I didn’t know who he had been talking to that morning, but it was obviously someone in his life who held sway. Someone whose opinion mattered.
Ronan’s eyes met mine through the night and held them for several long seconds. The casual irreverence that pervaded most of his interactions had disappeared completely.
“I’m here because of me,” he said at last. “I’m here because of us.”
Relief swept through me like one of the waves on the beach.Thank God.
For what, I wasn’t sure. But the gratitude was still there.
“Now, I have a question for you.”
I blinked as we continued walking. “What’s that?”
“Is Derek your date for the wedding tomorrow?”
I physically recoiled. “What? Oh, God,no.”
“Well, he is the best man. You could enjoy the steak together.”
We were back to jokes now. “That just means I have to walk down the aisle with him. I don’t have a date.” Not that I could at this point. Everyone in Megan’s family thought I was married.
“Good. Then I can be yours.”
I frowned. Crashing the rehearsal dinner was one thing. But far more than twenty-some family members were going to be at this wedding tomorrow. I had helped Megan arrange the seating chart for a reception that was hosting close to two hundred people, many of them people I’d known since grade school.
Yes, Megan had said she wanted Ronan to come. But there were still a million reasons to say no. Reasons that had more to do with the dangerous effect those bedroom eyes had every time he looked at me like this.
But then, I imagined the way tomorrow would go with him and without him. I remembered my best friend’s observation about my smile when he was around. And I considered the fact that while Ronan Black certainly had an edge to him, that acerbic wit only seemed to be used to protect me, never to tear me apart.
The man had never said a negative thing to me or about me. Not once, despite the obvious inconvenience I presented to his life, had even come close to disparaging.
In fact, being around him only ever seemed to feel good.
Megan was right. I’d forgotten what that was like.
“You win,” I told him as a strange yet familiar warmth filled my chest. “I’ll meet you at the church.”
11
WEDDING BELLS I ACTUALLY REMEMBER
LANEY
Inever really dreamed about my own wedding. Sure, Megan and I played all sorts of wedding games as little girls. Dress-up in the backyard, or maybe our Barbies got married. But Megan had always been a bit more intense about it, and her make-believe hadn’t stopped when we grew out of dolls and costumes. Her wedding dreams just evolved into scrapbooks and Pinterest pages she’d maintained since middle school.
Maybe that’s why I was so delighted for my friend as I pinned the pearl-embossed veil to the back of her elegant updo. Today, all of her dreaming was coming to fruition, right down to the off-the shoulder mermaid gown and the antique candelabras decorating the reception tables. I’d never seen Megan look so happy.
Or nervous.
“Everything ready?” she asked for what had to be the tenth time that morning.
I nodded into the full-length mirror in front of us in the bridal suite. “Darla’s on it. The bridesmaids are in the next room listening to her spiel. Your mom has been limited to onlyoneglass of champagne since lunch, and your dad has been regaling everyone with baby pictures of you since breakfast.”
Megan and Kevin had chosen one of the most scenic spots in Seattle to be married. The Admiral’s house was an old naval residence perched on a four-acre corner of Magnolia, a peninsular neighborhood that stuck out onto the Sound and provided a panoramic view of the city, Mt. Rainier, and two mountain ranges.
It was the first time we’d had a moment alone all day. Between the glam squad hired to make everyone picture-ready, Megan’s mom, grandmothers, and soon-to-be mother-in-law hovering around like hens, and the rest of the bridal party squawking like chickens in their brood, it had been a morning of mostly organized chaos.
Now, the big show was about to begin. The rest of the bridal party was waiting for orders to walk through the lavender-lined path leading to a jasmine-threaded arbor. The sun was shining, the breeze was breezing, and everything was just about perfect.