His Band of Gold

by Melissa McClone

  “What about Trent?”

  “He’s a guy.” Will grabbed a cracker from the plate. “Do you really think he wants to write his own?”

  “I guess not.”

  The hushed tone of Kelsey’s voice told him she was still concerned. She really was…sweet. “If they don’t like the vows, they can use whatever the minister brings with him. No big deal. I’ll even help.”

  “I’m making more out of this than I should. How difficult can it be?” Kelsey placed her glass on the table and picked up her notebook and pen. “Dearly Beloved, we are gathered here again and again and again and again and again.”

  “To unite Faith and—insert groom’s name here—in the state of holy matrimony.”

  Kelsey laughed. “If anyone—four previous grooms excluded—has any reason why these two should not wed…”

  He chuckled. “See, this isn’t so hard.”

  She smiled. “No, but we haven’t reached the vows yet.”

  “We have all night for that.”

  The lights flickered once. The CD stopped playing right on a beautiful high note. Another flicker of the lights, then black except for the glow from the fireplace.

  “The storm must have caused a blackout,” Will said.

  “I hope the electricity is back on soon.”

  “Out here you never know how long these things will last,” Will admitted. “Stay where you are. I’ll be right back with candles.”

  As he walked to the kitchen, Will sighed. Writing wedding vows by candlelight with a woman he wanted to kiss, but couldn’t kiss. Not exactly how he imagined spending this evening.

  But nothing seemed to ever turn out the way he expected.

  Waiting for Will to return, Kelsey settled back against the cushions on the couch and wrapped her hands around her knees. The crackle of the fire, Midas’s breathing and the sounds of the storm more than filled the living room. Sitting in near darkness was relaxing, and she relished this moment of peace.

  Starting tomorrow, it would be nonstop action until the bride and groom left for their honeymoon. Two days of putting all her planning and organizational skills to the test. Two days until Faith Starr married Trent Jeffreys. Three days until Kelsey headed home to Los Angeles.

  Time was running out. She needed to sort through and figure out her feelings for Will. The sooner, the better. She wanted to have things resolved, if only with herself, before she left.

  Will returned with two lit candles and placed them on the coffee table. The tapers provided a soft glow—a romantic glow—of light. Combined with the fire, it was the perfect environment for a kiss. Kelsey’s mouth went dry.

  No more kisses. She and Will had agreed. It was for the best. Kisses would only interfere with what she needed to do. One kiss and she’d be unable to sort through anything except more kisses.

  Will tossed another log on the fire. The muscles of his back strained his shirt. She caught herself staring and looked away. This was about staying warm, nothing else. Kelsey readied her pen. If only her mind would ready itself as easily.

  He grabbed several pillows from the couch and tossed them onto the rug in front of the fireplace. “Sit closer to the fire. I want you to stay warm.”

  Candlelight, a crackling fire, a bearskin rug. Okay, it was an Aubusson, not a bearskin rug. That didn’t change the images running through her mind. She kept seeing herself kissing Will except she was wearing Faith’s wedding gown and he was in a black tux. Man, he looked handsome in formal attire. Her dry mouth got drier.

  “Come on.”

  With her notebook clutched to her chest, Kelsey joined him on the floor. He tucked a quilted throw around her legs. The thoughtful gesture stirred something deep within her. She placed her notebook on her lap, but held on to the edges. She had to do something to keep from touching him.

  Shadows from the fire danced on his face. “Do you need another blanket?”

  “I’m fine.”

  Or at least she would be once her stomach stopped flipping cartwheels and her heart stopped hammering in her ears.

  He grabbed another throw from a chair, anyway, and set it on the floor. “If the electricity stays off, it’ll get cold. We may not have any other choice but to sleep down here.”

  Sleep here together. Not by accident, but by choice. Her pulse quickened.

  Who needed a fire or a blanket to keep warm? She didn’t. It was getting downright toasty in here.

  “What about a poem?” he asked.

  “Excuse me?”

  “We could use lines of a poem as part of the wedding vows. Something romantic, something lasting. Know any good ones?”

