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“We’d need an entirely new hall for that,” Blake said, smashing into the group now. “Don’t get any ideas, Hols.” Blake turned back to the tables and moved away, clearly going to find his seat.
“Why not?” his sister asked as she went after Blake. “We have the land right over by—” The rest of her sentence got cut off as the Johnson brothers crowded into the room too. They were tall and broad and wore cowboy hats, just like every one of the Stewarts, and Todd grinned at Travis Johnson, who was the same age as him.
“Howdy, Trav.”
“This place is incredible,” Travis said.
“Let’s go find a table,” Seth said. “Then Russ and I will go help Daddy in.” They all went off to do that, and Todd figured if he wanted to sit by his siblings, they better get choosing their seats too.
Kyle led the way, and Todd and Adam went with him. They landed at a table near the front, and there was enough room for the three of them, plus Sierra, Holly, Nash, and Jesse. Blake stood over by the enormous wedding cake with Gina.
Another round of jealousy nipped through Todd. Blake and Gina had dated in high school, and he hadn’t been jealous of them then. Todd dated a lot—more than any of his siblings—and he always had.
He’d just never found that one right person for him. He hadn’t even come close. He wasn’t sure what he was doing wrong, but watching Blake simply stand close to Gina while she worked, saying nothing and doing nothing, and he could tell how very right Gina was for his brother. Blake had never really stopped loving her, and Todd wouldn’t be all that surprised if Blake and Gina had a wedding very much like this before too much longer.
“Do you think they’re dating?” Nash asked, nodding toward Blake and Gina. Todd kept his mouth shut, because he knew they were dating. It was new, within the past few weeks, and Blake had told him privately. As the rest of the siblings started to gossip about Blake and Gina, Todd pulled out his phone and opened his email.
“They have to be,” Jesse finally said.
“How do you know?” Holly asked. “He could just be asking her something.”
“One, he hasn’t said a word,” Jesse said, and Todd felt the weight of the world land on his face. He looked up from the third application he’d gotten during the wedding.
“What?” he asked, looking around at his siblings. “I’m reviewing a vet application.”
“You haven’t said anything about this,” Jesse said, grinning. “So it has to be true.”
“Or else it’s not, and he knows that too,” Sierra said, peering at Todd. He didn’t hide much from her, and he couldn’t really hide this either.
He cleared his throat, and that only made Jesse’s smile wider. “You guys, this is not your business.”
“And…that’s confirmation,” Jesse said, looking back over to Blake. Their oldest brother turned toward the family table, and Todd realized there was only one seat.
He jumped to his feet and said, “I’m getting another chair for Gina.” He quickly found one at a nearby table and returned to all of his siblings about the same time Blake and Gina arrived. “Here’s a chair for you, Gina.” He looked around at everyone. “Come on, guys, move around. Make room.”
He opened the folding chair and put it next to the empty one where Blake would sit, noting that Blake held Gina’s hand in his. Todd supposed he wasn’t hiding anything anymore, and he didn’t have to feel bad for revealing something to the siblings he shouldn’t have.
Everyone settled in silence as Blake and Gina sat down, and then Blake finally said, “Jeez, you guys. What’s the deal? I’m not allowed to have a girlfriend?”
“Of course you are,” Holly said quickly, and they all chorused the same. Todd said nothing, because he’d already assured Blake that he could and should start a relationship with Gina if he wanted to.
Her face held a hint of red, and thankfully, Starla said, “All right, folks. The bride and groom are here!”
Applause broke out and every eye turned toward the door as Becks and Luke entered hand-in-hand. Before it had quieted fully, Starla added, “They want to cut the cake first, so you can have it for dessert. Then Max, Becks’s uncle, is going to say grace. Then, we’ll have you come back to the buffet to get your lunch.”
She smiled at the couple, then the cake. Todd looked at it too, his breath whooshing right out of his body. “Gina,” he said, as he sat only one place from her. “That is an amazing cake.”
“Thank you,” she said, keeping her voice low as Starla outlined what was on the menu, and what foods people with allergies might need to be aware of. The wedding cake stood six tiers high, done in all white, with bark poking up along intervals. It looked like an exact rendition of an aspen tree, with some silver flowers stuck in some seams, and a pretty, sparkling B and L sitting on the top.
Becks positioned the knife, and Luke put his hand on top of hers. The photographer they’d hired moved around, clicking and clicking as they sliced through the middle tier. The crowd went wild again, and Todd joined in clapping this time.
The veterinary applications could wait for a minute. He just wanted to enjoy lunch—complete with cake—and his family.
* * *
A week later,Todd arrived back on the ranch with only moments to spare before his next veterinarian interview. He rolled his shoulder as he leapt from his truck, noting that he shouldn’t have tried to carry so many boxes. Gina had plenty of help, and it didn’t matter if he took in two or three at a time.
He’d left before her moving truck was completely empty, but he didn’t feel bad about it. Almost every Stewart was over at her new apartment, helping her move in today. Blake would be gone all day and well into the evening, and Todd needed to interview this vet.
