Chapter Eighteen

Wyatt stood inside the theater lobby waiting for Tori. He’d arrived a few minutes earlier than he’d planned—okay, technically it was fifteen, but only because he couldn’t stand waiting around at home glancing at the digital clock on his stove every twenty seconds.

He’d been looking forward to this all day. Astrid was right; he needed this. He’d been working so hard lately, and it had been showing in his mood. And, as he’d told Tori, he could use this chance to unwind just as much as her.

He still had another ten minutes before the movie started and had been using the last five to look around. Despite spending countless Friday nights in the small, one-screen theater, he’d never noticed before how charming the space was. How much character it had.

Depending on the number of people invited, it could be the perfect venue for a wedding ceremony. It was fun, unique, everything young couples were looking for. Especially ideal for anyone with a genuine appreciation for movies. Even Wyatt could see himself getting married at a place like this someday. He could already see the giant photos of him and his bride posing in imitations of popular movie posters. They could come up with their own cute, modernized titles like 'Mr. and Mrs. Rhoades,' 'You’ve Got DMs,' and 'My Big Fat Scottish Wedding'—his mom’s family was originally from Glasgow.

Of course, they’d need touches of the bride as well. Popcorn stations with different flavors and colors. Orange dahlias everywhere. He grinned, imagining how Tori’s face would light up at the sight of her favorite flowers. Not that he was really daydreaming about him and Tori getting married someday. He’d just needed an example, and naturally she was the first person he’d thought of. Nothing more.

His heartbeat kicked up as he thought of her for the sixtieth time that day. No matter where he was or what he was doing, he couldn’t seem to get her out of his head. She’d looked so overwhelmed at the flower shop yesterday. Pulling her to his chest had somehow felt like both the best and worst moment of his life.

And now he had to sit through an hour-and-a-half movie trying to think about anything other than how perfect she’d felt in his arms.

Oh no. When did his hands get so sweaty? He wiped them off on his light-blue button-down. He wasn’t supposed to feel nervous about this. It was just a friendly outing, like when he’d invited her to the mill for junk food Olympics, yet tonight felt different. As though what happened between them yesterday had changed things. He just wasn’t sure how they’d changed exactly. Or if he was the only one noticing it.

He gave his palms another swipe down his front. He checked his shirt for any evidence of his nervous sweating, froze when he saw a giant ketchup stain just beneath his collar on the right side. It must have happened during his lunch with Gammie that afternoon, and he’d been walking around most of the day with it practically screaming at everyone he passed.

There was no way he could ignore it now. He could make a quick trip to the bathroom, try to clean it off with some soap and water. But the chances of getting the stain out were slim, and either way he’d end up with an even bigger wet spot. No, his best bet was to ditch the shirt altogether. There was a trash bin nearby, but that meant throwing away a perfectly good shirt. Still, it might be worth it…

Wyatt checked his phone. He had just enough time to run to his truck a few blocks down and stash the shirt there before Tori showed.

He bolted for the door.

Tori was not nervous at all as she bought her ticket at the booth outside the theater.

And why should she be? This was nothing more than a movie with a friend. Even if that friend had set off a never-ending swarm of butterflies in her chest yesterday afternoon.

In her defense, she was pretty sure heart palpitations and light-headedness were the symptoms of hunger and sleep deprivation, and she’d made sure to grab a light dinner and a quick nap before she left the house to ensure nothing like that would happen again.

No, these were definitely not side effects of meeting Wyatt tonight.

Tori entered the lobby, scanning for a familiar head of dark blond hair and coming up short. Not really surprising. She was a good eight minutes early, and Wyatt was far too relaxed to show with so much time left before the movie started. Knowing him, he’d probably stroll in just as the opening credits started to roll—

Oof.

Something hard bumped Tori’s shoulder, followed by the smacks of several candy boxes hitting the ground. She teetered, nearly knocked off balance by a man in a long-sleeved shirt and cargo shorts. His face was hidden by a giant tub of popcorn that had somehow managed to survive the impact.

