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31
The wedding couldn’t have been any smoother, or any better. All the hard work and worry and tears over the past month had been worth it. Jane was walking on cloud nine. She knew that Kat was happy, Mike was happy, and the guests were happy, and that’s all she could have hoped for.
The buzz about the wedding had been insane for the last few hours. Social media was on fire, and everyone was looking for a photo and details. Jane knew that Kat and Mike were famous, but she had underestimated the cult-like following they had. She was thankful that security had been a top priority because it had paid off. The place would have been a madhouse without it. The media had reached out to Kat’s PR team throughout the entire day, and they made the decision to release exclusive photos the next day to one of the top celebrity sites for a pretty penny. Kat’s PR team took her aside to go over a few talking points that they wanted to release to some news and digital media outlets. They told Jane that she would be quoted, and The Oxford would be front-and-center. Everything she had hoped for with this high-profile wedding was coming true, and she couldn’t have been happier with herself and her team.
It was getting late, and Jane stood in the reception area watching the wedding begin to wind down. Guests were dancing and enjoying the last 30 minutes or so. It had been a magical night because Kat and Mike had requested that everyone leave their phones with security so that nobody could take photos. It made for a nice evening because people were relaxed and in the moment, not trying to text and take photos all night. It made Jane smile because it was nice to see people genuinely enjoying each other.
As Jane stood admiring the view, she saw Chris Drew walking toward her. She hoped nothing was wrong because Chris had been taking care of security all evening.
“Hey, Jane,” Chris greeted with a smile. “This has been a wonderful success. Congratulations,” he said warmly. “You’ve got to be proud of this one.”
“Thanks, Chris,” Jane smiled, looking back at the crowd. “It really came together beautifully.” She turned back to look at Chris, “Everything OK?” she asked.
“Ugh,” Chris went on, “there’s a small matter that needs your attention in the restaurant. I wouldn’t bother you with it, but it shouldn’t take long. Things are winding down here anyway.”
“In the restaurant?” Jane asked, confused, knowing there shouldn’t be anyone in the restaurant right now.
“Yeah,” Chris replied quickly. “I think it’s a press question or something like that. Do you mind heading there? I can stay here and hold the fort until you get back.”
Not wanting to say no to Chris, Jane nodded politely and walked off toward the restaurant. She had no clue what kind of matter needed to be addressed at this moment but, with this wedding, nothing would surprise her at this point.
As she made her way over to the main building of The Oxford, she approached the restaurant area and noticed that the door to the restaurant was shut; most likely meaning it was locked, and she didn’t have a key. This may have been a wasted trip. Just to be sure, Jane walked to the door expecting to find it locked but was surprised to see it open. She peeked inside and didn’t see anyone, wondering what small matter needed her attention if there was nobody here.
“Hello?” she said loudly as she opened the door and walked in. As she stepped inside, she looked to her right and noticed a table for two completely set, along with lit candles. She walked to the table to see if there was a note or anything, but there was nothing. Her gut reaction was that she had walked in on something that wasn’t meant for her.
“I wasn’t sure you would be able to steal yourself away,” a familiar voice said from a quiet corner.
She quickly turned around to see Austin standing in a tuxedo, looking more handsome than ever. Her heart began to beat. She wasn’t sure what was going on. “Austin,” she muttered. “What are you doing in here?”
“I was waiting for you,” he replied staring back at her.
“Are you waiting for me? Or Molly?” she asked genuinely confused. “Your brother told me that there was a small matter that needed my attention in here. Should he have spoken to Molly?” she asked, feeling a bit helpless.
“No,” Austin answered with a smile on his face, “he was right. I asked him if he could send you up here because there is something I need to talk to you about in private.”
“You’re the small matter?” she asked him, slightly annoyed. Why all the secrecy?
Austin smiled, feeling nervous himself, but knew he needed to begin. “I wanted to get you alone for a minute without the chaos of the wedding, or the people, around us. I hope you don’t mind.”
“No…” Jane said, looking at him with a puzzled look, feeling her insides start to worry. “Is there a problem? Everything OK?”
“Yes,” he nodded, moving closer to her and stopping about six feet away, wanting to go to her and hold her hands, but knowing he shouldn’t, at least not yet. “The thing is,” he went on, smiling at her, “I want you to know that all those years ago when you asked me out in high school, you must have been as nervous as I am right now.”
Jane stood, feeling her stomach tighten, not knowing where this was going.
“I’m guessing you were nervous to ask me out, but you did it anyway,” he said, adding, “I was a self-centered teenager; otherwise I would have stopped and listened, really listened, to what you were saying. I regret that now, more than you can know.”
Jane felt tears well in her eyes, remembering that moment in the high school hallway, and the fear that had pulsated throughout her body.
“The thing is,” Austin went on, “I feel just like you right now. My heart is pounding,” he hesitated, and said with a shy smile, “and I’m not used to feeling this way.”
Jane was afraid to move. She stood looking at him, wondering what he was doing and why he was saying these things to her.
“If this was how you felt that day,” he said, raking his hand through his hair, “I’m sorry.”
“So is this what you wanted to tell me? Here? Tonight?” Jane asked, looking at him, quickly realizing Austin wanted to come clean with her about their past.
“No,” Austin responded, “that’s not it, not entirely anyway.” He took one step closer to her and slowly took a deep breath in. “There’s something else.”
