“What are you smiling about?”he asked, kissing her neck as she hooked in her earrings.
“Will there be dancing?I’m not super great on my feet sometimes, especially wearing heels like this.”She thrust out a foot, now clad in fancy high heels.
“Hmm.”He eyed her foot, his eyebrows rising as a smile followed.
She shook her head.“Come on.Stop flirting.We need to go.”
“Yes, my lady.”
A knock came from below, and they said goodbye to Bella then Kyle rushed down while she took the stairs more slowly.
Her mother-in-law’s eyes widened.“Oh my, Genevieve.You look breathtaking.”
“Hello, Philippa.Hi David.”Several kissed cheeks and thanks later they were finally released and she settled into the passenger seat.
Kyle glanced at her.“Mom was right.Breathtaking is the word.”
She smiled, imagining how much more breath might’ve been taken were she to have shared her news.Good thing it was his parents looking after Bella.Mom might look at her and guess correctly in one go.
“So, Liam Darcy is definitely going to be there tonight?”she checked.
“That’s the word on the street.”He glanced at her while they waited for a red light.“Mom still can’t get over the fact that you ‘know’ him, and he’s a fan of yours.”
“Please.”She rolled her eyes.“How can he be when we’ve never met?”
“His social media suggests he’s a fan.”
She chuckled.That seemed surreal.“Well, I’m happy if she’s happy.Not that I’m trying to impress your mom.”
“You know, I think that’s the thing that most impresses her.That’s what Dad said to me, anyway.Mom is so used to people kowtowing to her that she respects when you don’t.”
“So you’re saying I need to be mean?Treat them mean and keep them keen?”
He laughed.“Yeah, maybe not exactly that.”
“Good to know.”
She wondered when she should tell him.The night was supposed to consist of fancy food and toasts and speeches, and her stomach felt a little too unsettled for two of those things.Still, it had made fitting into this dress a little easier.And she was glad to make the effort knowing that the next seven or eight months she’d probably never look this good again.
And an hour later she was still receiving compliments on her outfit, still talking with various people who either thanked her for making Kyle smile again, or for helping the coach.
Including Coach Aitken and his wife.“Gen, I’ve been asked by my mom to tell you that she loves you.”
She grinned.“That’s so sweet.”
“She means it.And so do we.If it hadn’t been for you, then I might not be here.”
His wife nodded.“That mole could’ve killed him if you hadn’t said something when you did.It was rapidly spreading, so it feels like a miracle that you saw it when you did.”
“I believe in miracles,” Gen said.
The coach nodded.“So do I.I’m grateful to God that you did this because it extended my life.And while the last few months have been scary, now my most recent biopsy has come back and it shows it hasn’t spread, I’m so glad.This has just made me really fall to my knees in gratitude to God.”
His wife nodded.“I’ve been praying for him for years.And it took your courage to say something that saved his life.In more ways than one.”
Gen’s eyes burned, and she hoped the waterproof mascara was true to its word.
“Some people are heroes because they save someone’s life from a burning car.You took me out of a slow fire, and as the doc said, if I’d waited four to five weeks then I might not be here.”He clasped Gen in a hug.“Thank you.”
