I gasped as the tightly clustered roses slammed into my face. Without thinking, my hands flew up and grabbed the stems. A roar of laughter and cheers went up behind me as I yanked the bouquet away from my mouth, spitting out a couple of rose petals as I did.
Still shocked, I looked up to find Lucy grinning at me. When our eyes met, she winked.
“Looks like love is going to smack one of the bridesmaids in the face!” the DJ chortled.
I was too busy rolling my eyes to notice the mixed reactions of the other women as I turned and walked straight into the firm body of Elijah.
“Looks like you’re next, Brown Eyes,” he said.
I blinked up at him. “I didn’t even want to catch it,” I mumbled.
“Then why were you out there?”
I shot a sideways glance to Chelsea, who was no longer next to me but headed over to one of the bar areas set up in the corner. “I’m pretty sure you saw exactly what happened with Chelsea, right? You were standing right there.”
He laughed, his light blue eyes sparkling. “Good point.”
“Okay, single guys. Time for y’all to catch the garter!” The wedding planner’s voice came over the speakers.
I arched my brows at Elijah. “Looks like it’s your turn.”
Before he could do more than shake his head, I called out, “I found one!”
Heads all around us turned toward Elijah. Lucy appeared next to us, latching onto the sleeve of his suit jacket. “Let’s go, buddy,” she said.
His expression promising retribution, Elijah let her drag him toward the dance floor. Feeling smug, I gave him a little finger wave before I blew him a sassy kiss. He shook his head at me as he turned to face Lucy. I could see his mouth moving rapidly, but she just pointed to the group of men loitering on the dance floor in front of Chris, stomping her foot when he didn’t move fast enough. Marcus somehow avoided being dragged into the fray. I searched for him, but he was nowhere to be found.
Finally, Elijah rolled his eyes (much like I had) and joined the small group of men. Only a couple of them looked happy to be there, which made me suppress a smile especially since the ones who looked most annoyed had dates nearby calling encouragement.
Lucy sauntered over to her new husband and lifted the skirt of her wedding dress to reveal the garter on her leg. The DJ began playing a raunchy tune, reminiscent of a burlesque song, as Chris slowly worked the garter down her leg, grinning lasciviously as he did. Lucy smacked his shoulder, her mouth moving as she said something, but I couldn’t hear her over the music. After she did, his movements became a little quicker and less titillating.
Once the garter was free, Chris straightened, twirling the satiny band around his index finger. Then, he pulled it back and released it, sending it shooting straight toward the men. Copying my strategy, Elijah was loitering at the back of the group. It was petty as hell, but I hoped that it worked out as well for him as it had for me.
I bit back a laugh as the men all stepped to the side, parting like a pair of curtains and leaving Elijah standing alone at the rear, his mouth agape. I couldn’t control my laugh as the garter smacked him between the eyes. No wonder people laughed when the bouquet got me earlier. It was damn funny to see the gobsmacked expression on his face.
Considering how amused he’d been by my predicament, I thought it was a fitting punishment that the same thing would happen to him.
“Well, that was unexpected. Seems the bachelors didn’t learn from the ladies at the bouquet toss,” the DJ said, his voice quivering with laughter.
I snorted, covering my mouth with my hand. As though he heard me, Elijah turned toward me, his eyes narrowed.
“Time for a picture with the lady and gentleman who caught the bouquet and garter!” the DJ announced.
That wiped the smile from my face. When he saw my expression, Elijah smirked and crooked a finger at me. I shook my head. He took a step toward me, clearly threatening to come drag me across the room. With a sigh, I lowered my hand and trudged in his direction. It was clear he wasn’t going to let me out of this, and I didn’t want to cause a scene at Lucy’s wedding. Well, more of a scene.
As I passed one of the single ladies who’d almost caught the bouquet, I heard her murmur, “Lucky bitch.”
It was on the tip of my tongue to stop and ask her if she wanted me to introduce her to him, but Elijah was watching me expectantly, arching a brow when my steps slowed. I could almost hear him say, Too chicken? I squinted across the dance floor at him as I got closer, which made his smirk turn into a huge smile.
A flower wall had been set up near the dance floor so people could have pictures taken together by the photographer she’d hired. It was a fun activity Lucy wanted for the guests and wedding party so she could look at the photos in the future to see all her friends and family enjoying themselves at her wedding. The photographer was setting up a chair in front of the wall. She smiled at both of them as they approached.
“Okay, gentleman, you’re going to sit in the chair.” Once Elijah was seated, she smiled at me. “And bridesmaid, you’ll sit in his lap.”
I opened my mouth to tell her no way when Elijah reached out and snagged my hand, tugging me forward. I tried to pull away, but he kept a firm grip on me and maneuvered me in front of him.
“Have a seat, Brown Eyes.”
I looked down at him, hesitating.
