“You don’t need to,” Jo said, lifting her chin. “Because we’ve got it handled.”
“We?” I finally spoke up. “I’m not exactly a professional wedding planner.”
“Yes,we,” Jo said, focusing her eyes on me. “I am volun-telling you.”
McKenzie stifled a laugh, and I bit back a grin.
Derek sat back in his chair and chuckled. “Uh-oh.”
“Please, Katie.” Jo dropped to her knees in front of her best friend. “Let me do this for you.”
“Aw, look, Tommy Lee,” McKenzie said to Dallas, a sickly-sweet smile plastered on her face. “Jo’s proposal is gonna be better than yours.”
Dallas tossed a pillow at her over Katie’s head.
“Come on, Katie,” Jo begged. “Will you let me do this for you?”
Katie’s face softened, and she looked to Dallas, a question burning in her eyes.
He held up his hands. “I want what you want. You know that.”
Katie nodded, a smile growing on her face as she turned back toward Jo, who waited impatiently for her answer.
“Okay, then,” Katie said. “Yes, you can plan a wedding for us. But only on three conditions.”
“Anything,” Jo said.
“The only people who will be there, besides whatever officiant you find, are in this room. It can’t be over-the-top, and it must be after 8 p.m. because I’m busy till then.”
Jo was silent for a moment, and I thought those stipulations were going to be enough for her to call the whole thing off.
But finally, she spoke. “You have my word.”
“Then I guess we’re getting married tomorrow,” Katie said, her face glowing as Dallas watched her with a matching expression, his hand reaching to squeeze her thigh.
Jo threw her arms around Katie and hugged her before bouncing to her feet. “I have to go. I have so much work to do.”
“So much self-inflicted work,” McKenzie muttered, but Jo was too busy listing off the tasks she needed to accomplish to notice.
“Luca, McKenzie, I’ll be in touch tomorrow with everything I need you to do,” Jo said, talking to herself as she left the room and walked out the back door, which snapped shut behind her.
Derek nodded slowly and sighed. “How long do you think it’ll take her to realize I have the keys?”
It was only a matter of seconds before we heard the creak of the wood followed by Jo shouting. “Derek!”
“Guess that’s my cue,” he said, standing. “Congratulations, guys. Seriously, this is amazing. And I know whatever she manages to cook up for tomorrow will be perfect.”
“Blink twice if you need help, Derek,” McKenzie joked as he trailed after Jo.
Once they were both gone, McKenzie shifted her attention to Katie. “Are you sure this is what you want? If it isn’t, I’ll find a way to reel in Bridezilla.”
“Is she Bridezilla if she isn’t the one getting married?” I asked.
“Wedding planner-zilla doesn’t have quite the same ring,” she quipped, turning back to Katie.
“Actually, this is perfect,” Katie said, looking like she meant it. She reached for Dallas’ hand, and he held her in his gaze like nothing else in the world mattered as long as she was by his side. I knew him well enough to know he didn’t need whatever Jo had up her sleeve, but because it was important to Katie, it was important to him.
Lacey’s words echoed in the back of my mind as I watched my friends look at each other with pure love and adoration.
