Christine's cell phone rang, interrupting the moment between them. She dug into her purse for the unit, checked the caller ID, and grimaced. "It's Craig. He's been trying to get a hold of me for the past two days to talk about something regarding my party next week. I should take his call."
She answered the phone, and Ben listened as she discussed a few last party details with Craig. As much as he despised the man for various reasons, Ben was beginning to think that he was fairly harmless-especially in comparison to Jason, whose bitter antics were starting to get more personal and public. Craig definitely liked Christine and had no qualms about making his attraction known, and even though those intimate feelings weren't reciprocated, there was no crime in a man being interested in a woman.
Even if Ben didn't like it one bit.
AFTER the crazy, stressful week Christine'd had, Ben was glad that she'd agreed to accompany him to Joel and Lora's wedding-a small, casual affair equivalent to a warm, family gathering that everyone felt a part of. The Saturday outing provided them both with the much-needed opportunity to get out of the house, and gave Christine a welcome distraction from her mother's silent treatment after their lunch a few days ago, as well as the fact that Jason was out on bail and her father had received yet another threat to drop out of the upcoming election.
It was a perfect cool and sunny day for an afternoon, outdoor wedding. The guests sat on padded folding chairs as Joel and Lora stood beneath an archway decorated with bright, colorful flowers and exchanged their vows in front of family and friends. Their expressions were full of the kind of love and adoration a person couldn't help but envy, and as Ben cast a quick glance at Christine sitting beside him, he could see that she was just as caught up in the ceremony, and the genuine emotion between the couple, as most of the women there were.
Joel and Lora were flanked by Lora's best friend, Sydney, who was standing in as the bridesmaid, and Lora's brother, Zach, as the best man. Considering everything that Zach Marshall had been through-in the Iraq War and then dealing with the aftermath by burying his painful past with addictions to gambling and alcohol that nearly ruined his life-he finally looked clean and sober. Zach had spent a good amount of time in rehab and was still working through his personal demons, but thanks to Joel and Lora's unwavering support, as well as becoming a security agent at ESS, which offered him a strong comradery with his ex-Marine buddies, the man was finally making a stable life for himself. And because of that. Ben was very happy for Zach.
As the minister read an intimate poem to the guests that spoke about love and friendship and the kind of eternal promises made between a husband and wife, Ben felt Christine's hand slide into his, gentle and warm. Palm to palm, their fingers intertwined, and something within Ben filled with a longing so strong, it nearly overwhelmed him. It amazed him that this woman, who was no doubt used to elaborate weddings, was so touched by such a simple ceremony.
Then the minister introduced Lora and Joel as a married couple, and the moment between Ben and Christine dissipated as they stood up with the rest of the guests and cheered as Joel kissed his blushing bride with enthusiasm.
A casual reception followed in the backyard, with a buffet of food, upbeat music for dancing, and an abundance of babies and toddlers courtesy of all the Wilde family members that had gotten married over the past few years. With his hand resting on the base of Christine's spine, he led her toward where Joel and Lora were standing off to the side, mingling with guests.
As soon as Ben reached Joel, he shook the other man's hand and gave him a firm slap on the back. "Congratulations, Wilde Man," he said, then turned his attention to Lora, who was wearing a flowing white wedding dress and a very happy smile. "You look absolutely beautiful." He kissed her on the cheek. "I'm glad to see that Joel found someone who can keep him in line."
"All that military training has come in handy." Lora's eyes sparkled with female humor as she hooked her arm through her groom's. "He knows how to take orders very well."
Joel rolled his eyes, silently conceding to his wife's comment. Ben laughed, then went on to introduce the woman by his side. "I'd like you both to meet Christy."
Lora's eyes widened in delight. "Oh, you brought a date!"
She seemed so excited, mainly because Lora had spent the past year trying to find a suitable woman for him. He almost hated to burst her bubble. "Actually, she's a current client of ESS." Ben explained her relation to Nathan Delacroix, which garnered Christine a round of promises from the newly married couple to vote for the man.
