An Unexpected Groom

Chapter Two

“This can be immediately scrapped from the list of possible venues,” Drew told Kimberly as she directed him up the sloping drive of the rose-trellis-backed vineyard.

“It’s a beautiful fall wedding venue,” she argued. But from his point of view, she saw the problems immediately.

“Too open, too visible, one exit and entrance.” Drew shook his head.

“It is her wedding day,” Kimberly reminded him softly.

“And my goal is to get her to the honeymoon safely.” His grim look drew worry lines in his forehead. The Drew she remembered didn’t worry about anything, ever. Decisive and sure, he took everything in stride.

This Drew was different. “This is vulnerable. There’s no way we can have the future president of the United States sitting here in the open with so many unprotected vantage points. The Secret Service would have a field day with this, Kimber.” He used the childhood nickname as if they were still old friends. They weren’t. So why did it sound so nice when he said it? That was something Kimberly would examine more closely later. Or not at all.

“If they swoop in and change everything last minute, we’ll have wedding-day chaos. Let’s avoid that, okay?”

A man moved up, out of the vineyard area, and started to approach the car.

Rocky went ballistic in the rear of the SUV. Front paws braced, barking and snarling. Kimberly’s heart and nerves landed somewhere in the area of her feet when the big dog went into his protective maneuvers.

Drew uttered a one-word command in a foreign language. German, maybe?

The dog desisted, but stood at high alert, hackles raised, nose pointed forward, legs apart. He might be quiet, but his posture said he was ready to do whatever proved necessary to get the job done.

“Kimberly, you’ve never seen Rocky in action.” Sympathy laced Amy’s voice. “Are you okay?”

“Fine. Maybe. Somewhat.”

“Sorry.” Drew darted a quick look of apology her way as he steered the SUV down the exit driveway. “I should have explained that Rocky’s trained to react to uninvited guests. My bad. We weren’t scheduled to meet with anyone there, were we?”

“No. I expect that’s a vineyard worker, coming to see what we are doing or if we need anything.”

“The hill’s angle and the height of the grapevines combined so we didn’t see him until the last possible minute.” Drew pulled out onto the road and headed south. “There’s no way we can have enough people to keep that venue safe, not to mention the photography session at the historic grotto and then around the tip of the lake to the reception site at the inn. There just aren’t numbers enough to make that feasible when you’re talking political dignitaries, country music stars and a European royal family, half of whom come equipped with their own security teams that will, most likely, get in our way.”

“Excuse me for asking,” Kimberly began, and when Drew’s frown said she probably shouldn’t ask, she did anyway. “But wouldn’t this wedding be easier to pull off after the elections?”

“It would have been easier a year ago when Rick was just testing the waters of candidacy,” he replied as he turned south. “But now that he looks like the probable winner, there is no good time for eight years, assuming reelection. Which means we make do with the best we can do here, now. Why didn’t they pick one of those gracious old churches in town? Don’t people get married in sweet, historic churches anymore?”

Kimberly tapped her mother’s notebook. “Shelby made the very good point that by doing it in town, the regular fall traffic, paparazzi and fans would clog the roads, and they’d never get to the photo ops or the reception site, which is true. A bottleneck around The Square is a logistical nightmare during festivals. They’d have to block off roads, and that would cut into sales revenue for local small businesses. It was really nice of her to see it that way.” Their quaint, historic shopping area drew three-season tourist traffic, but major events challenged mobility, and that wasn’t something to be shrugged off for a wedding like Shelby’s.

“There aren’t any festivals the weekend they picked, are there?”

“No, but leaf peepers will be out in full force.”

“Good point.” He sighed and started to turn toward the gracious nineteenth-century gardens Kate had booked for a post-ceremony photo session, but he paused when Kimberly put her hand on his arm. “Turn right instead.”

“Because?”

“I just thought of something. If it works, we might be able to give Shelby the wedding she wants and deserves and you some peace of mind.”

* * *

Peace of mind?

With her hand on his arm, and the luminescent pearl polish glinting softly in the sun?

The scent of tropical fruit and flowers surprised him. At the office, he’d breathed in sugar and spice, but that must have been her mother’s lingering preference.

Her proximity and the hand on his arm as he swung the wheel wafted the scent of tropical fruit salad with a hint of floral, just enough to say “feminine and proud of it” and fun enough to say she liked summer.

So did he.

“Turn left at the top of this hill.”

He did what she asked, then nodded, remembering. “The Abbey.”

“Gorgeous, right?”

“Magnificent building.” Daryl peered out and whistled lightly. “Not much easy ingress or egress, plenty of parking, clear view on three sides. This is a wedding venue? How was it overlooked before?”

