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COLE

“Where are you right now, Cole?”

Levi sat down next to me at our assigned table, a drink already in his hand. “Please, don’t tell me you’re still going over McMillan shit in your head! We’re at our sister’s wedding.”

“I… don’t care about the McMillans right now.”

“Damn. Really?” Levi chuckled. “Then, what has you so out of it? Do you actually think about anything else besides business?”

I tried to laugh along with Levi, but I could barely think. I’d been staring at Dylan during the entire wedding, watching him shift from anxious mess to confident mess back to anxious mess. He made everything look so easy, even though I could tell things were only going so smoothly because he was pushing himself to his limit. And while I was in awe of him, I knew that wasn’t why I’d been so infatuated with him.

The real reason I’d been staring at him is because I couldn’t get him out of my head.

The more I’d thought about last night, the more I realized that things I’d said in bed were things that I meant. I wanted Dylan to be mine . I didn’t want anyone else to touch him like that. I didn’t want anyone else to see him like that.

I wanted to be the person he was most comfortable with, the one he could let down his guard around.

I wanted to make him feel safe. I wanted to keep him safe.

I…

I wanted…

“It’s okay.” Shane’s voice shook me out of my thoughts, as he settled in next to me.

“What?” I shook my head, confused. “What’s okay?”

“It’s obvious you have feelings for someone, Cole,” he continued, with a shrug. “And I’m telling you that whoever it is, it’s okay. I know you might be… scared… after your divorce. But you shouldn’t be. You deserve to love and be loved. And I’m here to support you, no matter what.”

“What the hell, Shane? Where did that come from?” Levi laughed again. “Cole’s barely been back on the field, man. How would he have feelings for someone?”

My eyes met Shane’s, exchanging a quiet, knowing look.

“Oh, my God. Is Shane right?” Levi’s mouth fell open. “Cole! Congrats, man! I told you that all you had to do was get back out there!”

Levi leaned closer to me. “Are they here? Like at this wedding? Is it someone we know?”

“Let the man breathe, Levi,” Shane added.

“Absolutely not. You don’t get to breathe if you’re holding out on me!”

“It doesn’t matter.” I took a sip of the wine at the table and the taste seemed more bitter than usual. “It’s not going to work out.”

“Why not?”

“Because I’m an idiot. Because I have awful timing.” I chuckled through the pain. “Because I already ruined things pretty much the first time I opened my mouth. And because…”

“Because?”

I looked over at my dad, currently entertaining the newfound Thornton side of the family. My chest tightened at the idea of ending up just like him, all business, all miserable. It was the path I’d been on my entire life, one I’d never even questioned until right now. Being like my father seemed like the perfect deal, the respect, the power, the control…

And then, my eyes drifted over to Dylan.

He was with Jolene, playfully spinning her in time to the music. They were dancing to some pop song on the reception floor and laughing their heads off. Each of them had champagne flutes, every so often posing for photos in front of the cameras. Dylan looked so beautiful that it hurt to look at him, his perfect smile, and his laughter somehow cutting through the crowd. He was everything that I never even knew I wanted, all happiness, all honesty…

“Where are you going?” Levi asked, as I stood up from the table, already heading over to the dance floor.

“I think I’m about to do something insane. Back me up when this all blows up in my face?”

“Always!” Levi applauded, while Shane gave me an approving nod. “Go get ‘em!”

A few moments later I was standing in front of Dylan, who was still dancing with Jolene. He smiled as soon as he saw me, waving a hand around the room. “I did it! I actually did it! This turned out way better than I expected! Don’t tell Amber I said that though?—”

I cut him off with a kiss, my hands wrapping around his waist, my chest pressed close to his. Dylan tried to move away from me, wide-eyed and confused. “Cole! What are you—you’re lucky barely anyone saw that?—”

“I saw it.” Jolene smirked. “And I am not above spreading some gossip when it’s good.”

“Jolene! Don’t! Cole—” I cut him off again, deepening the kiss. This time, the room fell silent around us, as I held Dylan even closer.

“What are you doing…what are you doing…” Dylan was nervous, his hands lightly shaking. “Cole, are you drunk?”

“Nope.”

“But why would you just kiss me like that? In front of everyone?”

“Because you’re mine.” I quirked an eyebrow. “I thought we already established that.”

“Oh, my God!” Amber appeared right in front of us. “Is this real? Is this actually happening?”

