To Me I Wed

by K. M. Jackson

  Vin was shocked. After all that, she still wanted to use his place for her ceremony. As if reading his mind, she reached into her bag and handed him a check. “Here’s your deposit to secure my date. See, don’t think I’m as petty as all that. I said I’d book your place and I stand by my word. But as to my earlier thoughts, I’m thinking you’re right, maybe we should keep things all business. I don’t think you can handle mixing the two, and right now your space is more valuable to me than anything else.”

  Vin felt his hands involuntarily twitch right along with the muscle in his jaw. In that moment he didn’t know what he was itching to do. Shake her or pull her in to him and work her body until she was a puddle at his feet. “Trust and believe me, Lily, my space is not the most valuable asset I have.”

  She laughed. “That may be true, but right now it’s all I’m interested in. I’ll have my assistant e-mail you to set up our next appointment in order to firm up more details.”

  And with that she was gone. Just as the thunder cracked again and the sky opened up.

  Chapter 10

  Shit! Lily banged on the old Buick’s steering wheel when the car just coughed and sputtered but once again refused to turn over and start. Why now, after her big speech and grand exit from Vin and his restaurant? And why when it was pouring cats, dogs, and maybe an assorted pig or goat for good measure? Lily tried the ignition once again to no avail. She was screwed. She reached for her cell and considered calling for a tow, but the expense would probably be more than the car was worth. Maybe her mom was right and it was time to give the old thing up.

  The thought of it brought a wave of sadness down on Lily. She didn’t get much from her dad, but somehow, even though he wasn’t living at home with them anymore, she felt a strange connection to him through her car. Her car felt like home to her. It would be hard to give up. She considered calling her dad and asking him to come and give her a jump. She knew he would but also knew he’d probably agree with her mother and say it was time to let the car go. He had no problem with letting old things go. For her it wasn’t so easy.

  She quickly dialed her sister Sylvie. She hated to bother Sylvie, pregnant as she was, but she was not too far, and when the rain lessened she could come pick Lily up or have her husband, George, do it. George was always fiddling with cars anyway. He’d help her out. Sylvie’s phone went straight to voice mail, so Lily left a message and settled in to wait. Of all the places and times to break down. Lily turned to look back at the restaurant and cursed when she saw Vin running her way with an umbrella in hand. The rain was pounding down in sideways sheet so even with the umbrella his T-shirt was getting wet and quickly sticking to his broad chest in a ridiculously delicious way. Lily watched for about three seconds too long as he tapped on the car’s window. With a huff Lily reached over to open the passenger door and let him inside.

  Vin opened the door but didn’t get in, bringing with him a rush of wind and rain.

  “Hey, what are you doing out here?” she yelled.

  “That is what I’m here to ask you. The car won’t start?”

  She shot him a look. “Obviously.”

  He opened his mouth to say something, but she saw the words die in the back of his mind. No matter, she heard the unspoken words anyway without his even uttering them: “But I thought you didn’t need anybody.” Funny how fast things can come around to bite you in the ass. Just then lightning flashed and she jumped. He looked at her and slammed the passenger door shut, then ran around to her side of the car, pulling her door open and reaching out his hand. “Come on back in. We’ll call it a truce while you wait out this storm.”

  Lily shook her head. “I’m fine right here. I called for someone to pick me up. It should be here soon.” She shivered against the sudden cold.

  He took her hand and pulled her up and out toward him. “So you’ll wait inside with a cup of tea or coffee. Don’t be so stubborn.”

  Lily let out a breath, reaching back for her bag before racing back inside with Vin.

  * * *

  “Are you always so forceful?” she asked as he pushed the dark cup of coffee toward her.

  He had come in and gone up to his apartment area, where he’d changed into casual, low-slung sweatpants and a loose cotton tee. Lily decided as he shrugged that it didn’t matter what the man was wearing, if anything at all. He was totally hot.

  He took a sip from his cup after adding a liberal amount of sugar and cream and then answered her. “I normally don’t have to be.”