Kimberly climbed out and opened the back door for Amy. “Weddings, yes, on a limited basis, but no receptions. The friars sold the main building years ago, with certain stipulations to avoid commercialization. It’s run by an area mission church, and they’re fairly strict about usage in accordance with the friars’ wishes, but renting the building for weddings and retreats and conferences allows them money to fund their work.”

“So you’re thinking we could do the ceremony here...”

“Let’s check availability,” Kimberly advised. “Uncle Steve is the church pastor. His daughter Tara oversees the calendar. Hopefully she’s home.”

“I remember Tara. She was like...twelve.”

“Time marches on,” Kimberly noted softly.

“Someone lives here?” Amy’s eyes went wide as she eyed the broad, beautiful stone building with the impressive domed middle. “This would be like living in a castle.”

“Which would be perfect because then I could put you in the dungeon,” Drew agreed. “That way I’d know where you were, 24/7.”

She laughed and clasped his hand as she exchanged a grin with Kimberly, and that brief moment made the sun seem brighter and the breeze sweeter.

“That view is amazing.” Daryl waved east as he released Rocky from the back of the SUV. The terraced hillside gave way to the long, slim shoreline of Canandaigua Lake.

“Fabulous, right?” Kimberly smiled at Daryl’s surprise, and when he looked over his shoulder at Drew and gave him a thumbs-up, she hoped the date was available. She climbed the steps and rang the bell outside the office door.

Almost instantly the window above them was pushed open. “Kimberly!”

“Tara, hey.” She took a step back and looked up, but she was closer to the step’s edge than she thought. When her three-inch heel missed concrete, she expected to crash to the pavement.

Two hands caught her waist, steadying her. And then for the sweetest of moments, they didn’t let go. “You okay?”

That voice. Deep. Low. Caring. Always looking out for others. The combination of his grip, the tone and the whisper of his breath against her neck took her back to a time when life and love seemed simple. How much had changed since then.

“Yes. Thank you.” She turned and looked straight into concerned, desert camo eyes, flecks of green, gold and brown vying for attention. Warrior eyes. “I’m glad you were there.”

“Me, too.”

Her heart did a physiologically impossible dance in her chest. She chalked it up to an adrenaline rush from the near fall and looked at him again.

“Don’t fall!” Tara’s face mixed joy and concern over Kimberly’s lack of grace. “I’m coming right down. Kimberly, it’s been forever!”

“Friendly little thing.” Drew kept his tone low. “A bit out of step with the dignity of the surroundings, isn’t she?”

“Whereas I would say she was happy to see her cousin after several years away and leave it at that.”

Tara didn’t come to the side door and open it for them. She stepped through the main doors leading into the friary, waited while they came across the tapered steps, then grabbed Kimberly in a hug. “Oh, I miss you! You look marvelous, and I was totally hoping you were planning to have the wedding in Grace Haven and would pick the Abbey. Kimberly, it will be beautiful!”

Drew paused inside the door. So did Daryl. They exchanged looks; then Drew turned, one brow hiked. “You’re getting married?”

Right about then having the floor open up and swallow her whole would have gotten a preferential nod.

Didn’t happen.

Kimberly shook her head and waved off Tara’s words as she realized with her parents’ current circumstances, word of her broken engagement hadn’t been forwarded to the extended family. “Clearly I should have signed into social media last month and changed my status update.” She held out a ringless left hand for Tara to see. “I won’t be looking for a personal wedding venue anytime soon.”

Tara winced. “Kimberly, I’m sorry. I had no idea.”

Kimberly shrugged it off. “It’s not a big deal. It’s actually for the best, but thanks.” She nodded toward Drew, Daryl and Amy. “Tara, this is Drew Slade, his daughter, Amy, and his security partner, Daryl Jackson. We’re helping a client prepare for her wedding, and our first venue doesn’t allow for the level of security we need. Then I thought of the Abbey.”

“And I’m glad you did,” Tara declared. “Drew, good to see you again,” she continued in an easy tone. “It’s been a long time,” she added, then motioned toward the office wing. “Shall we check dates first or tour the building?”

“Tour.” Drew’s ease at taking charge said he did it often. Would that take-charge attitude extend to overthrowing all the bride’s decisions? Kimberly aimed a frown his way.

He ignored it completely.

“Come this way.” Tara moved down the spacious entry hall. Daryl and Amy fell in behind Tara, and somehow Drew ended up alongside Kimberly. He turned her way as they walked and kept his voice low. “Who broke it off?”

