Page 46 of The Wedding Cake Wish
I smile. ‘A man after my own heart.’
Hudson shoots me a look that suggests rom-coms are nowherenear the top ofhislist.
‘So Myles hated horror films? But he watched them all nightwith Amelia?’ I murmur, thinking about this. ‘Thatisodd.’
Hudson shrugs. ‘Not really, now I think about it. It justshows how good Amelia was for my brother.’
‘How do you mean?’
‘Well, I think she helped him to broaden his view on life.Myles could be a bit of a stick-in-the-mud. He wasn’t terribly adventurous.Watching horror movies with Amelia showed that he was prepared to try thingsthat were out of his comfort zone.’
‘Right. I suppose so.’
He turns. ‘You’re not keen on her, are you?’ He says itmatter-of-factly, as if it’s understandable because we can’t like everyone.
‘No, no, Ilikeher,’ I protest, feeling flustered.‘It’s just...I suppose it does seem a bit weird how she’ssort of latched onto you.’
He shrugs. ‘She’s grieving my brother’s loss, just like Iam.’
‘I know.’
‘And she gets comfort from talking to me about him.’
‘No, I can see that. It’s just...’
‘What?’ he asks, a touch testily.
‘Nothing.’ I shake my head. ‘Just ignore me. I worry foryou, that’s all. You’ve got enough to cope with after losing Myles withouthaving to prop someone else up emotionally.’
He looks across at me, the tension in his face smoothing outinto a smile. ‘Thank you for worrying but I’m fine, Rubes. Honestly. I’ve gotyou to talk to about everything, which I’m more grateful for than I can say.’He shrugs. ‘I’d just like to help Amelia through it, that’s all.’
‘Of course.’ The forced brightness in my tone belies thefact that despite his reassurances, I’m still not sure about her. There’ssomething about Amelia that doesn’t feel right to me.
But then again...
If I’m being really honest with myself, isn’t it just theplain old green-eyed monster rearing its less-than-pretty head here? I hadHudson all to myself until Amelia came along. I was enjoying getting to knowhim and feeling more for him with every moment we spent together. You readstories all the time about good friends becoming lovers, and the hope that thismight happen for Hudson and me had started to unfurl like a flower inside me.
But then Amelia appeared, in all her glamorous, scentedglory, so now I have a rival for his affections. That’s how it feels, anyway.Hudson has never hinted that he’s attracted to Amelia, but seriously, what mancould resist if a gorgeous woman like her set her sights on him?
‘You okay, partner?’
My smile feels a little wobbly. ‘Yes, yes. I’m fine. Lookingforward to seeing these gardens.’
‘Me, too. They sound great.’
I take a deep breath and push away my fears about Amelia,trying to relax.
‘Isn’t it glorious?’ Smiling, I gaze out at the sun-dappledcountryside whizzing by. Today, it’s just Hudson and me, and I’m determined toenjoy it. I feel my heart swell like a balloon about to take flight. ‘AndI’mbuying dinner since you won’t let me pay for petrol.’
‘Great. But top of the list is finding our missing man,right?’
‘Of course.’ The balloon deflates with a little fartingsound.
This trip isn’t about Hudson and me at all.
It’s about Rory...
*****
