After Gabriel left and the coast was clear, the girls returned to the room to finish up our preparations. Karin did my makeup and hair, but in all honesty, I was too nervous and confused by what had happened with Gabriel to pay much attention to her conversation.
I realized that I wasn’t much use to any of them in this state, and so after Karin was done with me, I took a deep breath and ventured out to the front of the church to see if I could be of any help out there.
It was nearly eleven, and several guests had already arrived. Even though the reception was held in the open-air gardens out front, everyone was dressed in suits and elegant dresses like they were here for the Met Gala instead.
Right away, I spotted Ryland and Theo at the main area outside welcoming the guests as they arrived in their privately chartered limos.
The two of them together was a strange juxtaposition. They were both tall and built, but while Ryland exuded the self-assuredness of a CEO who was used to people obeying his every order, Theo was more watchful and reserved. He made just enough conversation required to not be rude, and when he smiled, it did not reach his eyes.
Oddly enough, it seemed that his reservation made people more insistent on talking to him. They wanted to be the one to break that cool indifference.
But I knew that Theo truly smiled for one person only.
Karin emerged from the back courtyard then, clutching the skirts of her dress and tiptoeing out gingerly.
None of the guests noticed, but Theo spotted her instantly, his gaze sharpening in attention. He watched her with such intensity that the air between them practically burned with his gaze.
Karin didn’t notice this as she turned around the back, and Theo’s eyes remained on the corner moments after she’d disappeared like he was hungry for just one more glimpse of her.
Theo Valentine was infamous in New York for being a morally ambiguous and unscrupulous attorney, and I had wondered before what he was doing with Karin, who was the kindest, sweetest person I knew. When she first told me about him I had been terrified that he would chew her up and spit her out.
But I had never seen Karin so happy, and Theo obviously worshipped the air she breathed. It was the only reason Allie would even let him near her sister.
I felt a sudden pang in my chest. If a man ever looked at me the way Theo watched Karin, I would never let him go.
As I turned back to arranging the refreshments on the table, my gaze fell on Gabriel Easton in a heartstopping moment. He was standing in the middle of a small crowd of guests, holding court like he had been born for it.
Allie and Karin had said before that Gabriel was starting an investment firm together with Ryland and Cam, with Gabriel taking care of Client Relations and Business Development. Anyone would wonder why Ryland and Cam, who were notoriously ruthless businessmen, would entrust such a crucial role to Gabriel.
But even if I didn’t have my months of research on Gabriel Easton, I could see exactly why. The guests surrounding Gabriel were the COO of a bank, a fashion mogul, and a Board Director of a tech company. A completely diverse group of powerful people, and Gabriel had them all laughing at something witty he’d just said.
It was clear that Gabriel loved people, and they in return loved him. I was envious as I watched him, because I would never know what it was like to belong.
Right then, Gabriel stilled as if he could sense my eyes on him.
I held my breath as he turned. His gaze met mine across the small crowd, and his eyes sharpened instantly when he saw me.
Embarrassed to be caught staring, I quickly turned away and busied myself with rearranging the scattered macarons, all the while aware of Gabriel’s hot gaze burning at the side of my face.
I spent the rest of the remaining time making sure the reception area was well-stocked with refreshments and canapés, all the while avoiding conversation with anybody. Thankfully, Gabriel left me well alone.
The announcement was soon made for the guests to be seated in the main hall, and the rest of the bridal party made our way outside the hall for the processional.
As I slipped silently into place beside Gabriel, I took special care not to meet his eyes.
“You remember what I said yesterday,” he murmured, for my ears only.
I nodded carefully. I guess it was too much to hope that Gabriel would let it go—even after he witnessed my near-breakdown earlier.
“Yes,” I replied. “No body-cams, and no paps. It’s just me.”
“Good.”
I gingerly took the arm he offered, while racking my brain for something to say to convince him I wasn’t an enemy. “You came early today.”
“I had to manage security.”
Right. Because of me. I bit my tongue and kept my gaze ahead.
The earlier bustle of the place had been replaced with reverent silence. All two-hundred guests were now seated in the church on the other side of the doors in front of me, and our friends behind us were exchanging hushed whispers of excitement. I heard Bailey and Cam laughing, while Allie told Karin to shut up and stop throwing flower petals at her. The wedding planner stood by the doors, ready to time us on our entry into the church.
Meanwhile, Gabriel and I stood together in deathly silence.
The wedding march started soon after, and every one of us went quiet. The attendants straightened in their positions by the double doors to the chapel.
This was it, and right on cue, I felt my muscles seize up.
Right behind these doors were two hundred of the most powerful people in the country, and they’d all be watching.
Don’t trip, I begged myself. Don’t go too fast, or too slow, and most importantly, absolutely do not freeze-up—
Gabriel cleared his throat, and when I looked at him in question, he nodded at his arm where I was clutching him in a white-knuckled death grip.
I quickly loosened my fingers.
Gabriel exhaled.
“Relax, I got this,” he said reluctantly. “Just do like we did yesterday and follow my lead.”
I nodded stiffly. “It’s just that everyone will be staring at me.”