  Kelsey closed her eyes. She pictured herself standing next to Will at the altar, about to be married. The image was so clear, so vivid. “‘Grow old along with me! The best is yet to be…”’ The words flowed from her lips.

  “That’s beautiful.”

  “Yes.” As was the image in her mind. Perfectly wrong. She wasn’t the bride. She was a long way from being a bride. Kelsey opened her eyes and saw Will’s smiling face. She gulped. Hard.

  “I’m impressed you can recite Browning.”

  “Don’t be impressed. I wasn’t reciting anything.” Heat flooded her cheeks, and she was thankful the light was from the fireplace and candles. “I read the line in a potpourri catalog and must have memorized it for some reason.”

  “I love how you come up with this stuff.” Will laughed, the rich sound sent shivers of delight down her spine. “Always the cynic, aren’t you?”

  She didn’t want to be a cynic. Not anymore. Something was happening to her. Something Kelsey didn’t understand. Tears stung her eyes, and she blinked them away.

  “What if we rewrite some of the traditional vows?”

  What if they forgot the entire thing? She swallowed around the lump. “You mean, ‘I, Faith, take you Trent, to be my husband. To have and to hold, from this day forward…yadda, yadda, yadda.”

  “Yadda, yadda, yadda?”

  Kelsey concentrated on the vows. It had always been easy to lose herself in work. Maybe too easy, she realized. “‘For better or for worse, in sickness and in health, for richer, for poorer.”’

  “Cherish, promise, pledge, vow.”

  “Honor, respect, that sort of stuff.”

  Will grinned. “All the stuff that gives you the willies?”

  Forcing a smile, she nodded. “Do you want to start?”

  “I’d be honored.” He scooted closer to her. Too close for her own good. The space in front of the fireplace wasn’t large, but it was big enough for him to keep his distance. “I, Trent, take you, Faith, to be my wife.”

  “I could have come up with that.” Kelsey wrote down the words. “Wait a minute, I already did.”

  He chuckled. “I’m just warming up. It’s your turn now.”

  She glanced up from her notebook. “My turn?”

  “We’re in this together. I come up with a line, then you come up with one.”

  “Fair enough.” Waiting for inspiration to strike, Kelsey tapped her pen on the notebook. She glanced over at Will. “Today in front of our family and friends, I pledge my love and my fidelity.”

  “That’s a good one.”

  His compliment made her feel all tingly inside. She smiled. “Thank you.”

  “I promise to be your husband, your lover and your friend.”

  His smile, so sincere and open, made Kelsey feel as if he were making those promises to her. She wanted him to be making those promises to her. Just as she wanted to make the same promises to him. Warmth pooled low in her belly and started to spread. “I vow to be your faithful partner and to stay by your side in good times and in bad.”

  “I will honor you, respect you, cherish you.”

  The look in his eyes took her breath away. Breathe, she reminded herself, but the last thing she needed at the moment was air. She needed Will.

  He moved closer, his gaze never leaving hers. “I will put you and our family first and
never let an argument go beyond sunset.”

  Happily ever after.

  She could taste it. She could feel it. She wanted it. Never mind that it went against everything she’d believed in for most of her life. She couldn’t help herself. Not when she could suddenly picture a future with a man by her side, and that man was Will Addison. An image so appealing it made her heart sing. Something so wonderful had to be right.

  And that’s when it hit her.

  She loved Will Addison.

  Kelsey Armstrong Waters loved William Addison IV.

  Loved him with her heart and her soul. “I promise to listen to you, to laugh with you, to love you.”

  A featherlight brush of Will’s hand made her nerve endings dance. His smile softened and he rested his hand on hers. “And when our time on this world does end, our love here will continue on for eternity.”

  Eternity. Kelsey’s heart sunk to her feet. She pulled her hand away and picked up the pen that had slipped from her fingers. Yes, she loved Will, but his belief in one true love, in a love so all-consuming to last through eternity, would keep him from ever loving her.

  He’d already found his one true love.

  And it wasn’t her.

  Chapter Ten

  February 13

  So much for happily ever after.

