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She met their eyes and tried to smile, her white-knuckle grip on her little purse told him her hands were probably shaking. She shielded her eyes from the afternoon sun that set her rich auburn hair ablaze and he struggled to remember what he’d intended to say as they reached her. In sync with each other, both he and Hank moved to block the sun and she blinked up at them. “Veronica, would you do us the honor of sitting with us at the reception?”
“Oh…well…they may have assigned seating, and there’s my Grandma Kate.”
Hank smiled and took her hand in his again and said, “We already got Grandma Kate’s permission to keep you…”
“Keep me?” she said, her voice squeaking adorably before she cleared her throat.
“The seating is open and she said she wouldn’t mind if you kept us company.”
Veronica smiled and chuckled suddenly. “If I kept you company? I’m not even sure I believe she said that. Grandma Kate knows…”
“Knows what?”
The smile deserted Veronica’s face and she drew close enough to speak without being overheard. “Gentlemen, if you’re looking for scintillating company, I’m afraid I’ll disappoint you. I spend a lot of time alone, and I’m rather…inept socially.” She spoke quickly, a sure sign she was nervous or about to become upset, as the flush reached her slightly bloodshot eyes. “I’m an underachiever from a family of social overachievers.”
Filing away all those self-disparaging remarks, Travis stroked the silky fabric covering her shoulder and asked, “What had you planned to do at the reception?”
Biting her lip, Veronica cast a glance around and said, “Honestly? I wanted to find a good vantage point and watch the reception happen. I need to make notes for the ceremonies before my overloaded brain lets me down. This event has been a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for me and I can’t afford to waste it. Beyond that, I enjoy people watching. It’s wonderful fodder for writing. I hope you understand that I wouldn’t mean to disappoint you but I probably will.”
“What if we helped you?” Hank asked, as he led her through the opened tent flap. They closed in on either side of her and pulled out a chair for her at one of the tables that would afford her a good view of the proceedings.
“How would you help me?”
Hank said, “We’ll get you something to eat and drink, and then we can answer questions about Divine. We would keep you company so you wouldn’t feel lonely.”
“Well, actually…” Her smile brightened the room. “You’re sure? I dreaded the thought of sitting alone.”
After reassuring her again, Travis got her a glass of wine. They left her to her work and joined the line leading to the caterer’s buffet while she tapped notes from earlier into her smartphone. Fifteen minutes later they’d obtained full plates of food for the three of them as well as drinks.
She hardly touched her food until Hank gently pried the phone and stylus from her hands and pushed her plate closer to her. The action seemed to disconcert her, but also brought a soft smile to her face.
Travis settled his arm over the back of her chair, turned to her, and quietly spoke. “I noticed you’d been crying when you exited the tent earlier, after the ceremony.”
“Oh…” She inhaled deeply and let it out as her eyes took on a faraway quality. She took a long sip of her wine. “I’ve never been to a binding ceremony before. Have you?”
“I haven’t been back in Divine that long. Hank tells me there are more ménages here than there used to be but I’ve never been to a ceremony. How was it?”
Her pupils dilated slightly as she stroked a spot on the white linen tablecloth. She picked up the smartphone and stylus again, nervously stroking the thin instrument between her fingers. “It was…” The smile on her lips didn’t reach her eyes as she shrugged. “It’s hard to put into words. You’d think I was silly.”
Hank leaned toward her and murmured, “Try us.”
She trapped her lip between her teeth and Travis wanted to kiss it for her. “I’d approach writing a scene like that the same way I would a love scene. It was…indescribably intimate. I didn’t even realize I was crying until Grace handed me a tissue. I felt that I was privy to something special. Maizy’s men love her in a deep way that I realized…”
