No Groom Like Him

More laughter. More clicking cameras. The video was rolling, too.

Max cocked his head to the side and glanced at her with an expression that was amusement and arrogance rolled into one. “Yes to both questions.”

“Both?” She arched a quizzical eyebrow.

“Yes, I have professionals on staff and, yes, I have a relevant question.” Wealth and privilege radiated from him, in his matter-of-fact tone and his confident manner. There was no mistaking that he was a man used to getting what he wanted.

Lily knew it was coming before he even opened his mouth. It shouldn’t have taken her so long to make the connection because this man shouldn’t still have the ability to rob her of her faculties. She wasn’t thirteen anymore. Suddenly she remembered the inquiry that had arrived by fax to her office yesterday.

“Lily Susan, will you confirm that Worldwide Weddings Unlimited intends to contract Lieutenant Colonel Girard’s wedding before he begins his campaign for governor?”

Sure enough…

From Lily’s vantage she saw every head swivel toward Max. There were gasps and lots of scrambling for hand-held recorders to capture the breaking political news.

Lily wondered if there were laws against airing a live murder because she intended to kill Max as soon as she could get her hands on him. The only thing saving him was the press leaping all over his political announcement.

“Downey, what do you know about the candidate?”

“What’s the candidate’s political affiliation?”

“What makes the candidate think he stands a chance in the gubernatorial election against the incumbent?”

The balance shifted and this became Max’s press conference. Not as impromptu as hers, because the man clearly had an agenda, but Lily was impressed as much by the reporters’ ability to switch gears as she was by Max’s self-possession.

“Lieutenant Colonel Raymond Girard is my late wife’s brother,” Max explained. “His second tour in Afghanistan ends next May, and he’ll be retiring from military service. After he comes home, he hopes to continue serving his country as governor of this fine State of New York.”

“Who’s the candidate marrying?”

“Second Lieutenant Jamilyn Carmichael. She’s serving in Iraq. Hence, the need for the Wedding Angel to plan the ceremony. They have leave around the holidays and want an event at my family estate that will launch him into the public.”

The family estate. Overlook.

Just the thought tugged at Lily’s heartstrings. Every wedding she’d ever fantasized about as a girl had been set on the gorgeous grounds of the estate overlooking the Hudson River.

“Are you using your business connection to the Wedding Angel to get her to coordinate the wedding?”

Abusing that connection, more accurately.

But this reporter knew local history, at least, when it was obvious many didn’t. Heads swiveled around to Lily as if this was the first they’d heard about a Worldwide-Weddings-Unlimited and Downey-family connection, both personal and professional.

Lily wrested control of the conversation again.

“I expect the bride and groom will want peace at their event since they’ve both been living on the front lines.”

“The Wedding Angel can provide peace. She’s the best in the business,” Max said softly, but his voice carried. She detected a hint of a challenge in his demeanor.

“I thank you all for your interest, but a response would be premature. I simply don’t have any answers except to say Mr. Downey’s inquiry will follow standard Worldwide Wedding Unlimited precontract procedure.”

She flashed a professional smile. “But I can promise you after his inquiry undergoes the review process your media outlets will be given an exclusive. Please fax or email the manager at my local office and mention this press conference. She’ll make sure you know as soon as a decision about the Carmichael-Girard event is finalized.”

That got a round of applause, but Lily knew there wouldn’t be any news because she had veto power. And this event was vetoed already.

She couldn’t handle another rush-job right now. Not so soon after planning her own hurried wedding, an event she’d whipped together during a whirlwind engagement that had gone belly-up in a public way. She’d salvaged what she could from the wreckage, but Lily didn’t doubt these reporters knew all the gory details.

She’d turned the wedding of her dreams into a full-scale charity event, because she’d refused to waste a perfectly amazing party. Since the venue had been a palace on the Dalmatian Coast—a favorite getaway for her and Lucas—the organization she chose as recipient supported war orphans in the former Yugoslavia. Fortunately, the response had been impressive.

At least she’d been able to feel good about that.

But the emotional upheaval had taken its toll, and she’d come home because she needed to regroup and reenergize her depleted batteries and heal before she burned out her creativity completely. Max had no business putting her on the spot—and on the record—this way. If he thought this public announcement would persuade her…

She was here to plan her sister-in-law Riley’s wedding—a tiny affair Lily could plan in her sleep.

“Thank you for the welcome reception,” Lily addressed the crowd. “I hope I’ve answered your questions.” Too bad she couldn’t answer her own. Like why she’d allowed her life to spin out of control and would she ever regain her equilibrium?

She might have the skills to fake the professional image, but inside her nerves were rattled. Why was Max trying to add more chaos to her life?

Retrieving her belongings, she turned to thank the pilot who appeared behind her then headed down the steps.

The crowd parted as she made her way toward the terminal of the private airstrip. She didn’t slow down until she was inside, away from the reporters who were trailing her. Her baggage already waited on a trolley. Glancing around for assistance, she guessed her dad must be outside to pick her up since he wasn’t in here.

Max entered. Tall and attractive with his glossy hair and light eyes, he looked the way he always had with those broad shoulders and long-legged strides. But what had happened to his good sense? Putting her on the spot that way. Honestly.

Even when he’d been in college, he’d kept his cool after he caught her drinking apple-blossom wine with her teenage friends in the Main Mall parking garage. He’d promised not to tell—this time. But he’d threatened to tell her parents if he ever caught her drinking again. Then he’d insisted on driving her home.

And kept his word.

He headed toward a bench, where he scooped up a trench coat. After sliding on the coat, he turned that striking gaze on her. Her heartbeat rocketed.

“Why are you here?” she asked. “Did you think that public announcement would get you what you want?”

He closed the distance between them, making her suddenly so aware of how she had to tilt her head back to meet his gaze.

“I’m here to give you a ride home.” Stepping around her, he reached for the trolley. “Your father sent me.”

“Why? Is he all right?”

“He’s fine.” Everything about him struck her as masculine, in charge.

“If he was busy, why didn’t my mom come?”

The dimples flashed as he turned on the charm. “You know your mother. With the prodigal returning, she invited everyone for dinner. She’s been cooking and cleaning. I offered because I wanted to talk to you about my brother-in-law’s wedding.”

He sounded wistful, almost as if he longed to have someone at home preparing for his return. Lily swallowed an urge to blast him for his comments at the press conference. How could she? How did one blast a man who had lost most of his family in a car accident? His wife, pregnant with their son, had been killed instantly and their young daughter had barely survived.

True, the accident had happened two years ago, but this was the first time she’d seen Max. She’d been out of the country at the time and while she would have dropped everything to make the trip home, he hadn’t had a funeral service. With his daughter fighting for her life, he and his wife’s family had opted for a simple memorial mass at church.

“Thank you, Max. I appreciate the lift.”