Chapter 2
LORD, LET THE PAVEMENT open and swallow me now. Or at least transport me back to five minutes before I agreed to do the Electric Slide.
Kenya couldn’t have put herself in a more awkward position if she tried. She gritted her teeth as the car drove over a bump. Her mom braced her, as if the pain in her ankle could somehow be stopped by clamping her arm like a vise grip.
Cha-cha real smooth, my foot. There was nothing smooth about her moves .
. . ever. Yet her clunky steps had been on full display just a few minutes ago.
One would think she’d somehow had a bit too much to drink, but she’d touched nothing all night except her cousin-in-law’s favorite ginger beer.
What should she call John anyway? Did an in-law status even apply?
Maybe the ginger bubbles had gotten to her head.
She still couldn’t believe how ridiculous this whole evening had become.
Heading to the hospital was a little dramatic, though, right? This was nothing a little tape-up and ibuprofen couldn’t fix. But that thought skittered away as tires over a pothole sent a new wave of pain through her foot and throughout her body.
She was going to be sick.
“This isn’t necessary,” she hissed through clenched teeth.
But who was she kidding? Definitely not Justine Stewart.
Her mother’s expression could boil potatoes.
Kenya had heard the snap with her own multi-pierced ears, even skinning her knee as she rolled.
The gasp that had spread across the dance floor when she landed told her all she needed to know.
It was a shame this pretty gown had to suffer a rip in the process.
And who knew where the five-inch heels that led to her demise were?
Her mother had probably shucked them since she had said the gorgeous footwear was too much trouble for a wedding.
Was it worth it? Kenya sucked in a breath at another bump. Ah—maybe not.
She closed her eyes to avoid the expression on her mom’s face.
Kind of hard to do much else squished in the back seat of this Volvo.
She took a deep breath and held it before exhaling.
Mama’s expression only made her feel worse about this inconvenient shift of circumstances.
Plus, she’d seen this look plenty of times before.
A mix of annoyance and worry and then more annoyance because something her oldest daughter had done made her worry.
How quickly things could change. She’d been hopeful after that tense phone call with Dedra and Evelyn.
It had not been her best moment on the job, but something good would come out of that misstep like it usually did.
But she hadn’t entered the dance floor to experience this.
Spontaneity and a little bit of chaos she loved, but not of this variety.
She frowned at the ankle precariously elevated on the console between the driver and passenger seats.
An arm covered in a pale-blue dress shirt held the wheel, muscles tense, as the driver tried to keep his arm from bumping her aching foot. His Italian-cut suit jacket was folded carefully under her ankle to prop it up.
What a sight she must have been for all those wedding guests. Kenya swallowed down the embarrassment that still lingered like a bitter taste in her mouth. How unfortunate that a lot of what the guests would remember of the reception was her spectacular fall.
She willed her thoughts to focus on the good parts.
Her cousin and her new husband as the center of attention, just as they should be.
Adanne was gorgeous in her mermaid-cut gown with sleeves looped over her shoulders, a Fayson brand dress that Adanne had picked out in LA.
Even raised a few eyebrows as the guests Adanne had grown up with watched her shyness melt away in the arms of the one her heart loved.
Hmm-hmm, Hope Springs would be talking about that kiss for weeks.
And, oooh, child, if John’s face could tell a story .
. . he looked all things grateful and adoring, his eyes sparkling as he looked at her.
Kenya grimaced when the car shuddered. How come she hadn’t noticed how many potholes there were in the vicinity of Hope Springs until now?
And why did the DJ have to play her favorite song as soon as she stepped out of the kitchen?
The easy lyrics beckoned her to join them in the line dance she’d been trying to perfect in front of her mirror.
She’d been hesitant because, though she was the maid of honor, she was the event planner, after all.
She needed to exude some level of professionalism.
But who would have thought seeing him would push her right over onto the dance floor?
She opened her eyes. His hands still gripped the wheel with careful intention.
Apparently, he’d been a last-minute addition as someone’s plus-one.
She hadn’t noticed him during the ceremony, but he chose that specific moment to step out of the shadows—the same time she decided to step out to the music.
Amateur. Evelyn had pegged her with precision. Maybe her fall wouldn’t have been so bad if she hadn’t been showing off in front of him like a toddler. Kenya groaned, pressing her palm to her forehead like her favorite emoji.
“Is it hurting really bad, baby?”
Kenya nodded in response. Yes, Mama, my ankle does hurt really bad. And unfortunately, so does my pride.
The driver shifted, clearing his throat, and for the briefest moment it seemed like he would turn her direction.
Thankfully, he glanced at her through the rearview mirror instead.
No need for there to be a fourth disaster in the form of an auto accident.
The third being the ankle that was the victim of her lack of concentration, too-high heels, and, yeah, wounded pride.
The second was the scheduling debacle she hoped hadn’t ruined her career. And the first?
Kenya dared look up again, and to her surprise, those familiar dark-brown eyes were already on her.
She cut her gaze away. Too bad she hadn’t done that quickly enough the first time she’d seen him last year.
Because the first mistake, even more awful than her botched appointment and battered ankle, was thinking she could ever date someone like him.
FOCUS, MAN.
Solomon glanced back at the road. He had precious cargo to transport, and by the slightly feral look in the older woman’s eye, he’d better not have that cargo spilled across the roadway because he was distracted.
Hey, God, you could have given me a warning.
Yeah, because the Lord made it his business to help people avoid awkward situations.
He shook his head and made the familiar turn down the street he’d passed through probably thousands of times since he’d moved to Hope Springs.
If Ben hadn’t invited him to this wedding at the last minute when his girlfriend couldn’t come, he wouldn’t be in this situation.
Not that he’d had anything to do besides recover from a challenging hospital shift and study for his physical therapy exam, but hey, it wasn’t every day that he got to attend a celebrity wedding.
At least that’s how Ben put it. Solomon didn’t care about all that, but it didn’t hurt that the menu options were fire and his fridge was currently empty from neglect.
He’d arrived late to the ceremony but just in time for someone to apparently start cutting onions in a nearby kitchen as he watched from the far back a man receive his bride in the most tender way.
The groom, the celebrity in the story, could barely hold himself together.
Solomon recognized John from events at the hospital and around the community.
And the bride, Adanne, was gorgeous, making John one lucky man.
Then his eyes had landed on the woman standing right behind her, beaming as she held two bouquets as the rings were passed.
Maybe he wouldn’t have been so willing to say yes to coming if he got out enough to remember who people belonged to in this town. Because maybe he would have known she would be present. The woman who had dazzled him and caused him to break his routine enough to ask her on a date a few months ago.
Because surely Kenya Stewart didn’t want to be around the man who ghosted her after their first date. But second and third dates didn’t fit into his plans. Especially since Kenya had the potential to turn his world upside down in all the right ways.
He’d almost left the ceremony then, but by the time he could make an exit, Ben was ushering him to his car and the Davidson Center for cocktail hour.
Yet none of his avoidance mattered because here he was, driving her and her worried mother to the hospital.
He had to admit, watching Kenya slide onto the dance floor and start to move had been compelling.
So much so, he stepped away from the wall to get a closer look.
She dipped and shimmied and acted like she was shaking off all inhibitions.
He’d almost been envious of her ability to radiate so much joy in a room already brimming with it.
He couldn’t take his eyes off her for those few minutes, and then when everyone moved to the next part, she added an extra twirl and made a dive so quickly no one could catch her.
Before he knew what he was doing, he rushed to her side.
Her cry of pain pierced through the music and sent shards into his heart.
Kenya Stewart had left her mark on him from those months before, and he hadn’t known it until that moment.
So much for staying out of her way.