Falling for the Best Man

by Joanne Dannon

  Despite his casual outfit in tailored shorts and a short-sleeved shirt, he looked effortlessly handsome, like he wasn’t trying hard to impress.

  Minutes later, he’d returned and sat in front of her. A waitress had placed a bottle of iced cold water and two glasses on the table and while she was waiting for him, she had poured them each a glass.

  Seeing him fiddle with his watch made her wonder if he was as nervous as she was. Despite him ordering her favourite sandwich for her, her belly was in knots about their anticipated talk.

  When he returned to the table, he drained his water and refilled it before looking at her. “I want to apologise if I upset you.”

  She raised her hand so her palm faced him. She didn’t want him to say sorry. She knew he was. It was there in the tightness around his jaw and the pain in his brown eyes. “You don’t have to say it. I know you are, but. . .we need to work things out. I’m going to be part of your family and we can’t be avoiding each other, being uncomfortable.”

  Placing his hands on the table, he looked directly at her. “I would never do anything to hurt my family. You may not be my sister-in-law yet, but you will be.” He paused. “I will never do anything to intentionally upset you.”

  She nodded slowly. “I know.” And she believed him. Picking up her serviette, she placed it in her lap, needing a moment to distract herself. “To be honest, I don’t know what to do. I do like you. I like you in a different way than I like Felix.”

  She paused, pressing her lips together. “Felix has never brought me here because they specialise in sandwiches and he doesn’t like to eat carbs. I’m quiet and reserved, but with him, I feel like I need to put on a façade and be someone that I’m not.” She exhaled deeply. “With you, I can be myself.” The heartfelt words tumbled from her lips before she had a chance to think about them as her heart raced.

  Was she amiss in her honesty? “But how can I feel this way around you when I’m about to marry Felix? It’s not right.”

  Jonah’s mouth opened, about to say something when a waitress came to their table and placed their sandwiches in front of them. “Nice to see you, hon,” she gave Kaylah a wink. “I’ll bring your coffees in a minute.”

  “You’re a regular?” He chuckled, pointing to their plates. “She knew who ordered which dish.”

  She shrugged, pretending it didn’t matter. “I guess so.”

  Waiting till the waitress returned, a strained silence hung between them. Once the coffees were on the table, Kaylah fiddled with the spoon, stirring her latte more than it needed. “I don’t want to jeopardise my marriage.”

  “Neither do I,” he said with a determined voice.

  “What do we do?” she asked.

  “We remain friends,” he said before taking a bite of his sandwich. His casual approach made her wonder if she was overdramatising the situation. He hadn’t looked too shocked when she’d confessed how she felt.

  Determined to see if she was overreacting, she said, “Friends? You told me last night that—”

  This time it was his turn to hold his hand up to stop her from speaking. He finished chewing and swallowing his mouthful. “That’s my concern, not yours,” he said, returning his sandwich to the plate. “We’ll be friends, and besides, I’m returning to Samoa next week.”

  Yep, and that’s why she’d never date someone like him. She needed stability in her life, not someone who was flighty and left his family in a lurch all because he wanted a “sea change.”

  “Okay,” she said reluctantly, before sipping her coffee. “We’ll be friends. Do we pretend we never had this conversation?”

  His left eyebrow arched. “We can’t change things. It’s been said. But let’s accept how things are and move forward. Neither of us wants to hurt Felix or the family.” He gave her a smile of understanding that told her this would be between them only, and her heart hummed, knowing this was special. He had honour and principles. He’d never do anything to jeopardise or hurt her.

  Her appetite returned and her tummy rumbled, reminding her she hadn’t eaten all morning. Taking a few bites of the baguette, she savoured every mouthful with the delicious smoky flavours of the roasted vegetables, pesto, and salty cheese. “Mmm,” she murmured. “So delicious.”

  He grinned at her obvious enjoyment and the uncomfortable strain between them dissipated, thanks to a love of food and shared confidences.

