by Hope, Amity
The day had cooperated beautifully. There was a gentle breeze and a brilliantly colored sky. It was striated with shades of peach, plum, and a glowing amber.
Behind us, I heard the music start up. An orchestra of course.
The reception would take place on the sprawling lawn behind us, under a canopy of white. The grounds of the historic hotel were surrounded by an award winning garden. A floral scent lingered in the air.
When we’d arrived, Jake had insisted on having the usher seat us right away. It was his blatant attempt to avoid having to mingle with anyone. His reprieve was about to end. It was almost our turn to be dismissed.
His knee gave a sharp little jump under my palm.
“What do you think we’ll get for dinner?” I whispered as I leaned in close.
“What?” He frowned at me in confusion, my question taking him by surprise and taking his mind of everything else. Just as I had meant for it to.
“I’m guessing something completely pretentious. Liver pate, caviar…tripe?”
He arched an eyebrow at me. “Tripe?” he asked incredulously.
I shrugged. “I could really go for a bacon cheeseburger. Maybe we’ll have to head to the café when this is all over.”
“I think that at the very least, you deserve a burger when this is all over.” He smiled ruefully and my heart tumbled a bit. I hated that he was so uncomfortable. I was happy to provide a distraction in whatever way I could.
As I looked around, I could see how this might be a bit overwhelming. I’d been to my share of weddings but none as huge or as elegant as this one. The decorations alone probably cost as much as my car.
I had spent the better part of the time trying to ignore the glare from a gorgeous brunette across the aisle. Finally, I couldn’t take it anymore. I gave Jake a gentle nudge. “That wouldn’t happen to be the notorious ex, would it?”
He didn’t have to even look. He just nodded. I realized he obviously had noticed her too.
“That would be her.”
“Huh,” I said with a grin. “Have you seen the evil looks I’m getting from her? It’s so obvious she’s jealous I’m with you.” I thought that would give his ego a much needed boost.
“Nah,” he said with a chuckle. “If she’s giving you evil looks it’s because she’s pissed I brought a date that’s prettier than she is.”
I swatted his shoulder playfully. “Why, Mr. Thompson, you are just full of compliments tonight!”
He shrugged but he wore a smile. “I’m just telling the truth.”
I shouldn’t have felt a little flutter in my chest at hearing those words, but I did. Our row stood and we joined the flood of people spilling out onto the lawn. Jake gripped my hand in his. I was under no allusions that it was a romantic gesture. He had a death grip on me, as if I was his life preserver in this potentially tumultuous sea of people.
Before I could remind him that this ordeal was half over, a pretty little blonde, probably a few years younger than us, bolted out of the crowd.
“Jake!” she cried as she threw herself at him.
“Hey, Maggie!” he said in greeting. Then he mouthed, “My sister.” He hugged her back and she stepped to the side, eyeing me curiously as he released her.
“I’m so glad you showed up. I figured you’d find an excuse not to come.”
“Are Mom and Frederic here?” He looked nervous as he scanned the crowd.
Maggie put her hand on his elbow, it was a reassuring gesture and I knew right then that I liked her. “Mom’s here, somewhere. Dad had a business conference out east that he couldn’t get out of.”
Jake nodded and he visibly relaxed.
“Who’s your friend?” she asked. Her curious perusal of me had turned wary. Instead of finding it offensive, I was slightly amused at the obvious protectiveness that she felt toward her older brother.
“Oh, sorry. Maggie, this is my friend Lanna,” he said.
“I’m here for moral support,” I whispered.
She smiled as she gave Jake a questioning look.
“You know I hate these things,” he said. “She was nice enough to come with so I didn’t have to show up like some dateless loser.”
“You’re not a loser,” we both said at the same time. We looked at each other and both smiled.
“Yeah, well, thanks,” he said as he shook his head at the two of us.
She looped her arm through his. “Let’s go find our table.” She motioned for me to follow.
