I should push him away, but I didn’t.
Couldn’t.
He looked at me like I was precious, and in his arms, it almost felt true.
It was too fast to be real. But for just a little while, it was nice to pretend.
CHAPTER 5
Love at first sight is romantic, but you won’t see clearly until you take a second look!
— MATCHMAKING MAMAS
Silas
“Want a coffee?”I chirped as I popped a pod into the Keurig in our break room.
Heidi, my administrative assistant, raised an eyebrow. “You’re in a good mood today.”
I shrugged. “Had a great weekend.”
“You’ve got a 10:00 a.m. with the Kennedys,” she said. “A noon meeting with Sheffield, and a 2:00 p.m. consult with a prospective client.”
“Great!”
Heidi narrowed her eyes. “Youhatemeeting days.”
I shrugged. “It’s part of the job, right? Besides, Caitlyn is finally bringing in Branson today.”
“Her mystery groom? We started an office pool on whether the guy even existed.”
I rolled my eyes. “C’mon, that’s not cool. Caitlyn is a sweetheart.”
“A sweetheart with an invisible groom,” she muttered.
“Branson stayed in Little Rock to sell their house while finishing out a work contract. He’s picking up and moving here so they can be closer to Caitlyn’s family and raise their kids in the Midwest. I’m sure he’swantedto be more involved.”
I hoped for Caitlyn’s sake that was true. She spoke so fondly of him that I had no doubt she loved the heck out of him. She reported in with his opinions on our plans regularly, so he obviously cared enough to weigh in, which was more than some grooms living in the same town did.
I was giving him the benefit of the doubt until we met. I glanced at the clock. “Ten minutes. See you in there.”
“Sure,” Heidi said. “I’m right behind you.”
I took my travel cup with me, sipping coffee and humming softly under my breath. Carol Ann, the other wedding planner—and owner of Veils & Vows—cast me an odd look when we passed in the hall.
“You’re looking happy,” she said in a suspicious tone.
First Heidi and now Carol Ann. Was I really so unhappy the rest of the time?
“I’m giving my bitch face a rest!” I called.
She laughed. “Be careful before you flash that grin at one of the grooms. You’re likely to make someone jealous.”
“Ha! Not looking to get shanked or fired, thank you. Bridezillas are scary, and the Momzillas are even scarier.”
Carol Ann snorted. “You got that right.”
She shut herself into her office, and I carried on into the conference room. I owed a lot to my boss. She had no partnerswhen I started here, and she’d only taken me on as a favor to Lula. There was a heck of a learning curve to planning in a new region. I’d had no knowledge of venues or service providers, and this business ran on maintaining relationships. But Carol Ann took me under her wing until I could fly on my own.
