It was obvious that the elephant in the room about their last encounter was going to have to be dealt with, but he figured now was not that time. Forcing his thoughts back to the matter at hand, he said, “No, this is good. No time like the present.” Watching her shoulders relax, he continued. “I had a teammate that got married last summer at a large venue, and he talked about the number of trips they made to meet with all kinds of wedding… people.”
Laughter met his ears, and he watched as her eyes shone. “Wedding people? Probably caterers, florists, wedding planners, photographers, videographers, venue renters, bartenders, DJs. And that just starts the list.”
Grinning as well, he shook his head. “Shit, no wonder getting married isn’t high on my list of things I want to do.” As soon as his words were out of his mouth, the smile dropped from her face and he wished he could jerk the words back.
“Yes, well, marriage certainly isn’t for everyone.”
“I… um… yeah.” Sucking in a deep breath, he continued. “Anyway, what I meant was that unlike a wedding like what my friend was planning, these quick-marriage chapels are probably not used to couples coming in very often.”
“Oh, okay. So, we need to plan on going in just once to get the lay of the land and then go back in for the actual wedding to get what we need?”
“Exactly. I briefly took a look at their website already, and I know that some people just walk straight in off the street and can get married.”
Her nose crinkled. “They don’t need all the legal paperwork?”
“Tennessee is considered to be a marriage-friendly state.”
Lynn snorted, then immediately slapped her hand over her face. “Sorry! I wish I could learn to laugh delicately, but when I’m surprised, it always comes out as a snort.”
Shoulders shaking as he laughed, Nolan said, “Thank God! I was sitting here thinking you were perfect, so it’s good to find out that you’re not.”
The color drained from her face right before two bright pink spots appeared on her cheeks. Her gaze dropped down to her hands, and he could have cursed himself for saying something that made her self-conscious. Jesus, this is a verbal landmine! “Listen, Lynn, I—”
“You were saying Tennessee is marriage-friendly,” she rushed, her smile tight.
Choking back a sigh, he nodded. “Yes. They make it easy for couples to elope. No blood tests needed. No waiting. As long as both parties are eighteen years or older, provide a Social Security card, driver’s license, or birth certificate, then they can get a marriage license. The website says the marriage license can often take only ten minutes or less.”
Her jaw dropped open. “And they do that all there at the wedding chapel?”
Shaking his head, he said, “No. But there’s a licensing office in Gatlinburg, Pigeon Forge, and Sevierville. Obviously, there are a lot of others in the state, but that’s where most people go who want to get married in Gatlinburg.”
“I know we’re not going through with the ceremony, but won’t we have to present paperwork…”
“I asked Nancy about that already, and Mom said she’d take care of it. I guess they can come up with some false records so that it’ll look official. Probably fake birth certificates and ID.”
Her brow crinkled again, and he was starting to recognize the expression she made when she was deep in thought. “What are you thinking?”
“Well, I suppose we can go in the first time to find out everything we need, and I’m sure they’ll try to sell us on whatever wedding packages they offer.”
A sliver of excitement began to move through him, recognizing the rush that comes through planning a mission. This didn’t compare to the work he did as a SEAL, but after a month of boring recuperation, he was ready to strategize anything, even a non-wedding at a chapel with a ridiculous name. “That’s what I think, also. While you do a lot of oohing and ahhing, draw the employee’s attention towards you, and I’ll see what I can find out. “
Eyes wide, she said, “You can go to the men’s room, or I could excuse myself. That would give us a perfect opportunity to take a look at their office, perhaps.”
Barking out a laugh, he said, “You just might be a natural at this covert operation, Lynn.”
The waitress came and removed their dishes, boxed up Lynn’s half sandwich, and left the check, all without Nolan even noticing. Lynn twisted to reach inside her purse, and he said, “No way. My treat.”
She opened her mouth but then snapped it closed again. Her lips curved slightly, and she nodded. “Thank you. Next time it can be my treat.”
The excitement he felt expanded as he thought of another time with her. Standing, he placed his hand lightly on the small of her back as he guided her toward the parking lot. “Before we plan our trip to the wedding chapel, we really need to spend a little more time getting to know each other.” Her brow scrunched again as she cocked her head to the side, and he rushed, “We don’t want to arouse suspicion when we go in to talk to them and not look like a true couple. We should at least know the basics about each other.”
“Oh, okay. I guess you’re right.”
He started to say that he could get with her that evening, but fatigue was setting in. Hating that he was not in peak condition, he forced the scowl from his face. “How about tomorrow evening? I can take you to dinner?” She shook her head slowly, and he thought she was going to refuse.
Instead, she said, “I guess that would be okay, but restaurants are not a very good place to have private conversations.”
“Can I come to your place?” Seeing her blink in surprise, he rushed, “I know that seems very forward, but if you came over to my parents’ house, my mom
