The Wedding Wish (Summer Grooms Series) (2 page)

Blue
eyes met his and twinkled. “I was beginning to think you’d stood me up,” she
said in a soft Southern twang that made the back of his neck flash hot. Isabel
and her family had moved here from Atlanta when she was just ten. She’d never
fully lost the accent. Even as a kid, Robert had found the sweet cadence of her
words intoxicating. He took a seat across from her in the booth, noting he
still wasn’t immune to her charms. “I’m a man of my word,” he assured her,
settling his own backpack in place. “I hope you haven’t been waiting long?”

“Just
a few minutes. But that’s okay. Been checking my new class schedule.”

“For
the fall?”

“Summer
session, actually.”

“No
kidding? I’ll be here too.”

Their
eyes locked for a heated moment.

Even
though it was so long ago, the memory of their first kiss seemed like yesterday.
Robert bringing his ineffectual mouth to hers. Of all things, wearing braces! He’d
been so inept, she’d nearly bitten his tongue. Not that he’d blamed her
entirely. Even then, he knew he’d probably deserved it, as awkward in his
approach as he was.

“It’s
a little warm out for coffee,” she said. “I think I’ll grab a soda. Can I get
one for you?”

“Uh,
yeah. I mean, no.” He felt his temperature spike again and wondered if there
was something wrong with the AC in here. Robert shifted on the bench, extracting
his wallet. “I’ll get both of ours. My treat.”

She
reached in her backpack and handed him her perma-refill tumbler. “I’ve got the
enviro-friendly cup. Hope you don’t mind.”

“Very
ecological of you,” he said, taking it from her.

He
quickly cleared his throat, thinking he must look like an idiot. Flustered by
some ridiculous reverie more than a decade old. “I’ve got to tell you, Isabel,
you look terrific. How long has it been?”

“Oh
gosh, has to have been at least…sixteen years!” She studied him a moment, then
delicately arched an eyebrow. “And I mean it quite sincerely when I say you
look fantastic too. Totally…buff.”

“How
was your class?” he asked, hearing his voice grow froggy.

She
pinned him in place with pretty blue eyes. “Revealing. And yours?”

He
stood so quickly, his knees knocked the table. “Uh, no, I wasn’t in class,” he
said, starting to walk away.

“Really?”

He
nearly stumbled over his own feet walking backward. “Let’s just say I had a debt
to repay.” If Isabel hadn’t been in that studio, why was she eyeing him so
suspiciously? Like she could see right through him, or at the very least clear
down to his skin.

“Are
you okay?” she asked as he nearly collided with another student.

He
shot her a tight smile. “Fine. Just fine. Diet drink should help.”

Isabel
watched him walk away, thinking a man with his physique didn’t need to worry about
diet anything
. And she should know.
She’d just studied him in incredible detail. He headed for the drink dispenser,
glancing over his shoulder with a tense smile. Why was he on edge all of a
sudden? He’d seemed just fine when they’d run into each other outdoors. Could
it be he’d seen her sitting in the art studio? Practically drooling in the far
recesses of the class? Isabel noted Robert had jammed her cup below the ice
dispenser, but his eyes were still glued on hers. She watched wide-eyed as ice
spewed forth and began to tumble over the rim of the cup.

Robert
stared down in horror at the cascading display. He yanked on the cup, but it
wouldn’t budge, wedged somehow between the back of the machine and the lip of
the dispenser. Something inside the ice machine started churning loudly as ice
began to
spit…spit…spit…
past the
jammed tumbler and onto the floor. Robert grabbed the cup with both hands and
yanked hard, his face crimson from the neck up. Isabel glanced around the room
and raced to his rescue, wrapping her hands around his on the icy cup. “I can’t
move it,” he grated between clenched teeth as the machine whirred louder,
burying his loafers in cascading ice.

“I’ll
help!” she called above the commotion as others in the Student Center gathered
to stare. She tightened her fingers around his, leaning back to give herself
leverage. “On go!”

“Go?”

“Ready…
Set…”

“Gotcha!

“Go!”

