dancing, laughing and spinning in the darkness of the bar.

Ryder kisses me and it tastes like beer and lingering cigarettes, I don't mind.

I'm dizzy and drunk and I can't stop kissing him with his scruffy beard and big hands on my waist.

"Fuck," I say out of nowhere making Ryder laugh.

"What's wrong? You don't have a boyfriend right?" He looks around dramatically.

"I need a date to a wedding," I say hoping my words aren't so slurred.

"Sure, I'll go." Ryder says taking his phone out and asking me to plug in my number. He sends a text and I add him to my contacts.

Could this really have been fate?