37. Paige
“Katie, all I’m saying is to let me have the staff move the chairs inside. It’ll take forty minutes, tops.” I’m begging her but she just shakes her head.
“I’m not waiting a minute longer.” She says, tipping her chin up slightly and peaking out towards the seating where people have gathered and are quietly chatting amongst themselves while they wait for the wedding to begin.
However, all I can think about is the threatening looking cloud that’s barreling towards us like it has a personal vendetta against me.
This stupid storm wasn’t even supposed to happen, I’ve checked the weather a hundred times over the last week. Probably twenty times last night alone. Nothing says anything about this little pop-up storm even now.
We are not supposed to get rain.
Maybe this little, angry looking cloud will just pass over. At least that’s what I’m hoping for as it doesn’t seem like Katie is open to the idea of postponing the ceremony in order to get the chairs and archway moved inside. I rub at my face, glancing around at the guests that are seated ahead of us and then back at the bride.
“Katie, are you sure? It wouldn’t take that long, I prom-”
Katie leans in slightly, a smile playing at her lips. “I. Am. Not. Waiting.” She says, straightening and slipping her arm through Mr. Bennett’s who has a silly smile across his face (and thankfully no rashes or bloating).
He pats her hand when it rests on his arm. “It’s good to know Aspen’s never going to win an argument.” He chuckles, and Katie lets out a loud laugh, before glancing back to me and nodding with a fierce determination that I wish I had.
Taking a deep breath, I accept my defeat, then step towards the bridal procession to double check they’re ready before the music starts and they begin making their way down the aisle.
During the ceremony, I stand in the back, off and out of the way of the photographers. When we’re about halfway through the ceremony, I tell one of the staff to get the hors d’oeuvres and drinks ready for the guests to make their way into the ballroom.
I am reluctantly hopeful that we may eek this outdoor wedding out without any rain when a few heavy drops start appearing on the patio stones, and I notice a few of the guests casting each other suspicious glances. I take a deep breath, gripping my clipboard tightly against my chest as anxiety wracks my body. This is not how it was supposed to go.
This is not how it was supposed to go.
This is not how-
Max glances back to me and our eyes lock, a crooked smile pulls at the corner of his lips as he shoots me a quick wink and my world seems to steady slightly as I finally understand Katie…
It doesn’t matter if it rains.
It doesn’t matter if it’s a perfect wedding or if something goes terribly wrong. It doesn’t matter if all the guests are present or have gone inside to stay dry.
It doesn’t matter if it rains.
What matters is that she gets married to the man she loves, she gets to be with the one person that makes everything else worth it. And rain can’t stop that.
So, when the heavy drops start to come quicker, and many of the guests bolt for inside, I find myself taking a seat next to Mrs. Bennett up in the front row. Ignoring how quickly my clothes are becoming drenched and instead watch the biggest moment of my brother’s life.
I catch Max’s gaze again while the officiant continues with the ceremony, not even hesitating despite the rain that’s now pelting us with cold water. Max watches me for a long moment, that same little crooked smile on his lips, almost teasing me as my clothes slowly become waterlogged. Silently, I make a face at him for him to be paying attention to the ceremony, but his smile just grows and instead mouths the words “I love you” before shooting me another wink and turning his attention back to the officiant.
“I should have seen that one coming.” Mrs. Bennett whispers next to me, although she never takes her eyes off her son and soon to be daughter-in-law.
I cut a glance to her. “What do you mean?”
She casts me a sly look that tells me exactly what she meant and I bite my lips together to keep the silly grin from spreading across my face.
When Aspen and Katie kiss at the end and the officiant introduces them as Mr. and Mrs. Bennett, my heart soars and suddenly I’m standing with everyone who stayed despite the rain, clapping and cheering for the new couple. Back inside, one of the staff members had had the good sense to bring down towels for the people who stayed out in the rain and I take one with greedy hands. I don’t even want to know how much I resemble a drowned cat at this point as she quickly fills me in on the status of the kitchen.
We make our way quickly down the hall towards the bustling kitchen as I wring out my hair, trying not to shiver in my wet clothes, as the rest of the guests begin making their way towards the connecting ballroom.
Suddenly a slender hand wraps around my forearm, pulling me to a stop. “Where do you think you’re going?” Mrs. Bennett asks, leveling me with one of her famous reprimanding looks.
I point towards the kitchen. “To make sure everything is going fine in the kitchen.”
She arches a thin brow at me as if my response was not satisfactory. “A job that Kristen is perfectly capable of. You have other pressing matters young lady.”
Apprehension crawls across my skin as I looked at her confused. “What’s wrong?”
Mrs. Bennett heaves a sigh. “Photos Paige. You can’t actually expect us to go do family photos without you.”