  Only seventeen minutes until the rehearsal was scheduled to begin, and there had been no word from Faith or Trent. Were they or weren’t they going to show?

  Bill and Starr sat in the living room holding hands and quietly talking with the minister. Neither looked overly concerned.

  Hope, the matron of honor, looked more tired than anxious. At the moment she was in the kitchen feeding a snack to her children. She was everything Will had described and more. Her stylishly short hair, a cap of dark brown curls, accented her natural beauty and didn’t need lots of work. With a peaches-and-cream complexion to die for and lush dark lashes, she needed no makeup. Good thing since it seemed Hope had little time for herself with three little ones hanging all over her. She kept popping into the living room to see what was going on until a “Mommy” cry would pull her back into the kitchen.

  But Will was another story. As he stood at a window staring out at the driveway, Kelsey caught a glimpse of his profile. His jaw was clenched, his features tight. Her heart went out to him. She wanted to kiss him and hold him and make everything better. But that was the last thing she could do. She glanced at her watch again.

  Don’t let your family down, Faith.

  Don’t let me down.

  Kelsey was the first to admit she’d had doubts about Faith showing up, but Kelsey wanted to be proven wrong. This wasn’t the wedding of Starr’s dreams, it was the wedding of Kelsey’s dreams. She never thought it would happen, wasn’t quite sure how or when it happened, but it had. Somewhere between planning Faith’s wedding, Kelsey had planned her own.

  And she wasn’t going to let Faith screw it up. Forget about having cold feet, second thoughts, jitters. It was too late for that.

  Kelsey wanted to see Faith walk down the staircase wearing the wedding dress and the vintage headpiece. She wanted to hear Faith recite the wedding vows and say, “I do.” She wanted to know Faith and Trent would find eternal love and happiness in each other’s arms.

  Nothing less would do.

  “Here she comes.” Relief sounded in his voice and sent a wave of it washing over Kelsey. Thank you, she muttered.

  As Will hurried to the front door, Kelsey followed him. She glanced at her watch. Fifteen minutes to spare. At least Faith, Trent and the best man, who happened to be the groom’s brother, weren’t late. That had to be a good sign.

  The door swung open. Clad in a purple cape and matching hat, Faith entered with a flourish. She greeted Will with a hug, then turned to Kelsey. “You’re looking lovely. The mountain air agrees with you.”

  Kelsey smiled. “Thanks.”

  Faith removed her cape and hat and hung them on the coat tree. She brushed her fingers through her long, wavy locks of hair that made women everywhere envious. No hair extensions for Faith Starr. “Where are Mom and Dad?”

  “In the living room.” Will looked out the front door. “Are Trent and his brother at the inn?”

  Faith took Will’s hand. “Let’s go in the living room.”

  He exchanged a confused look with Kelsey. All she could do was shrug. Something was going on, but Faith didn’t seem overly concerned or upset. She might be an award-winning actress, but no one was that good when it came to their own lives. Maybe Trent was running late.

  “Hello, everyone.” Faith made her way to Starr and gave her a kiss on the cheek. “You look wonderful, Mom.”

  “Where’s Trent?” Starr asked.

  “He’s…” Faith wet her full lips, lips one studio executive suggested she insure with Lloyd’s of London for seven figures. “He’s not coming.”

  Kelsey never expected the groom to be a no-show. Her heart plummeted to her feet. She sank into the nearest chair she could find as a mix of emotion churned inside her. Anger, sadness, frustration, confusion. She’d always known this was a possibility, but she’d hoped, really hoped.

  Starr’s mouth gaped open. “Not c-c-coming?”

  Wrinkles of concern lined Bill’s forehead. “The wedding’s tomorrow.”

  Faith took a deep breath. “There isn’t going to be a wedding.”

  Kelsey glanced at Will, who stared at her speechless. For the first time in a long time, saying I-told-you-so would give her zero pleasure. Tears welled in her eyes.

  “What happened?” Starr asked.

  “W-we…” Faith’s voice faltered.

