A Fool's Gold Wedding - Susan Mallery Page 0,11

she had to move things along or she would say something dumb and spoil the moment.

She motioned to the chair. “Go forth and do crafts.”

He chuckled. “My first time. I’m very excited.”

“Then you need to get out more.”

“I probably do.”

She retrieved her laptop and opened her graphics program. She needed to pick a design, then upload all the words of wisdom. She started playing with different options, not sure what would look the best on two-foot-by-three-foot pieces of cardboard.

Something easy to read, she thought, searching through her favorite fonts. Border or no border? Did she want flowers in the corners or would that be too busy?

She lost herself in her work, loading several possibilities before deleting them and starting over. She wanted the cards to look nice, but not steal attention from the words. The message was important, not the delivery system.

Eventually she decided on something simple. Just a pretty italicized font with interlocked rings at the top of the card. She printed out a sample and studied it, only to realize it had been at least an hour and what about Joaquin.

“Sorry,” she said, turning to him. “I got lost in what I was doing.”

“You were focused. Now that you’re taking a break, is this what you were looking for?”

She walked over and glanced at the cards he’d finished. The beads were perfectly placed. As she watched, he picked up a flower bead, dabbed on some glue and set it into place.

“You have really steady hands,” she said.

He looked at her. “I have some training in that.”

“Oh, no!” She stared at him. “You’re a fancy surgeon guy. I shouldn’t be asking you to do something like this.”

“Why not? It’s my brother’s wedding. I told you, Abby. I want to help.”

“Still. What a waste.”

Humor brightened his eyes. “Did you have some surgery you wanted me to perform instead of this? A patient waiting in a back room?”

“No. Of course not.”

“Then let it go. This is oddly relaxing. Now what have you been working on?”

She showed him the design she’d decided on. “I want it to be clean but pretty. The message is important, not the graphics.” She hesitated. “Is it too plain?”

“They’re going to like it very much.”

“I’m glad. I hope so. I want them to be thrilled with the surprise.” She looked at the sheet of paper. “Okay, I’m going to upload all the advice and email it to the graphics place. Then I’ll help you finish the place cards and then we’ll start on the birdseed.”

Joaquin’s eyebrows drew together. “Birdseed?”

“To throw on the bride and groom.”

“Not rice?”

“Rice hurts birds. They’re not supposed to eat it. Birdseed is safe.”

He looked at her and smiled. “Because we like birds?”

“All nature.”

“Even snakes and spiders?”

“We keep our distance from them but we still like them.”

“You’re very fair.”

“I try to be.”

She returned to her computer. Joaquin was kind of a great guy. Not that it meant anything, she told herself. Spending time with him was the right thing to do. If she happened to be enjoying herself, that was simply a bonus.

CHAPTER FOUR

JOAQUIN HAD ASSUMED a morning doing crafts would be torture, but he found he’d actually enjoyed the experience. The repetitive task had quieted his mind, and seeing the growing stack of completed name cards had been oddly satisfying. Just being in the same room as Abby was an added bonus. He liked being around her. As he’d worked, he’d kept glancing at her, studying the changing expressions on her face as she completed her project.

She was beautiful, but her appeal was more than external, his mind circling around to what he’d thought before. There was something about her energy. She drew him in.

“We should go to Jo’s Bar for lunch,” Abby told him a little after noon. “It’s unique.”

“Vegan?” he asked.

She laughed. “No. You’ll find meat and dairy on the menu. They have the best nachos. And margaritas, but it’s a little early in the day for that. Is that okay?”

He wasn’t sure if she was asking about going to Jo’s Bar, the nachos or not having a margarita, and he found he didn’t care. Making her laugh or smile was its own reward. Besides, food had never been that important to him. Like many things in life, it was a means to an end. He needed fuel to keep functioning. As a rule, he ate healthy food because his body preferred it.

“Sounds perfect,” he told her.

“Good.”

“Should we invite your mother?” Not that he had any interest in dining with Liz,

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