He dug through the kit for the right size bandage. “I don’t expect you to run around bleeding.” He opened the bandage and carefully put it on over her knee, watching her face to see if he was pressing too hard.
A strand of her hair fell forward and tickled his face. He knew he should pull away from her so they could get going, but he couldn’t help admiring the curve of her lips, the way her blue eyes returned his scrutiny. “You okay?” he asked.
She nodded, looking back at the guests starting to spill out of the chapel like ants. “Let’s go.”
He quickly shut the passenger door after she got in and ran around to his side. Rebecca was examining the bottom of her dress as he put the keys in the ignition.
“If you’ll drive over to my car, I’ll grab my go bag out of the trunk. I have an extra dress in it. This one now has a hole and a bloodstain.”
Great. His thoughtlessness had made her ruin a dress.
She seemed to read his thoughts. “I bought it online for twenty bucks. It’s not the prettiest thing ever, but it’s super comfortable, and I can get down or stretch up to reach things and not flash everyone.”
“Well, I’ll pay you twenty dollars for another one. It’s only fair.” He grinned. “A dress that keeps you from flashing people is a must.”
She shook her head at him as she got out and quickly popped her trunk. She came back with a black duffle bag and hit the lock button until her car beeped back at her. “I’m happy your sense of humor is firing on all cylinders today, but you didn’t make me trip, and I don’t want you to buy me anything.”
She said it with a finality that told him not to press the issue. It was only twenty dollars, but it seemed important that he let it drop. He concentrated on getting to the banquet hall as quickly and safely as possible while they went down their checklist of tasks.
“Have you met George’s daughter yet?” he asked as they pulled in and parked.
“Is she part of the wedding party?”
“No. She’s not thrilled her dad is remarrying, and George asked me to keep an eye on her once the drinking started.”
“Excellent.”
“You probably know this from doing other events, but you should keep an eye on everyone’s drinking. People drink too much when they’re nervous or bored, and there’s already enough family drama going on without adding drunken brawls.”
“What does this daughter look like?”
“You’ll know. She’s a professional weightlifter. Oh, and she showed up today in jeans and a Lakers jersey.”
Rebecca put her hands to her head. “That is so disrespectful.”
“Betty and George are okay with it. They’re one of the few couples I know who can spend this much and still not care about appearances.”
“All the more reason to keep their day from being ruined.” Rebecca got out and grabbed up her bag. “Let’s do this, Jay-Jay.”
He followed her up to the doors. “I’d ask you to stop calling me that, but it would only encourage you, wouldn’t it?” Somehow he knew acting friendly would lead to her treating him less like a boss.
She gave him a wink. “Correct.”
***
Amber, George’s daughter, did not drink a thing during cocktail hour. She mostly stood around and scowled. Rebecca wasn’t thrilled with Jay’s orders to go over and chat, but she did it anyway.
“How are you doing?”
Amber looked at Rebecca. “You’re staff aren’t you?”
“Yes, I’m the assistant wedding planner.”
“Sent to babysit me, huh? Don’t worry. I won’t cause any trouble. I think this wedding is a joke, but it’s important to my dad, and he’s a good man.”
“He is.”
Ian was a Lakers fan. As a result, Rebecca had been forced to watch a lot of games. For once, it would come in handy. Rebecca asked Amber what she thought of this season, and after Amber realized Rebecca wasn’t totally clueless on the subject, she talked non-stop about the Lakers and how they’d never be as good as when Magic Johnson had been on the team.
