Bouquet Toss (24 page)

Slowly, I saunter back to Tanner who is grinning from ear to ear.  He raises his eyebrows as he shrugs.

“Well, that was a perfect catch, sweetheart.”  He looks as happy as I feel.

“I told ya,” I grin.

“Do you think I’ll be as lucky?” he asks, pulling me into his arms.

“Hmmm,” I sigh, “We’ll have to see if my gift has rubbed off on you.”

Tanner strolls out to the dance floor.  There are several men in their twenties and thirties waiting for Chris the groom to toss the garter.  Tanner places both of his hands in his pockets and glances at me with a naughty expression.  I gasp and do the “tsk, tsk, tsk” sign with my fingers.  He laughs heartily and takes them out of his pockets, raising them above his head in surrender.  He is so freaking cute.

Chris, who is a bit tipsy, saunters up to the group of men, winks and turns his back to them.  He whips the garter behind his back and it is a line drive straight to the floor.  The crowd erupts in laughter.  The groom, after seeing where the garter has landed, doubles over in hysterics, holding onto his thighs for support.  He then picks it up and flings it straight at Tanner who grabs the garter looking stunned.  He then turns to me, wide eyed and holds it up in the air.  I giggle uncontrollably.  He walks towards me and shrugs his shoulders, his cheeks a deep crimson red.

“What are the chances?” I practically squeal with delight.  Tanner pulls me onto the dance floor as a very familiar song fills the room, “Till There Was You” by The Beatles, one of my absolute favorites.  This man has been paying attention.

“Oh my goodness,” I say, recognizing the tune immediately. “Did you request this song, Mr. Finley?”

“Maybe.” He smirks, “Ever since you told me how much you loved it, I can’t get it out of my head.  It makes me think of you.” Pulling me into his arms as he hums along to the song, he sings snippets of the lyrics as he gazes i
sta
nto my eyes.  The lights of the banquet hall are reflecting on the tiny green specks of his deep brown irises and my heart is aflutter.  Tanner pushes my hair out of my eyes and tucks the strays behind my ears, smoothing my hair to the tips.  His hand continues down my spine and lands on my backside.  An impish grin upon his face, he leans in close to me, so close I can feel his breath upon my forehead.

“Daphne, there’s something I need to tell you.  Something I’ve wanted to say for a while now,” my heart thumps in my chest as I await his words.

“Yes, Tanner?”

“I feel so blessed that you came into my life and I want you to know the depths of my feelings for you.”  He pauses, licking his lips before biting them nervously.

“It’s okay.  Tell me.” I reassure him.  He smiles in relief.

“I love you, Daphne.  I’ve never said that to anyone but, I’ve never felt this way before.  It’s a little scary, but in an amazing way.  I love you more than I ever thought I could love another person.”  His eyes grow moist as he speaks.
             

“Oh, Tanner!  I love you, too.  I love you so very much.” I say, throwing myself into his embrace.  He sighs deeply as I clutch his chest.  We sway slowly on the dance floor for the rest of the night, even through several techno dance songs.  We don’t even notice.  We’re in love and we’re dancing to the music we are creating together.

Glowing

“You really don’t need to chaperone us, Elise.  Tanner doesn’t mind my hanging out with Evan.” I giggle as Elise and I walk up to Evan’s apartment.

“I’m not chaperoning you, silly girl.  I’ve wanted to see this band for months now.”  I raise an eyebrow at her and she looks away quickly.  She and Henry are awfully protective of Tanner and my relationship.  Deep down, I know she is curious about my friendship with Evan.   “But, I will say, it is rare for you to have casual friendships with men, so I’m a bit curious to see how you behave around this Evan character.”

“I knew it.  There is absolutely nothing to worry about.  He and Tanner have met.  It’s all fine.  Tanner
trusts
me.”

“I trust you, too.” Elise attempts to reassure me.

“I hope so,” I reply.  “I love Tanner, Elise.  It’s real.  And as soon as you meet Evan, you’ll realize you are worried about nothing.”

“Why do you say that, is he an ugly troll?” she asks sarcastically.

“No, of course not.  He’s very attractive.  But, our relationship isn’t like that.”