I stare back at Mrs. Bennett slightly open mouthed because of her statement and when I fail to respond, Kristen next to me easily replies instead. “That’s no problem. I’ve got it all under control Paige.” She nods with a smile before slinking back to the kitchen on her own, leaving Mrs. Bennett and I in a stare down.
“Mrs. Bennett, I really need to check on-”
“No you do not.” She says firmly, shaking her head. “Aspen and Katie want you in the family photos, we all want you in the family phots. How could you expect to slink off and work while everyone else is getting their pictures taken?”
I hesitate, the laundry list of reasons going through my head. I’m not actually Aspen’s sister, I’m not a Bennett, I’m the wedding planner, I’m supposed to be working. I shrug. “I guess I thought you guys would want this to just be a family thing.” I say as easily as I can. It should be a family thing, it should just be them while the rest of the guests and staff are settling in for the cocktail hour. While I made sure everything went off without a hitch.
Mrs. Bennett quirks a brow at me. “You are family.”
“Oh, Mrs. Bennett, you know what I mean. I know we’ve always said that but I understand that there’s a difference…”
“I don’t.” She says and her voice picks up slightly. “I see you as the little girl I watched growing up just like I watched Aspen and Theo grow up. When did you start feeling that it was different?”
I hesitate again, watching her shocked bewilderment. “Mrs. Bennett-”
“Do not ‘Mrs. Bennett’ me now, young lady. We are not working, we are family.” Then she pulls back, as if realizing something. “Is it because of you being my assistant? Because we worked together? Honey, you are not just another employee. You’re one of us.”
The sincerity in her voice pulls at my heartstrings and I so badly want to agree with her and apologize for having said anything. But something inside me tells me not to, that I need this conversation just like I needed the one with Max. I’ve been nodding and playing along for so long while harboring all these feelings that they’re just begging for me to let them out. “But I’m not. I don’t fit in here Hope, I never have. And I’ve tried so hard to fit in and I’ve tried to be one of you and I’m just tired of it all.”
She cocks her head to the side while listening to my outburst, her features softening as I speak. “Paige,” she finally says after a moment. “I grew up in the smallest town in Alabama you will ever visit. I didn’t fit in by any means when I joined this family. But I loved them, and they loved me just the way I was, and it just worked. You were never expected to ‘fit in,’ we wouldn’t want you pretending to be anyone you aren’t. We have loved you since the first day you joined this family, and we will love you until your last. Because that’s what family does. And whether you like it or not, you are a part of this family.”
Tears sting the backs of my eyes as I stand there, still wet from the rain but there’s a heat emanating from inside my chest that warms my entire body. I nod slightly and a smile picks up at her lips at seeing the effect her words have on me. “Oh, sweetie, come here.” She wraps her arms around me in a hug and I fight my tears back even harder. “Don’t cry, it’ll ruin your makeup.” She says after a moment and we both start laughing, because honestly, we all looked a little drowned after the rain.
“Okay,” I say finally, nodding my head slightly with a wide smile. “Let’s go get these pictures done.”
Hope grins back. “And then party!”
When the photos are done, we do in fact, go straight into partying as the wedding party enters the ballroom to the tune of some upbeat song that Aspen had picked out and then immediately goes into the first dance. They are both still damp from the rain, and look absolutely stunning together as they move around the center of the room and I’m standing off to the back, watching when Hope slides up alongside me. She instantly hooks her arm through mine and leans her head against my shoulder and I smile.
“By the way,” she says in a whisper just as the DJ invites the guests to join the couple in their dance. “I expect all the details about you and Maxon.”
My face instantly heats, and I desperately want to pull my head in like a turtle. The Bennetts weren’t at all subtle in the way they’d practically shoved Max and I together during photos. And I suppose, that’s their own special way of giving their blessing which makes a happy feeling flutter around in my chest.
It also made me realize that Mrs. Bennett was one hundred percent right.
These were my people.
I don’t fit in with them… but they never asked me to, never expected me to. And honestly, none of them really fit in with each other either. Aspen with his carefree and easygoing lifestyle, Theo with his hyper-vigilant need to plan everything. Mr. Bennett with his prim and proper upbringing even though he’s the first one to dig into BBQ with his hands, and Mrs. Bennett, whose heart is as big as this entire house and wants everyone to feel like this is their home too. She didn’t bat an eye when her friend needed help getting out of a toxic marriage, or when her house suddenly became a study hall for her kids and their friends every week.
And now we’re having weddings here and it couldn’t feel more like home even if I shoved all my things into one of the bedrooms myself.
“I think I have to go check on something in the kitchen.” I lie, only to get away from Hope and the prying questions I know she is going to start asking if I stick around any longer.
