Billionaire Blaze, page 5
Despite my wanting to focus on helping Jack, my duties as a groomsman, and everything else the wedding would entail that day, Kit was the maid of honor, and her name kept coming up. Every time I heard it, my head turned, and I soon had to talk about her again.
“There’s a brief moment that you all need to pair up with a bridesmaid or Kit,” Jack said. “Kai, I think you would normally be with the maid of honor, but Juno already mentioned this to her, and she insisted that Alma walk with you since she’s a bridesmaid as well.”
I nodded, knowing it made sense and thinking it was sweet of them. Even Kai seemed to appreciate it. There was nothing worse than being forced to make nice with someone at a wedding or possibly upset your partner over your hosts. It was so strange how traditions from a world where everyone in the bridal party was traditionally single were still used, when today they often weren’t.
“Would the rest of you feel comfortable walking down with the other bridesmaids?” Jack asked. He looked at me more specifically, but I nodded without thinking. In this case, I did have the luxury of being single.
It was only as Jack told everyone else who they would be walking with that I realized Kit was the only one left. I was going to be drawing attention to us talking again.
Despite that, I smiled as he told me and nodded. Perhaps it would make it less obvious. If people saw we had been thrown together for some parts of the wedding, maybe they would see any contact outside of that as us discussing our duties.
As soon as I thought it, I knew it wouldn’t be the case. It was only going to stir up conversation and gossip. We were both single. People would want to see us together. It would be romantic. And nothing made people feel romantic like a wedding.
I focused on getting ready with the others and supporting Jack. I’d agreed to it now and would have to endure it the best I could. In three days, this would all be done, and I could go back to my world of business, my friends, and forget about her if I wanted.
Assuming I could forget about her. I let out a small sigh, wondering if I would find it that easy. Some people just got under the skin, and she was clearly under mine.
“Penny for your thoughts?” Kai said as I stood in front of the bathroom mirror, fixing my tie. He came to stand beside me to do the same. “Alma normally does this for me. I hate these things. You look like you loathe yours as much.”
“No, not the tie. I’ve mostly got used to them. I’m expected to wear them a lot.”
“So, something else on your mind, then. And with a face like that, if it’s not frustration at what’s in front of you, it’s a relationship of some kind. A girl or a family member.”
I chuckled at the perceptiveness of his comment. Jack said that Kai saw things others didn’t.
“People see me with anyone and start expecting things. I don’t like it.”
“Kit?” he asked.
A single glance from me confirmed that he’d guessed correctly and made him smile. He focused on his tie again since mine was done now.
“She’s sweet, and Juno speaks highly of her. You could do worse. But there’s no need to rush, either. As for everyone else, let them talk. Their opinions, one way or another, including mine, shouldn’t impact your decisions of the heart. Sometimes, you have to do things others are surprised by to get what you want. Not everyone sees the reward in a risk, and not everyone knows what it might cost you to take a risk. Only you truly know if it’s worth it to you.”
Almost immediately, I relaxed. He was right. I needed to stop worrying about what anyone else thought.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
Kit
It took the better part of two hours, but finally, Juno was ready for her big day. I was somehow also ready in my bridesmaid’s dress. We had three other bridesmaids, including Alma, and everyone was equally stunning.
Juno was nervous, however. This wasn’t her first wedding, and the first hadn’t been the dream she hoped it would be.
“You okay?” I asked her as the others went to wait in the main part of the house. She took several breaths, concentrating on calming herself down.
“I will be. I don’t have the awkward family at this one, at least.” She gave me a wan smile and looked around the room. “And this is one hell of an amazing venue.”
I walked to her and gave her a gentle hug, making sure not to squash anything, smudge any makeup, or mess up her hair.
“Thank you for being here for this,” she said, pulling herself together. The usually strong Juno reappeared and even managed to get her usual smile back. “Let’s go do this wedding.”
As soon as she looked ready, I opened the door for her and lifted the end of her dress train so it wouldn’t catch on anything. We made our way downstairs to the main hall, and the photographer was already waiting for us, taking photos, whether Juno was ready or not. She handled it far better than I would have, letting him suggest poses and placements of her dress.
Thankfully, I could step aside a moment and join the other women in the wings, but not before Juno gave my hand a quick squeeze and thanked me again.
I was also a little nervous about some aspects, knowing I would be walking down an aisle in front of people and then back up it. But I wouldn’t be alone either time, Alma by my side on the way there and one of the groomsmen on the way back.
Other than that, my duties were mostly done. I’d arranged the bridal party before the wedding, but that had been easy enough. Juno hadn’t wanted much of a fuss. As Juno made her way toward the wedding area and saw the people waiting for us, she smiled again. And then she saw Jack looking back over his shoulder at her.
The look that passed between the two of them would have been enough to melt even the most frozen heart. These were two people very much in love with each other.
It was only as I was most of the way down the aisle and looked down the row of groomsmen that I spotted Lukas. My heart skipped a beat. He was staring at me, his eyes shining, and he flicked me a wink as soon as our eyes met. Had he been staring at me the entire time?
