He chuckled, making her think she’d failed. “Come and sip champagne with us when the show is over. She really should grovel a little, and it’ll be fun to watch. You earned it.”
She gazed up at him, wanting to look away, knowing she should cheer for the last bride coming down the aisle…but was unable to look away from those mesmerizing eyes.
“I’ll…do that,” she said, finally forcing her gaze away only for it to land on Tessa and Lacey, who were intently watching the exchange. “Later,” she added, giving his arm a slight nudge. “I better get back to business here. We have to go down the aisle again after the brides are finished.”
As she turned back, Lacey was already stepping off the boardwalk and giving her the eye.
“What?” Vivien asked as she got next to her daughter and tried to pretend she was interested in the end of the fashion show.
“Whowasthat?” she asked.
“Hapless Handy. Fiona wants me back.”
“We thought so.” Lacey grinned. “Tessa said we call him Hedge Fund Hunk now.”
Vivien snorted. “Oh, do we?”
Lacey gave a sly smile. “Am I imagining things, Mom, or do you havetwohandsome and eligible men after you right now?”
“I don’t know,” she said on a laugh. “Maybe I do.”
And if she did, well, it wasn’t the worst problem to have, was it?
“My oh my, this should be interesting,” Lacey said.
Or terrifying. Vivien wasn’t sure which.
“And that is the last of it.” Tessa walked out to the deck where Eli and Kate sat nestled on the sofa after the guests, vendors, and models had finally left the building. “Except for the lights on the boardwalk.”
Eli sat up and looked at the soft string of lights that lined both sides of the elevated path from the house to the beach. “Can we keep them?” he asked. “I love the way they look.”
“I thought you’d like them,” Tessa said as she dropped onto one of the chairs with an exhausted sigh. “So I took the liberty of telling the lighting company I’d call them when we want them gone and they can bill me if we never send them back.”
“Good call,” Eli said, settling back next to Kate.
“Where is everyone?” Tessa asked, glancing around the empty deck. “I thought I was missing a party.”
“Emma and Matt are taking showers, and Mom went for a walk,” Kate reported. “We were going to go with her, but she said she wanted to be alone.”
“Has she talked to Maggie?”
“Nobody knows,” Eli said. “Crista and Anthony are putting the flower girl to bed, Jonah just said he had to take a call, and Vivien and Lacey are with Maggie giving a grand tour.”
“Ahh.” She dropped her head back and sighed. “What a rollercoaster of a day.”
“You did a magnificent job, Tess,” Kate told her. “Everyone had fun, the vibe was perfect, Akari seemed very happy.”
“And Maggie didn’t wreck the whole thing,” Tessa added, opening one eye to look at Eli. “How exactly did that happen again? Who saved the day?”
“Vivien,” he said without a second’s hesitation, wanting to give his awesome sister the credit she deserved. “She did the damage control and handled it like a pro.”
“Who’s a pro?” Jonah practically leaped out onto the deck. “I’ll tell you who. This guy! The one who just got accepted in the inaugural Culinary Arts program at Northwest Florida State!”
Kate screamed the loudest, jumping from the sofa to throw her arms around him. “I knew it! I knew you could do it.”
He picked her up and swung her, landing her back on her feet just as Eli came in for his congratulatory hug.
“I’m so proud of you, man!” He pounded his son’s back and added a squeeze.
