Exception (60 page)

“What’s so funny, darling?”

“I was complimenting Ems, Mom. Cool-kid style,” he said with an amused grin, turning to look at his mother and sister. “You look beautiful too, Mom. As do you, Poppy.”

Emily followed his gaze and noticed that Nate, who had helped Penelope down the stairs, was staring at her with a strange gleam in his eyes. She dismissed the thought, noticing Taylor hadn’t paid too much attention to it.

Rotating his attention between Emily and Taylor, Rick politely complimented her and teased his son about having his work cut out for him when it came to keeping hopeful dancers away from her, himself included. With a smile that showed how happy she was, she replied that he was the one hopeful she’d be delighted to dance with.

Still talking and laughing, the group passed the flower-covered arch that led into the great room where the party would take place.

The massive, beautiful room had been stripped bare to its stone and wooden walls. In the place of all the removed furniture, round tables had been arranged in a U-shape around a beautiful black, white and red dance floor with a large C in the middle that stood in front of a stage where a band was already playing. The same color scheme and lace patterns that had been present on the invitations, and on their dresses, were all over the room. There were flowers everywhere: on tables, on the fireplace mantel, draped over doors, hanging from the arched ceiling and even decorating the massive Christmas tree in the corner of the room. True to her reputation, Tina had created a real wonderland.

The dreamlike feel of the party was offset by the vintage photo booth and the piles of cheap New Year’s top hats, tiaras, horns and confetti packets that were scattered around the room as souvenirs.

The place started filling up. Guest arrived in hordes and all family members put their game faces on and started navigating the room, passing out polite small talk and happy New Year’s wishes. Taylor and Emily walked hand in hand and, as was customary to them in social events, no guest was immune to their collective charms. With over a hundred guests, one would think the process would have been long and tiring, but it wasn’t. In fact, Emily would have walked a thousand miles and greeted a million people in heels twice as tall as the ones she was wearing, just to be next to him, and to be held the way she was.

It was hard to know if he was doing it on purpose or not, but Taylor was seducing Emily with every little thing he did. From the quiet confidence he had walking around the room, to the way he placed his hand only a few inches above her bottom, running his fingers up and down in a slow, sensual caress over the fabric of her dress whenever they were talking to a guest. He was incredibly alluring, and by the time the master of ceremonies took the stage to urge the guests to take their seats for dinner, every look she gave him was a silent plea for him to kiss her.

Sitting at the central table right in front of the dance floor, the family enjoyed the delicious five-course meal with the presence of the Grahams. While the men talked sports, the women gossiped and laughed at the delightfulness that was Mrs. Graham. The tiny woman had the most adorable Latin accent and a heartwarming laugh. She had the same gray eyes and dark hair as Nate. Within minutes of conversation, she and Emily had found a shared passion: Pablo Neruda’s sonnets. The conversation resulted in a brilliant Valentine’s Day idea for the blog, and began a quote-off between the two.

Taylor watched her quote some of the most romantic lines ever written with an adoring glimmer in his eyes and loving caresses to her shoulders. He could see it in her eyes—she was reciting those verses to him, and by the looks he received from the others sharing their table, he wasn’t the only one who knew it. There was light and love in every pair of eyes at the table, except for one.

Nate’s sister, Katie, was only a couple years younger than Emily, cute as a button and seemingly adorable. However, her lack of regard for the fact that Taylor had a date and the giggles and hair tossing and eyelash batting she was sending his way were seriously infuriating. After dessert, when Rick left the table and moved towards the stage, Emily was ready to hold the woman by her highlighted curls and smash her cute face on the table until all her giggles bled out.

“It’s a pleasure to have all of you, dear friends and colleagues, in our home to celebrate such an important night with our family,” Rick said from the stage, taking Emily’s mind away from the annoying Katie.

He was an older version of Taylor, with the same confidence and effortless charm. Emily couldn’t help but to smile as he continued his speech. “I know we have a few new faces amongst us tonight, one very special within my own family,” he said, smiling in Emily’s direction, and making her blush a deep red. “So, I’ll give a quick recap of how this tradition started.

“Thirty-four years ago I crashed a New Year’s ball with a friend of mine. We entered through the kitchen door and made our way to the grand hall. I don’t know if it was because we were both handsome lads in our prime or because people were so drunk but, either way, they didn’t notice us, and we were welcomed warmly by people we didn’t know. Because of that, I must say that if you weren’t invited to this party . . . welcome, my friend.”

His comment made the room erupt with laughter, and once more Emily marveled at how nice Taylor’s father was.

“So once in the party, my friend and I did what twenty-something-year-old men do at parties. We scanned the room for pretty girls.” Once more the crowd laughed. “And that’s when I saw this young woman in a yellow dress by the punch bowl, and it must be said that she wasn’t just pretty—she was an angel.”

As Emily joined the female chorus of “Aww”, the three Carter children and Nate started a round of whistles and cheers, making Tina blush crimson. Laughing, Rick gestured for the crowd to silence, and continued with his story. “With my eyes set on the angel, I walked towards her with confidence and . . . said absolutely nothing. For the first time in my life, I was tongue-tied. But I did confidently offer a hand and nodded towards the dance floor, a move I learned later in life that she thought manly and romantic.”

Rick winked at his wife, who blew him a kiss, acknowledging what was probably a fond memory for the couple.

“We danced three songs in absolute silence,” he continued with a smile. “Then, on the fourth, she asked my name. ‘Richard Carter,’ I stuttered it and asked hers. With the prettiest smile, she said it was Christina Lovett, but that I was allowed to call her Tina Carter. After that answer my courage returned from wherever it was hiding, and at midnight I kissed her. The next year at midnight, I put a ring on her finger. A year later she became my wife, and at twelve past midnight on the year after that, Taylor was born.”

