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Violet eyed her mischievously. “You sure about that?”
“Pretty sure. There’s no one even on the horizon for me.”
“Oh, my girl, when are you going to wake up and see what’s right in front of you?”
Mikayla frowned, her gaze drifting involuntarily to Rafe. He was talking to one of William’s cousins, who seemed to be gazing up at him adoringly. He did look good—his tall frame clad in a black suit, with a black shirt and silvery gray tie. Mikayla’s frown deepened as she watched the woman reach out and stroke his arm before flicking her blonde hair over her shoulder. Jesus, she was laying it on thick. And from the way he was looking at her, Rafe didn’t seem to mind one little bit. Then, suddenly, his eyes shifted to her, finding her in the crowded room. Her heart thumped hard against her rib cage as their gazes collided and she felt suddenly breathless. She turned away, taking a gulp of wine. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
Violet all but cackled. “That boy was made for you, darling. You are one hundred percent simpatico. I can only imagine the time he’d give you in bed.”
“Violet!” Mikayla eyed Violet’s wine glass. “How many of those have you had?”
Violet just twinkled at her. Mikayla was saved from further discussion by Juniper gesturing for them both to come over. Barely disguising her relief, she got up and went over to her, making sure to keep a safe distance between herself and Violet’s discomfiting revelations.
As the bridesmaid, there was a little bit of meeting and greeting to be done, with a lot of interest in exactly how Mikayla and Juniper had met. It wasn’t every day that you made a best friend by helping her give birth in the middle of the bush, after all. Then the photographer’s assistant was requesting for the wedding party to come outside for some professional photos.
The photographer had positioned Juniper and William along the low, sandstone wall that lined the cliff’s edge, with the Tasman Sea behind them, then angled the shot to include the Blessed Inlet lighthouse. The light was a soft, vibrant pink as the sun slowly faded from the day. The sea carried a light, cool breeze, which had Mikayla hoping that they wouldn’t be outside for too long. She eyed Rafe gratefully as he crossed the grass to her with a plate of food in hand.
“Mm, chicken sticks! Thanks.” She ate one enthusiastically. She definitely hadn’t eaten enough during the day, and she didn’t want the wine to go to her head. As she moved on to a meatball in Napoli sauce, she couldn’t fight the shiver that ran through her. The thin lace of her dress was not enough protection against the late afternoon chill. Rafe, sensing this, took his suit jacket off and draped it over her shoulders. She smiled at him gratefully.
After ten minutes and endless snaps of the camera, the photographer said, “Now with attendants, please.”
Mikayla turned to Rafe. “Got anything on my face?”
He reached up and wiped a bit of Napoli sauce off the corner of her mouth, wiping it on the napkin she handed him with the plate. She ignored the little skip in her chest caused by his touch. Mikayla handed back his jacket, grabbed the bouquet she’d placed on the wall and moved over to stand next to Juniper. Thankfully, the photographer was efficient, moving through the group photos smoothly. Just as she was about to put the camera away, she looked over at Mikayla. “Would you like one of just yourself and your partner? I’ve got a few shots left and we have just enough light.”
Mikayla looked at her blankly, not sure what to say. Juniper stepped in. “She means Rafe,” she explained, “And yes please, Sammy, that would be great. These two mean the world to both of us. Rafe!” She gestured him over. “Just a few snaps with you and Mikky.”
He frowned in confusion, but Juniper pulled him across to Mikayla’s side inexorably, then stepped away to stand next to William.
“Okay, relax. You both look like cardboard cutouts. Put your arm around her. Yes, like that. Lovely.”
As Rafe pulled her against him, following the photographer’s instructions to turn into her a little more, the absurdity of the situation hit Mikayla. She barely managed to suppress the urge to giggle. She found herself looking up at Rafe to see if he got the joke, grinning at him when she saw his eyes laughing at her.
“Yes, perfect. That’s it. You’re a gorgeous couple.” As the photographer checked through the photos on the tiny screen on her camera, Mikayla rolled her eyes and stepped away, immediately missing the warmth of Rafe’s body.
Returning to the Long House, it was time for the formal part of the evening, the speeches. The guests gathered around the dance floor in front of the dais as the waitstaff passed around glasses of champagne. William’s mother, Gwen and sister, Cassie made a lovely speech welcoming Juniper and Billy to their family. Mikayla had to hold back tears when William’s father insisted on getting to his feet to hug Juniper, leaning heavily on his walking frame to do so. Violet was hilarious, telling some very funny stories about Juniper as a child. She then got a little emotional when she talked of how eternally grateful she was that William had stopped to help Juniper give birth to Billy on the side of the road and how happy she was that they had found each other again. Then William, with Juniper by his side, had Mikayla almost crying again when he talked about how much Juniper and Billy meant to him. She gave a start of surprise when he said, “And of course, none of this would have been possible without Mikayla Sinclair and Rafe McKenzie. You guys would not believe how incredibly relieved I was to see you walking through the bush that night. But then, everything that you did afterwards, for Juniper and Billy, was just amazing. And, ah, thanks for inviting me to the music festival, Mik.” Mikayla laughed, raising her glass in William’s direction as he winked at her.
After that, it was time for the party to really get started. The waitstaff moved about the room with food trays and made sure the bar was continually stocked. William and Juniper kicked off the dancing, first doing a slow waltz to something light and dreamy, then kicking into an exuberant jive to the Beatles “Can’t Buy Me Love,” that had everyone clapping along. When they were finished, the guests swarmed the floor, dancing to the set list carefully selected by Callum.
Mikayla sat at one of the tables edging the dance floor with Rafe, Leah and Callum. “This is an eclectic music list,” she said to Callum as she watched her parents getting down to Chubby Checker’s “Let’s Twist Again.”
Callum shrugged. “Juniper said she wanted something that would get everyone up and moving.”
“Well, you’ve certainly done that,” Mikayla grinned as she pushed to her feet in response to Jasper beckoning her over for a dance. From Jasper, she had a dance with her father. Then she was passed to William’s uncle, a lovely older gentleman who regaled her with stories of his grandchildren the whole time. Just as she was set to leave the dance floor, William stepped up and swept her into his arms. She laughed as he spun her around, holding on tight so she wouldn’t trip. “Don’t make the mistake of thinking I’m your wife. I’ve got two left feet.”
“You’re doing fine.” He smiled at her as he spun her out and back in, keeping it a bit slower to accommodate her awkwardness, saying, “My wife. I like the sound of that.”
“Who would have thought, hey, four years ago that we’d be dancing here like this tonight?”
“I know. It’s amazing.”
She felt a surge of affection for him in that moment. He’d brought so much joy to her friend, overcoming plenty of challenges along the way to do so. “That was cute, mentioning us in your speech.”
He smiled at her. “You earned it. I wouldn’t have gone to the music festival day if you hadn’t been so pushy about it.”
“Well, I knew my little Junebug had the hots for you, so I considered it my solemn duty.”
He laughed. “Well, I appreciate it.”
