Page 87 of Unpredictable
“He does, doesn’t he?” I grinned.
“You seem awfully happy.” He arched an eyebrow, following me as I made my way around the tables, straightening any menus or grabbing any dropped flower petals.
“Olivia knows.” He stilled, but I continued talking. “Just before the ceremony, she pulled me aside and told me she was happy for us.” I was both relieved and overjoyed by her reaction.
He squealed, clapping his hands together. “That is so exciting. So…when are we planning your wedding?”
I swallowed and shook my head. “No. I mean…Harrison doesn’t want to get married again.”
“Are you sure?”
“Pretty sure.” I laughed. “In our first meeting, he flat out said as much.”
“Yeah, but…that was then. I mean, would you want to marry him if he were interested?”
“I—” I faltered, stilling at his question.
Did I?I hadn’t really given it much thought, but now that Landon had asked, I was forced to evaluate my feelings on the matter. And I had to admit that the idea was appealing. I loved Harrison. I loved him, and I wanted to spend the rest of my life with him. Whether that meant we were married or just in a committed relationship, I didn’t care. He was my life, my love.
“Aww. Yay! You totally do,” Landon said, as if he could read my thoughts.
“I don’t care about the wedding,” I said. “But I do want to spend the rest of my life with him.”
Landon pulled me into a hug, squeezing me tight and twirling me around. “I’m so happy for you, Jules.”
“Thanks.” I laughed, adjusting my dress when he finally set me back down. I glanced at my watch. “Come on. The ceremony should be about done, and we have work to do.”
He saluted me. “Yes, ma’am.”
We worked in silence, seamlessly executing the plan for the wedding as a team. That was why I loved working with Landon—he’d worked with me long enough, knew me well enough, that I often didn’t have to say anything. As I watched how he handled Olivia’s wedding, it made me even more grateful that I’d decided to promote him.
The doors opened, and the happy couple filed out. The photographer was in place, and everything was running smoothly. Connor wrapped his arms around Olivia, pulling her in for a hug. She laughed and squealed as he dotted kisses all down her neck. They didn’t seem to mind—or maybe even notice—they had an audience. I smiled. They were so in love, so in their own little bubble…
I was so busy watching them, I didn’t notice Harrison approach. He placed his hand on my lower back, leaning in to whisper in my ear. “Olivia wants a picture with us.”
“She does?” I asked, searching his gaze.
I didn’t want to get my hopes up. It was one thing for Olivia to give us her blessing. But to ask for a photo together, especially on her wedding day… It felt as if she was giving me her seal of approval. My eyes watered, overcome with happiness.
“Yep. Come on.” He tugged on my hand, and I didn’t fail to notice the way Cam was glaring at me.
We posed with Connor and Olivia, and then it was back to work. Though my steps were lighter now. Now that Olivia knew and had given us her blessing. I knew how important her opinion was to Harrison, and I was more relieved than I’d expected.
Dinner, the speeches, it all flew by in a blur. Harrison’s speech was incredibly touching, and I teared up listening to him speak of his love for his daughter. As soon as the guests took to the dance floor, Harrison was at my side. “Dance with me.”
“I…” I shook my head. “How would that look? I can’t.”
“It wasn’t a request.” He tugged on my hand with a wry grin.
I allowed him to lead me out to the dance floor. It felt like everyone was watching us, but when I glanced around, no one had taken notice. “Better”by SYML was playing, the lyrics packed with meaning. The song was about love and fate and hope. Harrison placed my hand on his shoulder, grasping the other in his.
He started swaying to the beat. “Relax, Juliana. I’ve got you.”
In the past, I would’ve pushed back, I would’ve done the exact opposite. But I knew he had me. He was strong, compassionate, loving. I relaxed in his arms, secure in his embrace, in his love. Even though he was the one holding me, I wasn’t letting him go.
* * *
“How was the wedding?”Harper asked when we’d nearly finished eating. We’d ordered takeout and were sitting on her couch with some documentary playing in the background.
