“Megan?” she asked as Megan took her place beside her father. Blair and Libby were getting ready to practice their walk down the aisle. “Care to join us here at the rehearsal? You’re obviously a million miles away.”
Megan’s mouth opened as if to say something. Then she took a deep breath and dropped her father’s arm. She took several steps into the center of the lawn, clasping her hands in front of her, her face paler than usual.
“Actually, there’s something I have to tell you.” She lifted her gaze to Josh, who stood at the end of the imaginary aisle with Noah and Kevin, next to the sidewalk that led to the gardens.
Josh’s eyes widened, and he shook his head slowly.
She glanced down at her hands. “I . . . this . . .”
Josh’s heart seized in his chest. How could he stop her? Should he stop her? This wasn’t some game they were playing, after all. He was screwing with her life. But truth be told, his business issues aside, he wasn’t ready to lose this woman. He was certain he’d never find anyone like her again. He didn’t even want to try.
Libby rushed toward Megan and wrapped an arm around her shoulders. “I think Megan’s got some pre-wedding jitters. We all know how this marching down the aisle thing works. How about we just skip it and go to dinner?”
“No,” Kevin said, stepping away from Josh and Noah. “I don’t think that’s it at all.” He moved closer to her. “Megan, you don’t have to marry this dipshit. Come on, let’s go home.”
Without replying to her brother—or even looking at him—Megan glanced up at Josh, her eyes glassy with unshed tears.
Josh held his breath, clenching his fists at his sides as he silently pleaded with her.
Relinquishing her position at the head of the group, Knickers marched to the center of the lawn, her imperiousness slightly undermined when her spiky heels sunk into the wet sod. She swung her legs in an exaggerated movement to break them loose of the earth. “Stop the wedding? Have you lost your mind, Kevin? I always expect you to be the sensible one.”
“The sensible one?” Josh said, louder than he meant. “What the hell is that supposed to mean?”
Bart, who now stood several feet behind Megan, had a panicked look on his face. Things were spiraling out of control pretty quickly, and Josh could easily guess who would bear the brunt of it later.
Finally reaching Megan, Kevin grabbed her hand and pulled her to him, his face red. “Mom, we’ve all sat back and let you ramrod this family for long enough. Enough.”
“Ramrod this family?” she shrieked.
Kevin flung his arm toward Josh. “Megan’s not marrying this guy.”
“Of course she’s marrying him!” Nicole shouted, her face twisted with a mixture of surprise and anger. She wobbled as her heel sunk deeper, pitching her to the side.
Josh took a moment to survey the rest of the scene: Gram, who’d been seated in a folding chair at the side of the group, was watching it all, her eyes glittering with excitement. Megan’s cousins stood toward the back of the lawn, looking all at once uncomfortable and enthralled. Blair seemed like she was about to rush over and drag Megan away, but Libby was blocking her path. The minister stood behind, wisely keeping his mouth shut.
Shaking Josh out of his stupor, Noah leaned into his ear and whispered, “You have to put a stop to this. Now.”
“I know.” But did he? Part of him wanted to let it play out, to let Megan make her choice without any intervention.
“Well, Megan?” her mother demanded, hands on her hips as she tottered back and forth like a baby giraffe. “Are you going to tell your brother to go back to the groom’s line so we can finish this rehearsal and go to dinner?” She shook her head, looking like she was about to implode. “If Josh will even let Kevin stand up with him.” She pointed her French-tip-manicured finger at him. “Your behavior is deplorable.”
Megan looked from her mother to her brother, then finally rested her gaze on Josh, tears streaming down her face as her chin quivered.
His heart twisted with a pain that sucked in his breath. He couldn’t do this to her. He couldn’t hurt her. Not her.
“Megan,” he said, taking a step forward; his voice cracked, but he didn’t care. “You are singularly the best thing that has ever come into my life.”
She dropped Kevin’s hand and studied Josh as a fresh trail of tears tumbled down her cheeks. Kevin’s fists balled at his sides, but Josh didn’t let that stop him. He continued to take slow steps toward Megan, moving around Knickers. “You fell into my life and turned it upside down. You’ve made me question everyone and everything, but when I sort through it all, the only thing that makes sense is you.”
He stopped in front of her, her eyes looking up at him in confusion and sorrow.
He cupped her cheeks, his thumbs wiping her tears. “Don’t cry, Meggie. We’ll do whatever you want. You just say the word. If you want to end this right now, we can. I won’t fight you. But if you want to keep going . . .” He pushed past the lump in his throat, ignoring the fact they had an audience. “Can I tell you how I feel before you make your decision?”
She nodded, fresh tears breaking free, the sight hurting his heart even more.
“I can’t imagine walking away from this mess without you. I don’t know how this happened. I only know it did. You know how I said I left it all up to fate?”
She nodded, sucking in her lower lip to stop her chin from quivering.
He smiled at her and picked up her hand, cradling it between his own. “We’re supposed to be together. I know it. I don’t want to go back to Seattle without you. Don’t give up on us, okay? Don’t give up on me.”
She watched him, indecision wavering in her eyes.
He pressed his forehead to hers, lowering his voice to a whisper. “It’s up to you, Meggie. Either I walk away, or we keep going. I just want you to be happy. What will make you happy?”
A soft smile lifted her mouth. “You make me happy, Josh. I’ve never been happier than I am with you.”
Relief flooded through him, and he released the breath he’d been holding. “So what do you want to do about it? Do you want me to take you away from this mess?”
She looked around at her family, then at the crowd of botanical gardens visitors who now lined the sidewalk by their practice lawn. They were watching with open mouths, as if they’d happened upon a particularly trashy episode of reality television. Finally, she returned her gaze to him, her orneriness returning. “And walk away from a fifty-grand party? Not on your life.”
He kissed her, his joy overshadowing the fear that lurked in the shadows of his heart. He still had to come clean, but not yet. Not now. He might lose her when he did, and he wasn’t ready to take that risk.
She wrapped her arms around his neck, clinging to him and kissing him back.
The crowd of onlookers—strangers and friends and family alike—broke into applause and a round of “Woots,” undoubtedly led by Libby.
When he lifted his head, he noticed two people were not participating: Kevin and Blair. They stood together now, glaring at him as if he were public enemy number one. He could deal with their animosity—even hatred—as long as they didn’t try to take Megan from him.