His Sister's Wedding (24 page)

Lillie gripped the steering wheel. She had to think. What were her options? Scott
and Melanie were at Disney World for the day. Even if she could reach her brother,
he was too far away to be of any help.

A mechanic could probably get the vehicle started, but even emergency service would
be too late for the van's melting treasure.

She needed another car--a van big enough to hold the cake without jostling it. If
only Maud hadn't already left for her weekend trip. The bakery had two vans that could
have easily accommodated the cake.

Luke has a van.
The thought streaked through her consciousness like a missile.

"No!" she said out loud. "No way. Never."

Her words echoed emptily in the van. Grabbing the key again, Lillie turned it in the
ignition, praying for salvation as the engine cranked without a flicker of hope.

Even a minivan would work, she thought furiously. Who had a minivan?

Beth! Her friend, the teacher with three kids. It would be hard to fit the cake safely
in between the seats but they could take a seat out.

Scrounging through her purse for her cell phone, Lillie punched in Beth's number and
chewed on her lip as the phone rang and rang. On the fifth or sixth ring, Beth's answering
machine picked up and invited her to leave a message.

Lillie pushed the disconnect button on the phone with nerveless fingers. Every minute
that ticked past brought her closer to doom. The cake had been frozen pretty solid,
but it couldn't last much longer.

Flowers by Campbell!
Lillie smacked a hand to her forehead. How could she have been so stupid? One of
the florists she worked with was located fairly close! They had a delivery van.

Crossing her fingers that she remembered the phone number correctly, Lillie tapped
it in and waited.

"Mrs. Campbell? This is Lillie Parker." She clutched the phone and stuffed a finger
in her ear to block the traffic noise. "I'm kind of in a jam and I need your help."

"Of course, Lillie," the woman said. "What can we do for you?"

"I was wondering if you'd let me use your delivery van for an hour."

"Our van? Well, I don't think there would be a problem with that. When did you need
it?"

"Right this minute," Lillie said eagerly. "Is there some way Mr. Campbell could come
pick me up?"

"Oh, I'm sorry," the woman said with regret. "Tom's out in the van making deliveries
now. We have two weddings scheduled for tonight."

"Oh." Lillie slumped against the van.

"Tom will be back in an hour or two. Would that be soon enough?"

"No. No, I'm afraid not. But thanks anyway." She tried to fight back her disappointment.

"I'm terribly sorry. I wish we could help."

"I know you do, Mrs. Campbell and I really appreciate it," Lillie said.

"Good luck."

She disconnected the line, tears gathering in her eyes. Without letting herself think
about it, she punched in Luke's number.

He probably wasn't in the office. Part of her prayed he wasn't, but the rest of her
knew she had a responsibility not only to her clients but to Maud as well.

"Morgan Landscaping." Luke's voice sounded tired.

"I need your van," Lillie blurted out, choking back a sob.

"Lillie?"

"It's an emergency or I wouldn't call," she rushed to say. "My van stalled out and
I have an expensive ice cream cake melting in the back. It's for the most socially
connected people in Kissimmee and the wedding is in three hours!"

Luke heard the panic in Lillie's voice and felt himself respond like a fire horse
to the clang of the bell.

He couldn't refuse her. It was as simple as that.

But he had an appointment with the V.P. at Unicom in half an hour. Finally, he'd gotten
the appointment. He'd been ready to walk out the door when the phone rang.

"Where are you?" he asked, gazing at his wristwatch.

"I'm at the corner of Columbia and Thacker in the parking lot of that convenience
store," she told him breathlessly. "Hurry!"

It would take him ten minutes to get to where she was, and Unicom's offices were a
good twenty minutes in the other direction.

"Okay. I'll be right there." He clicked the phone to get a dial tone and tapped in
the number for Unicom.

It had taken him weeks of business-like harassment to get a fifteen-minute appointment
with Ben Ames, Unicom's most difficult vice-president, Luke reminded himself. He had
spent hours on his proposal and the mock-up for a photo. And now he was voluntarily
risking his chance at the account in order to rescue Lillie.

There was no way Ames would give him another chance if he missed the appointment.
Not only was the man a pain in the rear, he also kept a schedule packed tighter than
a can of sardines. Still, Luke left a message with Ames' secretary saying he'd be
a few minutes late and hung up.

Some things were more important than business. He'd just have to try and make the
appointment after he helped Lillie.

Jogging out to the van, he found himself envisioning Lillie sitting inside a stranded
van with a melting cake. He drove quickly through the streets of Kissimmee, realizing
how excited he was to see her again even at the cost of the Unicom account. She had
called him when she needed help. A balloon inflated in his chest.

He still didn't know how to resolve the turmoil between them, but doing so had become
very important. In the last few days, it had become clearer that he couldn't live
without Lillie.

Luke found her easily, the van sitting in the parking lot, its doors all open to reveal
a magnificent flower-bedecked cake inside. Pulling up next to her van, he got out.

"Thank God, you're here! Help me unload it," Lillie said by way of a greeting. "The
darn thing is heavy."

She looked gorgeous, her tumble of curly blond hair mounded up on her head, a soft
pink dress clinging to her curves. But her eyes seemed dark and he'd never seen that
frown between her eyes before.

Dragging his mind back to the task at hand, Luke opened the double doors to his cargo
van and helped her transfer the cake. He could see that its frosted surface was beginning
to glisten in the heat. In no time, they'd settled the frozen tower's protective cardboard
foundation on the floor of his van.

Lillie straightened, glancing absently at his suit pants and dress shirt, but not
meeting his eyes. "I'll sit in back and hold it steady. You drive."

