Kidnapped

It was miraculous that Byron was able to dance for so long without getting queasy or lightheaded, but Jack also stood guard to make sure he didn't get his hands on too much champagne. Best man duties, and all. When Brielle joined him by the appetizers, he found himself pleased to have her company.

She sipped at her champagne and kept an eye out for any eligible suitors circling the water like sharks, though she was apparently safer while standing around Jack. Not that he was eligible in any way to even look at her, but he was a still man and that was still a part of it.

"What about Jonah Fritz?" Jack asked her.

"Jonah Fritz?" she said, wrinkling her nose. "No thanks. I don't want to compete with his seven beloved hunting dogs."

"Ah, that's fair," Jack said, looking around the ballroom. "Nadine's cousin? Whats his name... Leonard?"

"He's sixteen."

"Ah shit, really?" Jack frowned. "I gave him a cigar."

"So you're the bad influence that got my brother piss drunk the night before his wedding, I assume?" Brielle asked with a sly grin.

"To be fair, I did tell him to stop drinking," Jack said. "Maybe I could have been a little bit firmer, but it's hard to say no when other people are buying. Besides, it was his last night as a bachelor. I wanted him to have some fun without getting in trouble with his fiancee or her family. I got him cleaned up, didn't I?"

"You did do a nice job," she admitted.

Jack looked around the ballroom again, pointing another man out.

"Chester Perry," he told her. "His family works in luxury goods. You can be decked head to toe in diamonds. You can go swimming and sink right to the bottom."

"Chester Perry already has a special someone," Brielle said. "And from what I hear, he makes Chester very happy."

"Damn," Jack chuckled. "Seems everyone has a secret."

"What about you?" Brielle asked. "What sorts of mischief have you been up to the last near decade?"

"Hardly any mischief," he said. "Maybe when your brother and I are together and out on the town we would have a little fun, but most of the time I'm following dusty politicians around and taking notes on the dusty things they do."

"Right," she said. "Aren't you running for the senate this year?"

"Next year," Jack corrected. "I don't meet the age cutoff to run a campaign yet. Though I'm not sure I'd get any votes, anyways. Did you hear about how I was blacklisted from the governor's ball?"

"Do tell."

Jack turned towards her and lowered his voice like it was a bit of juicy gossip. Which it apparently had been, when it first happened.

"I accidentally lost it with Josef Garner," he told her, lowering his voice. "He was droning on and on about how he only has useless daughters. I may or may not have told him that one of his daughters would probably do a better job than all the members of Cabinet put together."

"You didn't," she gasped.

"He didn't take kindly," Jack shrugged. "Anyways, they kept it under wraps since it was embarrassing. Still, my invitation to his big, fancy house party never arrived."

"Do you really believe that?" Brielle asked.

"What?"

"That women should hold positions in office," she said. "Or were you just saying that to annoy him."

"No, I believe it," Jack nodded. "I'd have women on my staff, that's for sure. They're just as alive as men are. I think they are, anyways."

He poked her in the gut and she yelped.

"Yep," Jack said. "You felt it, and so you are alive."

"And you're just as annoying as you were when we were kids," she snipped, though she was smiling.

The conversation was interrupted when Byron hurried over with a sort of pained look on his face.

"I need you to trade shoes with me," he said.

"What?" Jack frowned. "No, I don't want to wear your sweaty shoes."

"Please," he begged. "These are brand new and they're giving me blisters. Nadine wants to dance all night, and your shoes are broken in."

"That's a nice way of saying they're old."

"Jack, come on," he scowled. "We're the same size. Just switch with me."

Jack rolled his eyes, looking to Brielle as she hid an amused smile with a fruit tart. He politely excused himself and went around the corner with Byron. He quickly slid out of his shoes and traded with Byron, wincing at how tight and stiff the shoes were.

"How have you been functioning in these all night?" Jack asked.

"My mother picked them out," Byron said with a relieved sigh. "Something about special leather. I don't know. Thanks, Jack. You're the best of best men."

"I know."

Jack tried to get used to the new shoes as Byron returned to the dance floor and his new wife, who was eager to continue dancing. Brielle was no longer by the food, and her plate had been abandoned. Jack noticed she had been swept out to the dance floor by none other than Jonah Fritz, and she was looking terribly bored by whatever he was telling her. More likely than not, it was about his dogs and how much he loved them.

The rest of the wedding went smoothly, and Jack was relieved to get back to his room. Nadine and Byron had disappeared off to some special honeymoon suite in the manor before they left for their official honeymoon, and Jack was sure he wouldn't be needed for the rest of the night. They were probably plenty occupied.

He shed the uncomfortable suit and got dressed in a comfortable shirt and pants, shaking his shaggy blonde hair out. He looked down at the uncomfortable shoes with a sigh. They had started to give Jack blisters too, but he supposed that was just another best man duty. If Jack ever married, he knew Byron would do the same for him. Still, he knew it was better to return them to Byron's room while he wasn't in there.

Jack carried an oil lamp to light his way through the corridors of the manor. He tried his best to be quiet as he slipped into Byron's room and set the shoes down beside his half-packed trunk. When he left the room, he nearly ran into Brielle.

She was wearing a nightgown and a robe with her hair braided over her shoulder, holding another oil lamp. She was startled, then surprised to see Jack there. She quickly adjusted her robe to cover herself up a little more, and he quickly looked down so he didn't make her uncomfortable.

"I was returning Byron's shoes," he explained. "I wasn't snooping or anything."

"Right, the shoes," she said. "That was nice of you."

"It was more than nice, my feet are killing me," Jack grimaced. "He owes me. Where were you going?"

"Oh," she said, blushing in the dim light of the lamps. "I was just a little hungry. I didn't want to bother a maid this late at night, so I was going to see what I could find in the kitchen. Maybe some leftover cake."

"Leftover cake sounds good," Jack said. "Mind if I join?"

Brielle cracked a shy smile.

"Sure. That would be nice."