Once more the room erupted with “Aww” and cheers, but this time he simply continued to speak over the voices, as he made his way off the stage and towards the table, where his wife was still sitting. “Tina Carter, my angel, you’ve given me three beautiful children, one great life and thirty-four unforgettable New Year celebrations. So please, do me the honor of joining me and our old friend Elvis on the dance floor.”

She took his extended hand and he whisked her away to stand above the large red C in the middle of the glossy black and white floor. As the velvety voice of Elvis Presley sounded through the speakers, the couple started to move from side to side, following the beat of the song, with eyes locked. Their love was such that it touched every heart in the room, filling Emily’s eyes with tears.

When the final verse of the song filled the room, Taylor stood up and adjusted his jacket before moving to Emily’s side. Like his father had done to his mother all those years ago, he said nothing—simply looked her, deep in the eyes, and extended his hand. She took it and followed him, thinking Tina was absolutely right; the move was incredibly sexy.

With perfect timing, the two entered the dance floor followed by Gabriel, who was paired with Katie, and Penelope, who was in Nate’s arms. The band replaced Elvis with a famous Johnny Cash song. The lyrics were about a man telling his woman that, above everyone and everything in his life, he loved her more.

Taylor and Emily danced in silence, cheek pressed against cheek, and bodies moving with the unity and familiarity only two people who knew each other’s souls could have. In that moment, they were one person, moving freely in a room where there was no one but them to a song with words that spoke the most absolute truth.

Even when their bodies parted after exchanging partners, their connection was intact. From across the dance floor where she was partnered with Nate, Gabriel, and then finally Rick, Emily found Taylor’s eyes and their lips turned into smiles, knowing they were both hopelessly in love.

In the last verse of the song, Rick returned Emily to his son, delivering a fatherly kiss to the back of her hand before returning to his wife.

Being back in Taylor’s arms was like returning home, and the smile on his lips let her know he felt the same. Pressing her cheek against his, she channeled her inner Tina and found the courage to say what was on her mind.

“You smiled because you knew,” she whispered the quote in his ear.

She felt his grin widening, his perfect stubble lightly scratching her cheek. “Shakespeare. But, you forgot the first part. The whole quote is ‘When I saw you I fell in love, and you smiled because you knew,’” he whispered sensually back.

“You know.” Her words were somewhere between a question and a statement.

Chuckling, his answer was another simple whisper. “Yeah.”

“For how long?”

“I’ve known about me since the morning after your dream in Vermont.”

“And about me?”

The song they were dancing to came to an end, and the band started a new one, bringing more guests to the floor. Taking advantage of the privacy the other dancers gave them, Taylor rearranged their positions so they were face to face, both her hands around his neck and both of his holding her hips.

“I’ve been guessing in that direction for a while,” he started his explanation. “But not before I admitted to my own feelings. Until then I was completely unaware of everything. Then the dream, how hell-bent you were on getting me to stay home at Thanksgiving, then Alice’s birth, Christmas and finally this morning. That’s the first time I was really sure—and maybe it was because, for the first time, you were really sure as well.”

She bit her lip, remembering her mixed emotions that morning. “It was, and I freaked out and went to sit on the frozen lake like a crazy person.”

Snickering at her, he kissed the tip of her nose, making her hope once more that he would kiss her lips. “I ran forty-five minutes uphill as fast as my legs would go. I only stopped because Nate reminded me I needed to dance with you tonight.”

“Remind me to thank Nate later. I love dancing with you,” she said laughing.

His eyes were hooded as his smiling face moved forward, nuzzling her neck before delivering a soft kiss to it and moving up to whisper in her ear. “I love
you
.”

Emily’s legs felt like giving up, and she was thankful that his face was tucked in her neck, preventing him from seeing the stupid grin on her lips. She ran a hand through his soft hair, and inhaled deeply. “You meant what you said at the lake? Nothing to lose?”

“Every word,” he answered, craning his head back and staring deep into her eyes with an honest smile. “You’re first and foremost my best friend; that won’t ever change, no matter how many things we add to our relationship. And trust me, I plan to add a lot.”

They looked at each other with matching smiles and raised brows. Laughing and running a hand through the exposed skin on her back, he continued, “Until Vermont you were my awesome and gorgeous best friend—and then you became my best friend who’s also the love of my life. On Christmas, I added roommate. Tonight, I hope to add girlfriend to your list of titles. And, with time, fiancée, wife, mother, grandmother and whatever we can think of. However, you’ll always be my best friend. That’s permanent.”

The overwhelming love and happiness Emily felt, imagining having ownership of all the titles he’d just described filled her eyes with tears. When one of them spilled over the rim, a sweet kiss wiped it clean.

Staring deep into his eyes, and smiling so much that her cheeks were growing numb, she ran a hand up and down his neck and took a long, deep breath. “I love the sound of that, and I absolutely love you Taylor.”

The boy-on-Christmas-morning look was back on his face. It nearly split his face in half as he pressed her against his chest, lifting her from the floor to spin her in the air until she was begging him to stop. Still beaming, he held her flush against his body, her feet still in the air. “You’re my girlfriend now?”

Her answer was a vigorous nod that made him spin her once more. “I’ve been waiting a long time for this Emily. I want a proper answer,” he demanded playfully, making her giggle like a schoolgirl.

With her stomach fluttering with butterflies, she answered giddily, “Yes, I’m your girlfriend.”

Putting her feet back on the ground, he stared at her with the largest smile Emily had ever seen on his lips. “The music is too loud, babe. You’ll have to say it again, louder.”

“Yes, I’m your girlfriend,” she repeated, almost yelling in between giggles. “Now will you finally kiss me, boyfriend?”

“Oh yes, ma’am.” He laughed, and in the next second his lips covered hers.