“I don’t belong over here!” I laugh, though that doesn’t stop me from sitting down. I wasn’t exactly looking forward to making small talk with a bunch of people I’d never met, who would have inevitably asked what I did for a living and then would have just as inevitably asked tons of invasive, embarrassing questions.
If I’d wanted invasive, embarrassing questions, I would’ve stayed home and spent the week with my grandmother.
“No such thing anymore.” She shrugs before looking over my shoulder.
Something tells me I know what’s about to happen before it actually does.
“This is much better than the seating arrangement Kylie came up with—no offense,” Kellen says, looking at her brother and sister.
“Yeah, right, like I would take offense to that. I don’t even think Kylie cares anymore.” She gives him one of her most winning smiles. “Come on. Sit down.”
As if I expected anything else.
As if she wasn’t planning this in that devious little brain of hers.
But she’s all innocent as Kellen sits next to me.
“Can I tell you a secret?” he murmurs, leaning in close to my ear.
“Of course, just don’t expect me to keep it.”
He laughs, and that, plus the look in his eyes, plus the scent of his cologne, is about enough to knock me out of my chair. “I liked it better out on your patio, when it was just the two of us.”
“Funny, I was thinking the same thing.” Though I look down at my hands with a wry grin. “I can do without the oatmeal treatment though.”
“Okay, so the situation wasn’t exactly perfect, but the company was.”
“And look, I can even enjoy some wine without being afraid I’m going to fall out of my chair, unconscious.” I even take a sip as if to prove my point.
He flashes a naughty grin. “Maybe I’ll have to get you drunk and have my way with you.”
“You’re all talk.”
He arches an eyebrow as if he senses a challenge. “How so?”
“Last night would’ve been your chance to do that. And last I checked, the most you did was tuck me into bed.”
“Oatmeal facials aren’t my thing.”
“Do me a favor and laugh or wink or something, so I know you’re only kidding.”
He does better. He picks up my hand and kisses the back, his breath hot against my knuckles as he laughs. “You know I’m only kidding. Once again, my sense of humor doesn’t always translate.”
Which is just as good of a time as any for the announcement to be made that it’s time for toasts.
Meaning he has to get up and speak.
Maybe this wasn’t the best moment for him to be reminded that his sense of humor doesn’t always translate. Then again, maybe it was, seeing as how he now has to speak in front of a room full of people and might want to watch what he says.
I offer him a smile that I hope is encouraging before he stands, taking the microphone.
“Well,” he sighs, “it’s always nice to see a wedding go off without a hitch.”
Which is exactly the right thing to say since everybody laughs warmly, raising their glasses in agreement.
He clamps a hand over Zack’s shoulder, looking down at him with a fond smile. “I remember the night these two met. Let’s just say, Kylie has had an amazing effect on my best friend because, honestly, he was a walking disaster back then.”
“Guilty!” Zack quips, earning another round of laughter.
“I remember thinking, as Zack went on and on about what a great girl he’d met, that he had never sounded that way about a girl before. Not ever. Not even when we were ten years old and he’d had a crush on the prettiest girl in our class.”
He looks down at Kylie. “Don’t worry; you’re way hotter than she ever was.”
Kylie laughs, leaning against Zack.
“Anyway, that was the first thing I thought. The second thing I thought—and forgive me for this, buddy—was that Kylie was way too good for him. Honestly, it’s true,” he insists, looking around the room when everybody laughs again. “I mean, not just physically—though I think we can all agree who we hope their children resemble, should the time ever come. She’s brilliant, she’s accomplished, and she’s the kind of person you take seriously. A substantial person. That might sound old-fashioned, but it’s probably the best compliment I can give, and there are very few people in the world who I would describe that way. And I had to wonder why she would give him the time of day since I’d known him since we were little kids, and I’ll tell you, he’s not that cool.”
When the snickering dies down, he shrugs. “I guess she has a weakness for stray dogs and walking disasters. Because she looked at my best friend, who is like the brother I never had, and she saw through the shaggy hair cut and the jeans he’d been wearing since our freshman year of college. The person she saw underneath was worthy of her—at least, he had the potential to become worthy of her.”
He squeezes Zack’s shoulder. “And knowing him the way I do, I can promise you this. He’ll spend the rest of his life working at becoming worthy of you. That, I don’t doubt. You’ll never find a better friend or a better partner than this guy. Not to mention the fact that you’ll always look good in comparison to him.”
Beautiful. He ends with one more laugh, through which more than a few people are sniffling and dabbing at their eyes.
“So, let’s raise our glasses.” Kellen holds up a champagne flute. “To Zack and Kylie, who’ve already shown us how well they can weather the storm together.”
I can’t help it. I’m dabbing at my eyes by the time he’s finished too.
He’s just one of those people. He finds a way to be charming and funny while stirring emotion. He’s confident and comfortable, and he knows how to put those around him at ease.
In other words, he’s pretty much perfect.
At least, that’s how he looks in my eyes when he sits down next to me, miming the act of wiping sweat from his brow.
“Remind me to never do that again,” he murmurs with a sigh of relief.
“Are you freaking kidding? That was awesome! I’m serious. I’d think you did this sort of thing professionally.”
“Nah.” He snickers, waving a hand. “Honestly, it helps that I really do like Kylie. And she’s the person Zack needs in his life. In a big way.”
Hayley and Brandon are at least pretending to pay attention to the speech being made by one of the bridesmaids, who has an entire three sheets of paper to read from.
I lean in to whisper in Kellen’s ear to keep from interrupting, “You’re just busting on him the way you guys have been doing all week.”
He pulls back a little, eyes narrowing when he frowns. “No, I’m serious. She’s turned his entire life around.”
All right, this sounds like more than hyperbole. Looks that way, too, since he’s stone-faced, and I’m suddenly embarrassed.
“Oh. I don’t know anything about that. I figured you were kidding.”
“No, he really went through some tough times a while back. He was getting in pretty deep.”
I don’t even know if I should be hearing this.