Only You (27 page)

K
evin had assigned the groomsmen the task of guarding the groom, not that the groom looked like he wanted to leave. He was sitting on the floor, rocking back and forth and mumbling about his grandfather and a trust fund.

Right now Kevin was more worried about Holly. He was halfway down the hall when his phone vibrated. He pulled it out, worried that it was Holly, but it was Tyler's name he saw on the screen.

“Now's not a good time, Ty.”

“I'm just checking on your second job.”

“Turns out this job is harder than it looks. I've got a wedding to fix.”

“You
what
?”

“I'll fill you in later.”

Kevin knocked on the bridal-party changing-room door, and one of the bridesmaids cracked open the door, then looked him up and down. “You're the wedding planner's assistant, aren't you? You can be my assistant anytime.”

He cringed. “Sorry, but my position with Holly is pretty exclusive,” he said, hoping to get the double meaning across.

She gave him a coy grin. “Well, if you ever change your mind…”

He felt sick to his stomach. He'd always wondered why his relationships had never lasted, and this woman was a perfect example of why they were doomed. He used to date women like her—shallow and opportunistic. Women who thought nothing of sleeping with their best friend's fiancé. The exact opposite of Holly.

“I'm pretty damn sure that's
never
going to happen.” He pushed the door open the rest of the way and saw the bride on the sofa in her mother's arms, while Miranda was giving Holly an odd stare.

Kevin moved next to Holly, resisting the urge to grab her hand or put an arm around her. She needed to look professional and in charge, but it was pretty damn hard when all he wanted to do was comfort her. Especially when he knew what this would mean for her job at his mother's business.

But Holly didn't even seem to notice he'd entered the room. Her complete focus was on the bride's mother. “What are you talking about, Miranda?”

“The magazine needs photos.”

“Of your
daughter's
wedding.”

Miranda dropped her hold on Coraline and stood. The bride had stopped crying and was now watching her mother walk toward Holly.

“No, of my dress,” Miranda said, sounding perfectly reasonable. “Think about what a story this will be! How sensationalistic. Social media will love it. Publicity for us both.”

Holly shook her head, her eyes wide. “What are you talking about?”

“The replacement couple. They are stunningly gorgeous and they are desperately in love. It's like a fairy-tale wedding.”

“Miranda, who are you talking about?” Holly asked, sounding bewildered. “Who's getting married?”

The woman gave her an irritated look. “You, of course.” Then she pointed to Kevin. “And him.”

Kevin was shocked by the announcement, but immediately warmed up to the idea. It was a win/win as far as he was concerned. He would help Holly salvage the wedding and in turn save her job. But the real reward was her. He knew without a doubt he wanted to marry her, whether it was in a half hour or another year.

Holly, however, wasn't taking the suggestion as well. She held up her hands in protest. “Whoa, whoa, whoa. Slow down. What makes you think we're in love?”

Miranda rolled her eyes in an exaggerated movement. “Holly, it's so obvious. The way you two look at one another. The way he can hardly stop himself from touching you now.” She motioned to Kevin's right hand, which was hovering near Holly's waist.

He looked her in the eye. Guilty as charged.

The designer gave her a satisfied grin. “And I know you'll fit in the dress perfectly. It's like serendipity.”

“Miranda,” Holly said slowly, “we're not even officially dating. …
This is crazy!
”

Kevin looked down at Holly, then over to Miranda, wanting to make sure he had all the facts. “So all you need to do is have a fake wedding, and you're good. You get the photos and the publicity you need. The wedding looks like a success?”

“Well…there's a catch,” Miranda said. “It has to be real.”

“
What?
” Holly asked.

“This will be big entertainment news. Either way, it will probably be on TMZ and at least a couple of gossip magazines. We can't have a fake wedding. Besides, the whole premise of this photo shoot is that it's a
real
ceremony.”

“We can't do this.” Holly shook her head. “I could never ask Kevin to do such a thing.”

