Page 83 of Love at Teamsgiving
Redd interjects, “Mrs. Gormely said she thinks there’s a War of the Roses situation going on.”
“Wasn’t that a civil war in England several centuries ago?” I ask.
He clicks his tongue in confirmation. “Two rival factions over territory and power.”
I hold up my non-stick hand in surrender. “That sounds a lot like Junie and me. But I’ve been entirely peaceful. In fact, things have been good, so good. I thought we’d moved toward resolution.”
“Maybe the war isn’t about you,” Redd says.
“I’ve had some cuckoo fans. Maybe there’s a puck bunny who’s jealous of Juniper,” Pierre says.
Redd adds, “Maybe you and Juniper are caught in someone else’s crossfire.”
At that, Hayden flings the puck at me and we resume practice.
Their comments follow me for the next few days. There hasn’t been any activity on the security cameras, which is a relief. Perhaps someone was trying to run Junie out of town, but she wasn’t intimidated, and they backed down or got spooked by the Cruz crew.
Thankfully, I have a two-day game gap for Shane and Erica’s wedding. They both arrived in town yesterday, but so did I after a closeout against the Carolina Storm, thanks to Beau.
The rehearsal dinner is my first chance to see the bride and groom-to-be since we were in Manhattan. Thankfully, Shane’s parents planned the wedding day eve dinner at their property, which abuts a corn field—fitting that the theme is corn and brisket with a rowdy game of corn hole promised for later. They have heat lamps set up and lights strung across the back patio for a cozy glow after sundown.
After chatting with Shane and Erica, they thank me profusely for helping get everything arranged—I give Margo some credit. Then, with the sun setting at her back, Junie crosses the lawn, wearing a lacy, fitted top and flared skirt. Whatever I was saying sputters and dies on my tongue.
Shane elbows me. “Dude,” he whispers.
Erica rushes up to her and they hug. “Thank you for not murdering Mikey.”
Junie glances at me and winks. “The night is still young.”
“Oh, stop. You love me.”
Her cheeks pink up.
At the same time, comes a chorus of beeps from our phones—it’s the security app.
Junie blanches.
I’m quick and assess to see what triggered the alarm. “Looks like, um, a squirrel?”
“Everything okay?” Shane asks.
“Yeah. We just had some trouble at the salon, so I installed some cameras.”
Erica raises her eyebrows. “So you’ve been working together?”
“You could call it that,” Junie starts.
I lift one shoulder. “We’ll be sure to thank you for reuniting us on our wedding day,” I say because I cannot resist.
Junie presses her lips together, whether to suppress a smile or a scolding, I’m not sure.
Erica lets out a little happy shriek and says, “Where’s Margo?”
Junie shakes her head and huffs.
“Do you two think you can give a toast tonight?” Shane asks.
I do not recall that on the checklist of tasks. Junie, eyes wide as if she also doesn’t remember this item, looks up at me.