“Oh no! I’m so sorry.” She bent to pick up the boxes of Milk Duds and Sno-Caps and other candies that had fallen to the floor. “Here you go.”

The popcorn shifted, revealing a head of shaggy white-blond hair. “Oh hey, Tori.”

“Collin, hi. What a small world.”

He shrugged. “Small town.” Okay, if there had been any doubts before that he and Dani were meant for each other, they were long gone. He nodded toward a man at his side. “This is my brother, Mark. He’s in town and staying with me for a few days.”

There was no way of denying the family resemblance even if he’d wanted to. Collin and Mark were practically the same person with their matching builds, blue eyes, and blond hair. If she hadn’t already known his brother went to school with Wyatt, she would have guessed they were twins. Tori offered her hand then realized his were even more full than Collin’s. Were they here to watch a movie or stock up for the zombie apocalypse?

She quickly retracted her hand. “Nice to meet you. I’m Tori.”

“Tori’s our wedding planner,” Collin explained to his brother.

His eyes lit with what looked like recognition. “Oh right. I thought that name sounded familiar. How much longer ’til the big day?”

“Six weeks,” she and Collin answered simultaneously.

Mark laughed, and Collin shrugged. “Dani’s been a little extra on edge about everything. Things have been a bit tense between her and Georgina lately.”

Really? But she’d gotten the impression that she and her mother were completely in sync about everything. It was why Dani kept sending Georgina to their meetings in her place. Wasn’t it?

Mark shuddered. “Better you than me, man. I remember those days with Alyssa all too well. I can only imagine how much crazier a Bedland wedding must be.”

“You have no idea,” Collin muttered. He jostled the boxes in his hands to check his watch. “We should go find our seats. The movie’s starting soon. You coming in, Tori?”

“Not yet. I’m waiting for Wyatt.”

Mark perked up even more. “Wyatt Rhoades? You mean you’re here to meet Rivers?” He looked her up and down. “Good for him.”

Rivers? Why did that sound so familiar? “I’m sorry, what was that you just called him?”

“What, Rivers? It’s just some dumb nickname from when we were kids. Honestly, I can’t even remember why we called him that.”

Oh. My. Gosh. It couldn’t be. No way was Wyatt the kid from the baseball story. That was supposed to be made up, right? “So you know each other well?”

“Pretty well, yeah. Which is how I can tell you’re way out of his league.” Collin elbowed Mark hard in his side.

“Why would you think that?”

Mark shrugged. “Rivers is kind of a weird guy, has been since we were kids. Real shy, keeps mostly to himself, sort of awkward.”

“Really?” Wyatt had told her how shy he’d seemed as a kid, but people rarely saw themselves clearly, especially during their adolescence. Knowing Wyatt like she did now, she just couldn’t picture it.

“Oh yeah. And did I mention how hopeless he was with girls? He was as bad with them as he was at sports. And he was really bad at sports.”

“Sports like Little League?” She was too curious not too ask.

Mark’s eyes narrowed slightly. “Yeah, actually. How’d you—?” His eyes grew wider, then flicked toward his brother. “Dude, I just remembered where the nickname came from.” He bent forward in laughter, nearly spilling his popcorn.

“Like I said, we really should head in now.” Collin drowned out his brother’s laughter. “We’ll see you later, Tori.”

She managed to stifle a knowing grin. “Sure, see you guys later.”

Collin nudged Mark toward the theater door. His older brother stopped halfway and turned back. “Hey, make sure Wyatt comes and says hey before you guys go.”

“Oh, trust me, I definitely will.”

The theater door closed behind them, and Tori sucked both her lips between her teeth to keep from squealing.

Poor Wyatt. She’d thought the Rivers story was sad before; now it was so much worse putting a face to it, knowing it was actually real.

“Hey, sorry I’m late.”

Tori’s smile grew, and she was reminded of when she was a little girl waking up on Christmas morning. She didn’t know whether to laugh or hug him when she turned around. As it turned out, she was too busy staring to do either.

