Page 78 of Take Me to the Wedding

Oh, my heart. What I was hearing could not be real. I shook my head. “Listen to me. I only know reality. I’m not used to believing such pretty words.”

He regarded me quietly, steadily. “They have substance behind them. You understand who I am. You’re not afraid to call me out. You say things that are in my mind before I say them. You’re kind and honest and beautiful.” He paused. “And hey, we even go for the same french fries.” His mouth quirked up in a fetching smile. “This isn’t a passing fancy, Sam. I’ll prove it to you.”

“How can you be so sure? We haven’t even had sex yet.”

“That’s going to be great too.”

His confidence was, well, overwhelming. “How do you know that?”

“Because it’s going to be making real love. Not just sex.”

My head was spinning. My heart was pounding in my chest. I wanted him so badly I could barely think of anything else. But there was no way that was going to happen with all of this other stuff going on—meaning, my sister asleep on my futon next door.

“I have an idea,” he announced.

Full of surprises. “Okaay.”

“Your sister needs you. Let’s take her with us tomorrow. She’s invited to the wedding, right?”

“Yes, but that’s ridiculous. The wedding’s not until?—”

“She can stay with my parents. She knows them, right? She’ll love the farm. My mom and dad will keep her busy, give her some TLC, and bring her to the wedding with them.”

He was suggesting dropping my very upset sister off with his parents? “Shouldn’t you check with them first?”

“I will. But Beth loves to adopt people. It’s her superpower.”

He had a point. “I’ve experienced that firsthand.”

“Let me check with them, and then you can ask Wynn what she thinks. A weekend away might do her some good. Sound okay?”

It was only for a day, and maybe he was right. I gave a nod. “A change of scenery might be just the thing. Thanks for the idea.”

He sat back and patted his legs. “So come here.”

In his lap? “Over there?”

“I want to hold you before you go.”

“That’s not a casual thing to say.”

He leveled his gaze directly at me. “Samantha, do you think this is casual?”

“No,” I admitted to him—and to myself. I looked him right back in the eye. “But I want you to know that this isthe scariest thing I’ve ever done.”

He reached out his hand. I walked around the island and sat on his lap, and he immediately surrounded me with his arms. He looked up at me and smiled—a tender smile that took my breath away. He pushed back a strand of hair from my face. Studied me so intently that I felt safe and terrified all at once.

He kissed me on the mouth and then on the nose. “Don’t be afraid. I got you.”

I didn’t know if he was talking about all my uncertainty about Wynn or my deep-seated fear of trusting someone—anyone. Of letting myself go with someone who actually meant something to me.

I couldn’t even be angry with him for sayingDon’t be afraid, because he’d literally read my mind—I was terrified. But also the happiest I’d ever felt. So there was really only one thing to do. I bent my head toward his and touched his lips again.

ChapterTwenty-One

Samantha

Turned out that Wynn was up for a weekend with the D’Angelos. Caleb and I worked on Thursday before we all made the drive back to the farm. Then we spent the late afternoon in the fresh outdoors touring the farm, walking the fields, and checking out the spring crops—asparagus, kale, spring peas, radishes, and spinach—so of course our grilled-out chicken dinner included a giant fresh salad. The D’Angelos, with their easy friendliness, had been really welcoming to Wynn, who seemed to be feeling a little better.

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