“Uh, Mags, I’m pretty sure we aren’t sitting together. I’m actually surprised I was even invited to this thing. I’m probably seated at the table reserved for the other black sheep.”
“You mean like our dear cousin Jax, who decided to give up his high-powered job to join the Peace Corps? Because you’d be absolutely right. Fortunately for you, while you waited to be released out of the dreadful last row, I was busy rearranging.”
He frowned at her. “Rearranging what?”
She beamed at him. “Place cards, silly! Jax is now sitting next to mom and I,” she said dramatically, “am sitting next to you.”
A laugh slipped out of my mouth. “I love this girl,” I said to Jake.
She looked at me and gave me a huge grin. “Well, how rude of them to think I wouldn’t want to sit with my big bro.”
Since the day was glorious, tables were set out across the sprawling lawn. Maggie led us to a table that was as far from the head table as we could get and still have a place to eat.
It was fine by me. I actually liked the spot just fine. It was out of the way. Jake pulled out my chair. My place card was blank. I cocked an eyebrow at him.
“I sent in my RSVP with a plus one but I didn’t give a name,” he explained. “I’m sure it had the wedding planner in a tizzy.”
“Feeling optimistic, were you?” I teased.
Maggie laughed. “Hardly. He was planning on not showing but didn’t want anyone to know.”
Jake scowled at her.
She made a shooing motion. “Go get us some punch, pleeeeeease?” She batted her eyelashes innocently at him.
He warily eyed the mass of people that stood between us and the punch table.
Maggie sighed loudly. “Stop acting like a ninny. You’re my big brother. I’m supposed to look up to you. Go,” she said, “brave the pretentious nitwits in the crowd and bring us some drinks. I bet Lanna is parched.”
She gave me a look that begged me to go along with her.
I gave Jake an apologetic look. “I could use a drink.”
With a sigh of resignation, he took off.
Maggie’s playful look instantly drifted into a look of sadness as she watched him go. When she lost sight of him she turned to me. “I really hate that he’s so self-conscious around these people now. They have no right to look down on him. On the other hand, my dad made such a show of convincing everyone that Jake turned into a miscreant, I almost can’t blame them. But they should know better. They should know my brother better than to believe that.”
“I agree. I don’t know him well, but I don’t think I’ve ever met a nicer guy.”
She leaned forward, bracing her elbows on the table. “He said you were a friend, but what are your intentions with my brother?” I was about to laugh until I realized she looked pretty damn serious.
“My intention,” I said honestly, “is to be sure that he has a good time tonight. And if that should happen to include making his money-hungry ex a little bit jealous, so be it. She deserves to see that Jake’s a great guy, all on his own. It would serve her right to realize she was an idiot for tossing him aside.”
She nodded slowly, apparently needing to process what I’d said. “Thank you. I’m glad he finally got himself a girlfriend who sees that.”
“We’re not—” I cut myself of as I realized there was an echo from behind me. I glanced over my shoulder and Jake finished “—dating.”
“Right,” I agreed. “We’re not dating.”
“So
you implied with the friend bit,” Maggie admitted. “But you should be dating. I like her,” she said as she vaguely motioned my way. “Do you like her Jake?”
I laughed. “Yeah, do you like me, Jake?” I teased.
His cheeks turned pink but he smiled. “I suppose you’re not so bad.”
“Oh,” Maggie said with a sigh, “here come the ruiners of all things fun.”
“The, um, what?” I asked in confusion.
“The old people,” she clarified unhappily. “We’re sitting with at least a dozen old people. Prepare to be bored beyond your wildest dreams. Aunt Millie and Uncle George will talk for hours about the state of their bunions. The wedding planner put them back here, at this table, because their voices carry. Actually, they holler because they are all half deaf. She didn’t want to ruin the fun for everyone else.”
“Nope, just us black sheep,” Jake said as he carefully placed the cups of punch in front of Maggie and me.
“I’d rather be a black sheep than a lemming,” Maggie said. “And when it comes right down to it, I think you would too.”
