Chapter 12 #2
“Let’s just say mailers can be a trigger where my ex is concerned. So then I got thinking about how horrible my judgment is and how was I ever supposed to find a good guy when I had done such a poor job at it with the only man I’d ever loved?”
Kat dipped her fingertips into the water next, watched ripples form as she skidded them over the surface.
She almost regretted admitting that last part—that Bradley was the only man she’d fallen in love with.
But as she glanced up, met eyes with her groom across the reflective pool, Kat sensed only concern.
And kindness, like when he’d spoken up at the altar while she was having her freak-out moment.
She felt her lips curve up as she set her gaze back on the water.
“For whatever reason, the social experiment came to mind. I didn’t remember much about it except for the name—Married at First Meet.
I looked it up while I ate, just for fun, and became intrigued by the science behind it.
I liked that they had three specialists from different fields using their skillset to match up the couples.
“They said only those who had the closest-to-perfect matches—meaning, the best shot at success—would move on to the next levels. And it got me thinking. Formulas, I trust. I mean, we’ve developed life-saving drugs by creating just the right formula.
And if science can find cures for horrible diseases, why couldn’t some simple calculations find a person’s match? ”
Kat felt the heat of his gaze on her as she said those last words. Words that, in essence, said that he was her match. Slowly then, she lifted her gaze once more, over the turquoise pool between them until their eyes met.
As cool as the water was at her feet, it did nothing to calm the heat tearing through her chest. An audible gulp slunk past his throat.
“Well,” he said in a whisper. “That’s a good answer.”
She tore her gaze off him at last, turned to look over the ocean, and cleared her throat. “What about you? Why did you sign up for this?”
Every muscle tensed at Kat’s question. What made him decide to sign up? Zander had asked Duke that question at least a dozen times, but he had yet to get a serious answer. Usually he simply shrugged and said, why not?
Zander imagined what Duke might say to Kat in this situation. Knowing his light-hearted twin, he’d probably give her the same answer he’d given everyone else. But Kat wouldn’t be satisfied with that answer.
It came to him then, a possible reason Duke had signed up. Hadn’t they just watched their baby brother take vows? With an incredible woman, too. It’d been enough to get Zander’s wheels turning. And that was even before Betzy and Sawyer took their vows.
The weddings had caused Zander to start thinking about marriage as well. Had him wondering if he’d ever recover enough to propose to a woman again.
“Oh, looks like we’re getting some company,” Kat said while nodding toward the distance.
Zander spun around to see Randall, Marsha, and the camera crew—equipment in hand—headed down the boardwalk.
“To be continued?” she said softly. “I think that… some of the things we want to discuss should be just between us. Don’t you?”
He couldn’t agree more. And the truth was, the less the cameras were on them, the less Duke could scrutinize Zander’s actions. “Yes,” he said. “I wonder what they have planned for us.”
“Hopefully not dinner,” she said with a laugh.
Zander joined her. “Right. Maybe we shouldn’t have eaten yet.”
“I hope you two are hungry,” Randall boomed as they neared. “We’ve got a buffet fit for royalty waiting in there for the two of you.”
Zander shot a look at Kat in time to see her eyes widen in worry. She looked at him, a hint of amusement pulling at her full lips.
He quickly got to his feet and moved to help Kat do the same. “Sounds good to me,” he said as he took her hand.
“Oh, me too,” she agreed with a nod. Zander liked the way she tucked a hand into the nook of his arm after he’d helped her up. They started toward the group, but suddenly Marsha held up a hand to stay them.
A spark of concern raced through him as she scrutinized them. Him, then her, then Zander once more. Sweat broke out over his palms. Had she caught wind of the ruse? What if they’d secretly been steps ahead of them and somehow recorded his call with Duke?
“They said casual wear,” Randall said, seeming to guess at Marsha’s thoughts.
Zander glanced down at his clothes, then looked over the outfit Kat wore.
“You’re right,” Marsha said. The woman pointed to the camera crew in turn. “You come film from behind as they walk toward the resort. And you go on and shoot as they head your way, staying a good five or six yards in front.”
They waited for Marsha to give them the final go before taking slow steps toward the resort. Once they were likely out of earshot, Zander squeezed Kat’s hand. “You are in trouble.”
She giggled. “So are you.”