  Lily snorted. “That figures.”

  Vin raised a brow as he came around the bar to sit on the stool next to her. “What figures?”

  She thought about how she should answer and then decided, what the hell. She had nothing to lose with Vin, since she wasn’t looking for anything to gain. “Well, look at you. You’re built like a muscle truck.” When he frowned she added, “In the best of ways, believe me. So I’d think that men would give you a wide-enough berth and probably respect on sight, and women, well, I’m sure most drop panties without much effort on your part.”

  To that Vin voiced an almost incoherent snort into his next sip of coffee. “Yeah, most.”

  Lily couldn’t help but laugh. “And that’s what I like about you and about this.” She did a back and forth with her hands between the two of them. “I get that about you, and I don’t blame you or think it’s in any way bad. I admire it, just like I admire the space you have here. I’m also highly attracted to it.” She watched as he pulled up straighter and leaned in a little closer to her. Lily got up, taking her coffee with her, and eased toward the large wall of windows at the back of the restaurant, giving herself some much needed space. The rain was still pounding and it made it difficult to see past the deck and beyond to the Atlantic. But she focused first on the rain, then farther out to the faded wood of the deck, then farther to the deserted beach, and finally farther into the void of the ocean. It was peaceful, and she wondered if Vin knew how lucky he was to have this spot. For a moment, an idea flashed before her. Maybe she could propose this spot to the Carlyles for the graduation party. Cancelling the other location would be a hassle but it could be done, and a beach party complete with party bus transport could be just the thing. She was about to run it by Vin when she felt him come up behind her, and a part of her expected him to reach around her waist and pull her in toward him. But he didn’t. Instead he stood by her side. “It’s amazing, isn’t it?”

  Lily nodded. “It really is. Hey, I was just thinking—how would you feel about hosting another party here? Say two hundred fifty for a graduation beach party? If I can sell the concept, I have a client who will pay top dollar for your premium night rate.” Vin looked at her skeptically. She knew he was weighing the cost of dealing with her against the money. She also knew the money would win out. He nodded.

  “Sure, if you can swing it. I’m new so I need all the business I can get.”

  Lily grinned, pleased with the idea and excited to get to work on the new concept. “That’s great. Thanks so much. I have to come up with concept boards and see if I can sell my client on it, but I’ll work fast and get back to you right away. It’s just that you’re so close to the city, yet it’s like we’re on another planet. I’m sure I can make this work.”

  They were silent for a few long moments before she turned and looked at his profile. His high forehead and strong, sloping nose. Those lips were her major kryptonite. “Is this why you stayed here? I know you grew up on the island. Most who stay, and never find work elsewhere, have a pretty compelling reason. I mean, even before you got this spot you could have worked anywhere. Your food is delicious. Your talent is undeniable.”

  Seeming to not hear the compliment, Vin stared out into the void of the sea a moment longer before turning her way, his eyes dark, full and wide with a sense of something she couldn’t quite put her finger on. Part of it looked like loss, but then she could swear it was longing. He shrugged. “I guess for the surf. The water is my true lo
ve. You can’t get that in the city also I like a little breathing room. We don’t get all that much out here but I enjoy what little we’ve got.” Changing subjects he flipped on a dime. “Besides, I thought you were talking about why we get along so well. You left me hanging back there.”

  Lily shook her head. Deflection received. “Okay, I got you.” She thought a moment, then put down her coffee and folded her arms as she looked him in the eyes. “I like that we can kick it and be honest. I want to work with you because I see talent in you and your space is great. Also, I checked you out and you’re on the rise for sure. I want in on that. I’m like you, just getting in on the rising part of my business and I need to keep that momentum going. I think business wise we could be good for each other. As for the other part, if you’re not seriously attached to anyone, I wouldn’t mind kicking it, no strings attached, but if you’re going to go all judgmental on me and my choices, that I can’t deal with.”

