“It’s about time the two of you showed up. I was thinking I might have to send a scout out and make sure you were alive,” his mom called out. She glared down at them from above, perched on the top of a ladder where she was wrapping a string of lights around one of the stained-glass windows.
Dex glanced down at his watch. “It’s only nine, Mama. You act like we rolled in at noon. Should you be up on a ladder? Maybe I should do that.”
“We’ve got two locations to decorate. Mary and I have been here for ages already, unlike some of you lazy bones who couldn’t be bothered to roll out of the bed until the sun had been up for hours.” The Southern accent came out stronger with the censure in her tone. Jabbing a finger toward the opposite side of the church, she directed, “There are bows to go on the ends of each pew in a box over there. You two start with getting those put up. And don’t give me any sass about being on a ladder, I know my own limitations.”
“Yes, ma’am,” Dex and Lena echoed. Their eyes met and they shared a small laugh. Today wouldn’t be the day to test his mom’s patience, and he was glad Lena seemed to be picking up on that.
The interior of the church was warm, so they shed their coats and scarves and tossed them onto the last pew. Dex guided Lena over to the overflowing box of red bows his mom had indicated.
While Lena pulled one of the bows from the box, Dex wrapped his arms around her from behind. “I’m sure I’ll be as good at this as I was wrapping presents.”
Leaning against his chest, Lena sighed. “You were so bad at that.”
“At least we get to spend the day together.”
She snickered and waved a hand toward his mom and Mary. “With a pair of sixty-year-old women as our chaperones.”
No sooner than the words were out of Lena’s mouth, his mom barked out an order for them to hang the bows. He muttered under his breath, “You heard the general, hang the bows.”
He took a step back from Lena and snatched one of the bows out of the box. They hung several without speaking, but that didn’t mean they weren’t saying anything. As each bow came out of the box, his hands brushed against hers. Their eyes met and lingered on each other as each bow was placed. With each graze of their hands, Dex wanted to clasp his fingers with hers and find somewhere private to see where those teasing touches might lead. Sharing a bed the night before without taking things beyond a few kisses had been akin to torture, but he was determined to do things right with Lena. She wanted to take the physical side of things slow, and he would honor that. But each touch of their skin, each kiss, made that harder.
When Tommy and Jill came in a little while later, they brought with them an excitement that filled the church. The smiles on both of their faces energized Dex, and he found himself humming a Christmas carol.
“What’s this? Ebenezer Scrooge actually knows Christmas music? I am shocked.” Lena poked him, grabbing a bow and hurrying to the other end of the pew.
He grinned and grabbed a bow before following her. “I know a lot of Christmas music, actually.”
Tommy strolled over, still smiling broadly. “So, the way I hear it, the two of you had quite the romantic evening last night. Even went up to the High Bridge? You aren’t trying to steal my thunder, are you, big brother?”
Dex grinned at him. He took Lena’s left hand in his and brought it up to his lips just to tease his brother. “So what if I am?”
He considered—briefly—allowing the misunderstanding to continue, but he didn’t want to scare Lena. It was less than twenty-four hours ago that they’d move out of the fake zone and into reality. From the moment he’d taken her hand and led her out onto the High Bridge, he’d known that one day he would be proposing to her, though. It just wasn’t that time yet, but before he could correct his brother, Jill squealed and ran over.
On the eve of her wedding, she was even more bubbly and bouncy than usual. He’d have never guessed it was possible for her to get more excitable, but he’d just been proven wrong.
“Oh, my God, did you really propose to her last night? Tommy said you wouldn’t, but I told him that you wouldn’t have brought Lena home with you unless you were dead serious about her.”
The excitement on Jill’s face was overwhelming. Dex swallowed hard at the onslaught of energy coming his way. Her words rushed over him and crashed into his mind. Knowing that one day he’d propose to Lena and having everyone think that was this day were miles apart. He’d just came to terms with the idea of another serious relationship and having a future with someone. It was starting to feel like commitment was crowding in far too quickly, like a flash flood rushing up over his heart.
His voice cracked when he spoke. “We haven’t been dating that long yet, guys. This Christmas is all yours. We aren’t engaged.”
There was an awkwardness to Lena’s laugh, but she backed him up with her own confirmation that they weren’t ready for that step. “Yes, we are so not to that point yet.”
Slipping an arm around her waist, he leaned close and whispered, “I like that you said ‘yet,’ though.”
“Why would you think we were engaged?” Lena asked, and he had to admit it was a very good question. He should have thought to ask that one himself, because he thought he’d quashed that line of thought from his family the previous morning.
Jill looked at them with a cat-that-got-the-canary grin. “I’m guessing that you haven’t seen the photos that High Bridge put up on the tourism page we help your mom run, have you?”
Dex shook his head, forehead wrinkling as he considered her words. “No?” he finally ventured cautiously.
Jill pulled out her phone and tapped a few times before holding it out to him. Her smile was now ear to ear. “That was some kiss. They even tagged it with ‘I think we just had another proposal. #perfectproposalspot.’ So if you didn’t propose last night, you really missed your opportunity, and you’ll have to work extra hard to find a better one now.”
