The Big 5-Oh! (27 page)

“Does that surprise you?”

“Maybe a little,” Jared grinned. “He hasn’t been the settle-down type of kid.”

“Ladies’ man?”

“To say the least.”

“All that appears to have changed now that he's met the right girl,” Liv offered, popping a large shrimp into her mouth. “I’m really happy for them both.”

“You know what? I am too.”

“I can tell.”

Jared reached around the centerpiece and touched Liv's finger where her hand rested on the table.

“You know what I was thinking while I was standing up there with Rand?” he asked.

“No. What?”

“I was thinking how proud I am to have raised such a brave young man.”

“He's remarkable, Jared. You have every right to be proud.”

“I mean, when I compare Rand and Shelby to us—”

“To us?”

“Well, look at them. They met, they just knew it was something special, and, despite the misgivings about it being too soon, they had the courage to reach for it. That's very brave.”

“I suppose you’re right.”

“I wish we were that brave.”

She set down her fork and looked up at Jared. In his eyes she saw something akin to regret but also an unmistakable dash of hope.

“I think in our case,” he went on, “our age and experience have acted against us. It's hard to be brave when you’re so busy being sensible.”

Liv laughed.
Sensible
was the perfect word for what they were—so sensible that it almost made her want to scream.

Music began to play in the distance, and Jared arched a brow.

“Old Blue Eyes,” he commented, looking into the air as if watching Sinatra himself perform in the trees. “Classic. Let's dance!”

Before she could accept, he had her by the hand, leading her into the living room, which was now transformed into a beautiful ballroom with dim, gold-tinted light shining from a large chandelier. A small, six-piece orchestra sat on a platform with a male singer in front, decked out in an old-fashioned dark suit with a skinny black tie.

Jared twirled her once for dramatic flair before leading Liv toward him for a dance. They were one of only about five other couples on the dance floor, and Liv felt as if they were the only ones on planet earth, swaying to the music, she wrapped up in his arms, her head nestled into the curve of his shoulder.

And Disneyland thinks they are The Happiest Place on Earth!
She had a thing or two to tell Mickey and that was for sure.

As the song drew to a close, Jared leaned back and looked into Liv's eyes. There was a sleepy, somewhat dreamy quality to his expression that sent warmth radiating from her heart, and it traveled all the way to her toes and up to the top of her head.

“Liv, I—”

“Ladies and gentlemen,” the singer interrupted. “Your hosts have asked that you all join them in the dining room for the cutting of the wedding cake.”

Jared sighed. “We can’t miss that. Shall we?”

Liv nodded, trying to smile over the top of the disappointment that she felt certain was streaming out of her eyes. What was Jared about to say?

It wasn’t until they started off the dance floor that Liv noticed Georgia was half of one of the couples alongside them out there. When their eyes met, Georgia yanked her partner by the arm toward them, grinning from ear to ear.

“Preston, this is my new friend, Olivia Wallace,” she crooned. “And Jared Hunt, the father of the groom and my boss.”

“Congratulations,” the man said as he shook Jared's hand. “Pleased to meet you both.”

“Preston is Shelby's uncle from right here in Fort Myers.”

“I guess you and Jared are family now then,” Liv added.

“I suppose we are. They make a nice couple.”

“I think so too,” Liv said with a smile. “We were just heading in for some cake. Join us?”

Preston nodded, and Liv shot a quick thumbs-up signal to Georgia from behind him. The ear-to-ear grin she returned told Liv that she may have adjusted her attention from Jared to this new and distinguished target she’d come across.

Liv guessed his age at somewhere in the late fifties. With a full head of salt and pepper hair (mostly salt), clear blue eyes, and about half a foot of height on Georgia, they made a nice-looking couple. Liv sent up a quick, silent wish that something developed between the two of them, for several reasons, but mostly because Georgia deserved to find love. And this was a realization that Liv found both surprising and somewhat comforting.

“Oh, good, Dad!” Rand exclaimed as they entered the dining room. “Come stand next to us for the pictures. Olivia, you too.”

The photographer's camera clicked off a dozen times before a slice of cake made it to a plate, and then a dozen more as Rand and Shelby fed one another dainty bites. Afterward, two waiters moved in to do the actual slicing and serving of a traditional white wedding cake with butter cream icing.

“So many people have the more exotic wedding cakes these days,” Liv said to Jared after her first bite. “It's so nice to get a taste of real wedding cake with no fruit filling or some gourmet fondant frosting.” At just that moment, Vivian floated by them. “The cake is exquisite, Vivian.”

“Oh, thank you. Jasper's niece is a pastry chef in Sarasota, and she made it for us.”

“The ceremony was just beautiful too. You’ve done such a lovely job putting it all together.”

“I appreciate your saying that. I won’t kid you, I was concerned. But it all came together just as it was supposed to.”

“I think you’re right,” Jared told her.

Vivian reached out and patted his arm. “Enjoy yourselves,” she added before continuing her rounds.

When they entered the ballroom again a few minutes later, half a dozen waiters were circulating with silver trays bearing crystal glasses of sparkling cider. Jared accepted two of them and then handed one to Liv.