  It was Vin’s turn to fold his arms as he stared at her. She watched as the muscles in his forearms became like tight cord and his chest rose and fell. She couldn’t deny how sexy he was and she also couldn’t deny for all her outward confidence and bravado she couldn’t deny what she hoped his answer to her would be. “But answer me this,” Vin started. “What if I want something more than just to kick it?”

  Lily raised her eyes and looked at him harder. Trying her best to read him like a master poker player. Could he really be serious? His gaze never wavered. The only sign she detected was a slight flaring of his nostrils. “Do you? Want to do more than kick it?” she asked.

  He looked at her a little longer, then blinked. She had him. “No,” he said. Giving it to her straight. His voice low but strong and steady. “But don’t take that no as any form of a lack of interest in you. As you can plainly see, I’m highly interested. I just don’t want either of us to go into this, business or personal, playing any games.”

  Lily let out a slow breath. She didn’t know if it was from relief or sadness. To placate herself in the moment her mind decided it was the former though her heart said the latter. She smiled just as the rain began to let up. “Good. Then I think this has truly not been a wasted morning.”

  “No, it definitely hasn’t,” Vin said as he stepped forward and wrapped an arm around her waist. “Now, how would you like to finish out the afternoon?”

  Lily grinned as she pushed all niggling thoughts aside, telling herself she was about to have the best of both worlds. His lips were all she wanted as she looked at him greedily, relishing the hard feel of him, happily running her hands along his strong back, Lily let her hands roam to his bottom and she pulled him closer into her center. They were so deep into each other that neither heard the restaurant door open. At the sound of Sylvie’s voice, they jumped apart like teenagers caught making out in a basement. Sylvie had her hand over her amply curved belly, her eyes held quite a bit of mirth as she cleared her throat. “Well, your message said you needed a ride, but it looks to me like you’ve got that firmly covered. Thanks for wasting my time, sis.”

  Chapter 11

  Lily had never been so embarrassed. No strike that. She had, but that was a different type of embarrassment than losing your lunch in front of the entire third-grade class after being dared to eat an entire sleeve of Oreos faster than Jimmy Resetti. On second thought, maybe it wasn’t. Sylvie had arrived to pick up Lily from the restaurant with George, and as it turned out it was all for nothing because the car started like a champ—well, that is, if the champ was an eighty-year-old with emphysema, but still it started.

  Not wanting to form an awkward foursome, and despite her pregnant sister saying she could eat, an embarrassed Lily turned down Vin’s offer for drinks and food for the group and instead sent her sister and brother-in-law on their way, successfully dodging Sylvie’s questioning eyes and long looks with excuses about a late appointment in the city. Sylvie was only mildly placated by the fact that Vin wouldn’t let them leave without a couple of plates to go. Explaining to Lily that no one ever left his restaurant hungry. The man was a charmer and Sylvie was in the bag taste testing and half in love with him before they’d pulled out of their parking space. But now here she was, less than a week later, and she was facing her sister again. This time she had backup.

  * * *

  Lily went to the bridal shop for a quick try-on. There was a dress that she just couldn’t get out of her mind. It was silly, really, that she’d been thinking about it for so long with no plans for a wedding or potential groom, even back when Audrey was getting married. So Lily figured, why not try it? She’d invited her best friend, Bobbi, to be her critical eye and tell her if she was crazy to even think she could pull off the open-back, sexy-style dress. Normally she didn’t shy away from the sexier cuts, but this dress, while being sexy, also had a certain amount of sweetness and a delicateness to it that put Lily on the fence.

  Lily felt weird not having her sisters with her. But with all the mixed feelings about her having the ceremony—great, now saying wedding even sounded odd in her own ears—Vin was rubbing off on her; she didn’t want to invite further trouble and doubt in these early planning stages.

  She was holding up a pretty blush-colored bridesmaid dress when in walked Sylvie along with Audrey. “Now, you know that color washes me out, so just put it back. Also, would a sleeved dress be the death of you? And don’t forget about you know who,” she said pointing toward her belly.

  Lily shook her head and rolled her eyes before she turned to Bobbi. “Was this you?”

