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18
Emma
Bree is telling us how much fun she’s been having with the seating arrangements. Apparently, there are people in Sharon Springs who have a history.
“Honestly, I thought I had it all figured out, and then Jackson comes in and wrecks it all. He’s leaning over my shoulder one afternoon when he says, ‘You can’t put Mrs. Hawkridge and Mrs. Phillips at the same table.’ I was like, ‘Why not?’ He says, ‘Do you want blood and hair flying around our reception?’ I then have to listen to him telling me how the two women have hated each other’s guts for years because they were both after the same guy.”
“And?” I press. “Did one of them end up with him?”
“Nope.” Bree shakes her head. “They were both so relentless in their chase that they scared him off, and he married a woman from a town over.”
Martha is laughing and nodding her head. Clearly, Sylvie’s mum knows the women Bree is talking about very well.
“Of course, they’ve both blamed each other ever since, and they avoid each other like the plague. Jackson tells me they will actually cross the street if they see each other. I mean, these women are now in their sixties!” Bree blurts in disbelief.
“Wow,” I say, chuckling a little, because it is kind of funny.
Bree shakes her head and rolls her eyes, but she’s grinning. “So now, they’re at opposite ends of the tent,” she finishes firmly.
We all laugh, and then Bree says, “Honestly, who’d have thought.”
While I am intently listening, my eye wanders out through the porch door. Finn and Jackson are out there, no doubt talking about anything but the wedding, and I just can’t help but take a peek. In twenty-four hours, my life has changed, and I’m still reeling at the thought of it.
When Finn kissed me yesterday at the water’s edge in Albany, I truly felt like I was going to float away. Sparks exploded across my body, and a wave of exhilaration washed over me. I know, it sounds so cliché, but it’s how I felt. Maybe it was the buildup to that moment—the shared glances, the soft brushes of his hand, the fact that I’ve been attracted to him for so long now. All that anticipation only added to our first kiss, and I was not disappointed. When we got back to the house, I was nervous. We hadn’t really spoken on our journey home. Both of us seemed to be in a little bit of a daze. But while I pretended nothing had happened, Sylvie must have noticed something.
After dinner, she dragged me into the den and told me to spill. So I told her what had happened and how I felt. At first, she looked worried. “It’s not that I don’t want you to be happy, Emma. I just don’t want you to get swallowed up by Finn and his huge life.”
I didn’t understand what she meant, but it wouldn’t have mattered what she told me. It wouldn’t have affected how I felt. I was falling for him, and I knew it.
When she realized she couldn’t deter me, she eventually told me a few home truths, some of which completely blew my mind.
“He’s a millionaire?” I blurted.
Sylvie nodded. “Uh-huh. Close to becoming a billionaire, in fact.”
My eyes were so wide, I thought they might pop out of my head at any second.
“His life is far from ordinary,” she continued, “even though, since he’s been here, it looks very ordinary.”
It took me some time to wrap my head around that. I couldn’t understand how someone so young could be so wealthy. Sylvie explained that it had nearly happened overnight and told me about the application he had created. You hear of these success stories all the time, so I wasn’t entirely surprised. Nor did I think about it for too long. I had gotten to know Finn as a person. He wasn’t flashy or arrogant, and he certainly did not act like a ridiculously wealthy man. Besides, I had been attracted to his personality and his quick wit. Not to mention how easy we were with each other. I didn’t care about the money.
We talked for a long time after that, and eventually, Sylvie seemed to come around. She was pleased that her brother made me happy. “I have to admit, the two of you are great together, even though I told him to stay away from you.”
I was shocked at that statement. “You did what?”
“I told him he was too much for you.”
Hearing that explained a lot. There had been times when I had felt he had been holding back, but then, I had deduced that he was just a contained man. But as our bond has grown, something magical has happened between us, and Finn has clearly refused to hold back any longer.
* * *
Bree is still talking about the seating arrangements when I notice that some of the glasses are getting a little low. I should top them up. Besides, it will give me an excuse to go outside and see Finn. I’m sure the men need more beer. Without saying a word, I grab the wine bottle, and as Bree continues speaking, I top everyone’s glass up. Of course, I’ve planned it like that. It means it won’t look obvious to anyone when I wander outside to ask the men if they need a refill.
I can be sneaky when I choose to be.
I wander out onto the porch to check if the men need another beer. Jackson and Finn are standing on the lawn, talking. Danny is nowhere to be seen. I’m just about to call over to them when Finn’s voice travels over to me on the still evening air.
“I should have warned Emma that he was a misogynistic pig who used girls all the way through high school. If I had told her that he was a manipulating womanizer, Emma would never have gotten hurt.”
