Chapter 6
SIX
The big day had arrived. Yes, Bri’s wedding was about to start in a few minutes, but that wasn’t the only thing that made today big for me.
This was the day I was going to open up to Zane and test the waters with him a bit.
What would he do when he got his first glimpse of the real me?
My stomach churned as the possibilities played out in my mind.
I choked down a bundle of nerves, locking them away out of sight and hoping they’d keep quiet long enough for me to get through the ceremony. I stooped over and adjusted Percy’s royal-blue bowtie. “Looking good today.”
“You sure are.”
I jumped at Zane’s voice behind me, my stomach exploding with a million tingles that radiated through my body. Tucking my waves behind my ear, I turned and flashed him a smile. “Thanks. You clean up pretty good yourself.”
That was the understatement of the century.
Zane Hayes filled out a suit like no other man ever had. His broad shoulders were made all the more attractive in his jet-black suitcoat. White cuffs peeked out around his wrists as he straightened his royal-blue tie. “You look good in my colors,” he said, his gaze taking in my figure.
I stood a little taller and angled my body, posing so he could take a mental picture.
“Your colors?” I said with a toss of my hair.
“I think you mean Bri’s wedding colors.” I gestured toward my blue gown that perfectly matched his tie, scolding myself for falling back into the role of Flirty Wren. Zane was just so easy to flirt with.
“They were my colors first.”
I rolled my eyes and looked to Percy’s harness to see that he was all set to pull the replacement wagon down the aisle.
He’d be following the flower girl today, his only cargo a flower arrangement and the rings Bri would exchange with the love of her life.
Even if Percy decided to go rogue, no children would be traumatized, and that went a long way to ease my nerves.
“I’m serious,” Zane said. “Why do you think Bri chose royal blue, black, and gold for her wedding colors?”
I smacked my palm to my forehead. “No way! Are you saying she chose—”
“The Bobcats’ team colors. Yep.”
I couldn’t help but laugh. “I knew she was a fan, but this is an ultra-mega-fan level of commitment.”
“Bri and I are a lot alike. We’re not afraid of commitment.” He captured my gaze with an intense look I’d never seen in his eyes before. “When we’re into something, we’re all in.”
A shiver traveled up my spine, honeyed warmth radiating from its wake. I almost forgot to breathe as I gazed into his eyes, but it didn’t matter. Zane was all the fresh air I needed.
“All right, everybody, time to line up.” The wedding coordinator’s voice broke the spell Zane had put on me.
I blinked several times and swallowed hard. “I guess it’s time for me to go.”
“Yeah,” Zane said through his half-smile, his eyes still smoldering with hidden secrets I ached to know.
I led Percy to our place in line, Zane mirroring my every step with my massive dog between us. “What are you doing?” I whispered as we waited for the music to begin.
“Didn’t Bri tell you? I’m the insurance policy,” he said, patting a bulging pocket I hadn’t noticed before.
I gasped. “Jerky?”
“It ain’t Brussels sprouts.”
I laughed out loud, but instantly clapped a hand over my mouth so as not to draw attention to myself in the quiet setting. Percy caught a whiff of the jerky and snuffled Zane’s suit. “I think he loves you more than he loves me.”
Zane shook his head, his gaze searching my eyes. “Impossible.”
My cheeks heated up, but I held his stare. “You sure about that?” I said, pointing at the way Percy licked Zane’s hands.
“It’s purely mercenary with me—all about the food. But it’s different with you. He loves you for who you are.”
A lump formed in my throat. Percy did love me for who I was. Would I be able to say the same about Zane one day?
The music started and the coordinator waved us down the aisle.
My pulse raced as we went, Percy walking between us.
Zane caught me staring once or twice, but I played it off like I was just checking to see how engaged Percy was with his beef jerky.
It wasn’t lost on me how couple-y this felt—almost like we were practicing for something bigger.
Percy’s slow, lumbering steps were just what the doctor ordered. The flowers stayed in place, and the pillow holding the rings was just as secure as ever. As long as Zane kept a steady stream of jerky coming, Percy was pretty good at playing follow the leader.
Unfortunately, it wasn’t always so easy to sneak dried meat from a pants pocket beneath a suitcoat. With a piece of meat stuck in the baggie, Percy’s focus shifted to the golden petals the three-year-old little girl in front of us was dropping.
Convinced they were some new kind of treat meant just for him, Percy’s nose went to the ground, snuffling each one.
“Leave it.” I whispered the command he was so fond of ignoring. “Leave it.”
The flower girl noticed and turned around in time to see Percy come up for air with several of her petals stuck to his muzzle.
“No, no!” she said, wagging a chubby finger in Percy’s face. She stood eye-level with him but left no question about who was in charge. “Dogs don’t eat flowers!”
