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“Well, it just means you’re a good match.”
We all took our seats again, and I tried to turn the conversation away from Levi and me. “I don’t know about you guys, but I’m starving.”
“I heard they’re doing a seafood spread along with sliced prime rib,” Robin said from beside me.
“That sounds fancy…and delicious,” I said, grateful the conversation had shifted at last.
As predicted, dinner was amazing. All-you-can-eat grilled shrimp and king crab. Someone paid a pretty penny for that meal, and I was going to get their money’s worth. Levi smiled at me and wiped his face as if to signal to me to do the same. With a napkin, I wiped away butter dripping from my chin.
He leaned closer to me and whispered, “I think you dropped a shrimp down the front of your dress.”
I had felt it fall down there but was hoping no one else noticed. “I’m saving it for later.”
“For me or you?” he teased.
I tapped him playfully as I did my best to pull out the shrimp without anyone noticing. The entire time, Levi was stifling a laugh. And I noticed it wasn’t just Levi. Irene was red from trying not to laugh out loud and Robin was covering her mouth.
“Sorry, I’m not the most graceful woman in the world,” I said.
“It’s okay, I was just thinking… that’s exactly why I don’t wear low cut dresses too often,” Robin said with a laugh.
Irene finally gave in and started laughing. “Girl, you can’t help it, you're more blessed than usual. Those things likely catch everything, I bet you’re pulling food out of them nightly.”
“To be honest, I don’t usually wear things this revealing. This was just a special occasion.”
“Considering my brother can’t keep his gaze off from your cleavage, I think you really should do it more often.” Irene shot me a playful grin.
My cheeks burned, but she was right. I’d noticed that Levi couldn’t keep his gaze off my ample bosom all night. I caught him stealing glances often. That’s likely how he knew the shrimp had fallen down there.
“You two are so cute,” Robin said. “Aren’t they?”
She turned to Clay, and he nodded. “Adorable,” he said dryly with a chuckle. “Absolutely adorable.”
Levi flipped his brother off.
I’d known his family for some time, but we’d never spent time together like this. The laughter and smiles continued throughout dinner. Clay playfully teased his baby brother, and Levi teased right back. I loved how close they all seemed; it reminded me of my own siblings.
A spotlight lit up the middle of the room, and suddenly all eyes were on Molly and Patton. A massive, tiered cake dripping with flowers was brought out, and unlike some couples, they fed each other from it very nicely. Patton even wiped away the icing on Molly’s face, and they both smiled at each other like they were the only people in the room.
My tummy started flip-flopping again.
Stop it, Anna. No, you don’t want that. Because it’s not real. It’s all hormones and positive chemicals, but as soon as that wears off, they will grow bored with each other. It’s inevitable.
Oh, but for a moment… It looked so nice, and my face hurt from smiling at them.
The cake was served to the rest of us, and I dug in. Levi chuckled.
“What?” I asked.
“You have some frosting there.” He wiped at his face. I tried to match his movement on my own face, but I felt the frosting slide around. The rest of the table tried to pretend they were oblivious, but I knew once again, I made another faux pas.
“I got ya,” Levi said, picking up a napkin and wiping the frosting from my face.
Our eyes met and my heart hammered against my ribs again. It reminded me of the scene only moments before between the bride and the groom.
He smiled as he cleaned off the frosting, his fingers briefly touching my skin. I almost leaned into that touch, savoring it, but then I’d likely spread the frosting back on my cheek.
Instead, I said, “Thank you.”
