Page 50 of If You Claim Me

“You’re throwing a gala?” Meems perks up.

“We’re raising money for programming. We do it every year, but Hemi and Hammer offered to help, and they run one for the Terror that’s wildly successful.” Far more profitable than the ones we’ve previously run for the library. Any money we can raise to fund our community programming is great, but it can be a lot of hours of extra work without much payoff. I have high hopes this year. I want to build on the teen programs already in place for kids like Everly and Victor who could use more adult support in their lives.

“Hammer and I run an auction for the team in the spring. It’s always a lot of fun,” Hemi explains. “What’s your great idea for the gala?”

“Some kind of bookish backdrop for photos. Maybe featuring all the banned books?” Hammer suggests.

“Oh! Oh my gosh!” Essie claps and her eyes go wide with excitement.

“Did you have a wedding idea?” Rix teases.

Essie bites her lips together. “No.”

“That’s a yes.”

“More of an idea for a future Halloween party. We can put a pin in my idea and focus on the library gala. I kind of like the idea ofAlice in Wonderland, you know? But featuring all the banned books, too.”

“I really love this.” I’m excited about leveling up this event.

We continue to discuss the gala for a while, tossing around ideas.

Eventually, Meems brings up the wedding. It’s inevitable. We can’t all get together without it becoming a topic of conversation.

“I’m so excited to see all of you in your bridesmaid dresses.” Meems’s eyes light up at the prospect. “And you in your wedding dress.”

“Us too!” Lexi tosses in, eyes darting between us.

“I hope you don’t mind, but I peeked at the dress book Courtney had sent over. You’ve flagged some beautiful options,” Meems says.

This is news to me. I haven’t flagged anything. In fact I’m barely over the engagement party. I haven’t even thought about a dress.

“I wondered if I’d, oh—” Connor stops short in the doorway. He’s dressed in black pants and a dark Henley. He looks polished and poised and completely out of his element. “I didn’t realize. Sorry to interrupt.”

“You’re not interrupting. We were just talking about the wedding and some of the dresses Dred has marked,” Meems says.

Connor’s eyes dart to me, cheeks flushing as he rubs the back of his neck. “Right, yeah.” He licks his lips.

“Connor will have to share which ones are his favorite,” Lexi remarks.

“Oh yes! Where’s the wedding book! We all want to see,” Essie adds.

“Oh, uh…” Connor seems at a loss for words.

“Why don’t you grab it for us,” I suggest.

His expression makes me believe it’s the very last thing he wants to do, but he gives us a curt nod and disappears down the hall. The lack of time it takes for him to return tells me a lot about the location of the book.

I shift over to make room for him on the couch, and he sets the book on the coffee table. His ears are bright red as the girls move closer for a better view. They ooh and ahh, pointing out their favorites. And I note, as we flip through the pages that each page is marked with a post it and a number in the corner.

Connor’s ears never calm down while we browse the wedding book, and his leg is pressed against mine, his warmth seeping into me. He cracks a small smile when Hemi brings up Tristan’s near suit-fiasco at his and Rix’s wedding this summer. None of us knew about it until after the fact.

Eventually the girls head out and I walk them to the front door. Lexi laces her arm with mine and whispers, “Is that the first time you’ve seen that book?”

I dip my chin.

“So he picked all those out.”

“Or his mother did,” I offer.