“Well, er—” I glance at Luke again but he stares at me blankly. “I went for a walk, on the jetty, to get some fresh air after setting up the decorations. You know, it was quite hot in the reception hall, and I was still a bit annoyed after dinner, and I was walking along the jetty, and, well, these shoes aren’t that good, then I tripped, and—” I stop as Luke throws me a look.Too much, Harriet. Everyone knows that a good lie doesn’t have too many extraneous details.
Alex’s eyes flit over to Luke and narrow in suspicion. “And what happened toyou?”
“Uh…” He clears his throat. “I jumped in to help her, of course.”
“He did,” I assure Alex. “I probably would have been fine, because I can swim, but he was very concerned.”
“Right.” Her eyes move between us. “But… your clothes are dry.”
“Oh, well,” I begin, not sure where I’m going with this but hoping like hell something good comes out when I continue. “We, erm, popped back up to the lodge and dried them under the hand driers in the bathroom.”
She gives me a bizarre look. “You took your clothes off in the bathroom and dried them? Why didn’t you just come back here?”
“Uh…” I flounder, my stomach in free-fall.
This is it. We’re done for.
“Because we still had work to do in the reception hall,” Luke says, and I could justkisshim.
“That’s right.” I nod vigorously. “We didn’t want to come home before we had everything just perfect.”
“Oh.” Alex stares at us both for a moment, her brows slanted together, and I hold my breath. Then her face breaks into a smile. “You guys have worked so hard on this wedding. Seriously, I can’t believe all you’ve done for us. Michael and I are so grateful.”
“You’re welcome,” I manage. “It’s been our… pleasure.” My cheeks heat with awareness and I yank my gaze away from Luke.
Thankfully, Alex doesn’t notice. “I love you guys. Now go to bed so you’re ready for tomorrow!” She gives a little squeak of excitement and slips back into her room, plunging the living room into near-darkness.
I almost collapse with relief when her door closes. As my eyes adjust to the firelight, I see Luke raise a hand to his forehead.
“That was close,” he mutters.
I gaze into the fire, trying to ignore the guilt bleeding through me. “I wish I could tell her the truth.”
When I glance back at Luke, his expression is agonized. “Look, we will. Just… give me some time, okay?”
I scrutinize his face. Time? For what? And either way, I don’thavetime. I’m leaving in a few days, and that’s it. I’ll never see him again.
No. I shove that thought away, into the deep recesses of my brain where I can ignore it. Instead, I give Luke a little nod and simply say, “Okay.” He said we’ll tell her, after all. If he says we will, I trust that.
A shiver works through me and I glance at the bathroom. “I’m going to have a shower. I guess you should go and hop into bed with Dena,” I add, unable to keep the bitterness out of my voice.
He shakes his head, speaking in a low voice. “I’ll sleep out here, say I wanted to be by the fire or something.”
“You don’t want to be in there?” I press, even though I’m quite sure I know the answer.
“Are you kidding? If I could be anywhere, it would be with you.” He exhales wearily, reaching out for me then thinking better of it and dropping his hand. “I know this isn’t easy for you, with her here. I just need some time, okay?”
There’s that word again:time. The one thing I don’t have.
But I give him another nod and say goodnight. Then I pad off to the bathroom, trying to convince myself that, somehow, we’ll find a way to work everything out.
35
The ceremony is absolutely beautiful, and the weather is perfect: sunny but crisp and cool, with the blaze of fall colors surrounding the courtyard making for a stunning setting. I can see why they chose this time of year.
Everything goes smoothly, but it’s not until we are milling in the reception hall, waiting for Alex and Michael’s entrance and sipping champagne, that I start to relax.
“This is such a wonderful venue,” Geoff says, glancing around the hall.