Pink tinted Lena’s cheeks as they viewed the photographic evidence of last evening’s embrace together. She grabbed another bow and busied herself attaching it to the next pew. Clearly an avoidance tactic, he thought.
Not that he blamed her. He’d really like to change the topic himself, but Jill and Tommy seemed to want to press the issue. Probably because they were so deliriously happy with each other that they wanted to infect everyone within reach with the matrimony bug.
Personally, Dex thought the matrimony bug felt a bit like the start of a nasty stomach bug in that moment. His stomach churned with a nervous anxiety, and a deep desire to change the subject rose up from his core. “Drop it, please,” he entreated. “Focus on decorating for your wedding.”
Focus on anything but embarrassing Lena further...
Anything but marrying him off to the first woman he’d been serious about in years...
Anything at all.
He grabbed a bow out of the box and passed it to Lena. Looking back at Tommy and Jill, he asked, “Don’t you have some decorations to put up, or are you just expecting us to do everything for you?”
* * *
After spending the day decorating both the church and the reception hall for Tommy and Jill’s wedding, Lena was ready for bed. Unfortunately, they still had several more hours of wedding-related activities to go. She was used to being on her feet all day, but Dex’s mom had kept them going nonstop for hours. She’d followed behind, tweaking half the decorations they’d put up, obsessing over making everything absolutely perfect.
It was as heartwarming as it was frustrating.
Lena couldn’t imagine her own mother hanging a single item of decor. Micromanaging the wedding planner or interior decorator hired to do the job? Absolutely. But she’d never be hands-on like Ruth Henry had been.
“You ready to go get through this ugly Christmas sweater rehearsal dinner mess?” Dex asked, holding the car door open for her.
“It will look better off.”
“Shh...” Fighting against the blush she knew was rushing up her cheeks, Lena admonished him. “We are going to be late for this thing if we don’t get inside soon. Put those thoughts right out of your mind.”
He grumbled good-naturedly, but took her hand as she stepped out of the car. “My vote is still for skipping. We could leave a note saying we were heading back to Nashville to elope. They’d never even question it.”
She rolled her eyes at him, trying her best to stick to that same joking tone. “After you spent the entire day arguing that we weren’t engaged. Sure.”
The thought of marrying him was far from distasteful, though. In fact, she could imagine a future where she and Dex were married. She could see them in a house in the suburbs of Nashville, a little boy, a little girl and a dog. They’d make trips to see his family regularly, so that their kids knew what a grandparent’s love felt like. Having seen just how quickly they welcomed her into their loving arms, she had no doubts they’d move the world for their grandbabies. Being around Dex and his entire family had been easier than she’d thought possible. Actually, it felt really right. Being part of a real family was a novel experience for her, one she found herself deeply longing to hang on to, and the very last thing she wanted was to go back to her solitary existence in Nashville.
She was getting ahead of herself. She and Dex had shared a single date and she was imagining their children. Exhaling quickly, she pushed the thought of that imaginary future out of her head. “Should we go in?”
“Let’s get it over with.” He opened the door to the church and they stepped in out of the cold. From the looks of things, they were the last to arrive.
His mom made a quick motion to him to join them at the front of the church. Lena followed up the aisle more slowly and sat next to Dex’s aunt Peggy.
Jill wore a simple veil with what Lena could only assume was a custom-designed ugly Christmas sweater that had the words Bride-to-Be knitted into the Christmas pattern. It was hideous, but Jill’s radiance overcame the sweater’s deficiency. The way the young bride stared at her groom-to-be, clad in a matching Husband-to-Be sweater, sent a pang of longing through Lena’s heart. She wanted what Jill had—a Henry man standing at the altar next to her with a goofy grin on his face.
Shifting her glance to Dex, she found him staring back at her. He winked at her before turning his gaze back to the pretend ceremony in front of him. Even the obnoxious sweater couldn’t detract from how handsome he looked.
As she sat waiting for the rehearsal part of the evening to be over, she wondered, was this the church where Dex had been left at the altar? He had never said, but she reasoned that it was possible, even likely. She searched his face for signs of upset, but all she could detect was happiness as he watched his brother and future sister-in-law practice their ceremony.
Soon, the rehearsal was done and they moved to a large room at the back of the church for the ugly sweater part of the evening. At the back of the room stood a table loaded down with finger foods and appetizers.
Lena’s stomach rumbled at the sight. Lunch had been so long ago. She and Dex made their way over to the food and filled their plates quickly. They took a seat at one of the round tables placed along one side of the room. After getting something in her stomach, she let her eyes scan the room. She’d expected a small party, given that the wedding was tomorrow, but there was actually quite a crowd.
Suddenly, Lena stood. Her heart jerked as her eyes and brain tried to process what she was seeing. Who she was seeing. Blinking hard, she tried to clear what had to be a hallucination from her mind. There was no way that her lying, cheating ex-boyfriend could be standing in front of her. The man turned and she swallowed hard when she realized it wasn’t Connor. Of course, it wouldn’t be Connor. Why would he be in Westfield, Tennessee, of all places?