“Getting all cocky, are you?” He raised a brow at my confusion.
“It’s me they’ll be staring at,” he explained.
A puff of startled laughter escaped me. “That’s true.”
My relief was short-lived when the wedding march reached its crescendo and the attendants reached for the handles of the doors. My heart jumped to my throat instantly, and I smoothed my cold, sweaty hand over the skirts of my dress.
The doors creaked, opening slowly.
Inside, the chapel was packed with smiling faces and even more faces, all looking in my direction.
This time I stopped breathing completely.
“Can I be totally honest with you?” Gabriel murmured.
“Yes.” It came out more like a gasp for air.
“Swear you won’t quote me in next week’s issue.”
His joke surprised me, and I almost forgot my nervousness for a second. “I-I won’t!”
Gabriel’s lips curved into a slight smile.
“You are one hundred percent,” he said, “hands down, none barred, the shyest person I’ve ever met in my entire fucking life.”
“Oh.” I was momentarily startled by that. “I’m sorry.”
“You also apologize the most. Eyes ahead, and breathe.”
I obediently kept my gaze trained on the altar, doing my best to ignore the many faces swimming at either side of my vision. The cheers and clapping were extra loud in the cavernous high ceilings of the chapel.
Ryland stood at the end of the aisle in a black suit, looking self-assured and commanding as always.
“Look at the fucker,” Gabriel muttered, a faint smile curving his mouth. “Just once I’d like to see that smug look wiped off his face.”
As we started making our way down the aisle, I clung onto Gabriel’s arm like he was a physical shield by my side.
�
��I’m sorry about yesterday,” I managed. “I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable.”
“The silence takes some getting used to, but it doesn’t faze me. What bothers me is the fact that you’re a tabloid writer.”
Was, I corrected silently. Was a tabloid writer.
“There’s something else on my mind. Earlier in the room…”
“Y-Yes?” I said as Gabriel broke off to give a two-fingered kiss-salute at some friends he spotted in the crowd.
“I grabbed you too hard earlier, didn’t I?” he continued without missing a step. “I apologize for that.”
I swallowed my surprise. “It’s just been a long day,” I replied before realizing how silly that sounded. It was only eleven in the morning.
“Same here. I spent the whole morning checking the grounds for paps and bugs and hidden cams, and Cam’s got his security guys on standby too. So far so good.”
I nodded in relief.
“I guess you were telling the truth yesterday,” Gabriel said, his expression pleasant but unreadable. “But frankly, I don’t get it. No tabloid writer will turn down the chance to cover the Wedding of the Year.”
We were nearly at the end of the aisle by now, but I had barely noticed it with Gabriel talking to me. I’d realized by now that he had been trying to distract me from my nervousness, and that surprised me more than anything I knew about him. He was being more civil and patient than he needed to, considering all that I’d written about him.
“Allie and Karin are my friends,” I finally replied. “I’d never hurt them.”
Gabriel pondered that over, then he said simply, “I can respect that.”
And that was the end of it. I was grateful that he didn’t prolong the moment and make it uncomfortable for me,
Before I knew it, we were at the altar where Ryland was waiting.
Gabriel had got me through the hardest part of it. Now all that was left was for us to part ways and line up along the sides while Allie and Ryland exchanged their vows. It would take only ten minutes at the most, and I hoped to god I wouldn’t pass out during that time.
I tried instead to focus on Allie, who followed up behind us on the aisle—alone. Her and Karin’s parents had passed and she intended to give herself away, which was no surprise to anyone who knew her. Allie was the most independent woman I knew.
She looked absolutely beautiful today, with her auburn hair arranged in loose curls around her shoulders. Karin had woven a small wreath of baby-breaths into her hair, and the only jewelry she wore was a simple necklace left to her by her mother.
I felt tears pricking at my eyes, and Bailey gave a discreet sniffle beside me. Karin was already sobbing out loud. The whole time we made our way down the aisle, Ryland had been cool and collected, but now I thought I could see his facade cracking a little.
No amount of fronting could hide the expression of awe and blatant love on his face, and his eyes were suspiciously bright.
It was strange to think that Ryland Wyatt, New York’s most eligible bachelor was getting married. For a decade, the world knew him as an ice king who cared for nothing but his company and his wealth.
Now he was looking at Allie like she was his whole world.
A sudden movement from the groomsmen’s side caught my attention.
Theo had broken his stare at Karin to scowl at Gabriel, who was mouthing something at him. Theo responded with something sharp, and Gabriel replied with a mocking kissy face.
Standing between them, Cam looked like the long-suffering sibling who was used to—and sick of—their squabbles. He raised his eyes upwards and muttered something under his breath.
I bit my lip and tried to hold in a smile, and then Cam’s gaze met mine. He raised his eyebrow, and his mouth curved.
“Get a load of these guys,” he seemed to say.
Another woman would have smiled back in acknowledgment. A more confident one might even have held Cam’s gaze, flirted back with a sultry look.
But I was not that woman. Cam was a very attractive man, and to me that meant that he was very intimidating.
And so I stared in arrested silence, my cheeks turning hot the way they usually did when a guy had his attention on me.
