Falling for the Best Man (Sisters of Wishing Bridge Farm, #1)(5)
“What?” The truck jerked, and almost veered into the middle of the road, but Emmy seemed to collect herself as she once again picked up speed. “So do you invite every girl you meet at a wedding away on a tropical holiday?”
“Again, just to clarify, we met at a christening. Besides, it’s hardly the same thing,” Christopher said. The trip to Hawaii was going to be work; the spontaneous invitation for Emmy to join him in Fiji had been purely for pleasure. Pleasure that she’d decided she could do without. His mood darkened, and he narrowed his eyes. “And why are you so concerned? After all, you were the one who stood me up, not the other way around.”
With a text message.
“And thank goodness I did,” Emmy said, and Christopher winced. He didn’t like arguing with people. Especially not any of his flings, which was definitely one of the advantages of not staying in one place for too long. She went on, “And more to the point, you can’t go around seducing bridesmaids at this wedding. Thanks to the flood, Melinda’s already on her last nerve.”
“One, there won’t be any seducing.” Christopher blinked as he studied Emmy’s face. Is she jealous? “And two, why would Melinda care?”
“I take it you haven’t met Melinda before,” Emmy said in a dry voice.
“No, it’s been a while since I’ve seen Lewis. But I’ve known him half my life. He’s pretty laid back.”
“He might be laid back, but Melinda isn’t. She cares about everything. A lot. She cares that the wedding cake is twenty-six inches high and that fish sauce doesn’t have parsley in it. She cares about whether the dessert spoons are silver or silver plated. She cares about whether her mother will wear the gray pearls or the pink ones. Her brain is so full of caring about things that discovering the best man is out to cause even more mayhem than the groomsmen already have would probably send her over the edge. Not something I’m prepared to let happen on my watch.”
“O-kay,” Christopher said, not quite sure what kind of woman his old friend was marrying. “Thankfully, I don’t plan on having any naked orgies. I just want to meet a fake girlfriend. I’d never do anything to jeopardize my friend’s wedding. I love Lewis, and I’m sure when I meet Melinda I’ll love her, too. So, in return for my word, we can forget all about me staying at the farm? Just drop me in town, and I’ll find somewhere to crash. I’ve spent half my life on the road and have always managed to find a bed.”
“Yeah, that’s not going to happen.” Emmy’s full lips were now flattened out as she took a sharp turn to the left and headed down an empty road flanked only by fields. “You might not think you’re going to cause a problem, but I can’t take that chance. I need this wedding to be perfect, and if keeping you away from the bridesmaids makes that happen, then that’s what I’m going to do.”
“What?” Christopher’s mouth went dry as she leaned forward and turned up the volume on the ancient radio. Music blared out, and he scratched his head. He’d been in a lot of strange situations on his travels, but as far as he was aware, this was the first he’d ever been kidnapped by a wedding planner.
Chapter Two
The first time Emmy had looked up at Wishing Bridge Farm she’d instantly fallen in love with the low, yellowed hills and the billowing, sleepy trees that seemed to wrap her up in a comfortable embrace. It had given her a sense of relaxation. Of rightness. However, as she sat at Ivy’s ancient sewing machine, working on the bunting to decorate the barn where the reception would be held, she was feeling anything but relaxed.
She tried to tell herself it was because she still had so much to do, but she suspected it was the fact Christopher Henderson was now in the small cottage at the bottom of the farm, no doubt sulking. In her defense, instead of understanding just how important this wedding was to Lewis and Melinda—and her—he’d admitted he was here to look for a fake girlfriend.
Right to my face.
It was humiliating.
Over the last two years, she’d often wondered what would’ve happened if she had gotten on that plane and spent the week with him in Fiji like he’d asked. Most of the scenarios that played out in her mind ended with them getting married and moving back to Wishing Bridge Farm where they lived happily ever after, surrounded by kittens and rainbows.
As if.
After all, if he was casually looking for someone to accompany him to Hawaii, then it meant flirting with women at weddings (and christenings) was just part of his playbook. A regular thing. She was surprised he’d even realized who she was. Scratch that. He probably only remembered her because she had stood him up.
At least, thanks to his jet lag, he hadn’t wanted to stay for a meal and had gone straight to bed. But it was now ten in the morning, which meant Emmy didn’t know how much longer she could avoid him. She sighed as she cut the thread and inspected her handiwork, all crafted from old tablecloths and lace doilies.
Pepper and Bec had always hated how Ivy refused to throw anything out, but it was thanks to her beloved great aunt’s hording that Emmy now had such a huge selection of vintage treasures for the business. And while she kept some as they were, she also liked to upcycle them with a fresh twist. Happy with the bunting, she looked at the next thing on the list, and her face twitched.
White doves.