“Lena?” The concern in Dex’s voice brought her back to a state of calm. “You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”
“I thought I saw someone I recognized and had a momentary panic. I’m okay now.” She waved vaguely at the man talking to Tommy. Now that she got a better look at the man, she could see he only bore a faint resemblance to Connor and not nearly enough that she should have panicked. “I am going to step out and get a little air, though.”
“I’ll come with you,” he offered.
“No.” She laid a hand on his forearm. “You are needed here. And I’ll only be a moment.”
Leaving him standing alone, Lena grabbed her coat and stepped out into the crispness of the winter night. Though the frigid air pained her lungs, she inhaled deeply several times. Looking up, she focused on the constellations shining bright in the clear, dark sky.
“What am I doing?” she said aloud.
“Hiding out to avoid giving me a real answer, if I had to guess.” Dex’s voice came from behind her.
Spinning to face him, she grimaced. “That could be at least partially true.”
“I’m a good listener though, I promise. And whatever it is, we can talk about it. We can get through it.” With a gentle hand, he brushed his thumb along the edge of her lower lip. “And if it’s about Jessie, you don’t need to worry about her.”
“It’s nothing. Completely stupid.”
“Your reaction said that it was something.” His eyes searched her face. “Every drop of color left your face.”
Breath puffing out visibly in the cold, Lena closed her eyes for a moment. “I thought I saw Connor.”
“Your ex?”
“Yeah.” Looking up at him, she shrugged. “It’s completely irrational. He’d have no reason to be here, and yet I thought I saw him.”
There was a harshness to his inhale, noticeable in the quiet. “You looked afraid. Did he hurt you?”
“Not physically.” She shook her head and moved away from his touch. Staring out at the sky, she continued, “But yes, he hurt me. He was the first man I ever said ‘I love you’ to. And I found out too late that he’d been playing me from day one.”
“Ouch.”
“Yeah. He only wanted me because of who my father is. He wanted to be department head. Looking back, I ignored a lot of warning signs. The tan lines where he’d had a wedding ring, the nights when he ignored my calls, the way he never wanted me at his place and insisted on coming to mine.”
“He was married.” Dex’s words weren’t a question.
“Yeah. Oh, he told me he was separated and in the process of getting a divorce. And then weeks after my father promoted him to head of Cardio, he and his wife decided to work things out. Later, I found out they’d never actually been separated and she had encouraged him to pursue a relationship with me so that he could get in good with the medical director.”
“Your father?”
“Got it in one. Connor’s actions told me who he truly was, but I didn’t want to see the truth because I had fallen hard for him. Or at least I thought I had.”
“Thought?” Dex moved toward her quickly, his gaze intense.
Her lips turned up in a hint of a smile. “My heart’s been telling me a little something different lately.”
“I know exactly what you mean.” His arms circled her waist and pulled her into his chest. “It’s crazy, isn’t it, that we could find something so strong in such a short time?”
“Mmm...” With her arms wrapped around his neck, she tiptoed up. “Are you going to kiss me or not, Doc?”
“Definitely going to kiss you, Nurse,” he murmured against her lips.
Every kiss with Dex became this magical experience. Undeniably fierce, yet layered with an unexpected tenderness. Comforting, when she let her guard down enough to let him in.
And every moment
, every kiss, she trusted the man who held her a little more.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
DEX TOOK HER hand in his as they entered the church and he seated her with his aunt before leaving to find his brother. As best man, he couldn’t stay in the sanctuary with Lena, even if she’d have vastly preferred that. So she settled in next to Peggy and they made a little small talk while they waited for the ceremony to begin.
Most of the guests were already inside and seated when Tommy came in and took his place at the altar. A goofy love-struck grin screamed to the entire church just how happy he was in that moment.
Dex followed right behind him. The matching grin on Dex’s face warmed Lena’s heart. The candlelight glow and remnants of sunset streaming in through the stained glass created this moody, intense lighting that highlighted all of his best features. Clad in dark reds and pine greens, the wedding party gathered at the front of the church to await the moment when Tommy and Jill would exchange their vows.
Crisp garlands of flowers mixed with shiny ribbons and ornamented wreaths. At the back of the altar, a large Christmas tree rose tall just beneath the cross. Christmas had never looked more romantic.
Lena struggled through the ceremony to keep her focus on the bride and groom. Even as Jill made her way up the aisle, as lovely as she was, her gaze kept drifting over to Dex. And given how often their eyes met, she knew he shared her struggles. As the pastor started the ceremony and even through the vows, Dex kept sneaking peeks at Lena.
He even missed the cue to pass Tommy the rings and had to be prompted.
“Looks like our best man has been distracted by that lovely young lady in the second pew,” the pastor said with a teasing tone. The man’s words sent a wave of tittering laughter through the church.
Lena’s cheeks heated but she couldn’t control the smile on her face. It took all the self-control she possessed to avoid rushing up there and throwing herself into his arms.
A Nurse, a Surgeon, a Christmas Engagement Page 14