They
pulled hard together, and the cup jerked free. Isabel fell back on her bottom
as Robert slid to his knees beside her, and an icy avalanche ensued, pinging
them both with constant fury. Robert grabbed a cafeteria tray from a nearby
shelf, shielding them both from the onslaught. As he reached a hand toward
Isabel to help her stand, a hefty woman pushed past them. “Excuse me!” The university
worker in a hairnet with big, burly arms strode straight to the machine and hit
the ice dispenser button—hard. The machine whined to a halt, and the ice
assault stopped, finishing with three little spews of cubes near the end.

“Are
you okay?” Robert turned his eyes on Isabel as she stood on shaky knees, the
ground beneath them crunching. She couldn’t help but see the absurdity of the
moment, nor its irony either.

“I
was just thinking.” She gave a wry twist to her lips and surveyed him soundly. “Now
that we’ve broken the ice between us, maybe we should have dinner?”

He
laughed lightly, his face awash with relief as he dabbed his damp clothing with
napkins. He handed a stack to her, and she did the same. “Dinner sounds great.
What did you have in mind?”

“I
was thinking of taking you home to see my parents,” she said, knowing as she
did the idea seemed right. They’d invited her over this evening anyway.
Naturally, they’d be happy to see an old family friend.

“Are
you sure? It’s kind of late notice.”

“Don’t
be silly,” she said, swatting his shoulder with the side of her cup. “My folks
will welcome you with open arms.”

Chapter Two

Kip pulled back the door with a broad grin beneath his
bushy moustache. “Baby,” he said in his deep Southern drawl. “Welcome home!”

He paused momentarily, narrowing his gaze at Robert. “You,
on the other hand,” he said with a dismissive look, “can stay outside. Or go
home altogether. Whatever it is you’re peddling, we don’t want any.” He began
to press his hand toward Robert’s chest, but Isabel pushed it away.

“Daddy! I’m surprised at you. This is Robert. Robert Reed.
Don’t you remember?”

Kip took a step forward and assessed Robert with an
appraising frown. “Robert? Little Robert?
Nooo.
”

Trudy brushed past him, squealing with glee. “Well, look what
the cat dragged in! Robert Reed, of all people!” Her blonde bob bounced as she
wrapped him in a tight hug, then pulled back with an appreciative smile. “And
all grown up too.” She nudged her husband with her elbow. “Just look at him,
Kip. It’s almost hard to believe he’s the same boy.”

“Hmm, yes. Hard to believe at that.” As far as Kip
recalled, Robert had been buck-toothed and scrawny. And—this part hadn’t
slipped his mind—forever angling to get his hands on Isabel. He’d
developed the sneaking suspicion that little Isabel was becoming interested in
Robert too. He’d come home from work early one afternoon and had discovered
them playing some sort of parlor game that involved both of them lying down on
the sofa. When Robert’s dad had been transferred to another position up north,
Kip had been more than relieved. He’d been ecstatic. A preteen girl was hard
enough to handle without a boy with raging hormones living next door. And Kip
knew a thing or two about hormones. He’d been a young man once himself.

Robert nodded politely at them both. “Mr. and Mrs. Miller,
it’s really great to see you.” He extended his hand toward Kip, but Kip just
stared at it like it was some frightening harbinger from his past.
What on earth is the boy doing here? After
all this time? And how come my dear daughter looks like she’s already got stars
in her eyes? Didn’t she just break up with a boyfriend? Okay. So maybe that was
two or three years ago… But still, a woman’s tender heart needs time to heal.

“Kip…” Trudy urged in a sing-songy voice, her grin tight
across those pearly whites.

“Oh, right.” He shook Robert’s hand. Extra firmly, to remind
him Kip was the man in charge. If Robert was up to no good at thirteen, who knew
what kind of trouble he could brew as an adult man?

“Where are our manners?” Trudy said brightly. “Robert,
Isabel, please come inside.” Then, to Kip’s horror, she turned to Robert and
said she hoped he’d join them for dinner. While women prided themselves on
intuition, Kip’s manly instincts had never failed him. They’d gotten him by in
business and had helped him become one of the area’s most lucrative contractors.
It helped that he’d developed a keen sense about who to trust and who not to.
Robert Reed had always been on Kip’s
not
to
list. And until Robert did something stellar to change his mind, Kip was
standing by his first impression.

