“In the car,” Kate said quickly.
Why that should make the bride cry, Joe had no idea, but she burst into tears, and as he stood, dumbfounded, he watched Kate, Lisa, and little sister Cassidy with a C race upstairs.
“Get used to it,” one man said to Joe. “This is the family you’re marrying into.”
“Not me,” Joe said quickly.
The man squinted at him. “You’re not Kiefer? Who are you, then?”
“Joe.” At the man’s blank look, Joe couldn’t help but laugh. “I’m the guy who was sitting next to Kate when the plane was diverted to Dallas.”
The man looked confused. “Huh?”
Joe grinned and took a swig of beer. It was going to be an interesting day. “Is there anything to eat?” he asked.
“Are you serious? J. J. made his ribs. You like ribs?”
“Love ’em,” Joe said, and followed the man to the back of the house where he supposed he would find J. J. and his ribs.
When Kate pulled the peach monstrosity from the bag, Lisa sank onto Cassidy’s bed with a crushed expression. “It’s
“No, no, not ruined,” Kate said quickly. “Right, Cassidy? We can steam out these wrinkles, and the sash, well… maybe I just go without the sash.”
“The sash makes the dress,” Lisa said morosely.
“Okay. It’s all okay, Lisa,” Kate said, thinking frantically.
“What’s
So did Kate. There was a yellowish, brownish stain that looked a little like mustard spreading across several inches of the hem. How had
“Oh my god!” Lisa cried.
“No one is going to see that!” Kate said, a little loudly. “And besides, everyone is going to be looking at you, anyway. It’s
Lisa sniffed. She examined the wrinkled dress. One half was less poufy than the other. Lisa forced a smile. “At least
“He’s gorgeous,” Cassidy agreed. “Is he your boyfriend?”
“No!” Kate said instantly, and then flushed. As if that wasn’t bad enough, she smiled nervously. She couldn’t help it.
“What’s that smile?” Lisa asked, poking her.
“No smile,” Kate said, still smiling. “This is not a smile.”
Lisa suddenly gasped and sank down on the bed. “Ohmigod, did you guys
“Lisa!” Kate cried and looked at her kid sister.
“Well, did you?” Cassidy demanded. “I mean, he’s so cute, and you haven’t had a boyfriend in forever.”
“That,” she said, pointing at Cassidy, “that is
“You sure haven’t had a
“Yeah,” Kate said, her smile fading. “But he’s moving to Seattle.”
“No way!” Cassidy exclaimed.
“That’s great!” Lisa said. “You can get a job here! It would be so great if you came back! We miss you so much!”
“I can’t come back, Lisa. I have always wanted to be in publishing, and I have a great job.”
“Joe and Kiefer could be friends,” Lisa continued.
“They haven’t even met,” Kate pointed out.
“But they will!” Lisa said excitedly. “I just want you to be as happy as I am, Katie-Kate. I want you to know what I feel for Kief.”
Kate snorted. “Do you know how ridiculous you sound right now? Just
“You
“Not really,” Lisa said with a flick of her wrist, as if yesterday had never happened. “I never would have done it because I love Kiefer too much. And I’m going to whip him into shape.”
Kate and Cassidy laughed outright.
“Seriously,” Lisa said, ignoring their laughter, “I know what a great guy Kiefer is. And it’s like I told you: great guys come around once in a lifetime.” She looked meaningfully at Kate.
That’s what Kate was afraid of.
She was relieved when her mother burst into the room and had a fit over her dress. “Well, I have my work cut out for me this afternoon, don’t I?” she sighed as she examined the sash. “In the meantime, you girls are going to be late to the hairdresser! Lori is outside waiting for you.”
“What about Joe?” Kate asked as Cassidy and Lisa gathered their purses.
“Don’t worry about him,” her mother said as she busily inspected the gown. “He’s out back with your father and your Uncle Glen looking at rototillers.”
Kate gasped. “Mom,
“He’ll be fine! He looked really interested,” her mother insisted, and began to herd them out the door. “Right now, you have bigger things to worry about. If we don’t get Lisa married today, we may never have another opportunity.”
“Hey!” Lisa protested, but Kate’s mother had already pushed her out the door.
Chapter 10
Thanks to the generous number of bathrooms and irons in the Preston house, Joe was able to clean up and shake out a suit to wear to the wedding. He hadn’t seen Kate all day, but her mother would periodically pop in to give updates. “The girls are getting their hair done,” she would say. “The girls are at the nail salon.”
Seemed to Joe they spent more time on the hair and makeup and whatever else it was they were doing than the wedding itself. He didn’t mind, though. He was suitably entertained by the Preston men—father, brother, cousins, and friends. First, there was the inspection of a broken rototiller. Next was a rousing debate about the possibilities of the Seattle Seahawks going All The Way next year. Joe had been in Seattle enough to be able to toss in a few thoughts about the NFL and the Seahawks, and as a result, was hailed as “a guy’s guy.”
Joe really liked these men. They were the sort of guys he would hang out with, go to games with, get a beer with. It would be something he could look forward to, if it weren’t for one small problem: Kate would be leaving soon.
The situation with Kate was difficult to think about on such a festive day. They’d shared a really weird and fabulous few days, but how could it ever be anything more than something to regale his friends with in the years to come? It wasn’t as if either of them would give up a job based on one long weekend. Joe thought he understood how these things went—you meet, you hook up, you go on with life. What other choice did he have? He’d allow himself a couple of days of moping about it, but what more could he do?
He told himself to have a good time tonight. Make it count.
He told himself that right up to the moment he saw Kate walking down the aisle in what was perhaps the ugliest dress he’d ever seen. It was a color not found in nature. It was wrinkled, and one half was less poufy than the other. But the remarkable thing about that dress was not how ugly it was, but how fantastic Kate made it look.