“Even though you’ve slept together?”

“Yep.” I nod.  Somehow I knew that was what was driving Elise crazy.

“Wow,” Elise says as I buzz Evan’s apartment, “Who are you and what have you done with my best friend?”  Giggling away her skepticism, I’m confident that in just a few minutes she will observe the rapport I have with Evan and no longer worry about my relationship with Tanner.

Evan comes through the door of his building.  He is wearing a black leather coat and he looks very handsome.  Out of the corner of my eye, I observe Elise.  Her mouth is agape at the sight of him and I have to keep myself from giggling at her.

“Hey ladies, are we ready for some music?”

“Oh yes,” I nod, “Evan, I’d like you to meet my best friend, Elise.”

“Great to meet you,” he says warmly, extending his hand to Elise.  She looks away briefly in embarrassment before returning the gesture, a huge smile upon her face.  Evan has charmed her already.

“I’m surprised Tanner didn’t want to join us tonight.” Evan observes, focusing his attention back to me.

“He’s not a fan of the band,” I shrug, “he’s going to grab a beer with some friends from work, but he said he’ll stop by later if he can.”

“Okay, next time then.” Evan smiles warmly, “Shall we head to the bar?”

We make our way into a Northwestern campus bar where local bands play.  As Elise and I get comfortable at a table, Evan makes his way over to the bar to order our drinks.  He chats easily with the bartender and I instantly wonder if they’ve met before.  Evan has a terrible habit of dating the wrong women.

“You seem to know your way around campus, Evan.” Elise says when Evan returns to the table with a round of drinks.

“Well, I should.  I spent four years of my life here,” Evan replies.

“Oh, I had no idea,” Elise replies sheepishly, biting her upper lip in embarrassment.
“Hey, I’m going to head to the ladies room, I’ll be back in a minute,” Elise stands up and before I can offer to go with her, she scurries off to the restroom.  I can’t hide my amused expression.

“Spill it, what’s up with your best friend?”

“I think you make her nervous,” I suggest with a laugh.

“Me?” Evan asks.  I nod.  He looks taken aback, “Why on earth is your friend nervous around me?”

“Well, aside from your obvious good looks and charm, she is here under false pretenses.”

“How do you mean?” Evan asks, raising a curious eyebrow and tilts his head to the side slightly, looking for more information.

“She’s babysitting us.”

“Oh, did Tanner send her?” Evan looks a bit disappointed.

“No, he would never do that.  In fact, I’m not even sure that Tanner knows she is here with us tonight since she decided to join us at the last minute.” Evan’s posture relaxes immediately with my reassurance.  “She’s just very protective of me.  And he is very close with her husband, so…”

“Ahh, I get it.  No worries.  I’ll play nice,” he chuckles and I roll my eyes in return.

“She likes you already, I can tell.  But, she’s suspicious about my track record. Having guys for friends has never really been my thing”

“You don’t have many of them?”

“Other than you?” I ask. Evan nods and I shake my head.

“Wow, I’m surprised, Daphne.  You’re so easy to hang out with, I would think you’d have lots of male friends.”  I shrug my shoulders just as Elise slips back into her seat.

“Okay, what did I miss?” she asks, wide-eyed.

“We’re just talking about the band,” I smile, giving Evan a quick glance.  He winks sweetly back at me.

“They’re about to start their set,” Evan adds.  Elise takes a sip of her drink and I can tell she is ready to grill Evan in order to gauge his intentions towards me.  Thank goodness I prepared him for my friend the detective.

“So, Evan, what do you do for a living?” she begins.

“I’m in marketing. I love it because I get to spend my day thinking about how to spread the word on concepts and products.  And I get to spend my day talking with people.”

“You seem like you would be really good at that,” Elise adds.

“He is,” I nod, “He tells me about the projects he’s working on, and the ladies who distract him,” I wink at Evan, before taking a sip of my cocktail.

“Alright, alright, yes Daphne has been clued in to my messy love life.” Evan chuckles as he sips his beer.

“Why is your love life messy, if you don’t mind my asking?”  Elise may be great at investigation, but her manners never fail her.