“Thank you all for coming,” Rand said through a microphone from atop the orchestra platform. Shelby stood beside him. “I think most of you already know that Shelby and I will be leaving for England in a few days, so it means that much more to us that we had the opportunity to share this night with the people closest to us.” He and Shelby raised their glasses as he added, “So here's from us to you. With deepest gratitude
and love, we ask that you and your families are all blessed and healthy in the months to come as we start our life together.”

Everyone raised their glasses as well, and several congratulatory wishes popped from various points around the room before they all sealed the deal with a sip.

“Olivia, how about a trip around the dance floor with me?” Rand suggested as he walked toward her.

“I’d be honored.”

Jared offered an arm to Shelby, and the four of them hit the floor to an instrumental version of
Moon River
.

“I used to roll my eyes at my dad when he’d pull out his vinyl record relics and play these old songs,” Rand told Liv. “But when we were talking about what kind of band we wanted tonight, Shelby and I both thought it would be cool to get someone who could sing all the classics. We heard these guys play at her parents’ anniversary party last week, and we were stoked when they had the date free. I’m sure my dad is on Cloud Nine.”

“Oh, he is,” she said with a chuckle. “We were outside having dinner when he heard something by Frank Sinatra. He got all dewy-eyed like he’d found a long-lost friend.”

Rand laughed. “I can see it now.”

“It was a beautiful wedding, Rand. I’m so happy for you and Shelby.”

“Thanks, Olivia. I know a lot of people think we’re out of our tree, but it's right for us to be together. I don’t have a doubt about that.”

“Some people never find that kind of confidence in a relationship. It's awe-inspiring.”

“Good,” he replied. “Maybe it will inspire you and my dad to take a chance on love, ya think?”

Liv grinned, smacked Rand on the shoulder, and leaned into his embrace to continue their dance in silence. After a moment, though, she tilted her head back and laughed out loud.

As the music wound down to a close, Jared approached them with Shelby on his arm.

“What are you two laughing about?” he asked, but Rand just shook his head.

“Your son has a filtering problem,” Liv told him. “Whatever he thinks in his head comes straight out his mouth.”

“Don’t I know it.”

“It's a gift,” Rand added, and then he took his bride by the hand and walked away.

“How about we get some coffee and another piece of that cake?” Jared suggested.

“Sounds like a plan.”

With his hand on the small of her back, Jared led Liv toward the dining room. While she doctored the coffee, he picked up two plates of cake, and they met up at the French doors leading outside.

“It's so mild out tonight,” he commented. “Why don’t we sit on the veranda again?”

At the same table where they’d enjoyed their meal, Liv leaned back in her chair and glanced up at the twinkling tree branches overhead.

“I’m not so happy about a hurricane being the reason for it,” she said, “but I’m so glad I got to stay and see Rand get married.”

“I’m glad of that too. It wouldn’t have been the same without you. In fact—”

When he cut himself off, Liv turned toward him and asked, “In fact, what?”

“Well, I was going to say—in fact—the wedding isn’t the only thing that wouldn’t be the same without you.”

“Oh,” she replied knowingly.

“Life in general wouldn’t be the same. That's why I hope you’ll rethink this whole idea about—”

This time, it was Jared's ringing phone that sliced through the air.

This is getting to be a little ridiculous
, Liv thought.

“Sorry,” he said, slipping the cell phone out of his jacket pocket. “This is Jared Hunt.”

Liv sighed and took a large bite of cake.

“Josie, settle down. She's right here with me,” Jared said, and Liv inched to the edge of her chair. “Start at the beginning. What's happened to Hallie?”

“You made the choice to leave the clearing,” Horatio reminded Prudence.

“I know.”

“So why are you so sad when you’re only doing what you decided to do?”

“Because I’ve decided that I may have decided something I didn’t want to decide.”

Y
ou have your boarding pass?”

“Yes.”

“And your bag?”

“Yes.”

“Okay. And I have the car keys. I’ll return it after your flight leaves and take a taxi back home.” They moved forward in the line toward the security gate, and Liv pushed Boofer's plastic dog carrier along with them with her foot before turning to Jared with
a smile. “Thank you so much, Jared. For everything. I’m just so sorry I have to go like this, before we were able to figure out—”

“Don’t be ridiculous. Hallie's hurt, and she needs you. You go to her, and we’ll talk soon.”

“It's only good-bye for a little while, anyway,” she reasoned. “It's not like it's forever.”

“Exactly.”

“It's not like I’ll never see you again. I mean, there are airplanes and long weekends. People do it all the time.”

“Yes, they do.”

Boofer barked from inside the carrier at her feet, and Liv reached inside and tickled her chin. “Don’t worry. I’ll be with you the whole time.”

“I would have been happy to take care of her until Josie could come back.”

“We don’t know when that will be,” Liv reminded him. “I think it will be better for them both if I take her up there with me.”

“All right,” he said, and then he grabbed her hand and held it between both of his. “Have a good trip, and call me when you get there.”

“I will.”

“Give my love to Josie. Tell her I’m here if she needs anything at all.”

“I will.”

Jared gazed into her eyes for a long, pregnant moment. “I’ll miss you,” he told her.

“I’ll miss you too.”

“This has been a remarkable couple of weeks, and I’ve developed feelings for you that I didn’t know I knew how to feel.”

“Next in line,” the security guard called out to her. “Let's keep it moving.”

“Have you ever noticed how often our conversations are interrupted?” Jared asked her.

“I’ve noticed.”

“Come here.”