Page 29 of Center Ice

What was that like? To be a part of something. To have friends that were so close they were family. Would I like to have a group to travel with? Would I ever fit into something like what they had?

I wanted it.

The realization turned my stomach. It could be lonely living at the resort when so many of the employees were seasonal, and it was hard to put down roots when, in the back of my mind, I knew this wasn’t my forever home. I knew that before I moved here. It was a sacrifice I was willing to make for a time in order to further my career.

But had the cost been worth it? Watching them made me second guess myself.

What if I’d moved to a city and invested the last three years into building my career there? Where would I be now if I chose New York or Los Angeles instead of Cabo? Would I have a core group like them? Would I be any further along than I was now?

There was no way of knowing if I made the right choice, and questioning that would drive me insane. There was no undoing the past. For better or worse, I was here. I’d built up my portfolio and had more experience than most people my age. I had to hold onto that knowledge. That had to be enough to make it all worth it.

“Do you want me to signal the main course?” Maggie asked, breaking me from my thoughts.

“Yes.” I mentally shook myself. I needed to focus. I had a job to carry out.

Wyatt and Kendall wanted to wait until dessert was over, but we had to be careful. If we waited too long, people might start leaving, but we also didn’t want to interrupt them while they were eating. There was no way of timing it perfectly, but I’d know in my gut when it was time to go.

I was growing impatient as they chatted, barely touching their food.

“Come on,” I mumbled, and Maggie giggled.

“You’re not very patient.”

“Not when I’m excited,” I admitted.

I watched Wyatt and caught his knee bouncing rapidly under the table. He was feeling it too. Kendall reached over and placed her hand on his knee, but he didn’t slow. The gesture was adorable though. She didn’t pause her conversation and didn’t even look in his direction. It was like her subconscious knew he needed her. The touch was so natural.

I wanted that too.

Ugh. I shouldn’t let myself go near that thought. Of course, I wanted to get married one day. I’d had my wedding planned since I was five, but it wasn’t just the big, fancy wedding I dreamed of. It was knowing I’d found my person. The one I could depend on for anything. A man who would love me wholly. That I could be myself around, completely uncensored, and know that he would accept all my broken pieces.

My heart begged for that.

Yet, that part of my life was on pause while I was here too. How could I meet and fall in love with someone when they were only here for a brief vacation?

As much as I wanted to believe in love at first sight, I doubted it would ever happen to me. No, I relied too much on my head to simply give in to the whims of my heart. Plus, I wanted the long, glorious experience of falling in love. Of getting to know someone until the moment that it just clicked. The little part of you that suddenly knew. You found him. That took time and conversation and vulnerability.

And I wanted that.

More than I’d ever admitted to anyone. Not that I had someone to confide in. Sure, Maggie and I were friendly, but at the end of the day, I was her manager and needed to maintain a level of professional distance. Telling her how desperately I wanted to be in love wasn’t exactly office chatter.

It would come in time. Eventually, I would move on from this place, and life would pick up. I just needed to be patient.

“Dessert is coming out now,” Maggie remarked, and I nodded as the servers traded out plates.

“Watch closely. As soon as half of them finish, we’ll move things into place.”

The officiant, a large man from within the city proper came up from behind us. “Am I in the right place?”

I smiled at the kind man. “Hi, Father Pepe. Thank you for coming on such short notice.”

He beamed. “How could I turn down a wedding? They are my favorite events.”

“And you’re right on time.” I peeked at the guests. “Maggie, let the photographers in, and then we’ll start.”

She nodded and moved through the shadows to where they were waiting. Like we’d told them, they followed behind Maggie silently and disappeared into the darkened corners of the patio to get the best angle of where the ceremony would take place.

“Ready?” Maggie grabbed the speaker and snuck under the arbor, and I followed with the mic stand.