Dominated

Chapter 1

Wes hadn't looked up from his phone since Amelia took her place across from him inside the dimly lit diner. Beside him, Brooke was reminiscing about their first meal in this very booth while Amelia pretended to enjoy the food on her plate. Brooke had insisted that the three of them meet for lunch. According to her, it had been too long since their last meal together, but Amelia couldn't admit that she often blew them off because she couldn't stand to be around them anymore.

Brooke had always been sweet to Amelia and treated her more like a little sister than her best friend. They shared a dorm together their freshman year of college and remained inseparable six years later. Wes, on the other hand, was Amelia's only friend through high school, but their friendship was severed when she introduced him to Brooke. Today was the first time in six months that the three of them were together, and Brooke couldn't stop talking about it.

"You have no idea how much we miss you," Brooke told Amelia, reaching over the table to take her hand. She looked at Wes and wrinkled her nose when she realized that he wasn't paying attention to them. "Right, Wes? Tell Amelia that we've missed her."

Wes briefly glanced up from his phone, but he didn't look at Amelia. "Yeah, we've missed you. We should do this more often."

"Anyway," Brooke continued, "we invited you out today because we have some big news to share."

Amelia stared blankly at her friend. She could only assume what the big news was based on those words and the excitement in Brooke's voice. Her suspicion was confirmed when Brooke pulled her other hand from under the table to show Amelia the ring on her finger. Amelia's eyes grew wide as she gaped at the diamond that gleamed under the pale orange light as Brooke moved her hand in different angles.

"That's amazing, B!" Amelia said, feigning excitement. She took Brooke's hand in hers to examine the ring and grinned. "Congratulations to you both. Have you picked a date yet?"

"Not yet," Brooke replied. "But I already know how this wedding will look. I'm seeing a beautiful lake house in the spring. Purple flowers all around me. You as my maid of honor wearing that purple dress you wore to the second chance prom our freshman year."

Wes looked up at that moment and pressed his lips together. "Money's not an issue, babe. We'll buy her a new dress."

"No," Brooke protested, frowning. "That dress holds a lot of sentimental value. She's wearing it."

Amelia nervously laughed. She was in the middle of another one of their disagreements, which she often found herself caught in. "Whatever you want, Brooke. It's your wedding."

Wes scowled. Her response clearly made him unhappy, but he didn't push the conversation.

"This is why I love you so much," Brooke said with a grin. "What do you have going on tonight?"

Amelia opened her mouth to answer, but she couldn't think of a lie. She knew Brooke would only ask for her time, and she didn't have the energy to do anything but climb into her bed and watch reruns of the many medical dramas airing that night.

Unfortunately, she didn't have the courage to tell Brooke the truth, so she smiled and then said, "Nothing, why?"

"You're coming to my dinner party at six," Brooke demanded of her. "We're inviting close friends and family who will play a huge part in this wedding, and you're one of them. Besides, I already kind of told the girls that you're the maid of honor so they wouldn't ask."

Amelia frowned. "You told Laura and Stevie?"

"Well, the three of us went out for drinks last weekend," she told Amelia. She copied Amelia's frown, but the disappointment wasn't mutual. "You usually don't like coming out for that, so I didn't think you'd want to be invited."