"That actually sounds pretty nice," Keeley said, trying to hide her bitterness. "How many children do you have?"

Chloe's smile was full of maternal affection. "Three. My daughters are twelve and ten, and my son is six."

Three kids. Keeley always imagined she would have a houseful. Growing up with only one sibling meant they were extra close; she had been devastated when Kaleb died. Sometimes she wondered if things would have been easier if there had been other siblings.

It was a moot point now. Maybe, once her career was more stable and she could afford her own place, she could adopt a sibling group.

If she ever could afford her own place. New York City was one of the most expensive cities in the world. New Jersey or Pennsylvania were looking increasingly attractive.

"What about you?" she asked Carly.

"I have a sixteen-month-old son."

Keeley chuckled slightly, her bitterness easing as she thought of something funny. "So your mother has plenty of children and won't give Jennica a hard time about not getting pregnant right away."

Chloe grinned. "Are you kidding? She's just thrilled Cam is finally getting married. She adores Jennica."

It made sense. Cameron was thirty. Any mother would be anxious about her child at that age. Keeley frowned. Would her father be upset that she was planning on never marrying? She hadn't thought about that before.

He wasn't a chauvinist who believed women had to be married, but he had been so in love with her mother. He would probably want his only living child to experience the same kind of happiness.

'Sorry, Dad, I already blew my chance at romantic happiness a long time ago,' she thought.

Jennica emerged from the massage room, practically glowing, and joined everyone in the hot tub.

"Ah, that really hit the spot," she said dreamily. "So, what riveting thing are we discussing?"

"That our mom loves you because you saved our poor brother from dying alone," Carly snickered.

Jennica smiled, and Keeley could guess what she was thinking about. She'd returned from Christmas at Cameron's place overflowing with excitement about how much his family liked her.

If only she had such luck with her former in-laws. Her entire life would have played out differently. If the Hales had accepted her, Aaron wouldn't have tried so hard to make her change. They wouldn't have lost their baby. They might have been able to work out their personality differences and have a happy life together.

Yet another reason to be jealous of Jennica and Cameron's easy relationship. Oh well. It was all in the past now. Keeley didn't have to worry about the Hales' approval anymore.

"Are you refreshed and ready for part two of this party, future Mrs. Singleton?" she teased, wanting to change the subject.

"Yeah, I feel plenty pampered. I'm ready to load up on pizza and wine and watch musicals all night!" Jennica said, stretching. "Just five more minutes in here first; I barely sat down."

Unlike the nosy party games from Lydia's girls' night, Jennica's friends simply relaxed, ate, laughed, and sang along to movie songs.

Keeley had only met one of them before, so she had no idea what was going on, but Michelle and Jennica were thoroughly enjoying themselves. They belted out the songs at the top of their lungs and then giggled madly, quoting lines.

Keeley shook her head and smiled at their antics. Actresses. They were a unique breed.

Valentina, who had already napped at the spa, fell asleep during the second movie after consuming four slices of pizza. Poor thing was exhausted from her rotations.

Cameron's sisters and sister-in-law also retired to the adjoining room to sleep fairly quickly. They rarely got a full eight hours of sleep because of their children, so they weren't about to waste this opportunity for peace and quiet.

The hotel rooms had two queen beds each and were connected by a door. Everyone had to share a bed, but there was enough room.

Valentina woke up around 11 PM and moved to the quieter, darker room. Alison followed her, leaving only Keeley and the increasingly drunken chorus. Keeley would get the last laugh in the morning—she'd only had one glass of wine.

The bridal party (everyone but Michelle) needed to get their nails done in the morning before the rehearsal. Jennica was going to have a wicked headache while the nail artist worked on her.

Sometime after 1 AM, everyone was asleep except Keeley and the bride-to-be, who were sharing a bed. Keeley figured it was as good a time as any to ask her friend what had been bothering her since the engagement party.

"Jen? Why did you make me the maid of honor when you knew Aaron would be the best man?"

Jennica shifted slightly before answering.

"You and Valentina are both my best friends. I had a hard time choosing between you until I found out who the best man would be. It makes more sense to put two people who know each other together, doesn't it?"

Yes, but not if they have bad blood. Jennica knew things had soured between them, so why had she meddled?

"But Aaron and I have a complicated situation. Why did you think that would be a good idea?" Keeley persisted.

Jennica turned over in the dark to face her, propping herself up on her elbow.

"Complicated or not, he's desperately in love with you. You've shut yourself off all these years because of him, and I admit I don't know the full story, but I think whatever happened between you two is resolvable. If you didn't still care about him, you would have moved on already."

She rolled back over and said "goodnight" before falling asleep almost instantly, leaving Keeley with a lot to think about.

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