  “Tell me about what you’re doing in Samoa,” she asked, interested to know more about why he’d abandoned his business.

  “You know that I get old computers, fix them up and give them to families who need them. I want to extend the program so all school-aged children have access to computers. It’s not just good for learning, but they can access email, have pen-pals and keep in touch with family who are living overseas,” he said, before eating more of his lunch.

  “It sounds very worthwhile and noble,” she remarked, impressed with his achievements but annoyed that she wasn’t getting the details she’d hoped for.

  “Thank you,” he said with pride.

  “Are you going to go back to creating apps?” she asked, hoping he’d tell her more about what she wanted to know.

  He leaned back in his chair. “I want to, but I don’t want to. That lifestyle almost killed me. I prefer living with less stress.”

  She could only imagine his carefree way of life in Samoa. Warm balmy nights, lazy hot days, swimming in the ocean. A very different existence than in a busy city like Melbourne.

  “Are you coming back here to live?” She finished her coffee.

  He shrugged as though he had no idea what he was going to do in the next week, let alone year. “One day.”

  “You have responsibilities here,” she said. “Your family misses you.”

  The camaraderie between them left as he glared at her, annoyed that she would criticise him. “My life, my business. You have no right to judge me.”

  “I’m just saying,” her hand waved in the air.

  “Well don’t,” he said.

  She felt her eyes widen. “One minute you say that we’re friends and the next minute, you’re telling me to leave you alone. You’re like a moody teen.”

  He leaned back in his seat and his eyes narrowed. “I went to Samoa to get away from you.”

  “Me?” Her voice was high pitched and her jaw dropped so her mouth was an O.

  “Yes, you.” He leaned forward. “It broke my heart when I found out that you were dating Felix.”

  Her hands pressed over her heart. “I didn’t mean to hurt you.”

  He rolled his eyes. “Of course you didn’t mean to,” he whispered. “You wouldn’t be so mean, but please, just let me deal with this in my own way. I don’t need my parents or my brother’s fiancée telling me what to do or how I should live my life.”

  “I’m sorry,” she said again. She’d hadn’t realised the depth of his feelings.

  “It’s fine. I’m a grown man; I’ll get over it. There are plenty of fish in the sea, as they say.” He eyed her sandwich. “You haven’t finished eating.”

  “I’m suddenly not very hungry,” she said reluctantly.

  “I’m happy to sit here and wait or I can ask them to pack it to go for you,” he suggested before draining his espresso.

  “Fine, I’ll eat.”

  When she finished, she wiped her hands on the paper serviette. “The shop I have to go to is close by and is run by young adults with various levels of intellectual disabilities.”

  “I like the sound of it. How did you hear about it?” he asked, scratching his chin.

  “The sister of one of my colleagues started it. Her daughter couldn’t get a job so she started a business, to help young people like her daughter. The work they do is beautiful, and I love being able to support such a fantastic enterprise.”

  “Let’s go,” he said pushing his chair back and standing. “I want to see this.”

  They left the deli and walked down the street till they came to a s
hop. The area was filled with light and the warm colours of the design were welcoming.

  A woman in her mid-twenties greeted them with a cheery smile. “Hello.”

  “Hi, I’m Kaylah and I am here to collect my order,” she said.

  “Sure, I’ll get it.”

  The open space allowed them to see into the workspace where there were ten people working on different tables. She turned to Jonah. “They do lots of different paper products here.” She pointed to the table in the corner. “Over there they make printed serviettes.” They watched as three women happily worked together. The shop and work areas gave a positive vibe and she was glad to have been able to support this charitable organisation.

  The young woman returned, carrying a cardboard box. After placing it on the table, she looked at Jonah and her smile lit up her face. “Your boyfriend is cute.” She giggled in her hand. “Do you kiss?”

  Kaylah was going to correct her, tell her that she wasn’t engaged to Jonah but didn’t. Did it matter that she didn’t amend the error? The young woman’s happiness was infectious and she didn’t want to dampen the mood.