His hair was its usual curly mess, but instead of his signature open button-down he wore only a gray T-shirt just like he had that night on the beach. The shirt was snugger than usual, giving shape to the muscular arms she’d felt wrapped around her yesterday. His chest rose and fell rapidly as if he’d just been running. It pulled the thin cotton even tighter over his broad chest.

Of all his T-shirts that she’d seen—and there had been so many—this one was by far her favorite. She didn’t even care that it featured “Dill With It” right above a hand-drawn picture of a pickle. Her eyes slid over his square shoulders, down to the biceps peeking out beneath his shirt sleeves, and she felt a wave of heat rush to her face.

But beating all that was the sparkle in his eyes when she finally met them, the way his face lit up brighter than the lights of the marquee outside, that made her heart flutter uncontrollably.

And now she was standing here staring at him like a lovesick teenager. She shook herself. “Not late. The movie doesn’t start for another two minutes.” Okay, she needed to get a grip fast. “I, uh, just met an old friend of yours.” That’s right, Tori. Think about Rivers. That should help cool her off some.

“Oh yeah, which one?” He was smiling, but there was also the tiniest hint of alarm in his round eyes.

“Collin’s brother, Mark. They’re here to see the movie too. Collin introduced us, and then Mark started entertaining me with stories about you when you were younger.”

He grimaced. “Oh, great. ’Cause you’re exactly the person I want knowing my embarrassing secrets.”

“Only one embarrassing secret really.” And, technically, he’d been the one to tell her first.

His eyes narrowed. “What did he tell you?”

“Not much. Just that you had a little trouble when it came to girls”—she couldn’t stop her growing grin—“and sports.”

“I told you I was shy and dorky growing up.”

“I know you did, but I thought you were exaggerating.” The dorky thing she could understand. She’d seen that side of him often enough through his silly T-shirts. But shy? That she just couldn’t see no matter how hard she tried.

“Trust me, I wasn’t. You know how a person can go away to college and change so much, but the second they meet up with their old friends or show up to their high school reunion they revert back to whoever they were in high school?” The tips of his ears turned bright red; what he was about to say next clearly pained him. “That’s what living in this town is like. I was the socially awkward kid who kept to himself. I would get nervous talking to people I didn’t know very well, so I’d inevitably say something weird. I never liked being in the spotlight, so I mostly tended to fade into the background. That’s who I’ve always been to the people I grew up with. It doesn’t matter that I have my own business and have to talk to people I don’t know on a regular basis. All they see is my past, and because I know that, even when I try not to, I always end up reverting to that guy.”

It made sense, but that didn’t explain why he never seemed like that guy when she was around. “But you always seem so open and carefree.”

“That’s because of you, Tori, not me.”

“Me?”

He nodded. “You never saw who I was before. Even from the first time I saw you, I didn’t feel like the nervous, awkward guy. Then you went along with all my crazy stories, and I felt like I could be myself around you. I don’t mind being in your spotlight because you see me for who I am now. And for some reason, you like it.

“I don’t have a lot of friends. At least not many who I talk to more than simply in passing or for work purposes. My own grandmother feels the need to try to set me up with women because she’s worried I won’t be able to find one on my own.”

“Did you ever think that maybe some of these women are interested and you just can’t see it?” Like Amy at the flower shop yesterday afternoon. She’d been giving him all the signals and even flirting with him, and he still hadn’t noticed. How many other Amys were out there who he refused to see?

“No, they’re really not.” He laughed humorlessly to himself, staring down at his feet. “Most girls aren’t into weird, shy kids or the dorky T-shirt, dad joke guys they grow up to be.” He kicked at the carpeted ground, and she felt the urge to throw up a protective wall between him and his own harsh words.

Tori took a step closer. Her hand rose instinctively to his chest in a gesture that was supposed to reassure him. “I am.”

Wyatt’s face lifted slowly, and his brow creased as he seemed to consider her and the two words that had just escaped from her lips. Then he pulled out that smirk that sent her stomach in an uproar of butterfly wings. He placed his hand over hers on his chest. “I’ll be sure to keep that in mind.”

His voice was low and gruff, and it sent tingles through Tori’s entire nervous system. Her gaze fell to his lips for the second time in as many days, and this time there was not a doubt in her mind that she wanted them.

