Rebecca Daniels - Night Talk

“Finally! The mountain man has arrived” Ted made his way through the small cluster of people milling about in the church foyer, waiting for the rehearsal to begin. With arms outstretched, he grabbed Jake in a bear hug. “Am I glad you’re here!”

“I’m late, I’m sorry,” Jake apologized, returning Ted’s hug. “The 405 was like a parking lot. I didn’t think traffic would be so bad this time of day.”

“Now I know you’ve been up on that mountain too long,” Ted said, pulling back. “This is L.A., have you forgotten? Traffic is bad here—period! It doesn’t matter what time it is.” He rested a hand on Jake’s shoulder and took a deep breath. “You’ve got to help me.” He ran a hand over his stomach. “Honest to God, I think there are butterflies in there. I’m not cut out for this.”

Jake couldn’t resist the urge to smile. Ted’s tall, lanky build and sun-bleached hair may have had him looking more like a California surfer than a seasoned cop, but that only proved just how deceiving looks could be. Typically restrained and self-controlled, not much ever ruffled his feathers, and even if it did, you would never know. But he definitely looked worse for wear now.

“Don’t tell me you’re nervous. A tough cop like you?”

“Felons I can handle. What I need is protection from the wedding planner.”

Jake frowned. “What’s a wedding planner?”

“Not what—who,” Ted clarified, turning slowly and gesturing to a small, well-dressed woman chatting with a group of people in the church. “Although, if you ask me, she’s more like the wedding Nazi.”

Jake turned to look at the woman. “That tiny little lady? You’re afraid of her?”

“Don’t let her size fool you,” Ted warned. “I’ve known prison guards who could take lessons from her.”

“Want me to go over there and rough her up?”

Ted made a face. “Funny, very funny.”

Jake laughed. “Well, calm down, the cavalry has arrived. I’ll protect you if…” He glanced at the petite woman and laughed again. “If Minnie Mouse over there decides to get mean.”

Ted laughed then too. He gave Jake’s shoulder a good-natured pat and his smile faded just a little. “But I admit, I do feel a whole lot better now that you’re here. I miss having you around.”

Jake’s face grew sober. Ted knew better than anyone this trip to L.A. wasn’t going to be easy for him. “Maybe I’ve got a few butterflies too.”

“No reason to,” Ted assured him. “We’re all friends here and everyone is really anxious to see you. They all miss you.”

“You think so?”

“I know so.”

“Yeah, well,” Jake said with a shrug. “There’s no way I was going to miss your wedding.”

“I was banking on that. I don’t think I could get through all this without you,” Ted confessed. He looked at the activity happening around them and shook his head. “Just look—all this fancy, foofy wedding stuff—it isn’t me. What am I doing here?”

Jake’s gaze narrowed. “You’re not having any…second thoughts, are you?”

“About marrying Cindy?” Ted shook his head. “No way. She’s…well, she’s…perfect! You’re going to love her.”

“As long as you do, that’s all that’s important.”

“Oh, I do,” Ted assured him, gesturing to the activity around them again. “Enough to put up with all this.”

Jake looked around then too and nodded. “Must be true love.”

Ted started to smile, but spotting the diminutive wedding planner headed their way, suddenly bolted to attention.

“We’re starting in five minutes, boys,” she declared as she breezed by. “Find a seat inside.”

Ted’s gaze followed as she passed, then slid to Jake. “You heard her, we better get moving.”

Jake chuckled as they turned and started into the church. “But aren’t we missing the bride? When do I get to meet this woman who has enticed you to endure all of this?”

“I don’t know, she should have been here by now….” Ted’s words trailed off when he spotted the car pulling up to the curb outside. “There she is. Come on, I want you to meet her.”

Jake followed Ted back outside and across the walk to where two women stepped out of the parked car—one brunette, one blond. In one smooth motion, Ted swept the brunette up in his arms and into his embrace.

“I take it this is the bride,” Jake said when he’d reached the tall blonde standing by the car.

“Either that, or Ted has some explaining to do,” she commented dryly.

A sudden chill had the hair on the back of his neck standing up straight. Something registered in his brain, something so…so peculiar it left him feeling a little unsettled. Turning to the woman beside him, he studied her as he extended a hand.

“I don’t believe we’ve met. I’m Jake Hayes.”

“Kristin Carey,” she mumbled, ignoring his hand and slipping a pair of sunglasses over her eyes. “So when is this thing supposed to start?”

He’d admit to having been rebuffed by a woman a time or two in his life, but never quite as resoundingly as that. “According to Minnie Mouse over there,” he said, nodding to the wedding planner, “in five minutes.”

“Minnie Mouse?”

“Nothing,” he said, shaking his head. “Just a joke.” But from the look on her face, she obviously didn’t think it a very funny one.

“Cin,” she said, pushing past him and calling to the woman in Ted’s arms. “I think the wedding planner is trying to get your attention.”

But Ted was already pulling his bride-to-be in their direction.

“Here she is, Jake,” he announced. “This is Cindy.”

“Cindy,” Jake said in a low, formal voice.

Reeling a bit from the rather rude encounter with the icy blonde, he wasn’t sure what kind of reception to expect from Cindy. Should he try to shake her hand, bow or just stand there like a dope? But Cindy didn’t seem to have any doubts. She completely surprised him with a hug and a kiss on the cheek.

“Jake, at last!” she gasped, her blue eyes bright and sparkling. “I can’t believe I’m actually talking to Jake! Ted talks about you so much I feel like we’re already friends.”

“Just promise to give me a chance to defend myself,” he said, liking her immediately. “There’s no telling what this guy’s been saying.”

“Oh, it’s all been very complimentary,” Cindy assured him. She slipped an arm through his, shooting Ted a wink. “But I’m depending on you to fill me in on all the secrets.”

“I keep telling her there are no secrets,” Ted insisted. “I’m really a dull guy.”

Jake turned to Cindy. “Well, he is right about that. He is dull—really dull. Which makes me wonder, what do you see in him anyway?”

Cindy laughed. “Anyone who knows me knows I love a challenge. Right, Kristin?”

“The bigger the better.”

There it was again, that curious tickle in the back of his brain. Did he know this woman? Is that why she’d given him the cold shoulder? Only he couldn’t imagine forgetting someone who looked like her. Ms. Kristin Carey may be a bit frosty around the edges, but the fact remained that the tall, slender blonde was probably one of the most striking women he’d ever seen. If they had ever met before, he was sure he would have remembered.

“Jake,” Cindy said then. “This is Kristin, my sister.”

Jake nodded. “Actually, we just introduced ourselves.”

“That’s great,” Cindy said, reaching a hand out to her sister. “Because as best man and maid of honor, you two are going to be spending a lot of time together the next couple of days.”

Jake felt something in the pit of his stomach go tight. “Wonderful.”

“Okay, everyone inside. Time to get started.” They all turned in unison as the wedding planner approached, clapping loudly. “There will be plenty of time for chitchat later. Everybody into the church.”