Holiday Wedding (3 page)

Since their split to separate continents, they'd managed a cordial business relationship. Would things be different once they saw each other?

She stood, walked over to her doorway, and peered out. Her gaze rested on the empty office across from hers that Natalie had set up this morning for Drew's arrival.

What would it be like to have him mere feet away for the next two weeks?

Leaning against her door, she couldn't help but wonder: Would she be able to resist his sexy smile or his gorgeous blue eyes when he was a stone's throw away? Did she even want to? That was the bigger question she'd wrestled with these last few months.

She couldn't deny that she'd been thinking about Drew quite a bit lately and all the holidays they'd spent together—some right here in the city. Shortly after graduation, they had moved into a Brooklyn apartment and worked for a few years in New York City before relocating to California.

Though Drew had difficulty getting into the Christmas spirit, she'd always done her best to surround him in holiday cheer, particularly during those early years together, whether it was strolling by festive window displays, ice skating on a brisk night, or taking in the beauty of the Rockefeller Center tree.

Last Christmas, she'd done all of those things alone or dragged Miles, pretending things were better this way. Deep down, she couldn't help but wonder what it would be like to have a second chance to twirl around Drew on the ice, or have his strong arms around her as they gazed at the magnificent tree—

Luke's agitated voice jolted her out of her Christmas past. She turned and took her seat. “Okay, I'm headed right over. We'll straighten all of this out. I love you.” He stood and raked his hand through his short blond hair.

“Kate okay?” Lauren raised a curious eyebrow.

“She will be. My dad and her mom want to talk to us. I've got to meet them at St. Patrick's Cathedral.” He looked down at his watch. “Shoot.”

“What's wrong?”

“I'm supposed to pick up Drew at JFK in an hour. I'll never make it over there in time.”

“I can do it,” she blurted out, jumping up from her chair. Her eagerness surprised even her, and she calmly sat back down, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. “I'm happy to pick him up. I drove today.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah, I'm done for the day anyway.”

“That's not really what I'm asking.” Concern colored Luke's face.

Lauren had confided in Luke that she'd been thinking about Drew a lot lately, and how nervous she was about the reunion. “I'm fine. Really. It will be fine.”

“You know, these next two weeks might be just what you both need to reconnect.”

“Do you think so?” she asked, not bothering to mask the hint of hope in her question.

“You two belong together. I've always believed that. If you need me to slap some sense into my twin, I will.”

She laughed because Luke probably would do exactly that if she asked. He'd made it known to both of them how silly he thought it was that they weren't together. Hopefully Luke was right, and she'd get some alone time with Drew over the next two weeks. She wasn't quite sure a reconciliation was in their future, but she couldn't deny that she was anxious to see him.

Lauren stood and peered out the window, down at the cars way below. “I'll leave now, and bring him over to the church. If we get stuck in traffic, we'll call you.”

“Okay, I'll see you both there.” Luke adjusted his dark blue tie, a twinkle in his eye. “Oh, by the way, what did you ask Santa for?”

Her cheeks warmed. She might have mentioned to the jolly old man that her one wish was to spend time this holiday with the love of her life.

He told her he was filling in for his brother today and offered her a candy cane instead.

“I asked for a raise. A big fat one. Now, get out of here,” she ordered, and an appreciative Luke flew out the door.

Turning back to her computer, she powered down and scanned the room for her oversized black tote bag containing the silky ruby red blouse, matching shoes, and black pants she'd had on earlier.
Dammit.
It must still be in the makeshift dressing room next to Santa's Village. No way was she going back into the toy store in her elf costume. Twenty kids would flock to her, demanding to see Santa. She'd never get out of there.

“Sorry, little ones,” she apologized to her perfectly polished red toes, jamming them into the pointy shoes.

It took her a few minutes to retrieve her car from the parking garage next door and merge into a sea of yellow cabs and the bright lights of the city. Like most New Yorkers she normally didn't drive to work, but today she'd wanted to transport some gifts she'd purchased last week that were too heavy to take home on the train.

