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“And I do appreciate it,” I insisted, trying to breathe and lower my blood pressure. After a few breaths, when the heat of anger had died down to smoke, I picked up my bouquet and held out my arm. We would just have to agree to disagree on the matter of Xander Wade. She didn't know him, and didn't seem to concerned about changing that, but I hoped that with time, she would be. If I could give her husband, the bro-est of bros, a cordial hello and goodbye, she could do the same. Hopefully.
“Today isn't about me or Xander. It's about you and the man that's waiting at the end of the aisle. Don't worry about me, sis. I'll be just fine.”
If I didn't know any better, I'd say that I saw tears in her eyes, but she sniffed and just like that, the rain was gone. She took my arm and we marched out into the hall.
The wedding planner, a fierce woman named Aga who ruled the itinerary with an iron fist whipped to face us and I rushed to my place behind Lara. Victoria started toward Aga. She leaned in and whispered something that made the woman groan with disgust.
“You know I don't like surprises!”
Victoria didn't say another word and the woman just sighed and pointed at me. “You! To the front of the line!”
Lara and I exchanged glances, then turned back to my sister.
“The front of the line?” I asked feebly.
Lara still hadn't picked her jaw up from the floor.
Victoria just stood taller, taking the bouquet from my mother. “That's where the maid of honor belongs.”
Lara looked two seconds away from exploding. I edged out of line and in front of her, half expecting her to grab my braid and start brawling with me like some Jerry Springer re-run, but she just shuffled into place behind me, hatred glowing in her eyes.
“It's showtime ladies!” Aga whispered, clapping her hands. She barked something into her earpiece, then gestured for me to start walking. I moved forward through the enclosed patio, the garden already in view. The flowers smelled sweet, flooding my nostrils with their saccharine scent. The music was soft and gentle as I put one foot in front of the other. There was a sea of people on both sides. Most of them were strangers, all important looking and in their finest. They smiled at me, but it was clear that many of them were ready to skip to the reception part where the booze would flow freely and they could get out of the sun.
And then familiar green eyes rose out of the mass of cocktail dresses and suits. I paused for a second, my heart nearly beating out of my chest.
Xander mouthed a single word: “Wow.”
I rocked back into motion, surprised I didn't trip when I glimpsed him looking pretty wow-worthy himself. He wore a gray suit with a crisp white shirt, his dark hair sleek and his smile following me all the way to the altar. I had to force myself not to look at him or I'd do something crazy like rush to him and kiss him. I could picture Aga and her security team carting us off. After all of us took our place and the groomsmen followed (my sister wanted to switch things up and do something avant garde), my sister made her appearance. Free booze and the world class DJ was the furthest thing from everyone's mind as she moved down the aisle.
When the ceremony began, I tried to focus on their vows, but with every sappy word they shared, I stole a look at Xander. The quiet smile on his lips melted me into a puddle. When they kissed and made it official, I felt his lips pressed against mine.
As the newlyweds hurried back down the aisle and we followed them to begin part two of the wedding photos, I found him in the crowd and he winked at me. His lips were moving and I counted out something that looked like three words, but I was back in the building before I could figure them out.
The only thing I knew as surely as I was breathing was that I was ridiculously in love with Xander Wade.
Chapter Eight: Xander
I'm a fucking lucky man.
I looked across the courtyard at Penny, glowing brighter than anyone else in the room. It had very little to do with the dress, though she looked like the best kind of sin in the hot little red number. The makeup hid the freckles that I was fond of and the caramel eyes I could look into for hours. And I never knew ankles could be so sexy but the fact that the hem hit a few inches above hers was way more delicious than the heels on her feet.
The glow was in her smile, the one she gave the guests she nervously mingled with and the sensual one she gifted me when she caught me staring. How could I not stare? I was in love...and something told me this was the start of something good.
I tuned back into the conversation at hand. I’d already forgotten every name that had been given to me, but they knew exactly who I was. As soon as I stepped into the courtyard, they were on me like flies on shit.
One of the more aggressive ones flashed his bleached white teeth. They gleamed as brightly as his balding head. “So, Xander-is it okay if I call you Xander?”
“No,” I answered crisply.
His smile wavered, but he recovered, smile firmly back in place. “Mr. Wade, if I could just pick your brain about this boutique I'm considering purchasing-”
“It's a wedding,” I said with as much politeness that I could muster. “It's not really the venue for business advice.”
A second practically humped my leg when I turned to exit. “Do you like golf? I'd love to buy you lunch at my club sometime soon.”
He reached into his lapel for a business card, but I kept my hands firmly at my side, glancing at the lot of them and forgetting them instantly. “If you all would excuse me.”
I sighed inwardly as I put them in the rear view and focused on Penny. She was talking to a gray haired woman whose voice was as animated as her bright yellow dress.