~*~*~
“Time for me to mingle,” Maggie announced. “And I think it’s time for you two to dance.”
I thought that was a fabulous idea. I’d learned more about pacemakers, liver spots, and incontinence than I’d ever wanted to know.
I looked hopefully to Jake.
“Do you dance?” I asked.
“Do I dance?” he repeated. “Does it count if I just put my arms around you and sway to the music?”
“Yes,” I said with a laugh, “that definitely counts.”
“Then I’m an excellent dancer.”
Maggie hurried off to find a few of her cousins that she was close with. Jake and I made our way to the dance floor. We stayed on the outer edge.
“You never congratulated the bride and groom,” I said quietly.
“Trust me, it’s my wedding gift to them to keep my distance.”
I gave him a stern look. “I doubt that. They invited you.”
“It was good manners to invite me,” Jake said. “They probably thought I’d reciprocate the good manners by declining. Clearly, I did not.”
“Clearly,” I said with a smile. “Are you glad you came?”
He nodded. “I am. I’m tired of being snubbed by everyone. I don’t want to be part of this crowd again, but I don’t want to give them the satisfaction of knowing I was edged out of it against my will.”
“Then let’s just try to enjoy the rest of the evening,” I said.
We continued to sway to the music. Jake held me so close we were touching. I had no complaints. If anything, I wanted to press even more tightly against him. It felt good to have his arms around me.
My fingers toyed with the hair at the nape of his neck. His eyes involuntarily fluttered closed for a second. When he opened them again…I thought just maybe he was feeling a little bit of what I was feeling.
Or maybe he wasn’t.
I really had no idea.
I knew who I was invoking some emotion from.
Darby, chest heaving, eyes narrowed, gaze zeroed in on Jake, was clearly fuming on the other side of the pavilion.
“Someone is not a happy girl,” I said sarcastically. I tried to take a step away from Jake, just in case that was what he wanted but didn’t feel comfortable pushing me away. He didn’t let me put space between us. He kept his arms looped tightly around my waist.
Jake cast a quick glance toward his ex.
“Do you still feel something for her?”
He scoffed. “Oh, when I see her, I feel a whole lot. Not one of those feelings is good. Not after what she did to me. Not after I figured out what kind of person she really is.”
“Considering that she’s the one that ended things, she sure doesn’t look like she likes seeing you with someone else,” I said.
“Too bad for her that I don’t care what she thinks.”
“I kind of care what she thinks,” I said.
He cocked an eyebrow at me. “Why?”
“Because I don’t like her.”
“You don’t know her.” He wasn’t scolding, simply reminding.
“I dislike her on principal,” I decided. “I don’t like her because of what she did to you. And so maybe I want to make her just a little bit miserable. It would be a nice payback.”
He huffed out a quiet laugh. “Kinda sounds like you want to defend my honor.”
“Damn right,” I said as I grinned back.
He lowered his face so his lips were close to my ear. His voice was barely above a whisper when he asked, “Just how are you going to do that?”
I answered by sliding my hand up from the back of his neck to the back of his head. I turned my face so that my lips brushed against his. In an instant, they were no longer just brushing, casually kissing. Jake kissed me like it was something we had been doing for years. He kissed me until I was relieved that he had kept his hands around my waist. It helped me keep my balance when my knees felt like they were going to give way.
When he finally broke the kiss, he gave me a sheepish grin. I was so entranced by him I didn’t even glance around to see if Darby had noticed.
“I shouldn’t have done that,” Jake said.
I winced. “You’re right. I’m sorry. It’s not very classy to be making out on the dance floor. With your pretend date.”
He brushed his fingers against my cheek. “That’s not it at all. I was hoping that when I kissed you, it would be for our benefit. No one else’s.”
“Oh,” I said somewhat breathlessly. “I guess there’s always next time.”