After being so cautious earlier and seeming not to want anyone to notice us together, it was an obvious sign of attention toward me. I found myself smiling back, however, appreciating the attention of someone like him.
The wedding was swift but sweet, exactly the way Juno had wanted it, and flawless. No one was rude or awkward, and soon, we were getting ready to walk back up the aisle and begin the party part of the wedding. I got up again, not sure exactly what was supposed to happen now, but Alma seemed sure of herself and walked toward Kai.
I hung back a little with the other bridesmaids and let Juno and Jack take the lead. Before I could figure out where I was supposed to stand, Lukas was in front of me and offering me his arm.
“You look even more stunning than I thought possible,” he said. “Would you do me the honor of walking to the house with you?”
Without hesitation, I took his arm and let him pull me in closer. I couldn’t speak, my heart hammering in my chest and my body flushing with heat. Was this what instant attraction to a person felt like? The way he spoke and the look in his eyes when he focused on me made my insides dissolve into goo.
I had to mimic Juno’s earlier display and focus on breathing, keeping the flow of air in and out of my lungs steady and my feet moving one at a time.
“Nervous?” Lukas asked, leaning in and keeping his voice low so no one else would hear him.
“A little,” I replied, not admitting that he was the reason, not the people watching us.
“I’ve got you. You’re safe with me.” His grip tightened just a little on my arm, pinning it to his side as he had done the last time he’d escorted me. There was something so natural about it, and it truly did feel safe, his protective side coming out in the way he matched his step with mine but also shifted a fraction ahead.
Despite my anxiety being caused by him, it melted away, allowing me to simply enjoy being beside him and feeling good about being part of the celebration.
Lukas took his duty to the extreme and escorted me all the way to my seat at the table. Once again, I had expected us to be in a more traditional seating arrangement, but we weren’t. There was no top table, no separation of people, but we were still sitting where we were told.
I had Lukas on one side of me and Kai on the other. It was both wonderful and not-so-wonderful at the same time. I felt Lukas’ closeness again and wondered if he would actually be in his seat much, but as soon as I was seated, he seemed almost eager to be beside me.
“I don’t know about you, but I am famished. It’s been a long time since we had breakfast, and I’ve been wondering if I’d make it this far.” He smiled at me, having said the words loud enough that it was obvious that he was talking to me like we were good friends.
“If I thought there was room in this dress, I’d be more enthusiastic.” I looked down at the blue material covering me and how well it fitted. It was tight in all the right places from one point of view, but it didn’t leave much room for food.
“The downside of looking beautiful. I would feel bad for you, but I think the price is worth it. You really do look gorgeous. The blue brings out the color in your eyes.” His gaze never left mine, and I felt my cheeks growing hotter…as well as another part of me. If Lukas had been hiding his intentions before, he wasn’t now.
Our waitstaff saved me from embarrassment as they brought drinks around. I accepted the wine but also made sure I had water.
The meal passed in a haze of conversation, drinking, laughter, and everything I could have wanted it to be. Lukas was attentive to me, making sure I always had everything I needed. It was like he had decided to take chaperoning me very seriously—and not just for the wedding, but the whole day.
By the time the speeches started, I was buzzed from the wine, as full as my clothing allowed, and happier than I had been in a long time. Not only was Lukas funny and smart, but Alma and Kai were great company. Kai had told us several amusing stories about Jack and their days in a band together.
This day couldn’t get any better.
CHAPTER TWELVE
Lukas
I breathed a sigh of relief but also felt a strange pang when it was time to leave our tables and talk to other people. Already, people wanted to draw me away from Kit, and I knew I would give much more enthusiastic signals to Kit than I truly felt if I stayed by her side all evening.
Not that I wasn’t tempted. I was sure I wasn’t that interested in her, but it was still early days. I’d only met her three days earlier, and I couldn’t make a fool of myself. I didn’t trust myself to truly know her after that length of time.
Thankfully, Juno called for Kit and pulled her away from the table to do something the pair had planned, and I decided to put some more distance between us. I couldn’t keep letting myself get more pulled in. I also needed some air.
It was strange to be so involved in a wedding and then to come away and be done, but my part was entirely finished, and I opted to step away for a moment and get a clearer head before coming back. I’d found myself drinking a fair bit of wine to get through the meal and calm my nerves.
Being anxious about anything wasn’t like me, and I wasn’t coping well with it at all, but I knew I was outwardly appearing fine. I wanted to keep it up.
I made the mistake of checking my work messages as I sat in the living room of the house, away from the majority of the party. Immediately, I groaned. Something was always going wrong when I wasn’t there to fix it. For a moment, I considered the problem and knew I would have to tackle it before the end of the day.
Not wanting to be disturbed, I shut the door to the room and hooked onto the internet for a call to the office.
“Henry, I need you to handle some crap for me,” I said as soon as he answered.
I heard him sigh and then reply. “What do you need?”
