Page 102 of The Backup Groom

He was speechless.

Hopefully, this was good, not bad.

“Say something,” I said, not having the patience to wait it out.

“Sorry, you caught me off guard with that, but in a good way.” Scotty reached for my face with both hands, caressing my cheeks with his thumbs, swallowing hard. “I love you too, Amber. I’ve been wanting to say something for the longest time, but I was afraid to tell you because I didn’t know how you would take it, plus I didn’t want to scare you off. Then you started dating those weird men, and I didn’t know what to do.” He leaned closer. “I love you. Deeply.” He kissed me, softly, with more feeling and passion than I had ever felt before.

My heart couldn’t take much more.

This was true bliss.

I was living it.

And we were so lucky to have found each other.

There were so many other things I wanted to say, but they would have to wait.

“Great news—Lesta says yes!” Dean said, interrupting our moment. “I told her we’d chat during the week and work out the specifics.” He held up a white bakery box with “Lesta’s Cakes” printed on the top. “And I’ve got my research material ready to go.”

Scotty grinned and glanced at the box. “I hope you bought enough research material for the rest of us.” He stood and held out his hand to me. “We should probably let somebody else have our table. I loved all the cupcakes, but so far, my vote is for chocolate raspberry truffle.”

I took Scotty’s hand and stood. “Mine, too.”

“Red velvet,” Stella said.

Dean grinned. “Red velvet for me as well.”

I shook my head in surprise. “Why am I not surprised? It’s a tie. Well, maybe one of us will change our minds when we come back next time.”

We rescheduled the cake tasting for the next day, and thanked Lesta for the cupcakes.

By the front door, Scotty took my hand. “One more thing marked off the list. Now, we need to really get the ceremony site and reception venue nailed down.”

“What do you think about having our wedding ceremony on the bluff in front of the ocean at Cuvier Park?” I asked. “I saw a ceremony there last week, and it was so beautiful. Their online calendar shows they have some openings.”

Scotty’s gaze lingered on me, which made my stomach do flip-flops. “I would love that.”

“That is perfect,” Stella said. “What about the reception? It may not be easy to find something last minute. You’re only ten days away from the big day.”

“My mom texted me while I was at the tuxedo shop,” Scotty said. “She said they do wedding receptions at Bali Hai on Shelter Island. We can always do a weekday wedding if their weekends are booked up. What do you think about a Polynesian-themed wedding reception? The view couldn’t be better, right on the water.”

“As long as I can change into a tropical print dress for the dancing,” I said.

Scotty grinned. “That sounds great, although don’t be surprised if I try to convince you to change that to a hula skirt.”

We laughed together and walked outside to the parking lot, when we were interrupted by the last person in the world I wanted to see.

“Well, well, well,” Maggoty Mercedes said, sitting on the hood of her faded orange, 90s Mazda Miata with a license plate that said, “Gimmee.”

She wore a black blouse with a matching skirt and oversized sunglasses, but her grin was even darker. Devious, actually. With one leg crossed over the other and her head tilted back, she almost looked like she was posing for some pin-up calendar.

Witch of the Month, I assumed.

“If it isn’t the pretending-to-be-happy couple,” Maggoty Mercedes said.

I looked at her disdainfully. “Don’t you tire of not having a life?”

“Funny you should ask that, because I do,” she answered. “But that’s all going to change soon enough, and I’ve got five million reasons why.”