He did not just ask that, did he? As if it was his business? Because it wasn’t. Remembering the price tag on this gig and the cost of her father’s experimental treatment in Houston made her smile and play nice when she longed to tell Drew Slade to mind his own business. She couldn’t do that, so she shrugged lightly. “He did.”

Drew studied her for long, thick seconds, long enough for her heart to do that step-toe dance again. Then he leaned closer. “He’s a moron, Kimber, but I might just send him a thank-you note.”

Kimberly was pretty sure her breathing paused as their eyes met. “For?”

He winked.

Her heart stuttered, or was that her lungs? Maybe both, because Drew Slade had just flirted with her. Sure, he was just trying to ease an awkward moment, but that one brief exchange was enough to stir up those old schoolgirl feelings.

But that was then and this was now, and a whole lot of ugly had passed under their respective bridges.

Tara waited for them to catch up. “Exactly whose wedding are we planning?”

“Shelby Vandeveld’s,” Kimberly replied.

“That’s a name that raises the stakes somewhat, doesn’t it?” Tara moved toward the chapel area. “As you can see, we have adequate space and generous surroundings to host events up to three hundred people. But the core of our allure lies in the chapel, of course.”

Daryl jotted notes as they walked.

Drew didn’t. In contrast, he studied the venue from top to bottom as they toured the gracious old building. When Tara ended with the domed chapel, Drew paused just inside the door. “Stunning.”

“One of the best kept secrets of the Finger Lakes,” Tara agreed.

Drew shoulder-nudged Kimberly. “You’re brilliant.”

“Save the praise until we mesh dates. I’m sure they have several fall retreats scheduled.”

“We do, so let’s move to my office and see what we’ve got,” Tara suggested.

They moved to the office, where Tara drew up an electronic calendar on her desktop. When Drew gave her the date, she shook her head quickly. “Not available for that weekend or the one before. We have a Sunday open the second week of October...”

“Just Sunday?”

She met Drew’s eye and nodded.

“We need a seventy-two-hour clean date.”

If asking for a three-day security window on popular venues mere weeks ahead of time surprised Tara, she covered it well. “Nothing in October.”

Kimberly had expected that answer, so when Tara paged back to September, she was surprised.

“We had a retreat cancellation,” Tara explained, and she tapped the calendar in front of her. “We actually have a four-day window in September as a result. Would your reception venue be available then?”

Drew frowned. “Most likely not.” He scrubbed a hand over the back of his neck. “I should have anticipated Rick’s candidacy and been here at the first meeting between your mother and Shelby. The blame for this is coming straight to my door.”

Kimberly looked at Tara. “How many people were supposed to be at the canceled retreat?”

“Just shy of three hundred.” She studied Kimberly’s face and cringed as if reading her mind. “You know the rules, Kim.”

“How many Indonesian missions is Holy Name Church supporting right now?”

“Three.”

“A price tag like this could double that option and fulfill a patriotic duty. If we don’t figure this out, I’ve got a very nice bride who’s being robbed of her wedding day because she had the nerve to fall in love at a politically incorrect time. Where’s Uncle Steve?”

“He’s at the church food cupboard in Prattsburgh.”

“Would he mind a visit?”

“From you? Never. But don’t be disappointed if he has to say no.”

“What are we asking him, exactly?” Drew faced the two women directly. “The lack of dates puts this out of the question, doesn’t it? Maybe we should consider just having the wedding, pictures and reception at the inn and be done with it.”

“That’s a last-resort answer to an ongoing unresolved problem,” Kimberly chided him. “Let me go talk to Uncle Steve, and we’ll see if we can make this right.”

“There’s nothing wrong with the inn plan, Kimber.”

Drew leveled that stubborn cop gaze her way. Her heart wanted to step closer, smooth the irritation that creased his brow again, but her head kept her right where she belonged, four distinct feet away. “If what Shelby wanted was an everyday wedding, that’s what she would have planned and that would be fine. But a woman who chose rose gardens and a grotto with an amazing view of Canandaigua Lake probably was looking for a perfect fall setting to match the colors she’s picked for everything from flowers to linens to chair drapes. This won’t be exactly what she dreamed about, but it would be something special. Let me talk to Uncle Steve and see what he says.”

“About?”

“Maybe doing the whole thing right here.”

That piqued his interest. Daryl’s, too. He looked intrigued and nodded. “That would solve a myriad of problems, pretty lady.”

“But you said it was against the rules.” Drew included Tara in his statement, but Kimberly answered.

“It is, technically, but there’s nothing holier than the blessing of matrimony. Uncle Steve’s got the final say, but this could work. Of course, we’d have to let the other venue know—”

“No.”

She turned toward Drew, surprised. “No? What do you mean?”