“The Grintock project has the clients fretting again. Can you get Lucy to go over the final plan with them again and make sure they don’t screw it up or interfere?”
“She’s not going to like that. She’ll think it’s your job.”
I let out a small growl. “It can’t all be my job.”
“Oh, but you’re the boss. It can all fall on your desk at some point or another. I’ll make sure she does it, though.”
“Thank you.”
“I get the impression that’s not the only reason you called.” Henry waited for me to answer, and I smiled to myself.
“How’s everything else going?”
“You really can’t leave work alone for five seconds, can you?” He didn’t wait for my response before rattling off the current status of everything we were working on, giving me the company low-down from start to end.
I listened, taking it all in, able to picture the parts of each project I had worked on. Henry knew me, and it was like he had a report on them all open in front of him. I suspected he might even have.
“I think we can handle the next two days without you,” Henry added at the end. “But, Accounts want to know who is paying for a few things, and we’ve got some problems with a builder on the Jackson project. Doesn’t like that we want the same quote for three projects when he said it was scalable if we had more work.”
Although I didn’t write these down physically, I moved my hand as if I were jotting them down. It was a memory trick I had learned a long time ago. The act of writing something down seemed to make me remember it without needing to look at what I’d written, so now I wrote it in the air, and somehow it still worked.
“I’ll cover those and make them happen. Keep me informed about everything with Lucy.”
“Will do, and boss…please actually enjoy this party. None of us have seen you have fun in ages. Go flirt with a girl, or a guy, or anything else that interests you. Just…stop focusing on nothing but work. You need another reason to be alive.”
“I’m not sure I asked you for life advice, Henry.” I smiled despite my tone and hoped he’d pick up on it, not being a full reprimand. Kit had already come to mind, and I knew he’d be far happier if he had seen me at dinner.
“No, you don’t ask me for advice on anything, ever, but that doesn’t mean I won’t give it when I feel it’s very important. Oh, and Daniels texted. Something about your advice being rock-solid. Said it could wait until you were back, and he didn’t know if anyone could reach you for a few days. I didn’t let him know that we could get through to you if we really needed to.”
“Thanks, Henry.” I hung up, smiling at the message and my PA’s interference in my private life. They meant well. All of them did. If nothing else, being single for so long and not particularly interested in anyone since Rachel had given me the opportunity to focus on building an amazing team in my company. I had very good people to work with.
I checked through the small to-do list he’d given me, firing off messages and making the call to the builder. It took almost an entire hour to get through it all, but I eventually got everything settled for now. It wasn’t ideal, and the call had gotten pretty heated, but that was the nature of the beast.
As I got up to leave the room, I found myself feeling rougher than I’d expected. It had been a long day, and I was sorely in need of a drink.
Hoping the bar was open now and I could find something decent and not be bothered for a few minutes at least, I made my way back to the party. It was in full swing by the time I got back, music playing, Jack and Juno mingling with everyone else, and the tables cleared to the side.
I had missed the cutting of the cake, but no one appeared to have noticed, and there was plenty laid out in slices for guests to help themselves. One of the great parts of a party like this was that no one would go hungry. There was also a decent bar. Jack had hired some staff to run it and make sure it had all the drinks we could want.
Once again, I was impressed at the organization required to hold a party like this on a remote island, but I knew my team could pull off similar events if they needed to. Enough money made anything possible.
I grabbed a slice of cake and made my way to the bar, grateful when no one came toward me to talk. Although I was focused on getting a drink, I couldn’t help but look around for Kit. I spotted her with Juno, looking even more radiant as she smiled over a conversation they were having.
For a fraction of a second, I stopped, unable to look away. I was smitten. I knew it, and I wasn’t sure I wanted to hide it. Not after Henry’s encouragement.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
Despite my best efforts, work wouldn’t let me go now that some of them had seen my messages. I spent another hour sitting at the bar with whiskey on the rocks, trying to get them all to act without me and fix mistakes themselves.
I sighed a few times, trying not to get too exasperated. People danced, and I barely got a second to take it all in. As the party wore on, I grew more and more surly, and I knew I was showing it. I couldn’t be this distracted by people or life when I was supposed to be having fun.
On some level, I knew a party like this wasn’t entirely my idea of fun. I didn’t like to dance much, and I wasn’t sure what to say to people when I had already been talking to them for a long time.
I tried to put my phone away again, noticing that Juno was dancing with all her bridesmaids, and they looked like they were having a great time. Again, watching Kit have fun only made me like her more. It was clear she was comfortable, happy, and carefree. It was a trait I admired.
For so much of my life, I had to appear professional, do business, and be sensible. Seeing people just let go and still somehow look amazing and not worried about what others thought of them was both wonderful and made me feel sad. I couldn’t do it, no matter how much I wanted to.
“I’d have thought you’d be up for dancing,” Kai said as he came to the bar to get another drink. “You’re young enough and have enough taste in music.”
I chuckled and shook my head. “And two left feet.”
