Groomless - Part 2 (15 page)

BOOK: Groomless - Part 2

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I sighed in relief. “Thanks. You know how crazy I get when I see one of those eight-legged freaks.”

He reached for my hand and tenderly kissed it. “I’m your groom now. I solemnly swear to protect you from spiders and all other creepy-crawlies, till death do us part.”

We all broke out in a round of laughter, and my dad smiled at me. “I haven’t seen you laugh like that in a long time, honey,” he said. “It’s a nice sound to hear again.”

I smiled.

My dad chuckled. “Luke is the perfect choice. I’m just glad he found that ring!”

Luke winked at me. “I wouldn’t have left the stage without it.”

“I guess that makes you Mr. Right, at least for our wedding reception,” I said. “We’ll dance, laugh, toast, and be merry, then split and go our separate ways.”

The waitress came over and frowned. “How depressing,” she said, having overheard our conversation. She looked at Luke. “And you agree to this? Splitting up?”

“Not until after the honeymoon.”

I shot him a look.

He smirked. “What? They’re sending us to Mexico, and I want to do some scuba diving. I dug through all that wedding cakes to find that ring to put on your finger.”

The waitress looked stumped when a patron at the next table filled her in.

“I saw the show this morning. That was hilarious,” a lady said. “And I thought I’ve seen everything. I swear, New York never fails to surprise me.”

We laughed and the waitress took our orders.

Suddenly, I saw the flash of a camera, and a man smiled at me. “Sorry,” he said. “I just wanted to get a picture of the happy couple. I work for the newspaper, and this is going to be a sensational story. I can see the headlines now… ‘Billionaire Steps in to Make Groomless Bride Smile Once Again.” Before any of us could say a word, he darted off as fast as he had appeared.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” I asked. “Are they trying to say I wasn’t smiling until Luke came into my life?”

“Who knows?” my dad said. “In these last couple weeks, I’ve learned to ignore the press. They’re like ants on a picnic blanket, always swarming around the sweet stuff.”

“I’m sorry this whole wedding dance fiasco got so out of control,” I said. “It’s taking on a life of its own.”

“Are you kidding? I really don’t mind it. I kinda miss the spotlight, and getting all the attention with my daughter is even better. I’m enjoying every minute of it.”

Luke smiled at him. “One gets used to it in time.”

My dad sipped his drink. “I think it’s been a great experience. So what if we get interviewed on television and for the newspaper? It’s a great story that touches so many people. There are all those horrible stories on the news, all that death and violence. I’m proud to be part of something so inspiring and heartwarming that will have people smiling over their morning coffee instead of crying into it.”

“Whatever you say, Dad,” I said. “I just want you to be happy.”

“I am, honey. The best part is that it isn’t all about me. It’s also about my beautiful daughter and her future groom.”

I peered at my father. “Pretend groom, Daddy,” I corrected, arching an eyebrow at him.

“Really? From what I saw today, Luke already has plenty of practice smashing cake,” he joked. “Did you see the way he pounded through those cakes?”

Luke smiled at me. “I promise I won’t smash cake in your face.”

I winked. “That doesn’t mean I won’t.”

He laughed.

My dad’s face lit up. “Well, at least in the long run, you two won some great stuff.”

“Yeah, I’ve got to call Tiffany’s and make an appointment for us to pick out the wedding ring set,” I said.

“Yup. Just look at that. A few weeks ago, you wanted to kill Luke, and now you’re picking out rings.” He shot me the biggest grin, then patted Luke on the back. “Ain’t love grand?”

Luke caught my gaze and smiled as I grinned.