Luke hesitated. "The floor's dirty. I didn't take the time to sweep it out."

"It doesn't matter how I look if the cake's okay." She climbed in and sat on the floor
next to the cake.

Getting into the driver's seat, Luke started the engine.

"Tell me where to go," he invited her, wondering if she knew how completely he meant
that.

"The Biltmore," Lillie said tersely.

With a long, low whistle, he turned the van toward Kissimmee’s most expensive hotel
and concentrated on reaching maximum speed with minimum jostling of his precious cargo.

Within minutes, they pulled up at the service entrance and carefully unloaded the
cake. Its frosting looked soft and blurry on the edges, but Luke couldn't see any
other evidence of the cake's heat-exposure. Amazingly, the sculpted sugar flowers
seemed perfect.

Grasping the other side of the cardboard foundation, Luke followed Lillie through
the huge kitchens and into a large, walk-in freezer. Together they slid the cake onto
a shelf and stood back.

"Whew! That was a close call," Lillie said, tension draining from her voice.

Luke looked at her, the chill of the freezer seeming to solidify the jumble of things
he felt but didn't know how to say.

Was this what love felt like? Did he even have a chance with her now?

She'd taken a small step in his direction, but he'd done what he could for her. Regardless
of the possibility that he might still be able to salvage the Unicom account, he found
himself hesitating. Hoping he could find the words to win her back.

"I'm glad we got it here," he said, frustrated at his inability to spill out his feelings.
"Do you think it's going to be okay? The cake. It's not too thawed?"

"No," she said, not looking at him as she brushed at a smudge of dirt on her skirt.
"I think it's fine. I really appreciate your getting here so fast. I was late already.
A wedding like this has a thousand things to be set up beforehand."

"Ummm. Shall I hang around and help?" For some damn reason, he felt about as suave
as a fifteen-year old boy begging for her attention.

Lillie glanced up in surprise, before looking down again. "No, I can manage it."

"Do you...ah, need a ride home later?"

"No." She shook her head. "Scott and Melanie are coming later to help out with the
clean up. Thanks, though."

"Okay, if you're sure. I guess I'll be going." Not knowing what else to do, he turned
to leave.

"Luke!" Lillie caught his arm as he turned. As if giving in to a spontaneous impulse,
she leaned closer, brushing a kiss against his cheek. "Thank you so much."

Nodding wordlessly, he left.

*   *   *

On the morning of Scott and Melanie's wedding, Lillie drove to the old stone house
surrounded by Luke's immaculately-groomed gardens. She might be fighting just to face
each day, but she still had work to do. If nothing else, she owed it to her brother.

The next few hours were a jumble of deliveries and arrangements. When Lillie went
out onto the porch to direct the set-up of the chairs and the wedding arch, she spotted
Luke immediately.

He was dressed in work clothes, his broad shoulders flexing as he and one of his crew
bent to straighten a decorative concrete bench. Lillie turned away.

She'd been in a whirlwind of anguish and regret since the wedding shower. His response
to her cake disaster had only intensified her frustration and despair after a brief
surge of tenderness had swamped her. How could he declare her insignificant in his
life and then do something as sweet as rushing to help her?

"Did you want these set up in the garden, ma'am?"

The delivery man's voice jolted her out of her thoughts. "No, the chairs are to be
set up on the flat area by the river just through that hedge."

The next hour was busy. Lillie supervised the arrangement of the chairs and the arch,
positioned between the two great willows. But Luke wouldn't leave her mind. Every
glimpse she caught of him was like a knife shredding her dreams.

Although a florist had been hired to do the flowers for the wedding party, Luke had
insisted on doing the decorations for the ceremony itself. Reluctantly, Lillie walked
up the aisle to tell him the arch that would frame the couple was ready for his final
touches. It took every particle of willpower she possessed to function normally when
he was near. All she wanted to do was sit down and cry.

He was at the top of the stone path, setting out pots of flowers around the table
where the guest book would be.

Another arch, covered in blooming vines, framed the pathway. Lillie stopped under
it, feeling unsteady as she struggled to keep her face expressionless. "They've finished
setting up the arch over the altar. It's ready when you are."

Luke swung around to face her, as if seeing her for the first time that day. A clouded
intentness filled his dark eyes, his face serious.

Lillie's heart felt as if it were pounding an edgy rhythm.

"Thanks," Luke said, quietly. "We're almost ready to do it."

"You're welcome." Lillie turned and walked up to the house, forcing herself not to
look back. Taking a deep breath, she made herself focus on Scott and Melanie's wedding
regardless of the fact that her heart was crumbling.

The next hour was filled with small crises, the hallmark of any wedding. With sheer
willpower, Lillie coped with them, wishing all the time that she could run away and
drown in her misery.

When the minister arrived and all the members of the bridal party were dressed and
in position, the ceremony started. Lillie directed the processional from the back,
planning to slip in and take her place in the front row after the bride's entrance.
Standing at the top of the aisle, she reminded the bridesmaids to walk slowly.

Luke escorted his mother to her seat and returned, waiting to walk Melanie down the
aisle. Every nerve in Lillie's body went on alert when he passed where she stood.

Deliberately focusing on Scott as he stood waiting at the altar, Lillie thought how
happy her parents would have been to see this moment.

As the flower girl and ring boy meandered down the aisle, Lillie waited beside Melanie,
still struggling to keep her attention off Luke who stood on the other side of his
sister.

"Now," she said, motioning Melanie forward when the congregation rose as the musicians
began the bridal march. A sea of faces turned to watch Melanie's approach, admiring
smiles evident.