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Austin held onto what Ali had said to him for the next couple of days. As much as it hurt to hear that Ali hated him and that Jane completely had the wrong idea, the news that Jane had feelings for him gave him cause to hope. One way or the other, he was going to find out for himself.
The one thing he didn’t know was whether or not Ali had told Jane she confronted him at Patrick’s. He wouldn’t say anything to Jane, but what about Ali? The sisters were close, and he knew that when it came to siblings you stick together and protect each other.
As the big wedding day approached, he felt positive that Ali had stayed quiet; otherwise, Jane would have said something about the confrontation. Jane wasn’t the kind of woman to ignore something like that, especially since they worked together. What did bother him was knowing that Ali was actively trying to convince Jane to get over him and move on. He needed the perfect moment to tell her how he felt about her. He wanted to make sure it was grand, special, and meaningful because he knew his feelings weren't going away. She took a big chance on him in high school, and now he wanted to do the same for her.
He chose the big wedding day--the craziest of days to say something. He had an idea in mind, and he didn’t want to deviate from it. Austin wasn’t sure he would call himself a romantic but when it came to Jane, he wanted to pull out all the stops. He wanted to do something that would be memorable for her and, he wanted her to know that he was falling in love with her.
“You good?” Chris asked his brother as they walked into The Oxford the morning of the wedding. Chris knew what Austin had planned and he’d even helped out with a couple of details. He just hoped Austin would not live to regret anything.
“As ready as I can be,” Austin nodded, feeling a little nervous, knowing today was a now-or-never kind of day for him.
“You look good,” Chris added, referring to his tuxedo. “It would be tough for any woman to ignore a man in a tux.”
“You’re looking pretty dapper yourself,” Austin said, knowing that he and his brother both wore the same brand of tuxedo. With an elaborate wedding like Kat and Mike’s, they knew it was important to dress the part today. It was an important wedding with a lot of important guests and publicity. They wanted to make sure The Oxford appeared as stately and elegant as possible, and that included the staff. Everyone was in spotless uniforms or their best attire.
“Have you seen Jane yet?” Chris asked quietly, not wanting to be overheard.
Austin shook his head. “Not yet. I’m sure she’s running around like crazy.”
“And where’s the infamous Molly McKee?” Chris asked.
“She’s with Kat at the hotel,” Austin replied quickly. “I’ve had a bunch of texts from her all morning, and it’s only 9 am. She’s not due here with Kat until around 2 pm.”
“So you’re safe ‘til then?” Chris joked. “I still can’t believe you’ve managed to avoid her for the past couple of days.”
“I told you, I made sure to stay busy all week, and with this wedding and shutting down The Oxford for the day, it was the absolute truth.”
“Well,” Chris said, putting his hand on his brother’s shoulder, “here’s hoping that everything goes your way today, man.”
“Thanks, Chris,” Austin replied as he felt the nerves build. All he could do now was hope and pray that everything would fall into place.
* * *
Jane couldn’t believe that Kat’s wedding day was here. She had barely slept all week and was hoping that nothing had been overlooked. This was such a high-profile wedding that there wasn’t room for errors. There had been a lot of paparazzi around the hotel over the last week, and security had taken care of them, but they knew something was up. All they had to do was look at all the delivery trucks that constantly arrived and departed. She had arrived at The Oxford that morning at 6 am, and she had gone through a security check herself. Some vendors would start arriving as early as 7 am, and she just hoped the big security detail could keep the press at bay.
Kat had done a secret visit with Molly yesterday afternoon and she had been over the moon excited about everything. She told Jane it was everything she could have asked for. Jane knew the wedding would be a success as long as Kat thought it was, so seeing her happiness at the walk-through allowed her to breathe a huge sigh of relief.
Jane had been so preoccupied all week that she hadn’t had a moment to even think about Austin. She knew he was working with Chris, making sure everything was covered in terms of security, parking, press, and guest lists. Normally, for a wedding, the entire facility would be buzzing with people and guests, but not today. It seemed eerily quiet, but Jane knew it was exactly what Kat and Mike wanted.
* * *
“Jane!”a high-pitched voice called out as she checked her watch again, “Oh, my God! Everything looks freaking amazing!”
Without having to turn around, Jane knew it was Molly. Just as she had figured, Molly and Kat were almost an hour late. They said they would be here around 2 pm, and it was pushing 3 pm. The staff had been on high alert all day, but this late arrival was making everyone nervous. The ceremony was scheduled to start at 5 pm, and there were still final touches to be attended to, including photos to be taken expressly for the media.
“I think everything looks spectacular, if I do say so myself. Everyone has worked super hard and I’m happy that you like everything,” Jane replied.
“Like?” Molly beamed, “LOVE! Everything looks utterly amazing. And you look amazing, too!”
“Thank you,” Jane replied, owning the compliment as she stood there in a gorgeous Love Shack Fancy long pink maxi dress that she had purchased on sale last year. She had worked exceptionally hard on this one. In addition to the four-week turnaround, and everything with Austin over the last four weeks, she could hardly wait to put her feet up. She would be glad when the day was over. “How’s Kat feeling? Is she ready?” Jane asked.
“She’s as ready as she’ll ever be!” Molly gushed. “She was so nervous this morning, but I think it was more to do with the fact that there are paparazzi outside the hotel. I have to say, you guys have done an incredible job with security and privacy here. It feels like an empty estate.”
Jane smiled and nodded. “We knew it was important for her. You can thank the Drew family for that.”
“I’m so glad,” she replied. “Austin told me not to worry about security, and that it was all handled. It’s such a big thing for Kat, and for many of the guests. They just want a day to remember, and Kat wants to feel like a normal bride, not someone who is bombarded at every turn.”