"It's a pleasure to meet both of you," Christine said sincerely. "It was a beautiful ceremony."
"Thank you." Lora beamed. "I hope you two plan to stay a while and enjoy the reception."
"Absolutely," Ben replied. "We were just heading over to the buffet for something to eat."
A young boy ran by them, but before he could pass Joel, the other man reached out and caught him up in his arms. Ben recognized the cute, energetic four-year-old as Cody, Steve Wilde's son.
"Whoa, partner!" Joel exclaimed in an animated voice. "Where do you think you're going at the speed of light?"
Cody squirmed in his embrace and pointed to a table near the buffet. "I wanna see the cake!"
Joel glanced in that direction. The confection the boy was interested in was a double-tiered chocolate-frosted cake that looked rich and delicious. "Just keep your fingers out of it, okay?"
The boy grinned impishly. " 'Kay!" As soon as Joel set him back down, Cody took off once again, with another one of Joel's little relatives following behind to see the cake, too.
Joel chuckled and shook his head. "Talk about double trouble."
"And you and your two brothers weren't triple trouble at that age?" Ben asked, certain the Wilde siblings had been an equal handful. "Besides. I'm sure you and Lora will be adding to the brood in a year or so."
"I'm looking forward to it," Lora chimed in. "Maybe a little girl who'll wrap Joel around her finger."
A half-grin curved Joel's lips as he met Lora's gaze. "Oh, man, you know I won't stand a chance against that."
She gently touched his cheek, the abundance of love between them so evident. "That's what I'm counting on."
The photographer came up to the new couple and pulled Joel and Lora away for some wedding photos with Joel's parents. Ben guided Christine toward the patio area where the food was located, and introduced her to a few other people on the way. They said a quick hello to Scott and Ashley, whom Christine had met at the charity event the previous weekend, and Adrian-one of Joel's cousins-and his wife, Chayse, stopped to chat with them, too.
After loading their plates with finger sandwiches, potato salad, fruit, and a few other appetizers, then picking up drinks at the bar, they made their way back to a table where Ben's buddies and coworkers, Kevin, Jon, and Zach, were sitting with their own meals. Christine sat down next to Kevin, the most familiar face of the group, and Ben took the chair next to her.
After introducing her to Jon and Zach, Kevin leaned toward her and said with a charming smile, "I think it's only fair that I should warn you that I wanted you here today so I could steal you away from Ben."
Christine suppressed a grin, but couldn't disguise the amusement dancing in her eyes. "A man with ulterior motives, huh?"
"You bet. Especially when it comes to beautiful women." Kevin winked at her.
"Be careful," Jon piped in from across the table. "Kevin's a player."
The other man snorted in reply. "Oh, and you're not?"
"I'm just not so obvious about it." Jon said with a smug look, and took a big bite of his potato salad.
Kevin dismissed his comment with a wave of his hand. "Yeah, whatever, Jon Boy."
Zach, the quiet one of the group, finally spoke up. "Geez, do you guys ever quit?"
"No." Kevin and Jon answered at the same time.
Christine laughed, then took a sip of her champagne. "You all sound like you could be brothers. Argumentative and very competitive."
<
br /> "We're as close to being brothers as you can get," Ben said, knowing everyone else at the table felt the same exact way.
"Hey, Zach," Ben said, garnering the other man's attention. "How's things going for you at ESS?" He'd only been with the firm for a few months and hadn't been assigned any outside jobs yet. They all wanted to be sure that Zach would be ready, mentally and emotionally, to tackle the stress and pressures of an actual security job.
Zach finished taking a drink of his soda-his choice of beverage since alcohol was off-limits for him-then shrugged. "I'm becoming quite the computer geek," he said, a slight bit of humor in his tone as he referred to his current office position of using the computer and Internet to research specific information on some of their cases. "By the way, that reminds me. Kevin gave me that return address on the box that was delivered to Christine's office earlier this week, and it led to a dead end."