“I'll do it,” he said without hesitation. “I'll marry you.”

She spun around to face him. “I can't ask you to do that, Kevin. Don't get sucked up into my mess.”

“You
didn't
ask. I'm offering.”

“Why on earth would you agree to this craziness?”

He lifted his hand to her cheek, looking into her green eyes. “She's right, Holly. I love you.”

She gasped. “What?”

He kissed her lightly, then looked into her eyes. “I love you, Holly. There's only you. So marry me.”

“But your mother…”

“Might have a fit. And you might lose your job, but after talking to my Dad this morning, if this wedding didn't work out, I found out you were going to lose it anyway. But if my mother ever wants to see me again, she'll let her daughter-in-law keep her job or wish her well when she starts her own wedding-planning business.”

She shook her head as tears filled her eyes and a new horror hit him. What if Holly didn't love him? What if this was completely one-sided?

“Tell me what you're thinking, Holly.”

“A lot of things.” She looked utterly panicked as she searched his face.

“I'm not going anywhere. Tell me.”

“First”—her voice broke—“that I love you, too.”

“Oh, thank God.” He kissed her, unable to resist, but then he pulled back and took her hands in his. “What else?”

“How can you be sure you want to marry me? We've only known each other a month.”

“Sometimes you just know something, and I know. It's like I was only half a person until I met you. And now I'm whole.”

“Really?”

He smiled, his chest aching with the need to hold her, reassure her, and convince her how much she meant to him. “What other protests do you have?”

“What about our friends and family? Don't you want your parents here? Your sister?”

“We'll have our own private wedding with them. In your grandma's backyard if you want. We'll bring her home so she can be part of it, too.” He dropped to his knee. “Holly Greenwood, will you marry me?”

She looked wary. “Are you doing this because you feel sorry for me and you think your mother will fire me if this wedding doesn't happen? Because she and I discussed this yesterday. I'll lose my job, but not because she's firing me. But that's still not a reason to marry me.”

He grinned. “I can assure you that I'm doing this for purely selfish motives. If anything, I'm being completely opportunistic. I love you. I don't want to lose you. We have a chance to get married in the most beautiful wedding ever, and it was planned by you. Feeling sorry for you never enters the picture here.”

“Are you sure?” she whispered. “Like
really
sure?”

“I've never been more certain of anything in my life.” He paused and got to his feet. “But what about you? This is pretty fast. But maybe you want to wait. I don't want to rush you into something you're not ready for.”

She shook her head, a tear sliding down her cheek. “I love you, Kevin. You're the only man I've ever wanted. I want to spend the rest of my life with you.”

“Then you'll marry me?”

She nodded, and the smile spreading across her face filled him with more happiness than he thought possible. “Yes.”

He couldn't wait to make this woman his wife. “Then let's get married.”

Holly stood in the hall, waiting for the song for the wedding party to start. Closer to the exit, three bridesmaids were huddled together in a clump of pink silk, occasionally casting looks of disbelief in her direction. The maid of honor had sneaked off soon after getting caught.

The wedding guests had gotten restless waiting, but they were mostly Miranda's friends so when she explained to them the last-minute change of plans they were more than happy to help her.

But now Holly was waiting to walk down the aisle alone to the only man she'd ever loved, and part of her heart ached for her father. What would he think of the man she was marrying? What would he think of
her
?

Her grip tightened on the stems of the bright pink bouquet and she started to pace, trying to calm her nerves. While she had no qualms about marrying Kevin, she was a bundle of nerves when she thought about being the center of attention in front of several hundred people she didn't even know.

A gentleman cleared his throat and Holly turned to see Kevin's father, her mouth dropping open in surprise.

“Mr. Vandemeer. What are you doing here?” She and Kevin had both agreed not to tell either of their families, since it would be impossible to get everyone together. They would break the news after the fact. Had Kevin gone against their agreement?

