The band finished another song. He parted from Chloe long enough to applaud. She glanced toward her table as if she might be done with him for the evening.
But he wasn’t ready to let her go. He felt cold where she’d leaned against him. Maybe it was just the mystical romance of the wedding, but he wanted to stay in her presence.
On the other hand, a wedding was a lot like being on a movie set. No realities. Everything would return to normal in the morning. So why not enjoy an evening with a beautiful woman? No strings. No expectations.
The singer began a melodic, enchanting rendition of “I’ve Grown Accustomed to Her Face,” and Jesse reached for Chloe’s hand. “One more?”
Without a word, she moved with him as if they’d danced a thousand dances. And she made him want things he’d not allowed himself to consider for a long, long time.
“You’ve mastered the waltz in a single evening,” he said, turning her to the music. “Dancing suits you.”
“Don’t be fooled. It’s all you.”
“I’ve grown accustomed to her face...”
Then the trumpeter rose for a solo, and the sound wove around them as if they were the only ones on the floor.
While Chloe made him consider love for the first time in ages, he was safe with her. First, she wasn’t his type. A full-figuredredhead of average height. He liked his women tall. And lean. Yeah, lean. And... and... blond. Definitely blond.
Having reasoned this in his head, he relaxed, set his cheek on her hair again, and this time kept the lyrics to himself. That was embarrassing, singing, “I love you for sentimental reasons” right into her ear.
Nevertheless, he let the music have its way and held her a little closer.
When the song ended, she stepped away, and the cold creeped across his chest again.
“I didn’t mean to steal you from all the other ladies tonight.”
“I promised Ted I’d dance with his girlfriend’s friend.” He shrugged, shaking his head. “Somebody had to do it.”
She laughed and shoved his arm. “Stella begged me to dance with her boyfriend’s dorky friend. An ac-tor.” Chloe rolled her eyes, making a face.
Jesse laughed, wrapped his arm around her, and kissed her forehead. “We’re both saints, then.”
The intimate gesture caused him to freeze. What was that? The laugh. The arm. The kiss. Jesse moved left one step. Should he say something?“Just kidding”? “Oops, let me wipe that kiss away”?
“Yeah, saints.” She gazed toward the dance floor.
In moments like these he longed, with a capitalL, for an actor’s brain. The kind fueled by emotion and the moment. The kind that could let an incident go. Instead, he functioned as an engineer. All the time. Sequential. Logical. Overthinking things, as he was right now.Stop.
“Ladies and gentlemen...” Dylan hopped up on the dais, motioning for Violet to join him. “My beautiful bride and I would like your attention.” The noise settled down except for the pianist playing a soft melody. “First, thank you all for being here and celebrating this great day with us. We couldn’t have done it without you all. Special thanks to our family and friends, who put up with us during this wedding Godzilla time.” Violet nudged him, feigning apout while the guests laughed. “We love all of you.” His gaze drifted to Violet. “But we have agreed to share our night with someone.” Violet grabbed the mike. “Where’s Ted?”
“What’s this?” Chloe said, elbowing Jesse. “Do you know? Tell me. What’s Ted doing?”
“Got me.” He surrendered his hands. “Promise. I know nothing. But as the brother of the groom and the best man, who knows what he’s planned?”
“Stella, you come up too,” Violet said. “We want to give you guys a special gift for being so good to us during our wedding planning.” She leaned toward Dylan for a kiss.
Something popped in Jesse’s chest. Something weird and foreign. He pressed his hand against the bone, trying to make it go away.
“We wanted to give you these gifts as a token of our appreciation.” Dylan handed Ted and Stella two boxes wrapped in thick, white paper and gold ribbon.
“You guys...” Stella pressed her hand to her throat. Ted said she was a teacher, but Jesse wondered if she’d missed her calling. “You really didn’t have to do this. We love you and wanted to be there for you on your big day.”
“Open them.” Violet urged the crowd to cheer them on. An “open, open, open” chant bounced around the tables.
“You first, babe,” Ted said, tucking his box under his arm.
“I can’t imagine...” Stella pulled at the ribbon, letting it fall to the stage, then removed the paper. She faced the guests. “What do you think it is?”