Trudy excused herself to go check something in the kitchen
as Kip settled his gaze on Robert’s. “Can I fix you something to drink?” he
asked in a perfunctory tone that said he’d have preferred it better if Robert
hadn’t stayed at all.

Isabel grinned sweetly at her dad, oblivious to the whole
thing. “I’ll have some wine, thanks. White, if you have it.”

Robert had chalked up his memories of Mr. Miller as a big,
old grizzly bear to youthful imagination. Now he wondered if that recollection
wasn’t squarely on target.

“I’ll have what she’s having,” he told Mr. Miller, in an
effort to be conciliatory. Robert didn’t want any trouble here. But he did want
to spend time with Isabel. And if that meant also spending time with her
family… Well then, Robert would just have to man up and do it. Mrs. Miller was
pleasant enough to deal with anyway. Robert was certain all of Isabel’s good
qualities must have been inherited from her.

The older man huffed and strode away, hands jammed in his
pockets.

Once he was out of earshot, Robert turned toward Isabel with
a grimace. “I’m not so sure my coming here was a good idea.”

“Why on earth not?”

“I don’t think your dad is so happy to see me.”

“Oh, come on! He’s just a big, old teddy bear!”

“Grizzly’s more like it.”

“Okay,” she said in a whisper. “I’ll admit he sometimes
comes off a little gruff. But his bark is worse than his bite.”

Robert pursed his lips and said nothing.

“Just give him some time to get to know you again.”

“That’s what I mean. He never liked me in the first place!”

“Who told you that?”

“You did.”

She covered her mouth with a giggle. “I did, didn’t I? Well,
that wasn’t very nice. I probably shouldn’t have. And whether or not that was
true… That was all those years ago. You’re a grown man now. I’m sure my dad
sees you differently.”

Robert swallowed hard, hoping that was so. It felt so great
seeing Isabel again and being in her company. After they’d made an icy mess of
the Student Center—and had helped to clean it up again—they’d sat,
laughing and talking over old times for hours. In some ways, it had been like
stepping right back in time to a faraway place that was nearly forgotten yet
familiar. Isabel was lighthearted and fun to talk to, and, not so incidentally,
extremely easy on the eyes. If she hadn’t had this previous engagement with her
folks, he would have asked her out himself. That would have been nice too, to
be able to continue their earlier conversation—alone.

“Darling,” Kip said, reappearing and handing his daughter a
glass before offering another to Robert. “I hope you like Chardonnay. It’s one
of the local varieties, one of our best.”

Robert took an appreciative sip and nodded in approval. “It’s
perfect, thanks.”

Trudy emerged from the kitchen with a sunny smile. “You’re
in luck, Robert. The new dishes I’m trying are plenty enough for four.” She
gave a little swivel to her hips beneath her prim A-line skirt and matching
blouse and summer sweater. “Cooking
Caribe,
anyone?”

As Robert and Isabel trailed her parents into the dining
room, Isabel warned Robert. “Prepare yourself,” she said under her breath. “Trudy’s
on a new cuisine-from-around-the-world kick. Last time, it was fried goat’s
head.”

“I’m sure I can handle it,” Robert said with a chuckle.

Isabel shot him a quizzical look.

“I’m in med school, remember?” he returned in low tones. “Nothing
I could see would shock me.”

Thirty minutes later, Trudy held the brimming platter in his
direction. “More
plátanos,
Robert?”

He stared down at the enormous glazed bananas, that—for
the life of him—looked like caramelized parts of the male anatomy. “Um,
no… Thanks. They’re delicious, though.”

Isabel shot Robert a coquettish smile. “I’ll take some more,”
she said, reaching for the platter. “I don’t think I could get enough.”

Kip leaned forward and took the platter from Trudy, setting
it on the table beside him. “Perhaps you’ve already had enough.”

“But I love these! Don’t you, Mom?”

Trudy sliced into hers with gusto, and Robert winced. “They’re
to die for.”

Kip took the napkin from his lap and splayed it open,
covering the offending bananas.