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She couldn’t think about the man any longer because her aunt swept her up into a warm embrace and Caitey hugged her in return. Her aunt smelled faintly of a sweet feminine musk and her fashion was impeccable.
“Here’s your father now, sweetheart,” Mrs. Thornton told Jenna. “He’s been glued to the financial channel in our suite all afternoon. Your uncle probably didn’t hear the doorbell when you arrived, Caitey, I’m sorry. I don’t think Marcus even knew that Uncle Alex had stayed behind.”
“Well, well, who do we have here? Two beautiful young ladies,” Alexander Thornton said, appearing at the foyer entrance. He kissed his daughter’s cheek before giving Caitey a warm embrace. “Hello, Caitey girl, I’m glad you made it here safe and sound.”
Alexander was in his early sixties, tall and fit, with a distinguished appearance. His beard was short and neat, and he had a thick head of salt-and-pepper hair.
“Hi Uncle Alex. How are the stock markets today?” Caitey said with a grin. He was a financial planner by trade and loved to endlessly talk about investments for his clients—or potential clients, which was everyone he met.
He winked at Caitey. “I’m telling you; I have some great portfolios right now. Stocks were booming this morning but dropped off again. I think they shouldhave rung the closing bell three hours earlier and then we could all have had arichgood night’s sleep.”
“Perhaps it’s because East Coast time is three hours later than the West Coast,” Jenna teased her father.
“Are you ready for this wedding, my dear?” he asked his daughter, fixing her with a meaningful gaze under a shock of hair that fell over his eyes.
“Of course, Daddy, I wish it was already my wedding day,” Jenna teased back.
“Hold your horses. It’ll be here before you know it.”
“Don’t wish it too soon! I still have everything to decorate!” Caitey piped up, and everyone chuckled.
Jenna turned to her. “We need to help you unpack your vehicle! You’ve been driving for hours, all loaded down. Let me find Logan and his friend, Marcus to help.”
“You mean Marcus Sterling?” Caitey asked innocently, as if she and Jenna hadn’t already whispered about him before her aunt and uncle had appeared to greet her. “The security guy?”
“What a coincidence!” Aunt Victoria exclaimed. “How could you possibly know the man?”
Caitey blinked. “We ran into each other at the Coffee Loft.”
Aunt Vicki’s forehead wrinkled into a frown. “I’m still confused. Wouldn’t he have just been another coffee customer at the shop?”
“Well, um, he spotted me when I drove into the estatelooking for everyone. After Jenna suggested I head into town for a drink, he recognized me, and introduced himself.”
“He’s Logan’s best friend in all the world,” Jenna told her. “They grew up together. Inseparable. And college roommates. Marcus Sterling is amazing.”
“Oh?” Caitey said faintly, biting the inside of her lip.
“He’d give the shirt off his back to anyone,” Aunt Vicki said. “Logan asked him if him to come out and do security during the wedding week. When you first arrived, did you happen to see him working? Nobody else was around then.”
Caitey swallowed and pressed a hand against her side. A direct question couldn’t be ignored; she certainly couldn’t lie. “I did catch sight of someone moving through the trees, but I didn’t know who it was until we bumped into each other at the Coffee Loft. He was . . . pleasant.”
She certainly wasn’t going to admit that she thought Marcus was drop-dead gorgeous. Not with both her aunt and uncle staring at her, curiosity flashing in their eyes.
“How nice is that?” Aunt Vicki said, clasping her hands together. “Fortuitous, and you had a real bodyguard to watch out for you.”
“Is that necessary?” Caitey asked. “I mean, is there danger around here?”
Her aunt’s laugh tinkled in the airy foyer. “Of course not, but since the village would have been unfamiliar, it’s nice to see a friendly face.”
He wasn’t precisely what Caiteywould have called “a friendly face.” Not when he’d stared daggers at her, watching her through binoculars when she arrived.
Caitey was saved by a tall, husky man striding in from one of the hallways.
“Here you all are!” he exclaimed. “What are you doing standing around in the foyer? Come, come, and have a seat through here. My parents have been eager to meet you all! With Jenna in New Orleans and me spending so much of my time there since we got engaged, none of the parents have met in person until now. Although at the moment, Mom and Dad have disappeared elsewhere on the property.”
Logan!” she called out. “Don’t get carried away showing off the property and gardens just yet. Come say hello to Caitey—my extraordinary wedding planner and cousin!”
Instantly, Logan whipped around, strode straight to Caitey, and gave her a huge hug. “Caitey, I’ve heard so much about you! I think you’re Jenna’s favorite person in the world.”
