“It did,” he assured her, reaching his other hand around to tug the ponytail down and let her still-curled hair fall free. “There. I like it down.”
Mal smiled curiously. “What, so I can do this?” she asked as she tossed her head and let the curls dance and fly.
His heart caught somewhere in his throat. “Yes, exactly like that,” he said, touching her jaw and kissing her again.
One of the others honked the horn of the golf cart impatiently. “Party on, guys! Let’s go!”
Hunter tried to ignore them. “Do you really have to go tomorrow?” he whispered.
Mal put a hand on his lips and shook her head. “We’re not talking about tomorrow right now. It’s wedding day. I’m still working, and there is a reception to get to. We’ll talk about it later, okay?”
He smiled and heaved a mock-irritated sigh. “Okay, fine. But the owner had better do an impressive job with this reception, or the whole thing will have been a waste of some very rich and famous people.”
“Shut up,” Mal scolded as they headed for the cart. “I know the owner, and you’ll like it.”
“Promise?” he asked as he sat on the cart and set his arm on the back of the seat.
Mal sat next to him and leaned into him easily. “Promise. Now cheer up, boss man. The hard part is over. Now we get to party. With Tom and Jenna running the show, I think we’re in for a good time.”
ChapterSixteen
A good time it was, and she wasn’t just saying that. The staff at Rambling Ridge did a fantastic job turning the lodge and pavilion into a perfect reception venue with the stylish Southern twist that personified Tom and Jenna, and the DJ hadn’t had a bad number yet. He played just enough country to satisfy the crowd without overplaying it enough to annoy those guests with more varied tastes. The food was perfection, the guests happy, and the same romantic lighting from Jazz Night gave the whole venue a magical feel.
Giving in to the cliché, Tom and Jenna had chosen to have their first dance to Martina McBride and Pat Monahan’s version of Train’s “Marry Me,” and it should have given Mal plenty of cause to roll her eyes. But somehow, she had no desire to do anything but smile and attempt to get rid of the odd burning sensation in her eyes and throat.
She stood near her family, and Caroline wrapped an arm around her, at which point Uncle Drake did the same with Caroline and Aunt Cady, and Lucas followed suit with his mother. It took Mal even longer to recover from that moment than she would have thought. Despite her best attempts to claim she had no family, it felt as perfect as any family ever could.
Maybe she was done shutting her childhood away. Now that she realized what she had been missing, there was no way she could go back. She was a Hudson, after all—through and through.
Drake and Jenna shared an adorable and laughter-filled dance, and Tom took his mother for a spin on the floor, making her smile and look every bit the wonderful woman Hunter had claimed she was.
Mal found Hunter often over the course of the night, but they didn’t spend as much time together as she would have liked. It wasn’t possible, with her having to take pictures at times and join in the party, especially with the likes of Aunt Joni and Great Aunt Pearl trying to snatch up whatever gossip they could. She dodged her second cousin Vance, who’d spent too much time in the more rural parts of Kentucky, it seemed. She also caught sight of the infamous stripper from the bachelorette party dancing a little too closely with Alexis. Apparently, there was something going on there.
There was dancing aplenty and just as much singing along to the songs. The only upset of the night was when the DJ played “Rocky Top,” and the non-Tennessee fans protested. But considering the bride, everyone else was overruled. There was even one dash of line dancing, which brought her mental Reception Bingo tally up.
Food was constantly being refreshed, and it was a tribute to the best of the South, which delighted everyone except the starving bridesmaids, who made do with the lemon slices from the glasses of water the waiters brought around.
Tables had been set up along the stone courtyard between the pavilion and the beach for those who wanted fresh air away from the dancing or to prop up their feet. From the pavilion, Mal could see couples walking hand in hand along the courtyard and over the lighted walking bridge. She sighed and hoped that soon things would be calm enough for her to slip away with Hunter for a few moments. She couldn’t leave before Jenna and Tom made their grand, theatrical exit, but that didn’t mean she had to be present for everything.
She made her way back into the lodge to take the stairs to the upper level, thinking she could get some interesting angles from there. She’d long lost track of Taryn and Dan, and considering they’d all had to turn in phones, she probably wouldn’t be able to track them down until they left tomorrow. She couldn’t think about that right now. It was too unsettling.
She found a few people in the quieter upper room, one of whom was Grace, who smiled and waved as Mal approached and moved aside so Mal could get her shots. She saw Hunter on one side of the pavilion, grinning and chatting with Tom’s brothers, having removed his jacket and loosened his tie some time ago. He looked just as perfect as ever, but somehow less untouchable. And that made her smile.
A leggy, blonde girl approached the group and hugged them all, including Hunter, and all three smiled at her as she talked animatedly. She had a perfect figure, fit enough to be an athlete, curvy enough to be a Victoria’s Secret model, and her dress flattered everything about her. She could have been made from money and custom designed for any of the guys there.
She matched everyone else here. And none of the guys were taking their eyes off of her. Mal didn’t like her one bit.
“Hey, Grace? Who’s the girl down there with Dave and Trent?” she asked in a would-be nonchalant voice, pretending to take pictures of the rest of the group. “I don’t recognize her.”
Grace came over and looked, adjusting her beaded strap. “Oh, I wondered if she might show up. That’s Emma Halliday. She’s a Vanderbilt cousin,” she added in a stage whisper.
Of course she was.
“Awesome,” Mal tried, going for enthusiastic. “She knows the Yardleys?”
“She knows all of them,” Grace said, tapping the window absently. “Since childhood, I guess. She and Hunter went steady a couple of times on and off since high school. Got pretty serious like three years ago.”
Mal stiffened and managed to pass it off as craning her neck and stretching. “Oh yeah? How serious?”