The crowd tried to muffle their laughter as she peeled each petal off Percy’s nose one by one and placed them back on the ground where she’d left them. Percy’s tail wagged as he shoved his nose into the little girl’s basket when she was distracted dropping the slobbery petals again.
But Percy didn’t give the flower girl a chance to scold him. Something tickled his nose and he sneezed, blowing a handful of petals off his snout and onto the ground.
“Good job,” the little girl cooed, hugging Percy’s shaggy neck. He slathered her in kisses as guests on all sides of us held up their phones to take a picture. My cheeks heated and stomach jumped at the sight of all those camera lenses pointing in my general direction.
With the jerky finally dislodged from Zane’s pocket, we got moving again and made it through the rest of the ceremony without a hitch. By the time it was over, my cheeks had cooled and Zane and I high fived each other.
“Now, that’s what I call teamwork,” he said.
“It was a long shot, but the jerky did the trick.” I stooped over to free Percy from the wagon.
“A long shot is the best shot if it’s the only one you’ve got.
” Zane stepped closer so that when I stood, we were toe-to-toe.
The fresh scent of citrus and cedar enveloped me, and I couldn’t imagine being anywhere else in that moment.
“I’m thinking about taking a long shot of my own,” he said, holding my gaze.
I gulped down the excitement building inside me. Deep down, I was sure I was a part of that long shot and that set off a frenzy of delicious prickles in my stomach. “Oh, really?” I tilted my head, egging him on.
“I’m a free agent when this season’s over. I’ve got two offers on the table.”
“A man in high demand,” I said, still enjoying our closeness.
The corner of his mouth curved into a grin. “In some circles.” He brushed my hand with the back of his index finger. “I’m going to have to make a decision soon. Take the starting position or go become a second stringer.”
I wrinkled my nose. “I’m no sports expert but the starting position sounds like a no-brainer.”
“Not necessarily.” His gaze softened, and longing flickered in his eyes. “The starting position is out on the West Coast. The other one’s practically next door to this hot librarian I just met.”
My brows shot up. He meant me. I was the hot librarian, but I played it cool. “I didn’t know you knew any librarians. You should introduce us sometime.”
His chuckle rumbled deep in his throat. He leaned closer and said, “Wren, meet my sister’s good friend, Wren the Librarian.”
His breath was hot on my cheek, melting my insides until there was nothing left of my heart but a puddle. I tossed my hair, pretending to be unaffected. “I’m not a librarian. I’m an event coordinator at the biggest indie bookstore in Wisconsin.”
His eyes widened. “Impressive. Why don’t you give me your number so I can come visit. You can show me what the difference is.”
My jaw dropped. “Smooth. Did you call me a librarian just so you could have an excuse to ask for my number again?”
He raised his hands in defense, taking a few steps backward. “All I’m saying is that you’ve seen me at work. It’s only fair that I get to see you at work.” He winked before sauntering over to a group of men with similar builds who could have only been a collection of his fellow Bobcats.
That bundle of nerves I’d stuffed away earlier sparked back to life with a vengeance.
Zane was supposed to get glimpses of me in small, digestible doses.
Would he be able to handle my transformation from a flirty vixen in a form-fitting gown to the queen of all book nerds?
Because, make no mistake, there was a reason I’d been given the coveted position of event coordinator at work.
Nobody understood what a geeked-out, book-crazed, manic reader wanted better than me—because that was who I was. That was my superpower when it came to creating top notch book events that kept our customers coming back for more.
My-oh-my was that ever a far cry from the persona I’d taken on this weekend. My reading glasses hadn’t rested on the top of my head in days, I’d left my planner at home, and I hadn’t quoted a single line from a book since my arrival.
Zane being seen at work was nothing at all like me being seen at work.
Zane made slapshots. I made endcaps tidy.
He body-slammed men into the side of the arena when they asked for it.
I handed out book recommendations. His job was full of fast-paced glamor and excitement. Mine was the exact opposite.
Easing Zane into getting to know the real me was supposed to be an experience like a fine cheese tasting—slow and deliberate.
Instead, it was about to become something that had more in common with a pass/fail exam.
What if he saw my color-coded planner, complete with my mile-long list of books I planned to read, and bolted?
Uncle Bob’s voice boomed nearby, talking to a small crowd that had gathered around him. “The West Coast team is the play. The kid has real potential. He’d be nuts to pass up an almost guaranteed ride to the cup. No way will I let him become some second-string bench warmer.”
What was he, Zane’s agent?
As annoying as Uncle Bob’s know-it-all attitude was, he wasn’t wrong. My heart sank. The west coast was a long way off, and I wasn’t the kind of person who could do long-distance relationships.
Uncle Bob’s words were like a rain shower in October—cold and dreary. And they made me feel absolutely miserable.
Was Zane really considering the lesser position because it would be closer to me? I knew next to nothing about hockey, but I did know one thing.
I couldn’t hold Zane back like that.
He deserved better.