AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Thanks for the pep talk, Storm. It helped a lot.”
“No problem. The day you sighed up for the Slayers was the day your happiness became our responsibility.”
He grinned at me, “I’m not sure that’s how shit works in the real world, Storm.”
“We’re in my world now.” I gave his shoulder a squeeze. “I’m gonna go harass the caterers and make sure the food is served hot.”
“Are you always such a hard ass?”
“Leave my ass out of it and get that tux on before you run out of time dreaming up all the possible ways this could go to shit on you.”
“Sure thing, Storm.”
I walked down to the bar and discovered the caterers setting up for the reception. I pulled a food thermometer out of my pocket and used a disinfectant wipe to clean it, then carefully checked the internal temperature of every dish. Everything checked out. Food held on a buffet at less than one hundred and forty degrees Fahrenheit was a prime breeding ground for harmful bacteria. The last thing I needed was a bunch of people contracting a food-borne illnesses. Not on my fucking watch.
I heard a commotion at the door and rushed to check it out. It was Angel’s family, wanting to bring covered dishes. The wedding planner was trying her best to explain that this wasn’t a covered dish affair. I discretely motioned over the head caterer and told her to make sure the food got reheated properly and then presented as part of the buffet.
I growled for good measure, “We’re paying you to solve problems, not fucking create them.”
“Roger that, sir. It won’t happen again.”
I eyed her suspiciously. Something about her tone made me think she was being flippant with me.
I headed to the area where Angel was supposed to be getting ready and knocked on her door. Maybe checking in on her was not my responsibility, but today my club brother was getting married and I wasn’t about to let anything spoil this day.
“Come in,” her quivering voice called out.
I opened the door to find her still in her robe.
“If you need help, I can get one of your family members. They just arrived.”
“Yeah, that would be nice. Just give me a minute first, okay?”
I squatted down in front of her and tilted my head. Something was off about her today, but I couldn’t figure out quite what it was.
“Why don’t you tell me what’s going on, Angel? You look like something’s eating you up inside.”
She blinked back tears. “I’m worried that Adam is just marrying because I bugged the shit out of him for months. Do you think I came on too strong?”
I reached up to scratch the back of my neck. “Well, let me just say this is one of the stranger things I’ve heard today.”
“What else is going on?”
“Not a lot. I had to call out a plumber to fix a leak in the restroom at o'dark thirty this morning. Picked up more booze for the bar. Did a temperature control check on the food. Shot a stray dog that wouldn’t stop barking out back. Ran interference between the wedding planner and a guest who brought food. Shined twelve pairs of dress shoes. Then listened to Hacker confess to feeling guilty for marrying you because he can’t fuck you against the wall. He was pretty torn down that you might want to run barefoot on the beach one day and he couldn’t do that with you either.”
“Are you serious. You actually shot a stray barking dog so his barking wouldn’t ruin the wedding?”
My eyes slid away, “I may have made that one up for comedic effect.”
She let out a relieved laugh. “Thank God. I suppose the shining twelve pairs of shoes was a joke too.”
“All the other stuff is true.” I hold up two fingers and say earnestly, “Scouts honor.”
“You were an actual boy scout?”
I shook my head slightly. “Special forces, green beret. Does that count?”
She frowned, “Are you lying again? I can’t tell with you sometimes.”
