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The door swung open, and Lauren appeared. She wore blue from head to toe, andstunningwasn’t a strong enough word for her. Blake lost the ability to do anything but involuntary functions like breathing and blinking.
She cocked a hip and perched one heeled toe. “How do I look?”
“I’m having trouble forming thoughts,” he admitted. The dress had practically been painted on her body, as that was the only way it could seriously stay on. There were no straps and no buttons or zippers that he could see. She’d definitely shimmied into that somehow, and Blake wanted to know how.
“Are you ladies ready?” he asked as he remembered his manners. This woman wasn’t quite his girlfriend yet. They’d gone to breakfast yesterday, and it had been a fantastic two hours. Best way to start the day for Blake, that was for sure—and he didn’t even eat breakfast normally.
Then he’d spent the day on his boat with Tommy, delivered him back to his mother, and retuned home about dark. He and Lauren had texted throughout the day, but she’d made it clear that they were seeing how the date and the wedding went before any definitions or labels were given to their relationship.
He wasn’t going to push her to do that. Or to do anything. He counted himself lucky to have this woman in his life at all, and whatever she gave him, he’d be happy with.
“Yes,” Lauren said, “Joy’s coming down right now.”
As if they’d rehearsed it, Joy’s heels clicked toward him, and he looked past Lauren and into the foyer. She too wore a blue dress in the exact same shade as Lauren’s. Her hair had been swept up onto her head, and Blake grinned at her. She wore more makeup than he’d seen Joy wear—so did Lauren—and he reasoned that their best friend was getting married.
They wore matching black heels that seemed as shiny as his shoes, and when Blake looked back at Lauren, all he could think about was how kissable her neck looked. Her hair normally covered it, but she’d likewise pinned it up, and only a few tendrils curled down below her ears.
“We’re ready.” Lauren linked her arm through Joy’s, beamed at her, and then faced Blake.
He offered her his arm, and she took it. He led them both to his SUV in the circle drive, and first opened Joy’s door, then Lauren’s. Joy started talking to his mother, and Blake took a moment to bring his arm around Lauren and pull her against him. “You are amazing,” he whispered. “I can’t wait to dance with you.”
One of her hands came up behind his head, lightly touching the hair along his neck. The other planted itself against his chest, and Blake really liked the way they fit together.
He’d been out with several women since his divorce, and no one hadfitthe way Lauren did. This might be something stupid, but Blake liked how her height complimented his. He liked how she wasn’t afraid to look him in the eye and say what she thought. He liked he’d had toworkto get her to this spot, and he wanted to do the work to have her in his life for a long time.
The moment lengthened while she studied him, and then she finally said, “I do like a good slow dance with a handsome man.” Her fingernails sent shivers down his throat as she pulled her hand back, and Blake moved out of the way so Lauren could get in the car.
She liked slow dancing. She liked muffins for breakfast.It’s like an excuse to eat cake for breakfast, she’d told him yesterday morning. She worked in marketing, had never been married, and had no children.
She was living here on Hilton Head for the foreseeable future, and Blake had laid in bed last night thinking about her for a solid thirty minutes before he’d finally fallen asleep with her face in his head.
He was sweating by the time he rounded the SUV and got behind the wheel. He hadn’t cut the engine to go to the door, because this was Carolina in July. Air conditioners ran twenty-four-seven here right now.
After a quick drive down the coast, he pulled into the parking lot at Palmetto Museum, which was one of the most sought-after wedding venues on the island. Of course this was where Cass would choose to get married.
“This place is nice,” he said. He glanced over to Lauren. “Have you been here?”
“I toured it with her a few months ago, yes,” she said. “It’s very nice.”
“Isn’t she getting married outside?” Joy asked.
“Yes,” Lauren said.
“We’re going to melt.” Blake pulled into a spot and parked.
Lauren gave him a look that made his heartbeat dry up, and he killed the engine. The heat immediately started to infiltrate the vehicle, and he gave her a surprised look. “What? We are.”
“It’s going to be short,” Lauren said. “We’ll be on the beach for twenty minutes, tops.”
“I’m gonna hold you to that.”
“They’re doing dinner on the beach,” Joy piped up from the back.
“But there will be misters and fans under the tents.” Lauren opened her door. “I’m melting in here.”
“That’s my point,” Blake said, and she threw him a tight look before she got out of the SUV. Blake got out and helped his mother out of the backseat. She kept her hand in his arm as they went around the vehicle, and Lauren and Joy had linked arms and started toward the immaculate building.
The kiss of air conditioning met his skin as they entered, and a sharply dressed woman directed them toward the Haslam-Tate wedding. People mingled in a stylishly decorated room, sipping champagne from tall glasses while they waited for the ceremony to start.
