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And that answer was Joel Priestley.
Bailey turned around, ready to throw doubt all over that response, because he couldn’t think of a more unlikely scenario than the ever-serious Priest dating this guy. But where he thought he’d find the man dressed in all black, he found nothing.
He was gone, had disappeared as though he’d never been there, and as Bailey scanned the wooded property and pristine landscape that stretched as far as the eye could see, he saw no trace of Henri walking away, either.
What the hell? It was as though he’d vanished, as though Bailey had imagined the entire thing, and as he scrubbed a hand over his face, he started to wonder if maybe he had.
Bailey squeezed his eyes shut for a second, and when he reopened them to go over and wish the happy trio congratulations, he spotted a cigarette butt sticking out from the dirt by his feet.
At the visual reminder of his conversation with the stranger—Henri—Bailey’s entire body reacted as though he were right back in the middle of it. His heart thumped and his pulse raced, and as he stared at the cigarette, he willed his body to calm the hell down. The guy was gone, so it wasn’t as though Bailey was about to get any action any time soon, and if he didn’t get himself under some kind of control, it was going to be a really long afternoon.
Jesus, what is the matter with me? This was so unlike him. He knew absolutely nothing about Henri except for his name, and yet here he was getting overly excited because he’d found proof that the guy actually existed.
Henri… He liked that name, tried it out a few times in his head, and when he realized what he was doing, he immediately stopped. The last thing he needed was to start fantasizing about someone he was never going to see again. It was a moment, it had passed, and now he just needed to move on.
This was all Xander’s fault, making Bailey hyperaware of the first person he talked to, and for that alone, he was going to kick Xander’s interfering ass.
As he made his way across the lawn toward the other guests, Bailey tried to focus on why he was there and the men he was coming to see. But just before he reached the crowd, he stopped and looked over his shoulder one last time, and just as he suspected, there was no one out there. Not a soul.
“Well, there he is,” Robbie Bianchi—no, Robbie Thornton-Priestley—said when he spotted Bailey standing on the periphery of his family and friends. Then he made his way through the throng of gushing relatives and flashed a beaming smile Bailey’s way. “The one and only man who’s ever put handcuffs on me. Well, at least while I was fully clothed.”
Bailey chuckled as he embraced the incorrigible man and planted a kiss on his cheek. “Congratulations, Mr. Thornton-Priestley.”
“Thank you,” Robbie said, all but floating high at the sound of his new name as Bailey let him go.
“The ceremony looked beautiful, and so do you.”
Robbie preened at the compliment, but when his two new husbands came to a standstill on either side of him, he said, “Wait, it looked beautiful? Could you not hear from where you were sitting? Oh my God, I told Val we needed mics.”
“No. No.” Bailey grimaced, realizing his slip-up, and knew he had no other choice but to confess. “I was late. I’m so sorry. I tried to get here on time, but I got stuck in traffic, and—”
Priest clapped him on the arm, and a low chuckle rumbled out of him. “It’s okay. You’re here now, and we appreciate you making the trip.”
“Really, we do,” Julien said, a charming smile lighting up his handsome face. “We’re sorry you missed the ceremony, since you helped get us here, but we’re happy you made it for the reception.”
Bailey looked between the men all decked out in their finest and had no doubt that, with or without him, they would’ve worked out a way to get where they were today, no matter what stood in their way.
Which brought to mind… “I actually got here in time to watch from over there.”
Bailey gestured to the spot he’d waited, and debated with himself on whether he should pass along Henri’s message. I mean, if he was invited, then he must be on good terms with these guys, right? “I met one of your guests over there.”
“You did?” Robbie glanced over Bailey’s shoulder, and then looked back to him. “Who?”
“Said his name was Henri.” Bailey turned his attention to Priest. “He said to tell you congratulations.”
The relaxed and happy expression that had been on Priest’s face disappeared in an instant, and when he turned to look at Robbie, Priest’s new husband offered up a guilty smile and put a hand on Priest’s chest.