She turned up the heat and pointed the vents down to her bare legs. A sarcastic laugh escaped her lips as she looked over at the crumpled red and white tights she'd peeled off and thrown onto the passenger seat. There was no way she was going to look like a holiday stripper for this long-anticipated reunion.

The butterflies in her stomach had started to multiply. In less than an hour, Drew would be sitting next to her on their way back into the city. Would he be excited to see her? Maybe she could suggest they grab a drink after they stopped by the church. There was so much to catch up on.

Did Drew miss her as much as she'd missed him? That had been her hope initially—that after a year in Tokyo he would finally realize all that he'd lost, and when they did get back together, their love would be even stronger.

There was just one problem. Drew seemed to adjust to his new life without her just fine. They rarely spoke other than the weekly senior team conference calls, and even then he was always professional and never asked her any questions beyond business.

Whether he addressed her during their video conference calls or not, her heart always beat a little faster when she saw his handsome face on the flat screen. She wasn't sure how she'd do it, but she was finally ready to admit to Drew how much she missed him.

Arriving at JFK, she headed for short-term parking and found an empty space. It only took a minute to kick off the pointy shoes and put on her knee-high black boots that thankfully she'd left in the back seat the night before when she hadn't bothered to change out of her gym shoes. Her long tan coat would hide the rest of her hideous costume. Although, if she did get up the courage and ask Drew to have a drink with her later tonight, she'd need to stop by her apartment and change.

She raced across the parking garage straight to baggage claim, dodging holiday travelers in every direction.

Suddenly her heart stopped. There he was. As handsome as ever in a black peacoat and red plaid scarf. He had a nice tan on his perfectly chiseled face. His blond hair was spiked up.

She stood still for another second, as the butterflies continued to swarm.

Really, Lauren.
It's not like you don't see his mirror image every flippin' day.
Get a grip.

Easier said than done. She took a deep breath and headed toward her heart. It was time to welcome it back.

“Hi, stranger.” She reached up and tapped his shoulder.

He turned, a big smile on his face. “Lauren.” His familiar strong arms wrapped her in a warm hug while his delicious spicy cologne tickled her nose. “What are you doing here? I thought Luke was picking me up.”

“Change of plans. He had to meet Kate and your dad at the church.” She glanced down at the suitcases next to him. Two of the three were a lovely shade of lavender. Not quite the luggage color she would have expected him to have. Maybe it was a Tokyo thing?

“I'm just getting our bags.” He pointed to the carousel.

“Our bags?”

“Drew, I can't reach Luke …” Olivia came up beside Drew. Lauren was pretty sure the surprise on Olivia's face was nowhere near the one on her own. “Lauren, what are you doing here?”

What is Luke's conniving ex-girlfriend doing here?
Lauren fought to spit out the words jammed in her throat. “I … um … came to pick up Drew … for … um … Luke.” She squared her shoulders and forced a wide smile. “Luke had to meet Kate and their parents at the church. I'm your chauffeur.”

“It's good to see you. Isn't it, Drew?” Olivia's smile had a hint of smugness.

“Yeah, really good,” Drew agreed, pointing to Lauren's head. “Your hair is so long.”

Lauren touched her locks. She'd grown it out since the last time he'd seen her in person and mostly wore it back for their team video conference calls. “Shall we?”

She walked slightly ahead, pretending to check her phone. Why had Olivia joined him? Surely he didn't need his assistant for this trip. As far as Lauren knew, he was only planning on staying through Christmas.

Olivia couldn't have been invited to the wedding. No way. Even if Jack had forgiven her for duping Luke into almost marrying her, there's no way she could have scored an invitation. Kate and Miles certainly wouldn't allow it. Not in a million years.

So why was she here? The butterflies Lauren had earlier had been wiped out by a wave of nausea now thrashing about inside her stomach. Something wasn't right. “I'll just run and grab my car. You two stay here.”

Before they could say a word, Lauren sprinted across the road and headed for her car. She jumped in and grabbed the red and white tights and sparkly flats, shoving them in her glove compartment.