Wyatt seemed to know it too. His heartbeat raced beneath her hand, and his eyes turned ten times brighter. He leaned forward a fraction, and Tori’s breath hitched.

“Last call for the movie!”

Tori and Wyatt sprang apart, both of their heads turning automatically to a teenage boy with long brown hair and mild acne, holding open the theater door and poking his head outside. His face was beet red as he looked between Wyatt and Tori. “Sorry,” he muttered. Another boy beside the door smacked the back of his head.

Tori didn’t know when the theater lobby had emptied, but she and Wyatt now stood alone in the center with a half a dozen teenagers in red vests gawking at them. No one said anything, the room so quiet Tori thought for sure they could hear her heart pounding in her chest.

“Um, that’s okay.” She rubbed her palm over the back of her neck to help cool it. “Why don’t you go get some snacks from the stand, and I’ll go get us seats,” she told Wyatt, unable to make direct eye contact.

“Right, yeah. Okay.” He glanced over his shoulder at the snack stand, and Tori used the opportunity to make a break for the theater door.

“What anything specific?” he called after her.

“Surprise me.” She zoomed past the kid at the door and into the theater.

It was already dark inside, lit only by the screen as the voice overhead told them to silence their phones. The seats were almost completely full, but she managed to find two together in the very back row.

She settled herself into one of them and slid low on the cushion. She placed her palms over her red-hot cheeks and was grateful for the few minutes alone in the dark. She needed to collect herself and figure out what on Earth had just happened.

It was like he had no idea what people really thought about him. What she really thought about him. She’d all but told him just now. Then he’d looked like he was going to kiss her. And there was no denying that she’d wanted him to.

Her stomach twisted a little. She’d compared him to Christmas morning, for crying out loud. This was not the way she was supposed to feel about someone who was just a friend.

But she did. Had for a while, if she were being honest with herself. At least since the night he’d taken her to the old mill, probably before that. And she wasn’t so sure she wanted to fight it anymore. It was exhausting, and she was already so tired.

“I’m just surprised, is all.” The deep, low voice came from the row of seats in front of her, not as quiet as it sounded like it was meant to be. Hopefully, whoever it was didn’t decide to talk through the movie once it started. “I’m sure her stuff is great and all, but how could you be so cold to Rivers?”

That name caught her attention. Tori sat up in her seat and turned her head slightly to hear clearer.

“It’s not personal.” This voice she easily recognized as Collin’s. “Wyatt knows that.”

“And if he were a terrible wedding planner, I’d accept it. But Mom said he was actually pretty good at it. Go figure.”

“He is good,” Collin said quieter, leaving Tori no choice but to lean forward in her seat. “He had some great ideas, and Dani and I were ready to hire him after we saw his plan for the brewery.”

Wait, what?

“So, what happened? Why’d you leave him high and dry?”

“I don’t know exactly. Dani just said she changed her mind. We were all set to go with Wyatt, but she said someone convinced her to pick Tori in the end.”

The world fell out from under her. She sat back in her seat, gripping the armrests to keep herself from falling with it.

She’d known. She’d known the second she saw that look on Dani’s face that she’d lost this wedding. And now, according to Collin, she really had for all of about ten minutes. Someone had convinced them to pick Tori. But who could have done that? It sure as heck wasn’t her. Lettie or Deb would have told her if they’d had a talk with Dani, so it was neither of them.

Who else stood to gain from Tori getting this gig?

Honestly, you probably saved me from getting too far in over my head.

No, no, there was no way. Wyatt wouldn’t have done that to her. He knew how important it was to her that she win it fair and square. But he also knew better than anyone just how badly she wanted—no, needed—this gig.

Maybe I should just throw in the towel now.

The screen went black as the movie started. The production company’s name showed in white letters, then a shrill scream burst through the speakers. People jumped in their seats around her, followed by a few snickers, but Tori could barely hear it over the ringing in her ears. She was going to be sick.

She flung herself up from her seat, raced across the row into the aisle, and bolted toward the door.