“Hey, hey, it’s okay,” I whispered.
He tucked his face into my neck. “Why do people have to be like that?”
I sighed. “I wish I knew.”
“I’m so glad you’re here,” he murmured, still tucked away. “I was standing here wishing you were with me, and then you were.”
Tears pricked my eyes. It was a real shift for me to be the comforter rather than the comforted. I liked it. It made me feel…whole. Like maybe I had something to offer this budding relationship.
“Mr. O’Neil? Sean?” We both started at the police officer’s words.
Sean lifted his head. “Hey, Kathy.”
Kathy was a middle-aged woman with short blonde hair. Her lips were turned down in a frown, and her brow was creased with worry. Her nameplate read Lt. Jacobs.
“Hey, Sean. I’m really sorry about all this. Our guys got called away by what turned out to be a false alarm.”
“Do you think it was a setup?” Sean asked.
Kathy shrugged. “Maybe. We won’t know until we find out who made the call.”
“Spring Lake’s a small town,” Sean said. “I don’t understand how they thought they could get away with this.”
“Beats me,” she replied. “Probably because their daddies are rich. They figure they can get away with anything.” She took in my tuxedo and smirked. “I’m guessing you have a wedding to get to. We’ll talk tomorrow, Sean.”
She walked back to the group of police officers, and I picked up Sean’s charcoal-gray jacket. “We should get going.”
I held up his jacket so he could slip his arms into the sleeves. Then I moved around in front of him to fix his collar and straighten his lapels.
His eyes were soft as he gazed at me. He covered my hands with his and kissed me. “Thank you.”
I almost said it right there. I opened my mouth, but before I could speak, a man’s voice behind me said, “There you are.” I turned to find the wedding planner with his hands on his hips. “Evan is…”
“Having a hissy fit because I’m not there,” I finished for him.
The man cleared his throat. “Something like that. We really need to go.”
“I know,” I replied. “Sorry about that, David.”
I held out my hand to Sean. “Ready to go?”
He took my hand and said, “With you? Anywhere.”
* * *
Sean
Evan wasa little pissy when we got back until Jeremy told him why we were late. Then he kissed both my cheeks and told me, with tears in his eyes, that I was a fucking hero, and he was so glad Jeremy had found me.
Jeremy rolled his eyes, pulled a tissue out of his jacket pocket, and wiped his best friend’s cheeks. Then he and Luis made their entrance into the dining room while I slipped in behind them and grabbed my seat.
“Allow me to introduce, for the first time in public, our newlyweds, Raphael Alvarez and Evan Williams!”
Everyone in the dining room cheered and applauded as Evan and Raphael entered the room hand in hand. I leaned over to Jeremy, who’d taken his seat beside me at the same table as Evan’s parents and grandparents. “So, no taking of the other’s last name?”
Jeremy shook his head. “They both have made names for themselves with their family name, so they decided not to change that.”
“Makes sense,” I said.
