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“You look like one, too,” Autumn told her. Brooke’s dress was hanging up, a delicate ivory lace bodice that would cling to her body, then fan out in layers to the ground. Ember and Ally would walk down the aisle in front of her, along with Arthur who was in charge of the rings, or at least would be holding the ring bag in his hand. Brooke’s fiancé, Aiden, would be waiting for her with their son, Nicholas, who was standing up as his best man.
“You have an hour until the ceremony’s due to start,” Autumn told them, checking her watch. “Are you ready for a snack?”
“From Delmonico’s?” Ally asked. “Hell yes.”
“I think she’s going to need it to soak up the champagne,” Brooke said dryly. “Speaking of which, would you like some?”
“I’ll pour,” Ember said, rising up from the sofa. Her hair was already finished, but her face was bare, waiting for the make up artist to finish with Ally.
“I’m okay, thanks,” Autumn said, before Ember could walk any further. “I need to keep a clear head so that everything goes to plan.”
“But you’ll have some later, won’t you?” Ally asked. “Once the party begins you should relax and kick back with us. I’m planning on dancing all night.” She shimmied her shoulders to prove the point, earning her a smear of mascara on her cheek. “Oops.”
“We’ll see.” Autumn grinned at them all. “I’m going to check on the guys now. Make sure they’re almost ready.”
“You can guarantee they’ve all been drinking,” Ember said, kissing Arthur’s cheek. “Six men on a boat is asking for trouble.”
“At least we know where they are,” Autumn pointed out. It had been Griff’s idea to use the boat as the groom’s base for the weddings they were planning to have on the pier. “I’ll ask Vincent to bring some food over on my way out. I’ll be back in about a half an hour, but call me if you need anything, okay?”
“Sure.” Brooke smiled warmly at her.
Autumn let herself quietly out of the lounge and walked over to the restaurant. They’d tried to keep the construction as faithful to the original as possible, knowing that Pietro’s grandfather had built it with his own hands. But the materials had been upgraded – the wood used was less flammable, and the kitchen had been fitted with high-end appliances. When Delmonico’s re-opened a couple of weeks ago, people had traveled from far and wide to attend the party.
The kitchen door opened before she could get to it, and Vincent came out carrying delicious pastries topped with whipped cream. “Hey, I was just taking these over to the lounge.”
“Great.” Autumn smiled. “You read my mind.”
“You want to try one?” he asked. “I know you love my cannolis.” He pushed the platter toward her, and her stomach turned.
“I’m too nervous to eat,” she confessed. “Maybe later.”
“We’ll have some more for the buffet,” he told her. “The food is going to be magnificent.”
“I knew it would be.” Her stomach was still churning. She tried to smile to hide the nausea. “I’ll come and see you after the ceremony, okay?”
“Sure thing.” He winked and carried on to where the bride and her party were waiting for him.
It was so good to see Delmonico’s up and running again. Or Delmonico’s on the Pier as it was called now, because they’d kept the restaurant location Autumn’s dad had found them further up the coast, as well as returning to this one. Carla had been promoted to manager there, and Autumn had heard through the grapevine she was flourishing – and that she was in a relationship with one of the chefs, who was equally as smitten.
Talking of smitten, Autumn turned her gaze to the boat rising gently up and down in the water at the end of the pier. As though he could sense her getting closer, Griff was standing at the entrance plank, a smile playing at his lips as he watched her approach.
“Hey, baby.” He walked toward her, curling his arms around her waist. “I’ve missed you.”
“It’s only been a couple of hours since we left home,” she said, smiling at his neediness. It reflected her own.
“Yeah, well I’m counting the hours until we’re back there. Maybe we should sell the pier and boat and become hermits.”
“You’d go mad after two days.”
“Nah, I can think of things we could do.” He brushed his lips against her ear.
“Then you’d drive me mad,” she said, a shiver snaking down her spine.
“That’s the plan,” he whispered.
“How are Aiden and the groomsmen doing?” she asked him, trying to ignore the way her body responded to him. He only had to look at her in a certain way for her legs to turn to jelly. Good thing he was strong enough to carry her.
“They’re fine,” he said. “We’re having a beer and the guys are roasting him. Usual pre-wedding fun.”