  “I’ve already paid for the boxes,” Kaylah assured the younger woman when she noticed her forehead crinkle while inspecting the packaging.

  “Oh, yes. I was just checking.” The younger woman pointed to a receipt stuck to the side of the box. Turning to Jonah, she shot him a mischievous smile. “Do you like kissing?”

  “Yes, do you?” Jonah said, playing along, seemingly not embarrassed at all at her questions.

  The young woman giggled again and a blush stained her cheeks. “Why don’t you kiss her now?” The younger woman asked pointing to Kaylah, before dissolving in another fit of giggles.

  The joyful mood from the playful banter exited and she lifted her hands, her palms facing the woman. “There’s no need.”

  Turning to Jonah, her opposition became stuck in her throat as his head shook ever so slightly from side to side and his eyes told her to play along.

  Looking at the attendant, he gave her a warm smile and said, “Since you asked so politely, I will.”

  He leant towards her and she turned to tell him there was no need when his lips pressed against hers.

  It may have only been a few seconds, but her body literally melted into his with the warm press of his lips. Her senses took in the masculine scent of him mingled with an aftershave that reminded her of beaches and sunshine. Her heart somersaulted and her eyelashes fluttered.

  Needing to break the intimacy between them, she took a step back, her hand came to rest over her beating heart.

  “Sorry,” he whispered. “I meant to kiss your cheek.”

  The young woman, seemingly oblivious to their discomfort, came around the counter and tossed a handful of confetti over them. “Happy kissing and wedding day,” she cried out.

  Kaylah couldn’t help but laugh at the romantic gesture as tiny paper hearts floated down and landed in their hair, on their shoulders, and on the floor. Jonah also looked amused as he lifted a couple of hearts with his fingers. “It’s got kiss printed on it.”

  “Kiss, kiss, kiss,” she said with obvious delight, clapping her hands as she called out the word kiss. She paused. “Kaylah, don’t forget to send us pictures of your wedding day, you know, for our website.”

  “I won’t,” she assured. “Thank you.”

  “Bye,” said Jonah.

  “Bye,” she gave them a wave.

  Kaylah grabbed the box, turned and retreated out of the shop as quickly as possible. Mortification burned through her veins as she relived each second of the past few minutes. She should’ve corrected the young woman instead of allowing her to think Jonah was her fiancé. What must he be thinking? She wanted to cover her burning cheeks with her hands but couldn’t as she was holding the box of bonbonnieres.

  Jonah followed her and she was surprised to hear him chuckling.

  “That was embarrassing,” she said, determined to let him know that she didn’t “approve” of what had just happened.

  His eyes sparkled with gaiety and he didn’t seem the slightest bit embarrassed. “It was a little weird,” he said, “but funny.” His hands came up and she felt him fiddling with her hair.

  Opening his palm, he said. “You’ve got tiny cut-out hearts in your hair. I’ll finish removing them all.”

  Walking a few steps away, he threw the paper into a nearby rubbish bin, before running his fingers through his hair.

  In a few large strides, he was back by her side and took the box from her hands. “Sorry about the kiss, I swear I just meant to kiss your cheek.”

  “I know, just bad timing,” she said with a dismissive tone, even though it wasn’t. Such a small kiss shared between them, yet she’d longed to hold him close to her and see what it would be like to kiss him more. More? What? Where were her thoughts heading? She had to stop thinking about him like that. She was marrying Felix, not Jonah.

  “Let’s go back to your parents’,” she said, determined to push away these ridiculous thoughts she was having of her and Jonah. He couldn’t give her what she wanted and besides, she’d made an agreement with Felix and her pride and dignity wouldn’t let her break it.

  At least at the Randall’s, there would be other people, which meant no chance of any accidental kisses or shared feelings.

  Chapter 6

  Kaylah masked her disappointment when she discovered the Randalls would be out all afternoon, and she would be alone with Jonah after all.

