Barbara Hannay - One Winter Wedding

Walking through the shop with a bouquet of gerbera daisies in one hand and a bottle of wine in the other, her friend cast a dubious look around. “Not quite what I expected,” she said as she met Kelsey at the back of the shop.

“It needs work,” Kelsey admitted. “But I called the landlord and talked him into reducing the first month’s rent if I handle the repairs.”

“And that’s why I’m here,” her friend announced as she set the wine and flowers on the ladder. “I know you too well. You’re always willing to help your friends, but you never ask for help. Of course, I had no idea you’d need this much help, but it’s a good thing I called Trey, too.” Trey Jamison was another good friend, and she frequently hired him as a DJ for her weddings.

“You didn’t have to do that,” Kelsey told Lisa.

“Yes, I did because you wouldn’t. I knew you’d be here all alone with no one to help you and…”

Lisa turned as the bell announced another arrival, her words trailing away. Kelsey couldn’t blame her friend. She felt pretty speechless as Connor stripped off his reflective glasses and locked that green gaze on her from across the shop. “Hey.”

“Hey,” Kelsey responded, the word far more breathless than she wanted to admit. Her stomach did a slow roll at the sight of him. Just as she’d feared, he shrank the space until it encompassed only the two of them. Thoughts of lace and roses fell away, overwhelmed by Connor’s masculine presence. Her senses took in every bit of him—the faded gray T-shirt that stretched across his chest, the jeans that clung to his muscular legs, the low murmur of his voice.

Lisa’s silence didn’t last nearly as long as Kelsey’s. Her friend gripped her arm and whispered, “Who is that?”

“Connor McClane,” Kelsey murmured back.

“Connor—” Lisa’s eyebrows rose. “Emily’s ex? What is he doing here?”

Emily’s ex. Kelsey’s heart cringed at the description. “Good question,” she muttered as his promised apology and explanation rang in her mind.

Before she had the chance to ask, Trey pushed through the doorway. With his long hair caught back in a ponytail, and wearing an oversize T-shirt and raggedy cutoffs, he looked ready to work. But after gazing around, he said, “Way to go, Kelse!” Walking over, he spun her in an exuberant hug. “This place is great.”

“You think?” she asked, with a laugh at her friend’s enthusiasm.

“Well, it will be when you’re done with it, right?” He glanced at Lisa and Connor for confirmation, and only then did Kelsey realize she had yet to introduce them.

“Oh, I’m sorry. Trey, Lisa, this is Connor…”

The introduction faded away as she caught sight of the scowl on Connor’s face. Instinctively she stepped out of Trey’s embrace, which was crazy. Because Trey was just a friend and crazier still because Connor could not be jealous.

Could he?

Still, Connor was less than friendly as he crossed the shop to greet Trey. The handshake the two men exchanged seemed more like a prelude to battle than a customary introduction. “Good to meet you,” Trey said, his smile growing wide even though Kelsey thought she saw him subtly flexing his hand once Connor released it.

“Pleasure,” Connor said, the word sounding anything but.

“Okay, let’s put all this testosterone to use,” Lisa said, bringing a heated blush to Kelsey’s face. “Where do we start?”

“Yeah, give us the list,” Trey said, holding out his hand.

“You guys don’t have to do this. You can’t give up your weekend to help me out.”

“Like the time you filled in for me when I got snowed in back East and didn’t have anyone to open up the flower shop?” Lisa challenged before glancing at Trey expectantly.

Immediately he picked up where she’d left off. “Or the time you shoved chicken soup and hot tea down my throat to get my voice back in time to DJ that last wedding?”

“That’s different,” Kelsey protested.

“Why? Why are you the only one allowed to help?” Lisa demanded. “When do we get to return the favor? And hey, we’re not dummies. We all know helping you helps us.”

“Yeah, as long as she doesn’t forget her friends when she’s off coordinating weddings for the rich and famous,” Trey whispered in an aside to Lisa.

Overwhelmed by their generosity, Kelsey blinked back tears. Growing up, it had always been Kelsey and her mom—Wilson women against the world. But maybe that was only because Olivia hadn’t had friends as amazing as Lisa and Trey.

“All right! All right! I give in. And I promise to remember all the little people,” Kelsey laughed before grabbing the list as well as a handful of paint swatches, wallpaper samples and various store ads from her day planner.

“Trey, here are the paint colors and wallpaper. If you could pick them up from the hardware store along with a carpet steamer, that would be great. Lisa, here’s a picture of the drapes I want for the front window. Could you see if they have a large area rug to match? Anything to hide this carpet.”

Even as Kelsey split the shopping between her friends, she was aware of Connor’s speculative gaze focused on her. What was he thinking? she wondered. That her romantic trappings were literally that—traps for couples foolish enough to believe in love?

“Got it, boss,” Trey said, saluting her with the green and pink paint samples. “Want me to pick up lunch while I’m out?”

“No need. Sara’s catering our workday. Her word, not mine,” Lisa laughed as she grabbed Trey’s arm and led him toward the door.

“Man, I wanted pizza and beer. Sara’ll probably bring mini quiches and crudités.” As the two of them walked outside, the laughter and casual camaraderie went with them, leaving behind a tension that for Kelsey buzzed as loudly as the fluorescent light overhead.

Ready to take the offensive, she turned to Connor. What apology did he want to give? What explanation? Her lips parted on those questions, but he beat her to the punch.

“How many of your friends are working Emily’s wedding?”

Just like that, momentum changed, and Connor had her backpedaling and on the defensive. “Lisa and I went to high school together, and I’ve made friends with some of the other people I’ve worked with. But I never would have hired them if I didn’t think they’d do an awesome job.”

She lifted her chin, ready to battle for her friends the same way she had when she hired them for Emily’s wedding. But if this was a fight, Connor didn’t play fair.

Reaching up, he tucked a loose curl behind one ear. His eyes glowing with a warmth that stole the fight from her spirit and the breath from her lungs, he murmured, “It wasn’t a criticism. Only an observation. Your friends obviously care a lot about you. Just like you care about them.”

Intensity lit his emerald eyes, and Kelsey could almost believe he wanted her to look out for him, to care about him—but that had to be a delusion due to lack of oxygen from the breath he’d stolen with his nearness. “I do,” she managed to murmur.

“So why was it so hard for you to accept their help?”

She started to deny it, but when Connor’s eyebrows rose in challenge, she knew he wouldn’t believe anything but the truth. And maybe if she told him, he would understand why Emily’s wedding was so important. “Fixing things is what I do. It’s what I’m good at. I wasn’t brought up as one of the wealthy Wilsons. I was raised by my mother. We didn’t have much, but growing up I didn’t know that. All I knew was that I had an amazing mother who taught me how to cook delicious meals without spending more than a few dollars and how to clip coupons to make the most of what little money we had.”