“Venue double-booking, maybe?”Delia said, then immediately shot that idea down without even waiting for Caleb to respond.“No, she’s probably already signed a contract, and I doubt they’re that sloppy at the chapel.”
“I have a feeling you might be right about that.”He sipped some wine and swirled the Montepulciano in his glass as he appeared to think it over.“Maybe health code violations?I mean, the place looked clean, but….”
Delia pursed her lips.Would health code violations even be a thing in a place that didn’t serve food?Honestly, she couldn’t say for sure.
“I suppose that might work.”She popped some fettuccine alfredo into her mouth, giving herself a moment to savor the rich, comforting flavor.Maybe the indulgence wouldn’t solve anything, but it sure tasted good.“Or possibly a scheduling conflict with the officiant or something.”
Caleb set down his wine glass and reached across the table to twine her fingers with his.The subtle strength in that touch reassured her just a little.“You know what?”he said.“Maybe you’re overthinking this.Sometimes people just need to hear that you’re worried about them.”
Still holding his hand — she knew she wouldn’t let go right away, would continue to take comfort from that grasp for as long as possible — she asked, “You think I should just call Olivia and be honest?She’s going to think I’m nuts if I start talking about ley lines and portals to the otherworld.”
That familiar glint entered his warm brown eyes, but his tone was surprisingly serious when he spoke.“Feel out the situation first,” he told her, then gently let go of her hand so he could reach for his glass of wine again.“See what her state of mind is like.You might be surprised.”
Maybe some people were capable of believing six impossible things before breakfast, but from what she knew of her cousin, Delia kind of doubted Olivia was one of them.“I don’t even know how to open a conversation like that.”
Before he could respond, his phone sent a ping from inside his jeans pocket.Shooting her an apologetic glance, he pulled it out so he could glance down at the screen.At once, his expression grew troubled.
“What is it?”she asked.
He held up the phone so she could see the alert that had flashed up on his home screen.She guessed he must have set it up so he’d get notified anytime something weird happened at one of the chapels in town.
Electrical Issues Force Closure of Three Vegas Wedding Venues.
Cold moved down Delia’s spine as she read the words.Now seemed like a really good time for another swallow of wine.Once she’d fortified herself, she said, “It’s already starting, isn’t it?”
Being Caleb, he didn’t bother to waste time by making light of the situation.
“We may have less time than we thought,” he replied grimly.
They cleared the table soon after that, both of their appetites effectively dampened by the unnerving news, and then moved to the living room with the remainder of their wine and settled on the couch to strategize.
“Okay,” Delia said as she tucked her legs under her and turned to face him.“I think maybe I’ll call my Aunt Vicky first — she’s Olivia’s mother.I hope a talk with her might give me some insight into Olivia’s state of mind and how set she is on using Angel’s Dream as her wedding venue.Maybe Olivia just landed on that place because it seemed convenient and not because she was totally in love with it or anything.”
“Good idea,” Caleb agreed.“And after you talk to her mother, then you can approach Olivia as the concerned cousin who wants to help with the Vegas arrangements.”
“Exactly.And if she won’t budge….”Delia let the words trail off, since she really didn’t want to finish the sentence.Although neither Caleb nor Ty had gone into any great detail about what might happen to the people in the chapel when all that energy was directed through it to open the demons’ hellmouth, she doubted it would be anything pleasant.
“And if she won’t budge, then we’ll just have to find ways to protect the wedding guests,” Caleb finished for her.“Holy water in the champagne fountain, salt around the perimeter, whatever it takes.”
She couldn’t help but smile at those suggestions.“The reception dinner is being held at the Anthem Country Club, so there won’t be a champagne fountain at the chapel.”
“Point taken,” he said, and the amused light returned to his dark eyes.“But I’m not going to let anything happen to your family.You know that.”
He’d been holding his wine glass as he spoke, but now he set it down so he could reach over and take both her hands in his.Delia gazed back at him, noting the stern set of his jaw, the way he’d made that statement with complete sincerity.
Caleb Lockwood might have been part demon, but he was also a man of his word.If he said he was going to do something, he did it, whether that was buying a new investment property or coming to her rescue when a demon tried to use her as a sort of psychic battery to open a portal to the underworld.
“Yes,” she said softly.“I do.”
After that seemed to be settled, Caleb got up from the couch, telling her she needed to get some rest.She walked him to the front door, even though she wished he would stay longer.
If she hadn’t been holding back…if they’d already taken the next step in their relationship…then maybe he wouldn’t have needed to leave at all.
Maybe he could have spent the night here, been a comforting presence when she woke up in the middle of the night and stared into the darkness, worried about what might be coming next.
Unfortunately, that wasn’t going to happen.Not tonight, anyway.
“Thank you,” she said.“For…well, just everything, I guess.”
