Unable to help herself, she burst out in a fit of laughter. “I know! I can’t believe that happened.”
When his distinctive laugh followed, she pressed a hand to her quivering stomach as relief washed over her. They could still relax and make each other laugh.
The clink of glasses drew their attention toward her mother and the microphone she was holding in her hand.
Oh, no.
“Can I have your attention, please?” Gloria began.
The chatter in the room dimmed to a dull roar. Drake dug his fingers into Love’s knee.
“I am beside myself with glee because my daughter made it to this reunion. It’s been a while and I’m so happy she’s here.”
Love stood up abruptly, hitting the table with her knee. Oh, God. Rubbing her knee, she called out, “Mom, what are you doing?”
“I want to say to Drake that I love you like a son,” Gloria continued, as if Love hadn’t spoken. “And I’m so happy that you’re a permanent part of my family now. I want everyone to congratulate my daughter and her new husband, Drake, on their marriage.”
A round of claps and multiple cheers erupted. Love’s throat closed up as people swarmed her. Leaning against the table, she searched for Drake in the crowd. She took a few cleansing breaths as her stomach churned. Her throat became dry, and she reached for her glass of water. It was empty. Then Drake was there, behind her, leading her away.
The roar of the crowd disappeared, replaced by the bells of the slot machines, then silence. She struggled to breathe, grasping at her throat frantically.
“Sit here,” he said, gently setting her on a hard ledge.
She heard the sound of running water and, seconds later, felt a warm cloth against the back of her neck.
“Love, breathe,” he whispered, as his hand closed around hers. “It’s okay.” He pressed the cloth against her forehead and rubbed her back.
A few seconds later, she felt her airways open up. “Drake.”
He knelt in front of her, holding a glass of water in his hands. “Drink this.” He held the cool glass up to her mouth, and she gulped it down.
Wiping her mouth, she shot him a smile. “Thanks.”
“You have to be careful, Love. It’s been a long time since you’ve had one.”
Love had been known to have panic attacks in the past. And more often than not, Drake had been there to pick up the pieces. That was why he—as annoying as he could be—was the most important person in her life. The first time it had happened to her, back in high school, she’d thought she was having a heart attack. Over the years, she had been able to manage them. Drake was right. She hadn’t had an attack in a long time, but after the events of the day, she wasn’t surprised.
“Did she just do that?” she finally managed to ask.
He nodded. “Yes, she did.”
“She’s going to come find us.” Love imagined her mother searching frantically for them. She glanced at the small room, and realized she was sitting on a toilet. Frowning, she searched his gaze. “You brought me into a bathroom?”
Drake shrugged and blew out a short breath. “I didn’t have many choices. You needed to get out of there. And I asked your mother to give us some time.”
Love leaned forward, rested her head on his shoulder. “What are we going to do? This is a nightmare.”
He leaned his chin on her head and wrapped his arms around her in a tight hug. “We’ll be okay. She didn’t tell a lie. We did get married, in a moment of obvious lack of judgment. So we have to deal with the consequences.”
She pulled away, searched his eyes. There was no panic in them. He was calm, as usual. “How can you not be freaking out about this? What happens when my dad finds out?”
He rolled his eyes and looked away from her. Standing, he took the washcloth and tossed it in a bin. “If your dad finds out, we’ll deal with it. In the meantime, we have to tell your mother the truth.”
“What truth? That we got married on a whim because we had too many shots and wanted to get our freak on? I don’t know if I can do that here. She’s so happy, so proud. I’m sure she thought I was vying for spinsterhood, and this just gave her life. Besides, the whole family is here.”
And with her mother’s progressing diabetes and her recent diagnosis of peripheral artery disease, Love thought that she needed some happiness.
Drake sighed. “So, we wait until after the reunion is over.”
“Maybe we should just wait until we can get an annulment. Or a divorce,” she added under her breath. “The fact that my father called my mother to get the deets on the reunion for Derrick makes me think they talk a lot more than I thought. She would definitely tell my dad we got married. He won’t be happy with you. He’ll kill you.”
“What do you suggest we do? We’re not going to stay married, Love.”
Love looked down at the tile, focused on the grout between the gray, beige and ivory colored squares. “Let’s make it through this weekend. When we get home, we’ll hire an attorney to take care of it. We can tell everyone that we made a mistake and decided to fix it before our friendship suffered for it. This way, my dad won’t be too upset, because he’ll think I did this willingly, and he won’t take it out on you or your career.”
Drake didn’t answer for what seemed like an eternity. Love rubbed her thumbnail over one of the sequins on her dress.
“Okay,” he said finally. “We’ll wait until we’re home and divorced to break the news to your mother.”
Love stood, then stepped closer to Drake. She tilted her head to meet his gaze. “Drake, I need you to promise me that we won’t let this ruin us.”
His eyes softened, and he pinched her chin as he had so many times before. “Love, we won’t. You’re my best friend and nothing is going to change that.”
A tear fell from her eyes, and he smirked.
“You’re such a baby,” he said, grabbing a tissue and holding it out to her. “Get cleaned up, so we can go play the part of a loving couple for a few minutes.”
Love went to the mirror and grimaced at her raccoon eyes. “How about we just go back up to the room and let them think we snuck away because we’re in newlywed mode? I look like a crazy woman.” She eyed him in the mirror. “Hmm?”
“You’re beautiful.”
He turned her to him and his finger trailed down her nose before he hooked a hand behind her neck and pulled her closer. When his lips touched hers, it felt like a dream. The kiss wasn’t passionate, but achingly sweet. It was soft, warm. Just what she needed in that moment.
He pulled away and grinned. “Whatever you want.” He brushed his thumb back and forth over her earlobe. “You go on up, and I’ll find your mother and tell her that we’re turning in. I’ll also ask her to not tell anyone else, because we want to make our own announcement back in Michigan.”
Love let out a nervous laugh and tried to pretend Drake hadn’t just kissed her knees wobbly. “Let’s hope she listens.”
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