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“I’d prefer to watch the purses and to keep Emma here company. Her shoe broke, after all,” I said.
“Oh, I’ll be fine. I can watch the purses,” Emma said. “Go have fun! You don’t have to watch our purses. I need a break anyway, and then I’ll go back out and dance in my bare feet.”
Maria tugged on my arm again.
The band was playing a slow song, so I finally gave in and accepted her offer to dance. We seemed to fit well and moved in rhythm – like we were creating a connection. I pulled her closer.
“So, what do you do for fun in Texas?” I asked as I leaned down to her ear.
“Well, if I’m not doing my art and my business, I can be found in an aerobics or yoga class. And, of course, I love to dance. There’s a great dance hall a couple of towns over from where I live,” she replied excitedly.
“And what kind of dances do you do?”
“Oh, the two-step, the shuffle, and line dances,” she exclaimed. “I’ll have to teach you the two-step.”
“I’m not so sure about that. I’m sure I was born with two left feet,” I insisted.
“You found the right one for this dance,” she insisted.
“It must be you,” I ventured. “I’m feeling very comfortable with you, even with all your zany ways.” I had surprised myself with these words, and my mind was trying to process whether I had sounded stupid or gone too far or what. But then - she held me tighter.
“I’m feeling the same way, Mav,” she purred.
We danced a few more dances as she tried to teach me the two-step. We laughed. Then it seemed like the night was over – everyone was ready to turn in for the night.
Maria rode in my truck on the way back with Caleb and Elliott. It was a quiet ride, each of us in our own thoughts. I was still trying to figure out just what had happened on that dance floor, and when we reached our rental house, I merely told Maria to have a good night’s sleep.
***
Friday morning came, and my thoughts went immediately to Maverick and the dance we had together. What did his words mean, I pondered. And me – I was attracted to him more than ever – this guy so different from me.
However, I couldn’t dwell on it for too long. We had the morning to finish any last-minute preparations with our outfits, and Emma needed some new shoes after the night before. And I was a bit surprised she had worn heels last night, knowing we would be dancing. Anyway, we headed to the mall and decided we would meet everyone else at the church later to help decorate.
After an hour, we found her a pair of shoes that she was confident would work, and she decided to wear them to do decorations to break them in. She had packed a pair of flats for the reception and for the rehearsal dinner tonight—a smart idea in my book.
“All right. We should grab some lunch and then head out to the church,” I said, looking at the time on my phone. “Stacey texted me ten minutes ago, and that was the rest of the group’s plan.”
“I’m good with that. Want to grab something here or hit a drive-through?”
“Let’s hit a drive-through on our way back to Eagle Falls,” I said. “The rest of them are going to a sit-down place close to where we’ll be having the ceremony, but we’ve got a longer drive.”
“Fair enough.”
With that, we hurried out to Emma’s car. It didn’t take us long to get on the road. We stopped for burgers on the way and ended up arriving at the church at the same time as everyone else. Emma had the balloons in her car for the balloon arch and the garland that would be on the head table, while Stacey’s car had all the linens and the large backdrop that would be set up behind the main table. Flowers were to be delivered for use by the bridal party in the sanctuary and the reception area.
“Hi, Stacey!”
I waved at her.
We all headed inside and got to work. With Stacey, Jason, and me on balloon duty, we had the arch built in about an hour. The garland took half that time, so we were able to spend an hour and a half working with the rest of the party to put together the tables and make sure everything was just right. The flowers were delivered, and we were able to decorate the sanctuary with flowers – around the door through which the bride would enter, the pew ends, and around the altar. Most of the rest of the flowers went into a refrigerator just outside the kitchen area to keep for tomorrow.
All this time, I found my mind wandering off, thinking about Mav. On occasion, our eyes would catch, and we’d exchange a smile.
Suddenly, Caleb and Stacey asked for our attention, drawing me out of my daydreams.
“Before we do the rehearsal and then head to my parents’ home to have the rehearsal dinner,” Caleb said, “Stacey and I wanted to take a moment and thank all of you for the work you’ve put into this wedding. I hope that you will all find a chance to use these gift cards after the wedding.”
Stacey then handed everyone a fifty-dollar gift card. It wasn’t to any specific store but was one of those prepaid cards that could be refilled if needed. I smiled a little at her.