  “You made it.” Hope entered the living room, a dish towel in her hands. She dabbed the towel at a wet spot on the front of her heather-gray jumper. The arms and shoulders of her white turtleneck were smudged with chocolate. “Where’s Trent?”

  The tears glistening in Faith’s eyes ran down her cheeks like the spring thaw of the Sierra snowpack.

  Hope ran to her sister’s side. “What did I say?”

  Will wrapped his arms around Faith. “There isn’t going to be a wedding.”

  Hope started to cry as did Starr. Kelsey watched the exchange of support, hugs, tears with amazement. Yes, she was the outsider and didn’t mean to be unfeeling, but wasn’t anyone else interested in knowing why the wedding had been called off?

  “What happened with Trent?” Starr asked, to Kelsey’s gratitude.

  “I found out he wasn’t…we weren’t.” Faith blinked. “He wasn’t the one.”

  “Come here, sweetheart.” Bill hugged her. “It’s better to cancel before the wedding, than after. Marriage is too big a step to rush into. You don’t want to make a mistake.”

  “I don’t.” Faith stared at Starr. “I’m sorry, Mom. I know how much you wanted me to marry Trent, but I…couldn’t.”

  “It’s okay, honey.” Starr’s sincerity made Kelsey want to cry. The love between mother and daughter was so strong you could almost touch it. “The most important thing is your happiness.”

  “That’s right. There’s someone out there for you.” Hope smiled. “You’ll find ‘the one,’ get married and live happily ever after.”

  Bill smoothed Faith’s hair. “Your true love is out there. Don’t give up.”

  “Hope and I found ours early,” Will added. “You’ve always been a late bloomer. That’s why it’s taking you longer.”

  Found ours. Kelsey stared at the band of gold on Will’s finger. Her heart lodged in her throat.

  Faith nodded, but the sadness in her eyes made Kelsey feel sorry for her. Sorry for one of the most beautiful, talented and sought-after stars in Hollywood. More sorry than Kelsey felt for herself at the moment. A bad day was one thing, but this…

  She wanted to shake some sense into the Addisons. Couldn’t they see they weren’t helping? Putting pressure on Faith by telling her Mr. Right was out there waiting for her wasn’t what she needed.

  No
wonder Faith had such a problem getting to the “I do.” She had her entire family, all the Addison ancestors and their history of marrying their “one true love,” to live up to. The Addisons’ unrealistic expectations of love and marriage were the problem, not Faith. She was only trying not to disappoint her family.

  As her family continued to comfort Faith, Kelsey’s anger rose. At the Addisons, at herself. Kelsey’s parents’ lack of expectation of love and marriage had as negative an effect on her as Faith’s family’s unrealistic expectation about love and marriage did on her.

  Kelsey couldn’t take it any longer. She stood. “Excuse me.” All eyes focused on her.

  “What is it, Kelsey?” Will asked.

  The words were on the tip of her tongue. Words that needed to be said to put an end to this nonsense. But she wasn’t a family member; she wasn’t even a family friend. She was the wedding consultant. “I need to make a few phone calls about tomorrow’s…anniversary party.”

  Staring at her empty, but open suitcase, Kelsey sat on her bed with a new To Do list in front of her. She should start packing, but she still had a job to do. The anniversary party backup plan was officially in effect. The beautiful wedding she and Will had planned and worked so hard to make a reality was history.

  Disappointment rocketed through her. She’d never felt this way when Faith had canceled her other weddings, or any other bride for that matter. But this wedding had been different. Kelsey had never put so much into designing a wedding before. Her heart and soul had gone into each and every detail.

  But it went deeper than that. Much deeper.

  A knock sounded on her door. “Come in,” she said.

  Will entered. “How’s it going?”

  She didn’t want to tell him that having options—ones he said were unnecessary—were making the transition from wedding to anniversary party easy. She didn’t want to tell him how much working with him these past two weeks had meant to her. She didn’t want to tell him about the mix of emotions racing through her right now. “Okay.”

  He noticed her suitcase. “Going somewhere?”

  “I thought I might move over to the inn now that the wedding is off.”

  “Why?”