So far, the ceremony had gone perfectly, no doubt thanks to the hours of practice yesterday, and the girls all looked lovely in their elegant gowns. The mothers of the bride and groom were equally gorgeous, choosing gowns in a similar shade as the bridesmaids, and the flower girls had been shockingly well behaved, as if their lives depended on their perfection.
He and Caroline had, of course, been the best couple down the aisle, playing their parts to perfection. He had his token somber face, and she had smiled brilliantly, shocking everyone present who didn’t know that the famous Jenna Hudson had a twin.
Jenna had been stunning, he could objectively say, in her vintage-colored, off-the-shoulder lace gown. She’d opted for a band of ribbon around her trim waist that matched the groomsmen’s suits, and no veil, which he understood was a point of some contention among her bridesmaids. But nobody cared about any of that now. Jenna’s smile distracted any thought from her dress or hair or flowers or lack of veil.
Hunter had heard Tom’s breath catch in his throat when he saw Jenna, and he felt an echo of it in his own. What would Mal look like coming down an aisle toward him?
He tried to focus on the emotional and heartfelt vows of his friends, but his eyes kept drifting over to Mal. Oddly enough, every time they did, she was looking at him as well. It was slightly unnerving, in a ticklish sort of way.
After the fifth time, he heard an irritated sigh from behind him. “Do you want me to serenade you two or…?” Reed muttered out of the side of his mouth.
Hunter cleared his throat softly and forced himself to look back at the service, where the “I dos” were being exchanged.
“I now pronounce you husband and wife,” the minister said with a knowing smile, just as a breeze came up and tossed Jenna’s dangling curls.
Tom had a fairly suave moment as he reached out and tucked one of the curls behind her ear, then glanced at the minister, who chuckled.
“Yes, Mr. Yardley, you may now kiss your bride.”
A cheer went up as Tom gladly did so, not dipping her this time.
Music from the string quartet swelled as Tom and Jenna were presented and started down the aisle. Hunter and a slightly tearful Caroline followed, as did everyone else.
Hunter winked at Mal as he passed her, and she did too, which earned her a knee slapping from the older relative she was sitting next to. He made a mental note to ask her about that later.
The wedding party was shuttled into golf carts and driven to the other places on the resort that Tom and Jenna had selected for pictures, with Mal and her assistants directing. She was all business once again and had even pulled her hair back, which did nothing to lessen her beauty, instead highlighting the delicate bone structure of her face.
Everyone obeyed her implicitly, not arguing her suggestions or points, laughing at her smart quips, and treating her the way they should have been treating her all week. Reed was watching her with too much fascination for Hunter’s taste, but he always kept his distance, glancing at Hunter guiltily. She didn’t seem fazed at all, assessing their positions and the lighting with skill and artistry, seeing everything all at once. A strand of Grace’s hair out of place, a bouquet that needed a quarter turn, a wrinkle in Caroline’s skirt… And to her assistants’ credit, they didn’t need her to tell them in complete sentences what she saw. She only had to begin, and then they could see it too.
She was a brilliant mentor for them.
And a sight to behold.
She didn’t need the makeup or designer dresses or fancy hair to be gorgeous, no matter how others were taking notice now. What they didn’t realize was that the unspoken quality that had them all entranced and enchanted had nothing to do with how she looked or how she dressed. It was Mal, pure and simple, in all her exquisite loveliness.
“Hunter, you look like a deer in headlights,” Mal suddenly barked with a smile. “Pick an expression, will you?”
His eyes narrowed briefly as the rest of the party snickered, and Mal teased him with a quirk of a brow, drawing a slow half smile from him. And so it went, from place to place, quickly and efficiently, without anyone really noticing time at all. A few last photos, and they were dismissed. Hunter checked his watch, and it surprised him. They would get back to the pavilion and reception before the drinks and appetizers for the guests were done, and far before they were scheduled to. The others piled into the carts again and started back down, everyone cheerful and excited and ready for a party after all that formality.
Hunter, however, stood where he was last posed and waited, just for the other carts to start off, and then moseyed over to where Mal and her assistants were having an impromptu meeting.
“Lighting might be tricky at the reception,” Mal was saying, “so we’ll just play that by ear. Stay as long as you want, but no pressure. We’ll get what we can. Early flight tomorrow morning, so don’t miss the car.”
“Do we really have to leave?” Taryn pouted, adjusting the strap of her black-and-blue gown.
“Taryn stole my question,” Hunter complained aloud, putting his hands into his pockets.
All three heads turned toward him in surprise. Taryn and Dan looked at each other, then wordlessly headed for the last cart.
Mal smiled as he approached, squinting up at him in the sunlight. “Hi.”
He returned her smile and kissed her. “Hi yourself.”
She released a sigh and wiped at her brow. “Boy, am I glad that’s over. It’s like herding cats.”
“You made it look effortless,” he praised, wrapping his arm around her waist.
She held his arm in place with her hand. “I had extra motivation to be charming today. Guess it worked.”