“You can put me down now,” she said, feeling the stares of the crowd upon them.
Fisher glanced at her. His dark brown eyes were inscrutable. She felt trapped within his gaze. He released his arm from beneath her knees, but retained his grip about her waist, keeping her close as she slid down his body to stand on her own two feet. She couldn’t tell what he was thinking, but the intensity of his look was disturbing. Had it been anyone but him, she would have run.
“All right, ladies and gents, now it’s time for the garter,” the DJ’s voice boomed through the room.
Annie turned to watch Tony take the garter off of Eve. To his credit, he did it with a lot of humor. Throwing up the hem of Eve’s skirt with a wicked wink, he made his bride blush and laugh and she playfully swatted his shoulder. Once Tony had the garter, she stood and waved it over his head like a trophy. The crowd cheered.
“Now if we could have all of the single men come forward,” the DJ instructed.
“Wish me luck,” Fisher said. Releasing Annie with a quick squeeze of her waist, he strode forward.
Annie felt her palms grow damp around the bouquet. She was actually nervous. Oh, how ridiculous, she thought. It was just a silly wedding ritual. It didn’t mean anything, yet she couldn’t look away.
“Annie,” Eve said as she raced to her side. “I’m so happy you caught the bouquet. You know what that means?”
“Yes, Eve, I know,” Annie said, not looking at her friend.
“It means you’re next,” Eve chimed as if this was the greatest news on Earth.
“Don’t bet on it,” Annie said. If Eve heard the sarcasm in Annie’s voice, she ignored it.
“So, who do you think will catch the garter?” Eve asked. “Stewart? Or your new beau?”
“He’s not...” Annie’s voice trailed off in the midst of her denial. Fisher wasn’t her new beau, but he wasn’t just her tenant, either. How had life become so complicated so fast?
She watched the men form a jovial group in the center of the dance floor. Most were laughing, nudging each other in the ribs. Two were not. Stewart and Fisher. They stood in the center of the melee, elbow to elbow. Neither of them was smiling.
Tony sashayed around the group, taunting them a bit. He made to toss the garter and half of the group stumbled in that direction. Only Fisher stood still, motionless, watching Tony with a single-minded concentration that might have been unnerving had Tony been aware of it. Annie knew it unnerved her.
What would it be like to be on the receiving end of that attention when there was no one else around? When it was just the two of them? Her stomach fluttered. Oh my, she thought and forced some air into her lungs.
Tony twirled the garter on his finger and grinned. Turning his back to the men, he flung the garter over his shoulder. The garter didn’t weigh enough to propel it very far. It fell short of the group, heading for the floor at their feet. Annie saw Stewart elbow Fisher hard in the side. Fisher took the blow and somehow used it to push himself forward. Hands outstretched, he dove onto the floor like a runner heading for home plate. He curled his fingers around the garter.
“Yes!” Annie shouted with a raised fist.
Fisher met her gaze from his sprawled position on the floor and laughed. Annie looked at her fist and then pretended she was in midstretch, twisting as if she’d just been relieving a backache. Fisher laughed harder. She felt the heat of embarrassment rush into her face and she jerked her gaze down to her bouquet, pretending a sudden interest in the arrangement.
“Hey, he pushed me,” Stewart protested, his voice high and whiny like a child tasting defeat.
Annie’s head snapped up. “Was that before or after you elbowed him, Stewart?”
“You know what they say, Stew, all’s fair in love and war,” Fisher declared as he rose from the floor and dusted off his suit front.
“Ain’t that a fact?” Tony laughed and looped his arm about Eve’s waist.
“Humph!” Stewart sniffed and stalked away.
“Now for the fun part,” the DJ’s voice boomed. “Will our lovely couple please step forward so that the gentleman may bestow the garter upon the lady?”
“We don’t have to do this, do we?” Annie asked Eve.
“Of course you do,” Eve declared. “It’s tradition.”
“But...” Annie began, but Fisher interrupted her.
“Come on, honey, it’ll be fun.”
The look in his eyes promised much more than fun. Annie gulped. The ribbon wrapped handle of the bouquet dug into her palm and she realized she was holding it much too tightly. How could he make her so nervous with just a look?