  It sounded mean, but it wasn’t. Her feelings were all tangled up like knotted wool, and she wanted some thinking time away from his handsomeness. The more they spoke, the more she could see that she’d made assumptions about him. Assumptions that weren’t always right.

  It made her question the barriers that she had put between them, which made her tummy tumble, like clothes in a dryer.

  Jonah carried the box to the dining table. Moving the table runner to the side, he set up an improvised workstation. “Tell me what needs to be done,” he said.

  From the corner, she brought some smaller boxes to the table. “We need to create the bonbonnieres. The paper boxes are flat, we need to put them together, add sugared almonds to each one and then tie it closed with ribbon.”

  “I’m sure we can do this quickly. How about you create the boxes and I’ll fill them up?”

  “Sure,” she said.

  He lifted his phone, fiddled with it before the Beatles ballad “While My Guitar Gently Weeps” played.

  “That’s soulful,” she said, not wanting to confide that it was one of her favourite Beatles’ songs.

  “I’m playing a compilation of all their songs, something to listen to while we make these,” he pointed to the boxes. “Do you think it’s weird that your guests are being given gifts to attend your wedding?” He lifted his eyebrow, making her wonder if he was mocking her.

  She crossed her arms defensively. “It’s a tradition that I like. The party favour is a small gesture to thank guests for attending our special day.” Her lungs grew heavy as she reflected on her reasons for marrying Felix. Unlike most brides she knew of, she wasn’t crazy in love with him. Perhaps, the party favours were a stupid idea.

  No. She intended to have only one wedding and everything needed to be perfect. It may not be a traditional marriage between Felix and her, but to everyone else, it would look like one.

  She liked and respected Felix. Not only was he kind, he was also generous and attentive to her needs. Theirs was a coming together of mutual respect, attraction, and compromise.

  Suddenly Jonah was by her side, lifting her chin so she looked up at him. “You have a funny look in your eyes. Is everything okay?”

  Not really, she wanted to say. She wanted to confide in him that she was attracted to him which was disconcerting since she was marrying his brother in two days. She attributed her stupid fascination to stress. It had to be nerves, she told herself. Didn’t all brides feel jittery before their wedding
day?

  “Of course it is,” she snapped, before taking a step away from him.

  A look of discomfort crossed his eyes telling her that her retort was uncalled for. “I’m fine,” she said in a calmer, more gentle voice. “Let’s get to work,” she added forcing a smile.

  “Sure,” he replied.

  They sat across from each other. She formed each box and he added the sugared almonds and tied a blue ribbon at the top to hold it all together.

  “I’m assuming the bridesmaids are wearing blue,” he said. “Isn’t that what brides do? Have a colour scheme?”

  “I’m not having any bridesmaids,” she said.

  He stopped what he was doing and looked at her. “How come? What about your friend? The one you made the dress for.”

  She blew out a long breath and made a decision to trust him with the true reasons for her decision. “I don’t really have any close friends,” she confided. “I’ve always been a bit of a loner. As you know, I didn’t have a good childhood and then after being in the foster system for so many years, I came to rely on myself.”

  “There’s nothing wrong with being comfortable in your own company.” His dark brown eyes held genuine warmth and honesty.

  She chuckled. “Your brother doesn’t think so.”

  “Felix has always been charismatic. I can’t remember a time that he didn’t have people flocking around him.”

  “He has enough friends for the both of us,” she added. It had taken time for Felix to accept that she was quite comfortable being alone and didn’t need a crowd of friends around her to be happy. He finally got it but had been stunned when she’d confessed to not having any bridesmaids.

  “That’s Felix. He’s always been the popular one,” he added in a quiet voice before he returned to tying the ribbon in a bow.

  “We chose to have the groomsmen’s ties as light blue, but your boutonnières are white.”

  His eyebrow cocked skyward. “I’m assuming you mean the flowers on our lapels?”

  “Yes,” she said. “It’s a day wedding, so we chose fresh and summery colours.”