Ben noticed that Zach's comment had piqued Christine's curiosity, as well. "What do you mean?"
"The address led to one of those postal stores where you can rent a postbox for a tee." Finished eating, Zach pushed his empty plate aside. "Except whoever sent the package just used the postal store as a bogus return address, since the box number he listed didn't even exist."
Ben wasn't surprised that the person had covered their tracks. "Thanks for checking it out. We have a pretty good idea who sent the snakes. It would have just been nice to get some solid evidence so we could press charges against the guy."
For the next half an hour, the conversation turned to more inconsequential topics that led to either Kevin and Jon ribbing one another, or Kevin flirting with Christine-no doubt to annoy Ben. There was a whole lot of laughter at their table, and once the DJ started spinning fun, upbeat tunes and encouraged guests to get up and dance, Kevin didn't hesitate to do so.
He stood up and grinned at Christine as Pink's "Get This Party Started" blasted from the speakers. "Since all the women here today are either married, engaged, or in a serious relationship, and you're not," he added, just to annoy Ben, "how about you and I go and dance?"
Kevin held his hand out to Christine, and she let him pull her up from her chair. "I'd love to dance," she said, and let him lead her toward the far end of the patio that had been designated as the dance floor.
Ben watched the two of them go, his gaze drawn to Christine's slender backside and the way her long-sleeved knit dress clung to all her soft curves. The dress was simple in design, but it was the jewel-toned purple hue of the material that made her look so vibrant, and those high heels that made her legs look so damned long and sexy.
"Are you going to let him make a move on your date like that?" Jon asked, clearly hoping for a tussle between the two men.
"Christy is free to dance with whoever she'd like."
Christy. Now the name slipped from his lips much too easily. Much too intimately. And that so was not a good thing.
"Then why are you glaring at Kevin?" Zach asked.
Ben didn't bother denying the truth. "Because he's deliberately provoking me and he knows it."
Jon chuckled much too knowingly. "You wouldn't feel provoked if you didn't have a thing for her, now would you?"
Ben transferred his dark scowl to Jon. "Shut up, already, will ya?"
"Sure thing, Benjamin." Grinning, and obviously done tormenting him, Jon stood up. "I think I'll go and put in a request with the DJ. 'Great Balls of Fire' ought to do it."
It was one of those songs they'd sang together in the military during down time when they were trying to find things to amuse themselves, and Ben knew it would bring back a lot of fun memories for all of them.
"While you're there, make a request for me, too," Ben said. "Garth Brooks's 'Friends in Low Places.'"
Jon laughed. "You got it."
Ben nursed the last of his beer and returned his attention back to Christine, who was having a great time out on the dance floor with Kevin, and a lot of the other guests. After putting in a few song requests, Jon joined the party revelers and did his best to try to steal Christine from Kevin so he'd have a dance partner, too.
He couldn't help but notice how well she fit in with everyone. She was classy, yet so approachable. So likeable and accepting. Compared to her mother, a person would never have known that Christine came from a very prominent, wealthy family.
Nearly a dozen songs later, and after being dipped, twirled, and generally worn out from the energetic dances, Christine returned to the table looking happy and relaxed. She sat down next to him, her face flushed as she tried to catch her breath.
She swiped away a damp strand of hair clinging to her cheek, her eyes a bright, sparkling shade of blue. "Those two sure know how to wear a girl out."
Since the two of them were currently alone at the table, Ben decided to stake his claim where he could. He placed a hand on her bare knee beneath the table, and leaned in close. "Lucky for me, I know how to wear you out in the way that matters most."
"Mmmm." She touched her fingers beneath his chin, her gaze brimming with desire and heat-all for him. "That you do. And you don't have to worry, I have plenty of energy left for later."
"Christine?"
Both Ben and Christine turned at the sound of a female voice calling her name. Ben instantly recognized Mia Wilde with her unique gray-silver eyes, who was holding a bundled-up baby in her arms as she approached.