“No worries, Elise.  I just have a bad track record with women--”

“And he likes girls who are all wrong for him,” I interrupt, nudging him in the arm.

“Yes, Daphne here is trying to help me work on that.  But, sometimes I can’t help myself.  The heart wants what the heart wants,” he shrugs, sarcasm dripping from his words.  I roll my eyes at him playfully.

“Daph, isn’t that Tanner?”  Elise cranes her neck, looking toward the door.  In a split second, I’m off my bar stool, searching the room for my boyfriend.  I glance at Evan, who is observing me with a relaxed smile.   After scanning the room, I find him.  He is walking through the bar, searching for me as well. Our eyes meet and I grin from ear to ear, waving him over to our table as Evan grabs another stool. 

“Tanner, you made it,” I say, wrapping my arms around him. I slowly release him from my ecstatic grip.

“Hey, Evan, how’s it going, man?” Tanner says, extending a friendly hand to Evan who squeezes his hand in return.

“I’m doing well.  Here, sit.  I’m glad you were able to make it.  Daphne mentioned these guys aren’t really your favorite.  Decided to come anyway, huh?”

“Yep,” a grin forms upon Tanner’s face, “I thought I’d hang out with you guys.”

“I’m so glad you did,” I say, gazing at Tanner.  He takes my hand in his and kisses my knuckles softly.

“Okay,” Elise says giddily, “I really need a refill.  Evan would you join me at the bar for a few minutes?  I think we should allow the love birds a minute to themselves.”

“Of course,” Evan stands, gesturing for Elise to walk into his outstretched arm, “We’ll be back in a bit.”

As soon as they walk away, Tanner turns and plants a sensual kiss on my lips.  I place my hands on his cheeks, so happy to have a moment alone with him.

“I didn’t think you’d come out with us.  You made my night, babe.”  I smile.

“In all honesty, I couldn’t stay away.  Work has been really stressful lately and today was no picnic.  But, I knew seeing you would make it all better.”

“Really?” I ask.

“Always, Daph.  You
always
make things better,” he leans in and places his forehead on mine and all of a sudden, I’m no longer interested in hearing the band.  All I want to do is take Tanner back to my apartment and have my way with him.  But, I can’t do that to Elise or Evan.  Instead I give Tanner a soft kiss on his lips and ask, “Are you staying over tonight?”

“Definitely,” he smiles.

“Alright, alright, break it up,” Elise smiles.  “We brought reinforcements.”  She places four drinks on the table.  We settle in and listen to the band, occasionally stopping to talk between songs.  Evan and Tanner discuss their respective jobs and their similar taste in music.  Elise, seeing their relaxed interaction gives me a look of approval. 

The band finishes their first set, and Tanner excuses himself to the washroom.  Evan gives me a knowing look and I can’t tell if he’s about to tease me or congratulate me.

“He’s a good guy,” Evan says, “You two are a really good fit.”

“You think so?” I ask, genuinely wanting Evan’s approval.

“I do.  You’re
glowing
, Daphne.  I’ve never seen you like this before.  Ever since he walked through that door, you’ve been a different person.” I throw my head back slightly in surprise, raising one eyebrow.  Evan chuckles, “I meant it as a compliment to
him
, not as an insult to you.”  

“I don’t mean to be different,” I say softly.

“No, of course not.  But you’re happier and more at peace when he’s near you.  It’s really cool. I can see with my own eyes how happy he makes you and I like it.”

“I see it, too,” Elise adds, nodding.  “Evan’s right, you’re a good match.  But, I already knew that,” she says, nudging me in the arm. 

We continue the evening listening to music, while enjoying light conversation.  Evan and Tanner spend a lot of time discussing guy stuff as Elise and I share knowing glances and rolled eyes. 

When the bar closes, Tanner and I walk hand in hand out to our respective cars, saying a quick goodbye, for the moment. I know that I’ll be seeing him after dropping off my friends at their respective homes.  In the car, we continue laughing and reminiscing on the music of the evening.  It feels good to share Tanner with my friends and that they can see and feel my happiness.  Simply thinking about their reactions makes me smile as I pull into my parking lot and see Tanner’s SUV is already here.