  Bobbi held up her hands. “Don’t even look in my direction.”

  “Oh, stop placing blame, girl,” Mama Dee said, marching into the shop behind Sylvie, along with Sophie and Peggy. “Did you really think you could make an appointment to try on a wedding dress in this town and I wouldn’t hear about it?”

  Lily growled and walked forward to kiss her grandmother on the cheek. “I should have known.”

  Mama Dee gave her a sharp eye. “Yes, you should have. You know I’ve got connections.”

  “Yeah, you and the mafia.”

  Mama Dee took a seat in the grand chair and looked up at Lily smugly. “As long as you all remember it. I see all.”

  Suddenly the room grew hushed, and it was as if all the girls were thinking for a moment to some such indiscretion they needed to cover their tracks on. The bell over the shop door jingled, breaking the spell, and in walked Lily’s mom, shocking Lily all the more. Lily looked toward Mama Dee, who gave her a smug smile in return for her questioning look. She didn’t expect the overwhelming flood of emotion at seeing her mother in this setting, but still it came. She’d been feeling so guilty about their last encounter and how it all ended. She should have been stronger, been there for her mother, who though she’d always seemed so stoic had to be reeling from her father’s news.

  “No need to look so shocked, dear,” Lily’s mom said. “I may not fully get it, but you’re my daughter and I’m here to support you whether you’re marrying yourself or a goat.”

  Lily frowned. “Thanks, Ma. I’m sure there’s a compliment in there somewhere.”

  Her mother looked her in the eyes. “There’s an ‘I love you’ in there too if you care to look for it. Now come on, let’s see about getting you a dress.”

  She moved in and hugged her mother close, whispering in her ear, “I’m sorry. Are you okay?”

  Her mother pulled back and tucked a finger under Lily’s chin. “I’m just fine, honey. Don’t you worry about me. This is your day. Now let’s get to shopping.”

  Lily didn’t understand it but was thankful to have her family with her. She decided to save the special dress she’d been eyeing for last and instead tortured her sisters for a while by having them try on some particularly hideous bridesmaid dresses. Threatening Sophie by seriously considering a horrible puce-colored number. The look on her face when she tried on the stacked heels and tried to walk in them was priceless. In the end Lily let them know that she had
a vision to see them all in shades of ivory with her and they could choose whatever they wanted to wear that suited them best—dress pants, whatever. To this news Violet whooped it up over Face Time and let Lily know she was going to rock it.

  Finally it was time for Lily to put on the dress she’d been dreaming of. She knew she would love it but didn’t expect to love it as much as she did through her family’s eyes. The fine bias-cut fabric skimmed over her body just so and draped in all the right places, accentuating the curves of her hip. The halter exposed her shoulders, which she liked to show off. The back was, yes, low but not so much that it was indecent, and at the small of her back there were organza flowers that mimicked the one at her neck. The dress was the perfect amount of understated elegance. That one look in her mother’s and grandmother’s shining eyes made Lily know she had to have it. “Now, don’t you two get to crying. It’s just a silly dress,” Lily said.

  “On someone else it may be. But on you, it’s so much more,” her mother said. “Baby, you were made for that dress.”

  Lily looked to her sisters, and even Sophie was quiet. Hell, the dress was worth it just for that. She looked to Sylvie, who nodded, then Peggy, who gave her a thumbs-up as she turned her phone around and saw Violet’s smiling face. “Woman, you’d better get that dress and then invite every ex you ever had to the ceremony. They’ll be knocking one another over trying to get to you.”

  Lily shook her head. “Thanks, Vi, but this is not about getting back at any exes.”

  “Then where’s the fun in it?” Violet yelled from the screen. “You can’t waste a day looking that good on just us.”

  Lily glanced over at Mama Dee, who was looking at her with an appreciative but slightly wistful gaze. “Trust me, any day with you all won’t be wasted.” She smiled. “Now you get off the phone. I’ll put some things on hold for you to try when you get home from school.”