"You're Christine Delacroix, the one who owns The Big Event, right?" she asked, smiling warmly as she extended her hand toward Christine. "I'm Mia Wilde."
"Oh!" Christine's eyes widened with genuine delight as she shook the other woman's hand. "After talking on the phone so many times, it's a pleasure to finally meet you in person. This gives me the opportunity to thank you face-to-face for your donation to the Children's AIDS Foundation auction. And call me Christy, please."
"I was happy to be a part of the charity auction," Mia said as she shifted the squirming baby in her arms. "The high bidder for the stained glass design contacted me this week, so I'll be starting their design pretty soon."
"That's wonderful." Christine smiled at the little dark-haired baby peeking from the pink blanket she was wrapped up in. "And who is that?"
Mia beamed like the proud new mother she was. "This is my three-month-old daughter, Sophie, the latest addition to the ever-growing Wilde family."
"She's beautiful," Christine said softly. "Do you mind if I hold her?"
"Are you kidding me?" Mia laughed and happily handed over the little girl. "I'd love the break. She's like carrying around a thirteen-pound weight."
Christine gazed down at the cherubic face staring back up at her. "She's a very lucky girl to be surrounded by so much family."
"Yes, though having a very large family can be a curse, too," Mia said wryly, and Ben knew she was referring to her very overprotective brothers and cousins. "But mostly it is a blessing."
"Hey, I've been looking for you." Cameron, Mia's husband, came up behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist. "The DJ is playing our song."
Mia tipped her head and listened to the tune, then frowned at Cameron. "This isn't our song. I don't even think we have a song."
"Then consider this one it." He gave her an irresistible grin. "It's a slow song, someone else is holding the baby, and I want to dance with my wife."
Christine waved her free hand at the couple. "Go right ahead. I'll watch Sophie."
"Are you sure?" Mia asked, though it was clear to see that she'd welcome the opportunity to enjoy a slow dance with her husband.
"I'm absolutely sure," Christine said, encouraging her to go. "I love babies and she's very sweet."
"Come on, let's go before she realizes that Sophie is just fooling her." Cameron grabbed Mia's hand and pulled her toward the patio.
"She is a good baby," Mia said from over her shoulder as her husband dragged her away.
Once the couple was gone, Christine pulled the blanket a bit looser to see more of the baby. Sophie was wearing a fr
illy pink dress for the occasion of seeing her uncle Joel get married, and her little arms flailed wildly as they were freed from the covers. Christine laughed and pressed her pinky into the baby's palm, and Sophie latched on to the finger and cooed.
An affectionate smile curved Christine's lips as she glanced up at him. "Would you like to hold her?"
Ben held up both of his hands, not sure how to handle such a little wriggling thing like Sophie. "No, it's okay. You're doing a great job with her."
Christine went back to talking to the baby in a low, gentle tone, and the infant girl stared up at her in mesmerized awe. There was something about seeing Christine like this-the tender look on her face, the maternal, nurturing instincts in play-that struck a chord deep inside of Ben.
Marriage. Family. Babies. A sense of complete and utter contentment. He'd almost had that once with Kim. They'd talked about all those things, along with envisioning a future that had seemed so hopeful and promising, and filled with all the things that had been missing from his own life for so long.
Those bright, aspiring dreams had died with Kim. And so had a big part of him. His heart and emotions hadn't been the same since that fateful day in Iraq when he'd held his dying fiancée in his arms.
But as he watched Christine bond with the tiny baby in her arms, he knew that someday, when the right person came along, this woman would make some lucky guy a wonderful wife and mother.
Unfortunately, that man wouldn't be him.
Chapter Fourteen
HOURS later, Ben followed Christine into her house and switched on the light in the living room. She turned around to face him, her high-heeled shoes dangling from her fingertips, and a soft, contented smile on her lips.
"I really had a nice time today… and tonight," she added, since the reception and celebration had lasted until nearly ten.
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