Page 25 of The Loophole
I brushed my lips to his and felt him respond. We leaned into each other, both of us lingering in the moment. The kiss was soft. Tender. It felt good.
Later on, Vee would ask me if it seemed weird kissing a man, but that part hadn’t even crossed my mind. I was kissing someone who mattered to me, someone I’d grown to care about in a very short time. The only weird thing about kissing Embry was that it happened in front of a wedding officiant, with a bunch of people watching us.
Afterwards, Embry smiled at me, and I drew him into an embrace as everyone cheered and applauded. It was a beautiful moment.
All of a sudden, I was overcome with emotion. I felt raw. Vulnerable. Why, though? That didn’t make any sense. Judging by the way he clung to me, it seemed like Embry might be experiencing the same thing.
There was some business to take care of, so I tried to push my feelings aside. Embry stuck close to me when we went into the kitchen at the back of the house. I kept my arm around him as we signed the marriage license, with Vee and Hal as witnesses.
While we were doing that, a poolside party sprang to life. Dance music started to play, and the rugby boys began mixing drinks at an outdoor bar. What I really wanted was some quiet time to process all of this, not a loud social event, but we were guests here and just had to go with it.
Once the officiant left, we told Vee and Hal we’d join them in a minute, and they returned to the backyard. I gently squeezed Embry’s shoulder and asked, “Are you okay?”
“I’m fine. I just felt really emotional for a minute there. I don’t know why.”
“Same.”
He leaned into me, and I gave him another hug. After a long moment, I murmured, “I guess we should join the celebration.”
“Yeah.” I let go of him, but neither of us moved.
I bought us some time by asking, “Do you like the ring?”
“Oh! I was super distracted, so I didn’t look at it very closely. All I could think about was dropping your ring and losing it through the gaps in the floorboards.” He held up his hand and turned it to examine the ring from all angles. Then he murmured, “It’s absolutely beautiful.”
“Before I forget, here’s this one back.” I took off his turtle ring, picked up his right hand, and slipped it onto his finger.
He squeezed my hand before letting go of it. Then he straightened his posture and said, “There’s a cake. I’d like to eat some of it.”
“Sounds good.”
The cake had been set up on a patio table, and everyone gathered around when Embry announced we were going to cut it. Each of the three small tiers were frosted in an ombre pattern that blended from white to sky blue, and neatly finished with scalloped edges. The whole thing was swathed in a garland of pretty blue and white flowers, and some candy bees were scattered among the blooms. As a cute finishing touch, two bees sat side-by-side on the edge of the top tier.
“A bakery made the cakes,” Embry explained, “but I scraped off the frosting, stacked them, and decorated them. It’s all buttercream, including the flowers. Oh—except for the bees. They’re modeling chocolate.”
I meant it when I told him, “It’s absolutely wonderful.”
He turned to me with a hopeful expression. “Do you really think so?”
“It’s perfect. You’re incredibly talented.”
You would have thought I’d paid him the highest compliment ever, given the way his face lit up. “I’m so glad you like it.”
“I feel bad about cutting it.”
“Don’t worry about that. It’s meant to be enjoyed.”
While Vee took pictures, Embry carved two generous slices out of the bottom tier, which turned out to be a vanilla cakewith strawberry filling. We picked up some forks and were about to taste it when someone called, “You’re supposed to feed each other!”
Embry and I chuckled as we awkwardly shoveled some cake into each other’s mouths. Then we stepped aside while Hal began cutting slices and passing them to the rest of the party.
Vee followed up the cake with a champagne toast. As I watched everyone’s reactions, I whispered, “I don’t think the rugby team knows this is a fake wedding.”
“I can’t remember if we told them,” Embry said, “but I don’t think it matters. They’re having a good time either way.”
A little while later, I decided to order some dinner for our gracious hosts. I grinned and muttered, “My family would have a fit if they knew I was serving pizza at my wedding reception.”
Embry and I hung out in the kitchen while we waited for the food to arrive, watching the party through a wall of windows. The yard and pool were aglow with colored lights, techno music was playing, and a disco ball spun over the patio. As Vee danced with three guys, Hal and his big, burly cowboy made out in the gazebo, and the rest of the team played a lively game of beer pong. “Elegant villa by day, party central by night,” Embry murmured.