Chapter 8
The next morning I woke up with my heart pounding chaotically and my ear drums feeling ready to shatter. My room was filled with a deafening, cacophonous noise that made my head want to implode.
I blinked hard as I looked around my familiar bedroom.
Though I was wide awake I was disoriented.
I flew out of bed, not taking the time to unwrap myself from my bedding. I stumbled, barely able to keep myself from crashing onto the floor. I grabbed onto the edge of the dresser and kicked the tangle of sheets off of my feet.
“What the hell!” I whined as I cringed. The shrill, ear-splitting sound that had awakened me continued to blare from the hallway. I pulled my bedroom door open to find Jake standing in front of it. The air smelled charred and looked a little hazy.
With a sheepish smile he waved a kitchen towel in front of the smoke detector that hung directly across from my bedroom.
“Sorry about that,” he said as the pulsating screech finally ceased.
I pressed my hand against my chest. I could feel my heart banging around underneath it.
His gaze drifted over me and I realized how little I was wearing. A pair of tiny boxers and a cami that was most likely rather see-through. I crossed my arms over my chest.
Jake grimaced, pulling his eyes away as he looked toward the kitchen, scratching the back of his neck. “Uh, I…,” he stammered. “I’m sorry about the smoke detector. I’m sure that wasn’t a great way to wake up.”
“It’s fine,” I said as I leaned against the doorway. “But what’s that smell?”
“I was going to make you breakfast to thank you for going with me last night. Apparently all I’m doing is burning you some bacon,” Jake said.
“You’re making me breakfast?” No one had ever made me breakfast. I mean, sure, Mom had poured me a bowl of cereal a time or two but that didn’t really count.
“Well,” he said with a sigh, “not anymore. I kind of made a mess of things.”
“Give me a minute and I’ll come help you. Maybe we can salvage some of it.”
He nodded and I closed the door. I quickly assessed my wardrobe, swiping a pair of jeans off of the chair and a fitted tee out of my drawer.
“Dammit!”
His voice carried all the way down the hall. I cringed wondering what else had gone wrong. I squirmed into
my jeans and pulled the shirt over my head.
Jake glanced up from the stove as I walked into the kitchen. He did not look happy.
“I thought maybe I’d done okay with the eggs but…” He lifted the pan for my inspection. Yeah, they were not okay. “I forgot to take them off the burner when I went to deal with the smoke detector.”
He dropped the pan back on the stove and gazed at it forlornly.
“It was a nice thought,” I offered.
He stepped away from the smoking mess. “Nice thoughts aren’t very filling. I’m starving and figured you would be too.”
“Well,” I said, “there’s always the café.”
Fifteen minutes later we were waiting to be seated. Clarissa, a friend of Max and Holly’s, was our waitress. The girl was sweet. Almost too sweet, like adding a packet of sugar to your soda.
I had gotten to know her pretty well during the time I worked here.
Clarissa smiled at us but I noticed the slight grimace as her nose reflexively twitched. “I’m sorry. Do you smell that?” she asked. She tossed a look over her shoulder, eyeing up the kitchen.
Jake plucked his tee shirt out, away from his body and took a sniff. I picked up a lock of my hair and sniffed that as well. Sure enough, the stench was coming from us. My hair had sucked up the smell of charred bacon and burnt eggs. I hadn’t noticed it while we were outside walking. But in here…yeah, it was a little hard to miss.
Jake slapped his hands over his face and let out a pained groan.
Clarissa looked confused.
“It’s my fault,” Jake admitted as he looked up at Clarissa. “I was trying to make Lanna breakfast.”
Her eyebrows shot up and a questioning look slid into place.
“I scorched the bacon. And the eggs,” Jake continued. “So we’re here for breakfast instead.”
I could tell by the way she had started bouncing on her toes just a bit that she wanted to ask for more information. I was pretty sure she’d jumped to the wrong conclusion.
“Jake is staying at Max’s while he and Holly are gone,” I said. “That’s how we ended up together so bright and early in the morning.”