“Oh my God.”
“When she met my dad and they got engaged, she worried that if he had a bachelor party, he’d die, too, so he didn’t have one.”
“Why didn’t you tell Reed this? I’m sure he would have understood.”
“I don’t know. The day of golf seemed safe to me, and I didn’t want to ruin the tradition for him. But then when his brother changed the plan, I couldn’t bring myself to spoil it for him. So that night I kept calling to make sure he…he was still alive. Naturally, he thought I was checking up on him, and I was, just not for the reasons he believed. I planned to tell him the next morning, but we’re staying in different rooms, and family arrived, and I just didn’t get around to it.”
“Elle.” Kennedy touched her arm. “You need to tell him. This is an easy fix. He’ll understand, and then you’ll both feel better.”
“I feel so silly.”
“You’re getting married! Of course you’re not going to be rational all the time.”
A small smile brightened Elle’s face. “He’s asked me more than once to tell him when things are bothering me. It’s caused problems before and I’m afraid he’s going to…going to walk away. Decide I’m not worth the effort.”
“You are.” Kennedy considered herself a good judge of character, and she liked Elle. A lot. The warm, kind vibes Elle gave were impossible to ignore. “And so is Reed. Secrets are hard to share sometimes, but if it impacts your relationship, you have to. You have to trust Reed will love you more because you’re being vulnerable.”
“Thanks, Kennedy. I am lucky to be marrying him.”
“You definitely are, and I say that as a compliment to you, too, because I never thought he’d get married. That you’ve captured his heart is a big deal. He’ll never let you down, Elle.”
“You’re right. And I plan to keep his heart safe and sound for the rest of my life.”
“I’m happy to hear that.” Kennedy wanted nothing more than for Reed to be loved, and Elle had just reassured her of that.
“I’m sorry for not inviting you to the wedding. I truly am. Will you please join us on Saturday?”
“Oh, uh…” She’d love to accept the invitation, but she’d lost track of the various characters Andrew had played and dragged her into. She didn’t want to get caught in a lie at the wedding…
“Please.” Elle got to her feet, so Kennedy picked up the pitcher and cups and did the same, careful to avoid the puddles of lemonade. “Having you there would mean a lot to Reed. And me.”
“Elenore Carson!”
Kennedy and Elle looked down the hallway to the man sticking his head out of a door.
“We were about to send the wedding police after you! Get your butt in here!”
“On my way!” Elle turned back to Kennedy. “That’s my brother and man of honor.”
“I’ll grab you a new pitcher. And thank you, I’d love to attend the wedding.” Bottom line, she really did want to be there. She’d just cross the identity crisis line when she got there.
“Wonderful. Please feel free to bring a guest, too. And you’re welcome to join us now if you want.”
“I think I’ll let you celebrate without me. I was actually on my way to track down a friend when I bumped into you.”
“Oh, right. Of course. Tall blond guy, right? He and my brother have been talking a lot,” Elle added with a smile. “And don’t worry about the lemonade.” Elle took the pitcher and cups from Kennedy’s hands. “I’ll grab it if you don’t mind letting someone know about the spill on the floor.”
“Deal.”
Kennedy planned to wipe up the spill herself, but she ran into Cole and he said he had it. He also had a master key to her room and opened the door for her so she could change her shirt.
Then she went in search of Andrew. She found him on the second floor veranda enjoying—you guessed it, lemonade. Small platters of bruschetta and cheese, crackers, and red grapes were also set out. She made herself a plate and poured herself some lemonade before joining him and the two women who looked captivated by everything he said. It took super-human strength not to immediately drag him away to share her job news, but going on looks alone, one of the women had to be Elle’s mom, and Kennedy didn’t want to be rude.
“This is my best friend Kennedy,” Andrew said, no Aussie accent. And yay for finally telling the truth.
The women introduced themselves. It was Elle’s mom. Her name was Bea and the other woman was Bea’s best friend, Melanie.
“Andrew was just telling us about his job as a water slide tester,” Bea said.
“Oh?” Kennedy choked on a grape.
Andrew patted her on the back. “You okay?”
She swallowed and gave the universal sign of “okay” with her hand. Not another persona!
“As I was saying…” Andrew smiled at the women, charming them so much with his winning grin that it didn’t matter what came out of his mouth. “Every time an amusement park or hotel or other tourist locale adds a waterslide, they need a quality control person to make sure that it’s both safe and fun. And that’s where I come in. I check on things like how much water is in the slide and how long it takes me to slide down. Then I write up a report, outlining any concerns or safety issues.”
“What a fun job!”
“It is. And I’ve lost my trunks in the water only a few times. And not from sliding, if you get my drift.”
Kennedy rolled her eyes.
Bea and Melanie laughed.
“Would you mind if I borrowed Andrew for a minute?” Kennedy asked, taking his arm and leading him away. Once they were alone she said, “I got the interview!”
He lifted her feet off the ground in a brotherly hug. “That’s fantastic! When is it?”
“Tuesday.”
“So you’ll fly out Monday? Stay overnight?”
“Yes. Dr. Weaver is going to have someone make the arrangements and email me the itinerary.” Clouds played peek-a-boo with the sun, but at the realization there was a very good chance she’d be moving across the country, her face grew warm.
“Do you need to head home sooner?” Andrew asked.
“No, we can stay. I actually just ran into Elle, and we had a nice chat.”
“Do tell.”
She gave a summary of their conversation. “So, once she talks to Reed, I think he’ll feel better, and staying to see them get married would be great.”