Page 9 of Sunny Skies Ahead (Watford Sweethearts #2)

Everyone filed in to sit on the log benches overlooking the mountains, with the barn at their backs.

Kyrie had taken up the helm of flower girl because we didn’t know any girls under the age of ten and there was no way I was entrusting such an important responsibility to a grumpy teenager.

I followed her, taking my place on Abbie’s side of the arch.

Kameron had followed behind with the rings, with Lucas and the groom himself shortly behind.

Abbie took everyone’s breath away, naturally. She was every bit the fairytale princess as she came down the aisle, her eyes shining with nothing but love for the man in front of her. I was only slightly shocked when I noticed Connor’s eyes were misty, too.

It had all come together perfectly. Not that anyone was surprised, once Abbie mentioned I was the one in charge of planning. My spreadsheets were immaculate.

As I strolled up to the dessert table at the reception, I found Kameron sitting at a table close by, nursing some kind of fruity mocktail.

I grabbed a chocolate glazed donut—Lucas’s request—and sat down in the empty chair next to him.

Most of the crowds had cleared out, citing the long drive back to Watford, and the only people that remained were the bride and groom, Lucas, Kameron, and I.

I was pretty sure Kevin and Kyrie were also still here somewhere, but I wasn’t going searching for them. There was no telling what I’d find.

“We pulled it off,” I said, taking a bite of the donut and damn near moaning at the taste of buttery chocolate against my tongue.

Kam’s eyes snapped up to mine. Even with the sun going down and the venue being lit primarily by candlelight, I swear his eyes darkened as he took my figure in again.

I would tease him for the way he stared at me to deflect the way my body warmed at the idea, but I couldn’t be sure that was why, so I kept my mouth shut.

“You pulled it off,” Kam said, taking another sip of his drink. “The rest of us were just along for the ride.”

“That’s generous of you,” I said, finishing my donut and grabbing Kam’s napkin to wipe my fingers off.

“Take credit where it’s due,” Kam said, a teasing lilt to his voice. “You pulled all of this together. All we did is offer support.”

I shrugged and turned my attention back to the dance floor. Connor and Abbie were dancing alongside Lucas, and the sheer joy on everyone’s face filled me with an immense sense of pride. Kevin and Kyrie re-appeared from the far hallway to join them on the dance floor and I rolled my eyes.

That pride must have emboldened me, because the next words out of my mouth were, “I’m surprised you and Lucas aren’t in uniform.”

I wanted to smack my head into the table.

Kameron’s answering smirk told me I had definitely exposed myself.

“It’s an unspoken rule that you don’t wear your dress blues to another dude’s wedding, unless they ask you to,” Kam said, still smirking, like he knew exactly why I’d asked that. He drowned the rest of his drink and put the cup down. “Wouldn’t want to steal the spotlight.”

I glanced down at his arms one more time like the selfish fool I am, and I swore he flexed his muscles. I averted my eyes quickly. It was one thing to have a small crush on your friend—it was another thing entirely to openly ogle them in public. At someone else’s wedding, no less.

This wasn’t like me. Then again, I couldn’t remember the last time I’d looked at a man and seen something like what I saw in Kam. I couldn’t pin it down. I was comfortable around him in a way that emboldened me to let my guard down. To flirt, even.

My brain quickly shied away from that train of thought. I’d once been comfortable with Jacob, too. And I’d been lucky to walk away from that relationship alive.

Kameron seemed to sense my change in demeanor and cleared his throat gently, giving me a reassuring smile.

“The two of them were made for each other.”

I smiled at the image of Connor and Abbie, their smiles wide and bright enough that we could see them, even on the opposite side of the wedding hall.

“That they are.”

“I know you had your misgivings about him when he first came back to Watford.”

“Abbie and I have seen each other through some really hard times,” I said honestly.

“When I first heard he was back in town, I was angry, because Abbie had worked so hard to work through things. She wanted to move forward without the past holding her down. And then he waltzed back into town like nothing had happened. But Connor had changed since leaving Watford; I was wrong to assume otherwise. And I was wrong to assume that his leaving Watford had anything to do with Abbie. ”

Kameron nodded, slouching back in his chair. He’d undone another button of his shirt, and there was far too much sun-kissed skin on display.

Maybe that was why he got under my skin so badly. He was distracting.

“My feelings about Connor had more to do with my issues than anything else. The night everything fell apart with my marriage, I drove right back to Watford, practically on autopilot. I went right to Abbie’s door and collapsed in her arms. Even though we’d been distant, she was there.

Even though we hadn’t talked in weeks at that point, she knew I needed her. ”

I felt Kam’s eyes on me, and blew out a long breath.

“All that to say,” I said, letting out a breathy laugh in a futile attempt to lessen the tension in my throat, “I love that girl. She is so special to me in so many ways, and for so many reasons. I might have been overprotective of her. But if anyone deserves this kind of happiness, it’s her. I owe her everything.”

“I’m sure she’d say the same about you.”

“She’d be lying,” I said, and I meant it. I could never repay Abbie for the way she helped me put my life back together after I divorced Jacob. The sacred space she held for me while I healed, physically and mentally.

“Thank you for telling me this part of your story, Im. I never want to push you, and I’ll never ask you directly, because I know what it’s like to have things from your past you don’t want to talk about.

But I hope you know you can always come to me with those things. I want to know more about you.”

A door in my mind slammed shut, reflexively defensive at letting anyone close to me.

My fingers itched for a drink, despite the fact that I hadn’t drank in months.

When Abbie got sober because of her father’s struggles, I did, too.

I hadn’t been a big drinker before—one of the many things Jacob thought was unbecoming of a woman—but I’d wanted to support her.

“I appreciate that. I do. But I don’t enjoy talking about the past. I’m not sure why I said any of that,” I laughed, trying to brush it off as if it was no big deal. Kam looked hurt almost, and I felt a pang of shame deep in my stomach.

Kameron wore his heart on his sleeve in a way so few men did.

I was damaged goods. I had been for a long time. As much as I blamed Jacob for what he did, my track record with self-doubt and poor decision making went back even further than our marriage. Keeping Kameron far away from the chaos that was my inner world was the safest possible thing for everyone.

Which is why I wanted to smack my head into the table once again when the next words out of my mouth were:

“I want the job.”

Kameron’s eyes widened. “Really?”

I nodded. “It’s the perfect opportunity.

I get to do something new, dial back the homestead operations while also focusing on repairing the farmhouse, and I get to help you guys run Winding Road more efficiently.

As long as you’re okay with me working from home during the week, I’m in. It’s a win-win for everyone.”

“You’re really saying yes,” Kameron said, his shock slowly transforming into an excited grin .

“Calm down, cowboy,” I said, unable to stop myself from returning his smile. “We still need to iron out the details.”

Kameron’s answering laugh settled deep within my bones, and I realized with a jolt of awareness that I could listen to that sound forever.