“If this works out, if your uncle agrees, then we keep the other venue listed.”

Daryl nodded again. “The perfect red herring.”

“Yes. We’d pay them, of course, but losing the cost of that is worth the added security we’d get by bringing everyone into town four weeks earlier than we originally planned." He turned toward Tara. “How’s your security on that computer?”

She raised a spiral-bound notebook and asked, “What computer?”

He grinned, and when he did his face shed years of worry. “You’ve done this before.”

“We’ve hosted some big names in the last five years. Knowing when to go old-school and leave no electronic footprint has been helpful.”

“You’re talking our language.”

“But first.” Kimberly reached out her hand for the keys. “I need the keys to go see Uncle Steve.”

He could have just tossed her the keys. He didn’t. He turned toward Tara. “With your permission, I’d like Daryl and Rocky to stay here and familiarize themselves with the layout. And if you two don’t mind, can I leave Amy here so I’m not distracted while I meet your dad?”

She laughed and hooked a thumb toward the east wing. “My mother made cookies last night when things cooled off. Amy and I can grab some and talk girl stuff so Daryl can get his work done.”

Amy hesitated, mock-concerned. “There is no dungeon, right? Because Dad might have an ulterior motive for leaving me here.”

Drew grinned, and once again Kimberly glimpsed the guy he’d been before drug dealers had gunned his partner down in the street. “Then be extra good, honey. Just in case.” He turned back to Kimberly. “Let’s go.”

“You really feel the need to watch me coax my uncle into opening the Abbey for the reception?”

He strode past her, through the door and toward the car. “No surprises, remember? Like it or not, Kimber.” He turned and faced her over the roof of the SUV. “We’re attached at the hip for a while.”

“What about the senator? Who’s protecting him and the family if you and Daryl are here?”

“He’s under Secret Service jurisdiction now. When it comes to this wedding?” He pointed to her, then hooked a thumb back toward himself. “It’s you and me.”

His serious expression held her gaze, but then he did the unthinkable.

He smiled.

And in that smile she saw a glimmer of hope she hadn’t noticed in the first two hours they were together. It brightened his eyes and relaxed his jaw, letting her glimpse the old Drew she’d liked so well back in the day.

Her phone rang. She checked the display and saw her sister-in-law’s name. Dave’s widow, Corinne, left to raise her toddler son and unborn daughter on her own. A single parent driven by circumstances she might not have faced if Drew had gotten to the appointed meeting place on time.

She answered the call, still facing Drew. “Corinne, hey! What’s up? How are the kids?”

The sound of Corinne’s name accomplished her goal.

Guilt replaced Drew’s smile. She’d done it purposely to remind him of what her family had lost at his hands.

He climbed into the car, waited while she finished the call, then started the engine once she was seated. Hands tight on the steering wheel, he aimed the car south and drove to the little town of Prattsburgh without saying a word.

She’d changed his easy mood intentionally, and now she had a twenty-minute drive to ponder what she’d done. When they finally pulled into the parking lot of the small stone church, she figured that might have been the longest twenty minutes of her life, and it was all her fault.

A roadside sign invited people to the weekend services. Beneath the listed times was one simple quote: “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called children of God.”

The tight line of Drew’s jaw indicated she needed a whole lot of work in the peacemaker department. He waited while she moved ahead, not meeting her gaze.

Shame coursed through her. Her parents and sisters had never blamed Drew. Now, seeing his reaction to Corinne’s call, Kimberly glimpsed a hollowness inside him, an emptiness that reflected her own. Her shallow move had opened a fresh chasm between them, and she had no clue how to fix it.

She turned as Uncle Steve came through the church door. When he welcomed Drew with a big hug, she felt worse than ever.

Blessed are the peacemakers...

The sign taunted her. Seeing Uncle Steve’s hearty welcome to an old family friend spoke volumes. The rest of the family had moved on, long ago. Why couldn’t she?

Because you were mad at Dave when he died. He’d scolded you about being self-absorbed, and you hung up on him.

And then he was gone. Just gone. And no amount of apology could bring him back or fix that last fateful call.

“Kimberly!” Uncle Steve’s robust voice jerked her back into the here and now. As she stepped past Drew to hug her father’s brother, guilt still bit deep. She’d been a jerk, then and now. Could she change?

Sure, if she wanted to badly enough. One way or another, she needed to come to peace with three things while she was back in Grace Haven. The loss of her beloved brother and a sweeter relationship with her two sisters headed the list. And the other?

She sighed inside.

The other was finding a common ground with Drew Slade. From the set of his jaw right now, that one didn’t look the least bit likely.