Page 107 of A Newport Christmess

I relaxed slightly at the turn of the conversation. “She is just as kind in real life. Kinder even.”

“How do you know her? Are you a social media influencer as well?”

It felt like small talk, but I wasn’t ready to let my guard down and pass out information to a complete stranger. Obviously, I knew strangers followed my account all the time, but it wasn’t because they’d gotten my handle from me personally. “I’m dating her brother,” I said casually.

His widened eyes flashed back to me. “The one from the live stream this morning?”

My mouth parted. “Umm … yeah.”

“What are the odds? My daughter and her friends were going bonkers over that video. And here you are, in my car. I’m going to be the coolest dad on the block when I tell them I drove the girl Nikki’s brother loves to the wedding.”

I laughed, not correcting his slight exaggeration.

“Do you think I could snap a selfie with you when we get there?” He paused, glancing over his shoulder. “Sorry. That’s totally unprofessional of me, but there aren’t many things I do that impress my daughter these days.”

That wasn’t a request I’d ever gotten before. “I’d be happy to take a picture with you,” I said, trying to remain vigilant despite his kind flattery. “We’ll just need to take it quick, since the wedding starts in eight minutes.”

“We’re almost there.” He pointed up ahead. “Rosecliff is that second drive.”

When we got closer, he slowed and then passed the turnoff Landon had taken last time that put us right in front of Rosecliff. “Looks like they have that entrance blocked. I’ll take you to the parking lot and pull as close as I can. It’s about a hundred yard walk from there.”

I nodded, my heart rate accelerating in anticipation of trying to make it inside before the wedding started. Less than five minutes. Landon would already be with the wedding party, but I’d see him after.

The driver put the car in park and hurried around to open my door. His phone was out, and he held up the camera for a selfie shot. I smiled up at it, and he gave the most dad-vibe face and thumbs up with his free hand. When the camera clicked, he pointed down a small walkway through a copse of trees. “Just on the other side of that, you’ll hit the drive in front of Rosecliff.”

“Thank you.” I picked up the skirt of my dress and hurried in the direction he’d pointed. For all the beauty of my heels, they didn’t make moving over damp gravel any easier. I bent over and pulled them off. It was time to run.

“Quinn!”

I looked up to find Landon jogging toward me, and I stopped mid-step. “What are you doing out here?”

“Hello to you, too.” He smiled that smile of his that made my heart patter recklessly. “I was tracking your driver on the app. You know, in case he deviated from his course to murder you.”

“Thanks for that. You would have made a great primary witness as to where my body was buried.”

He laughed.

“But what I meant was, I’m pretty sure you’re going to be late to your own sister’s wedding.”

“Nikki had a last-minute wardrobe malfunction.”

I lifted a hand to my mouth. “Oh no!”

“Honestly, I think she was buying you a little more time.”

“She’s stalling the wedding for me? Holy curse words. We need to hurry.” With my shoes in one hand and the skirt of my dress in the other, I started toward Rosecliff again, Landon pacing me, chuckling from what I assumed was my chosen expletive.

“Your feet must be freezing. Here.” He wrapped a hand around my waist, lifting me up into his arms with ease. And suddenly, cradled against his chest, I wasn’t the least bit upset with being nearly child-sized. He smelled divine, and all I wanted to do was reach my arms around his neck and warm myself with his kisses.

“Here we are.” He placed me down at the entrance. His breaths were coming out in white puffs of air.

I used his arm for balance as I slid my shoes back on. When I straightened, I rubbed my hands down my figure. “Looking at me, would you guess I haven’t showered and the combination of my nerves and this velvet are making me sweat?”

He took his time assessing me, and I blushed under the concentrated efforts. I pushed at his chest. “A simple yes or no would be fine.”

He chuckled. “You look stunning.”

“So do you.”