Page 4 of SEAL's Harmony
“Holy fuck, girl, are you okay? When I looked over, I thought I saw you come in, but then you disappeared. Did you faint? Why was Ry holding you?”
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“No, I didn’t faint. I’m fine, except for almost taking out the cake. If they hadn’t come to the rescue, I’d have taken it out. Crisis averted.”
Harmony looked around, hoping no one had noticed the near disaster. She could see the headline now: “Drunk guest takes out wedding cake, news at eleven.” Thank God they’d saved the cake from her. She knew better than to wear four-inch heels. Buying them had been her first mistake, but the saleswoman’s pitch had sold her, and they looked great with her dress—or did before she broke off the heel.
Five minutes. Five blessed minutes. That’s all it took for her to embarrass herself in front of one of the most gorgeous men she’d ever seen. One who didn’t live on the covers of her romance novels.
Chrissy laughed. “I guess you weren’t kidding when you said you’re a klutz?”
“Why on earth would anyone joke about that? It’s mortifying. Seriously,” Harmony answered before turning to her tall savior with chestnut brown hair. His eyes crinkled at the corners as he smiled at her. But she couldn’t tell if they were blue or green. “Thank you so much for coming to my rescue.” Harmony reached out her hand, palm side up, to let the handsome German shepherd sniff her before she scratched him behind the ears. “You are a noble steed. Thank you for saving the day.”
The large dog woofed and licked her hand.
“His name is Whiskey, and I’m Ryder—Ry, actually. I hope he didn’t hurt you when he pulled you away from the table.”
“Nothing but my ego and my shoe and both were my fault. I’m indebted to you. I shouldn’t be surprised since this is a room full of heroes. Thank goodness you saved the cake, or I’d be on the next plane to the North Pole to hide. Oh, and I’m Harmony Taylor, it’s very nice to meet you.” She’d said all of that without stopping to take a breath.
Ry laughed, really laughed, not some forced one like she was used to getting from Herb. The deep sound resonated within Harmony, filling her with warmth. Embarrassing herself was nothing new, and she used humor to hide her mortification. But he was different. He didn’t make her feel clumsy or stupid.
Though if they gave her another five minutes, she’d probably fall flat on her face. It was the story of her life. Harmony was the only person she knew who could trip over air. She’d be upright one minute and flat on her face the next. High school had been a living hell.
“I don’t think you’d have to go that far, maybe just the next county?” Ry’s smile lit up his entire face. Like he needed to be any more magnificent. He was addling her brains, and she’d just met him.
“You’re both being ridiculous. C’mon, Harmony, I know Meghan will be happy you’re here. We figured you were going to ditch on us.” Chrissy steered Harmony toward the front of the room, nearest the beach. Even with the glass doors shut, Harmony could hear the roar of the waves as they washed up on the beach. It was the perfect backdrop for the wedding.
“I should have ditched. Everyone would be safer. Who knows what calamity I’ll cause next?”
Chrissy giggled. “Girl, you are not that bad. You didn’t fall once when we were at the bank.”
“Just lucky, I guess,” Harmony murmured as they made their way across the room. “Was that one of Rafe’s teammates?”
“Who, Ry?” Chrissy looked over her shoulder. “Nope, he’s on a different team, but he works with Rafe sometimes. Why?”
“Just curious. He has some serious moves and is very easy on the eyes.” Harmony was dying to see if he was watching as she walked away, but she held onto her last bit of pride.
“He’s a good guy, not like Lucky. His name and number are on the stalls in the girls’ bathroom at the Ready Room. Call for a no-strings-attached evening.” Chrissy grinned.
“You’re kidding, right?” Harmony didn’t know whether to believe her. She was pretty gullible, as well as clumsy.
“Yes, I’m kidding. But I shouldn’t be. He’s definitely a player, so unless you are looking for that I’d say away from him.” Chrissy pointed to a black-haired man at the buffet talking to a couple of tall blondes.
“Is everyone at this wedding a model or something? I feel like Cinderella at the ball, except my fairy godmother skimped on my gown.”
“You’re too funny. C’mon, let’s get you a drink.”
“Nope, not a good idea. I’m not staying long.” Harmony muttered as Chrissy dragged her over to the bar.
“Two champagnes please.”
Before she had much of a chance to object, Harmony was holding her heels in one hand and a glass of champagne in the other, and praying that she didn’t end up on her ass.
She hadn’t even heard Ry approach and almost spilled her champagne all over them when he put his hand on her elbow.
“You startled me.” With every minute she was there, Harmony’s desire to run for it grew stronger. What had she been thinking? She barely knew Chrissy and Meghan. Disaster hovered over her like a rain cloud.
“How about I take those for you? I can put them by my seat, so you don’t have to carry them around,” Ry offered.