Within minutes, she turned her BMW into arrivals. Drew and Olivia stood on the curb with their luggage, Olivia huddling up to Drew. “They look awfully close,” she said and cocked her head to the side.

All of a sudden her mouth dropped as she watched her ex-fiancé wrap his arms around his assistant, his black gloves moving up and down Olivia's back.

Lauren fought the tears that threatened to fall out any minute and pulled up beside them.

Apparently Santa had already given her Christmas wish to Olivia.

Lauren picked up her step and rounded the corner for St. Patrick's Cathedral, wrapping her coat straps tight around her waist. There would be no more awkward small talk with Drew and Olivia if she could help it. The bumper-to-bumper ride from JFK to Manhattan had been—one word—torture.

Thank God Luke had called, breaking the awkward silence. He had asked her to bring Drew directly to the church. Man, he and Kate were going flip when they saw who had tagged along for the trip.

Lauren didn't have to look behind her to see Olivia's smug, silent victory expression. Lauren had been behind saving Luke from making the biggest mistake of his life with the conniving witch. Thinking he'd lost Kate for good, Luke had actually—reluctantly—agreed to marry Olivia in Hawaii. Luckily, Drew and Lauren had set their own relationship troubles aside to team up to stop that sham of a wedding from ever happening.

Never in her wildest dreams did she think Olivia would set her sights on Drew.

Were they a couple now? Lauren's stomach twisted.

Her high boots clicked on the pavement as she picked up speed and distance from Drew and Olivia. She'd pop into the church for a second, say a quick hello, grab Miles, and get the hell out of there.

She opened the cathedral's bronze saintly door and was instantly calmed by the stunning gothic architecture. It'd been a while since she visited the New York City landmark located on Fifth Avenue. Serenity washed over her, but it was brief as Miles appeared from nowhere and rushed over.

“You're not going to believe this …” He paused and raised a curious eyebrow. “What's the matter with you? You look like you've seen a ghost.”

“Nothing.” She shook her head.

He looked behind her as Drew and Olivia entered the church. “Who let
her
back in this country?” he whispered, nodding to Olivia. Miles had had Olivia's number the minute he laid eyes on her in Maui and had worked with Lauren and Drew to ensure Kate and Luke got their happy ending.

How could Drew be so insensitive and do this to his brother?

Who was she kidding? How could Drew do this to
her
?

“Miles, it's good to see you.” Drew stepped further inside and offered his hand.

“Drew.” Miles shook it, smiling at Olivia. “I see you brought us all a souvenir from Tokyo.”

“You remember Olivia.”

“Who could forget?” Miles asked coolly, shaking her hand. He turned back to Drew. “Your dad has an announcement. You'd better get in there.”

While Drew and Olivia headed into the congregation room, Lauren grabbed Miles's hand. There was no way she was staying a second longer. She needed a cocktail to squash the memory of Drew's arms around
that
woman. “Let's go,” she ordered.

“And miss the cat fight once Kate sees Olivia?” Miles laughed. “I don't think so. Plus, wait until you hear what Jack and Vanessa did. You're never going to believe it. It's so them.”

“What did they do now?” Whatever it was, did she really need to be part of it? Lauren watched a beaming Olivia standing close to Drew.

The hell she did.
Even if Lauren wasn't married to Drew, she'd been a part of the Cannon family for over a decade. She had just as much of a right to be here and hear Jack's news as Olivia did. She followed Miles into the congregation room where Jack, Vanessa, Luke, and Kate were huddled in front of the altar in what appeared to be a heated conversation.

“Why on earth would you think what you did was a good idea?” Luke's hands flew up in the air.

“Son, it's my life. I can do whatever the hell I want with it.”

“Dear.” Vanessa touched Jack's arm. “Please, we're in church.”

“What's going on?” Drew asked.

Everyone turned, and Kate's mouth dropped at the sight of Olivia. Lauren felt a twinge of guilt for not somehow warning her that the she-devil was with them. The fact that Luke's ex-girlfriend, who had almost succeeded in getting him to the altar, was back in town really did warrant a preemptive text.