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“How’s my girl?” her father asked softly, putting his arm around Amelia. “The church looked amazing.”
She tore her gaze away from the best man and smiled at her father. “Thanks, Dad.”
“Now,” he said, reaching around to put his other arm around Amelia’s mother. “We’ve talked about it, and you’re going to relax for the rest of the day.” He glanced behind his wife to smile at his eldest daughter. “Isn’t she, Maggie?”
Maggie smiled beatifically at Amelia. “I want you to have fun today. You’ve helped me so much during the planning, and you deserve to enjoy the day just as much as I do.”
“I will.”
“Good.” Maggie smiled again, then let her gaze drift to her husband. Then the photographer called out more directions, and Amelia pasted another smile on her face.
She felt Leo’s gaze, then, like her body was attuned to him.Pestilence, they called him. Did he really give his whole college chlamydia? It didn’t surprise her that he was a player. After all, he’d flirted with Amelia, of all people, within seconds of meeting her.
“Okay,” the photographer called out. “We got it! Now wifey and hubby, you’re with me. We’re going to go to the top of Stirling Hill for some shots.” He put his camera in its case and waved them forward.
Maggie squeezed Amelia in a tight hug. “See you at the reception in an hour. Let me know if you need anything.”
“Will do,” Amelia lied. She wouldn’t bother her sister while she was taking wedding photos—no way. Her father and mother led the way to the hotel, hands clasped. They’d just celebrated thirty-five years of marriage, and the way her dad looked at her mom, Amelia knew they were on track for thirty-five more.
“You can relax now,” a deep voice said beside her. “The hard part’s over.”
She glanced up at Leo. The sun warmed his complexion, casting shadows under his cheekbones and lighting up the green in his eyes. She didn’t know what to think of him, and it didn’t help that her brain seemed to malfunction anytime she looked directly at him. No wonder she hadn’t had a boyfriend in six years; even being this close to an attractive man made her body feel like it belonged to a stranger.
Tori, who was walking ahead of them, glanced over her shoulder and scowled.
“Who says I’m not relaxed?” Amelia answered Leo, lifting her chin up.
His laughter was warm and a little bit teasing, and it wrapped around her like a silk ribbon. His hand brushed her lower back as they stepped onto the sidewalk, sending a trail of fire through her veins.
This man was dangerous, with or without the risk of a sexually transmitted infection. Best to stay away from him altogether.
He didn’t seem to get the memo. He walked beside her all the way to the Stirling Hotel where the reception was held, only leaving her side when they entered the big revolving doors to join the other groomsmen across the lobby. Most guests were in the lobby bar, talking and laughing as delicate music floated through the air. Amelia had spent the morning directing workers in the lobby bar and the hotel ballroom, setting up decorations and attending to last-minute tasks while Maggie got ready to be married.
Now, her work was on full display. She took a deep breath at the sight of the easel holding a board with Maggie and Emory’s names at the mouth of the lobby bar, the entrance framed with an arch of flowers. Beyond it, she saw the small arrangements of flowers on the high-top tables, plates of appetizers being passed around by bow tie-wearing waiters, and the busy bartenders pouring drinks.
“Oh, Amelia,” her mother said, bustling up to wrap her youngest daughter in a tight hug. “It looks incredible.”
Warmth spread through Amelia’s chest, chasing away the fire Leo had laid there. “Thanks, Mom.”
“Come and have a drink. You heard Maggie and Dad; you need to relax now.”
“I will,” she promised. “I just have to check on the ballroom first.”
Her mother huffed but relented.
Amelia crossed the lobby to the reception desk and smiled at the older gentleman behind the desk. “Hi, Renny.”
The hotel manager gave her a wide smile. “Everything’s set up,” Reynold told her as he handed her the tablet she’d stashed behind the desk. “Kitchen’s on schedule, and the bar is ready, as you can see.” He gestured behind her. “It looks great, Amelia. I wonder if I could hire you full-time for wedding set-ups. We’d blow the Old Road Hotel out of the water.”
She grinned at the mention of Renny’s bitter rival in the wedding venue business. “No way,” she told him. “This was a special occasion for my sister. I’m never planning a wedding again.”
“Not even your own?” the older man smiled at her. “One of those groomsmen seems to be glancing over here pretty often.” He wiggled bushy eyebrows.
It took all of Amelia’s self-control not to glance over her shoulder. It was silly to hope that it was Leo looking over at her. Completely ridiculous. And, really, marriage? If Maggie’s friends were to be believed, two weeks was as long a relationship as Leo had ever had. It was certainly more than Amelia had managed in the past half-decade.
All this wedding planning had gone to her head.
“Yeah, yeah,” Amelia said, unlocking her tablet to pull up the master checklist she’d created months ago. “Did you get the seat covers we rushed over this morning?”