He took her arm in his hand and gently tugged her away from the curious bridesmaids. “Nicole called me and told me to get here right away.”

Her breath caught as she her hands turned icy. “So you can stop the wedding?”

“No. So I can give you my blessing. And you if you're marrying my son, then you need to call me Bart. Or Dad.”

“
What?
”

“I would never think of trying to replace your father, and I would never try. But I would love to be the best damn father-in-law I possibly can.” The grin spreading across his face filled her with as much reassurance as his words. “Once you marry into this family, you're as much a part of our family as Megan or Kevin or Josh.”

“But Nicole—”

“Will come around.”

But what if she didn't? Would that eventually cause a rift between Holly and Kevin? “But how did you even know what was going on?”

He laughed. “Apparently the bride's mother called Nicole to come take over the wedding-planner responsibilities. To say Nicole was surprised is an understatement.”

Unbelievably, for the first time since saying yes, she was having her first doubt. And over Kevin's mother, no less. “Is she furious?”

Bart chuckled. “No. Confused and blindsided, but not furious. She just needs to adjust to the idea.”

Holly had always hoped to marry into a warm and loving family but was willing to accept a belligerent mother-in-law as part of the package if it meant marrying Kevin. Nicole's reaction was more than she could have hoped for. “Thank you.”

He smiled. “You make Kevin very happy. I can love you for that alone.” He kissed her cheek. “You ready?”

Was she? She was getting married in front of a bunch of strangers, but the only thing that mattered was the man waiting for her at the end of the aisle. She smiled, her heart bursting with happiness. “Yes.”

“Then I'll go cue the music.”

“Not yet,” Nicole said in her no-nonsense voice from behind Holly.

Bart gave Holly a hug, then disappeared toward the guests.

Holly's knees began to shake as Nicole moved next to her, giving her a tight smile. “Let me fix you up,” Nicole said, lifting a makeup brush. “We can't have you walking down the aisle and having photos taken with a shiny nose.”

Was this some kind of trick? “Nicole…I…”

Her boss kept her focus on her task. “Since the original wedding planner is getting married,” she said in a tight voice, “I obviously need to step in.”

“I…”

Nicole's gaze locked on hers. “Kevin and I just had a chat. There's no doubt that he loves you, and that you've made him happy. And while I'm still upset that you two hid this from me, he deserves someone who fills him with such joy. And…” She paused, giving Holly a warm smile. “You're a sweet girl. The sweetest woman he's ever dated…as far as I know.”

She stared at Nicole in shock.

“Just promise you won't steal my party and shower clients when you start your own shop, and I won't plan any weddings.”

“What?”

She lifted her chin and said in a controlled voice, “I think it's best if we split our businesses. We don't want any nepotism. And I can't very well compete against my own daughter-in-law, now can I?”

“I don't know what to say.”

Nicole smiled. “Say you'll try your best to make my son happy.”

“I love him. I
want
him to make him as happy as he makes me.”

Nicole gave Holly's nose one last swipe and nodded. “I'll cue the musicians to play the bridal processional.” And then she was gone.

The music changed, the violins of the small orchestra playing the classical piece Holly had picked out, and the first bridesmaid headed down the aisle. The other two bridesmaids whispered in hushed, nervous tones until the second one followed the first.

The third bridesmaid—Coraline's younger cousin—glanced back at Holly. “You're much more beautiful than Coraline in that dress.” She grinned. “But if you ever tell her I said that, I'll deny it.” Then she left, too.

Holly released a nervous laugh, telling herself she only needed to ignore everyone else and focus on Kevin.

The music changed and the door opened. Nicole graced her with a warm smile as she walked by. “May you have a beautiful future.”

The large crowd made Holly pause, but she focused on the man waiting at the end of the aisle, standing under the white-and-pink-rose-covered arch that opened to a long vineyard row. The look of happiness in his eyes was nearly her undoing.