“If you’re asking if we like each other, then yes?—”

“Dylan Reid is going to be in my family !” Amber squealed with excitement. “My future brother-in-law! Oh, my God! This is the best wedding present you could’ve ever gotten me, Cole!”

“Hold on. I didn’t say anything about—I don’t even know if Dylan wants to?—”

“I’d let you do whatever you wanted with me, Cole Stratton.” Dylan’s eyes were locked on mine.

And I couldn’t stop the smile that spread across my face. I was about to go in for another kiss, when I heard my uncle coughing beside us, clearly wanting our attention.

“I knew it.” Virgil grinned. “Didn’t I tell you?”

“Did you? Tell me?”

“Oh, please. I was watching you lovebirds from the very beginning. It was obvious where this was going. Just as obvious as the moon landing being fake.” Virgil rolled his eyes. “You have to try harder than that to pull one over on me.”

Virgil patted me on the back. “I’m happy for you, Cole. It’s a hard world out there. It’s nice to find someone who’ll spot you. That’s the kind of thing people spend their whole lives looking for. Smart of you to not let it slip away from you.”

“Okay, why does everyone keep talking like we’re about to get married?—”

Virgil held up his hand. “Don’t insult my intelligence, Cole. This one’s not going anywhere.”

My father had been staring daggers at us from across the room, but I couldn’t have cared less. I was back at our reception table, this time with Dylan right next to me, our fingers linked underneath it. It was freeing, no longer worrying about what my father thought about me, how he was going to punish me for stepping out of line. The only thing I could think about was Dylan, and how happy he made me, and how much I wanted him to stay.

Please, please stay.

“So, you’re a wedding planner…” Levi started. “Is this the best wedding you’ve ever gone to?”

“I’m legally obligated to always say yes to that question.”

“Smart man.” Levi grinned. “And our sister? Was she the best bride you’ve ever worked with?”

“The best bride?”

“Smartest, nicest, most talented, etc.”

“Of course.”

“Very smart man.” Levi leaned back in his chair. “So smart that I’m wondering what’s going on with you and my brother?”

“Hey! What the hell, Levi?” I laughed. “Weren’t you the one telling me to get back out there?”

“I was, but Dylan feels like a serious catch.” Levi pointed over at me. “Are you prepared for that?”

“Yeah, Cole, are you?” Dylan teased. “You wouldn’t want to accidentally throw me back out in the sea.”

“Is this how it’s going to be? All of you just ganging up on me?” I joked. “Because I don’t think I like that dynamic.”

“I won’t gang up on you, Cole,” Shane said. “If I ever have anything negative to say, I’m confident enough to say it all on my own.”

“Thanks, Shane. Always a pleasure,” I replied with a grin. Before I could add anything else, my phone started to ring in my pocket. I pulled it out to quickly look at the screen.

McMillan.

I quietly placed my phone back in my pocket. Levi shot me a suspicious look. “What was that about?”

“Nothing important.”

“Holy shit.” Levi’s eyes went wide. “That was about the McMillan deal, wasn’t it? Were they ready to sign on the dotted line?”

“And you just ignored the call?” Even Shane looked shocked. “Like it doesn’t mean anything to you?”

“What can I say? I’m trying to live in the moment.” I pressed a kiss against Dylan’s cheek. “I don’t want my whole life to revolve around work. I want… something better for myself.”

“Boo! No work stuff allowed at my wedding!” Amber walked up to our table, a bottle of wine in her hand. “Cole, I saw you take your phone out?—”

“He’s actually not going to take the call.”

“What?” Amber paused for a moment before pulling Dylan into a tight side-hug, still in his seat. “You’re already changing him for the better! You really are made of magic!”

She then placed the bottle on the table. “If no one’s working… can we go dance? Please?”

The entire table rose to follow behind Amber, as she led us back to the dance floor. Dylan wrapped his jacket around his waist, then started pumping his arms in time to the upbeat song. Shane did his usual side-to-side step, moving just enough to count as dancing but never going overboard. Levi and Jolene were hip bumping each other and shimmying back and forth, cutting a rug like no one else out there.

All while I tried to keep up with Dylan’s moves, our bodies never too far from each other.

“Secret fireworks!” Amber pointed up at the sky, just in time to see them erupting against it. “Sorry, Dylan! I promise it’s not going to go on for too long! I just really wanted them!”

“They’re beautiful, Amber,” Dylan replied, not sparing a glance up at the sky.

“The most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen.” I stared back at Dylan, before kissing him all over again, the fireworks exploding all around us.