“Not really,” he countered. “I could take down another meal easy.”
“Not me,” she admitted. “I just hope they have dessert on that buffet. My appetite for sweets is endless.”
He couldn’t help but laugh in return. Absently, he gave her hand another squeeze. “Then here’s to hoping.”
Inside the resort, they were greeted by the owners, a kind couple who had their kids there to help.
The children ranged from school-aged to an older teen who, turned out, was their cabana attendant.
Savoh gave Zander a knowing look as he shook his hand.
“Hope you brought your appetite,” he said.
“We have a selection of seafood, salads, and desserts too. Please, help yourself.”
A corner of the dining area had been sectioned off for filming. The crew got situated as Zander chose from an array of Indian and American cuisine. He wasn’t kidding when he said he could eat another meal, especially when that meal was something as light as crabmeat.
He glanced over to the dessert portion of the spread and noticed Kat drizzling melted fudge onto a mound of ice cream, a pleased smile at her lips.
Dang, she was cute. He imagined coming back here on their fiftieth anniversary—both of them old and gray—her at the dessert bar, him piling crab legs onto his plate. The image made him smile, until he replaced that picture with Duke instead of himself.
Snap out of it, dummy. You’re not the one married to her. It was a good thing Duke was heading out there to take his place. Zander’s mind might know reason. His feelings, on the other hand, did not.
Once they were seated at the table—a high-back booth giving them a private feel—one of the owners’ small children approached them, a large tray in her small hands.
A fancy-looking dome rested over what Zander guessed to be a special dish of sorts.
Just how much would they have to eat to pull off this night?
The little girl came over to Kat’s side, extended her small arms, and blinked up at her with wide brown eyes.
Zander’s heart melted a little. After a stream of losses—his grandfather, father, and a brother too—Zander had formed a barrier of sorts.
A protection that kept outsiders at bay.
Children, however, gained instant access to a very vulnerable side of him, revealing a tenderness he hadn’t known was there.
He’d taken it to mean that he was, in fact, meant to be a father one day. The thought caused a hot streak of jealousy to sink into his gut; now Duke was closer to reaching that fatherhood status than he was. A guy who probably shivered at the thought.
“Thank you,” Kat said, pulling him back to the present. Beneath the dome stood a folded cue card with the words Getting to Know You printed on the front.
Kat retrieved it, traced her slender fingers over the card before prying it open. He watched her eyes move from one side to the next as she read.
“This is a very serious question,” she warned while closing the flap. “Are you ready?”
A knot of nerves formed in his stomach. “Okay.”
She squared those gorgeous brown eyes of hers back on him, pausing dramatically with the tilt of her head. “How many pillows do you sleep with?”
Zander breathed out a sigh of relief. “That’s easy. One,” he said. “And I only like thin pillows. None of these big fluffy things pushing my head off the bed.”
Kat’s eyes grew large. “You’re kidding. One, thin pillow? That’s all you like?”
“That’s it. What about you?”
“I sleep with four,” she said.
“No you don’t.”
“Four extra puffy pillows every single night or I can’t sleep.”
“How could someone so small make use of four pillows?”
Kat pushed her bowl of ice cream away from her and lay her spoon on its side on the table. “This is me,” she said. She snatched the small bowl she’d brought over with her dessert. An array of small cookies, candies and various treats rested inside.
She picked a large marshmallow out of the bowl, pushed past a few gummy bears, and pulled out two more. She snatched a gumdrop from the pile and popped it into her mouth before retrieving one last marshmallow.
“I sleep on my side,” she explained. “So I put one pillow here, kind of between my knees to keep my hips lined up.” She placed a marshmallow in front of the spoon’s curve.
Next, she placed one behind it, higher up on the curved portion.
“I like the other one to be just behind my upper back. It gives me a little support and makes me feel super comfy.”
He chuckled. “How can you even feel it back there?”
“Next,” she said, stacking the last two marshmallows on top of one another. “I sleep with two puffy pillows under my head.” She attempted to put the head of the spoon on the stack, but it toppled off and clanked against the table.
“See?” he teased. “That’s why I don’t like big pillows.”
“No, it works,” she said, rearranging the display once more. This time she dug the side of the spoon into the squishy treats to keep it in place. “There. That’s how I sleep.”