She lets out a dissatisfied humming noise as I start away from her and I throw a wave in the air as I make my way around the room. The music changes to more upbeat and lively songs, causing a lot more of the guests to jump to their feet and come out and dance and I can’t help but smile as I watch for a moment. I hug my arms around myself when I spy Maxon’s tall figure slip from the crowd of dancers, making his way straight towards me. His hair is messed up but dry from the rain and he’s wearing that crooked smile that is so temptingly kissable that I almost want to smack him. At some point he must have discarded his tuxedo jacket because now he’s just in his dress shirt and vest with his tie hanging loosely around his neck.
“Hey you,” I say, trying desperately not to let his proximity affect me, but I should know by now that it’s no use. This man will always affect me. “Having fun?”
“I’ll be having more fun when you come dance with me.” He holds out his hand, nodding towards the dance floor as the music switches to another slow song.
I bite my lip, shaking my head slightly. “Haven’t we already determined that I’m not a dancer?”
He shrugs. “I don’t mind.” He takes my hand and pulls me along behind him. “Any excuse I get to be close to you.” He adds over his shoulder and I roll my eyes.
“You’re impossible.” I say but don’t fight as we approach the dance floor and he pulls me close to him, his left hand falling to my waist and guiding me even closer so that our bodies are pressed against each other’s.
Slowly, he begins guiding me along with the music.
“I’m proud of you.” Max finally says after a moment of us dancing.
“What? That I haven’t stepped on your foot yet?” I laugh, glancing up at him and instantly I feel the butterflies in my stomach stirring when I find him watching me back with a soft expression.
“Well… yes. But I was referring to the ceremony, not freaking out despite the rain.”
“Oh, well, I kind of had a revelation, so, I suppose the rain was a good thing.” I say just as he spins me outward and then pulls me back to him.
“And can I ask what that revelation was?” He arches a brow at me.
“That nothing else matters as long as you’re with the person you love.” I watch him as he nods slowly, considering what I said.
“That’s a good thing to have realized.”
“I think so too.” I say and adjust in his arms so that now instead of him holding one of mine while my other sits on his shoulder, I now have both of my arms resting at the nape of his neck. It’s quite the reach, but he’s hunched slightly to make it more feasible for me, just another example of him making sure that I’m comfortable. A smile picks up the corner of my lips and he shoots me a questioning look as he settles his now free hand at my waist along with his other one.
“Paige Knox, why are you looking at me like that?” He asks and my smile widens.
“Because, Maxon Grant, I know what you’ve been up to.”
He pulls back slightly, and I watch as his Adam’s apple bobs up and down as he swallows hard. “Oh? Please elaborate, I tend to get into a lot of trouble.”
I laugh. “A photographer showed up at my office the other day… was asking about you.”
His expression falls and he quietly swears under his breath. “I’m sorry Paige, I tried so hard not to give anything away while I was in LA. I didn’t want them ambushing you like that…”
I shrug. “It was just the one. And don’t be sorry, he shined some light on a subject I didn’t realize I had to ask you about.”
His brow comes together in confusion and it’s possibly the most adorable thing I’ve seen all day… well, that tied with when Blue ran down the aisle with the wedding rings. “What did he say?”
“Oh, he just told me about this rumor that you paid for my ma and gram to get moved back to the states… and then I called my ma that next morning to see if she knew anything about it…” I shoot him a pointed look.
“Oh…”
“Yeah, you really think she was going to not tell me? She’s the worst at keeping secrets, I’m surprised she got through telling me about it without spilling the beans.”
He shrugs. “I didn’t want you getting upset about it, I just wanted you to have your family close again. I love you, I just want you to be happy.”
I grin up at him, fiddling with the collar of his shirt, trying to still the butterflies that are swarming around in my chest, making me feel dizzy and blissfully happy all at the same time. “I know you do… and I need you to know-” I say, and I feel Maxon grow tense as I speak, “-that I love you too.”
Max takes in a sharp breath, obviously not having expected my confession and a wide smile breaks across his lips. “You do?” His voice cracks with emotion slightly and my heart aches for him. I know there’s still a lot for us to figure out, and the planner part of me desperately wants to focus on those things, and all the negatives and work that we’re going to have to put into this. But all that matters is that I love him, and like Mrs. Bennett said, the rest will just work itself out. I know we’re going to have slip ups, that we’re going to fight as we figure this stuff out. And just like with the Bennetts, I’m going to have to work hard on myself and realizing that these people that I love, love me right back, and don’t want me any differently than I am.
But it was going to be all worth it.
I nod quickly in response. “I do, I love you so much. I’m sorry it’s taken me so long to admit it.”
A smile picks up the corner of his mouth and the usual carefree glint returns to his eyes. “It doesn’t matter, as long as you’re mine now.”
I tilt my head back as we sway around the room, pulling him lower so that our lips barely brush, and it causes a fiery anticipation to ignite between us. “I was always yours Max.”
And this time, when I kiss him, I don’t care who’s looking.