I stared and stared until it grew awkward and Cam looked away again.
My hand crept to my chest as I tried to even my breathing. I was relieved that the moment was over, and embarrassed at the way I had turned into a block of wood. Twenty-four years old and I was still tongue-tied around men.
It won’t always be like this, I tried to assure myself. One day I’ll find my voice too.
But a part of me knew that wouldn’t happen. I would remain in the shadows like always, passing through life alone like a soundless ghost that nobody would miss.
In my bleakness, I noticed Gabriel watching me again. His eyes were dancing with humor this time, and his lips were curved in a faint, knowing smile.
I realized then that I was still clutching at my chest like a love-struck teenager.
My cheeks burned even hotter and I quickly dropped my hand, but it was too late.
Gabriel Easton now thought that I was in love with Cam, and from the way his smile had spread into an evil grin, he wasn’t going to let me off that easily.
***
“Not so bad now, was it?”
I stiffened as Gabriel’s voice came up behind me, then relaxed when I turned and saw that he was smiling.
Now that it was the after-wedding reception, everyone was mingling in the open gardens with their friends. There were no eyes on me now, and I didn’t feel quite so intimidated anymore.
I shook my head gratefully. “Thank you for keeping me distracted.”
“Anytime, Hastings.” Gabriel took a gulp of champagne. “Y’know, I can’t believe I didn't notice it before, but there’s something about you today.” He waved his hand in an outline around me. “A kind of aura…?”
I blanched.
Gabriel snapped his fingers with a flourish. “Not an aura, it’s a glow. The glow of—”
“Please don’t,” I pleaded.
“A woman hopelessly in love.” Gabriel cocked his head and rubbed his chin in concentration. “But who could it be, hmm? Not Theo Valentine, no one except Karin could love that piece of trash. Oh shit, could it be me?”
My cheeks went up in flames.
“No, that’s too predictable.” Gabriel smiled like a fox that had caught a rabbit. He leaned in closer to whisper loudly in my ear. “Could it be… Cam?”
I darted my gaze around in horror. Thankfully, Cam was deep in conversation at the other end of the garden, and there was no one around us who looked like they heard Gabriel.
“I’m not!” I said urgently.
Gabriel raised his brow. “That explains why you’re the color of a carrot.”
“I swear I’m not,” I pleaded. I was terrified that Cam would get the wrong idea. That would embarrass me for the rest of my life. “What do you want from me?”
“What can you give me?” Gabriel countered.
I racked my brain and came up empty. There was literally nothing Gabriel Easton could want from me.
Unless…
“I could stop writing about you,” I offered. That much was true, at least.
Gabriel flashed his teeth, white and gleaming. “You can do better than that.”
“W-what do you have in mind?”
“You’re gonna put out an apology taking back every damn word you wrote about me,” Gabriel said as he strolled off in the direction of the refreshments. “Then we’re cool.”
“Wait!” I hurried after him. “I can’t do that, I just got fi—I mean, my boss decides the articles—”
“Then I guess we’re at an impasse. Hey, Cam!”
“Stop!” I grabbed his arm in alarm. “Please don’t, you’ll embarrass me!”
Gabriel raised a brow at my hands on his arm. “Not so fun when you’re on the other end of it, huh?”
“I’m sorry, I
really am.” I found myself wanting to make him understand. “I know this doesn’t excuse anything, but I had my reasons.”
“Let’s hear it,” Gabriel challenged.
I was tempted to tell him the truth, but I shook my head before I could say a word. “I needed to keep my job!” I said instead.
“There are other jobs out there,” Gabriel pointed out. “There are countless ways to get money and yet you chose this one.”
“Jobs don’t grow on trees,” I said more shortly than I intended. “Bills and rent don’t pay themselves, and not everyone has a million-dollar trust fund to fall back on.”
Gabriel’s handsome face was inscrutable.
“You did all that research on me, and that’s the conclusion you got?”
“I’m sorry that what I wrote hurt your feelings, but they’re not all untrue,” I said breathlessly. Why was I antagonizing him?
“Because as far as Helena Hastings is concerned, the most important thing Gabriel Easton did is be born, isn’t it?” Gabriel regarded me coolly. “Let me ask this. What important thing did you do?”
“I—” I was at a loss for words.
Gabriel took no pity at my discomfort, and he folded his arms as he stared coldly at me and waited for my answer.
I had none for him.
The silence dragged out painfully, and I was about to make an excuse for myself and escape when I felt Gabriel stiffen suddenly.
“Fuckin’ hell,” he snarled, his expression pure murder.
I spun around in alarm to see what had pissed him off, and what I found turned my blood to ice.
A pap was crouched several yards away at the forest line, half-hidden behind a thicket of trees and armed with a telescopic camera.
Oh no. No no no—
Gabriel took off in a running sprint, and seconds later he had covered the distance between us and the pap. He grabbed the guy’s camera in one hand and his collar in the other, dragging him around the back towards the courtyard and away from the main party in the front gardens.
People around us were staring and whispering in shock. I hastily set my drink down and hurried around the back just in time to see Gabriel throw the paparazzi against the wall.
Charming (New York Heirs #3) Page 5