Jack had never been prouder as he watched Pepper walk off with her shoulders held high. He noticed Parker wearing an indulgent expression, and shot his friend a smile as if to say, see, your little sister is all grown up.
Then both men turned to Kendra, Parker beating Jack to the punch. “You’re not welcome here. I suggest you go home,” he said coolly. “I’m sure my sister will track you down later.”
Kendra had the decency to keep her mouth shut. With a curt nod, she headed back to her car, speeding out of the lot a moment later.
Only the dark-haired young man remained, shifting uneasily on his feet as Jack focused on him.
“Adam, right?” Jack said lightly. “I’m Jack.”
He nodded, slightly stricken. “I recognize your voice. You know, from when you told me on the phone that you’d shatter every bone in my body and turn me into a mass of blood and pain.”
A loud snicker came from Parker’s vicinity. “Word-for-word recitation. Must have sunk in hard.”
Jack ignored him, genuinely contrite. From the sound of it there were a bunch of new developments he needed to be informed about. “Uh. Right. Sorry about that.”
“It’s okay,” the guy said ruefully. “You thought I wrote that stuff on Facebook. I get it.”
Jack sighed, then glanced at Parker. “Can you and the others handle everything, or do you still need me?”
“Naah, we’ve got it covered,” his friend said.
“Good.” Jack turned back to Adam, gesturing to the hotel entrance. “C’mon, let’s go have a drink.”
Adam’s lips twitched before a smile broke free. “Best idea I’ve heard all day.”
Chapter Seventeen
She was damn near bouncing, the adrenaline still racing through her system leaving her with a head rush Pepper would be happy to kill with a massive order of something drenched in butter.
But she had one final task before she was free.
The systems check had gone perfectly this time. Charlene excitedly grabbed her and squeezed her in an unexpected hug before racing off to go meet her parents. Pepper leaned back in the sudden quiet of the room, preparing everything for the final moment.
She had about thirty minutes to kill according to the master schedule that Parker had given her. Impressive, that her brother wasn’t so bad at handling details. In fact, as she sat and got a chance to calm down, there were a lot of things that struck her as unexpectedly good in her life.
Although how she could be thinking that right now seemed simply mental. It must be the eye of the tornado. That moment of calm before everything would hit the fan one more time.
From Adam to Kendra to Jack to Parker to Charlene—
—and always back to Jack. He had become the center she wanted to be with in the middle of any storm. Not to cling to him, not to have him rescue her. But to be with her as they faced situations together.
Strangely enough, the chaos of the day had helped her see so clearly what was important in her life. Family, friends…
The room below her filled with party guests, excited voices rising up to her level as brightly colored dresses and formal suits drifted in random patterns. People milled around, searching for their seats at the massive round tables covering the ballroom floor.
A head table had been set up like at a wedding, the faint sounds of background music swirling around everything and bringing a festive air as people took their places.
The door opened beside her, and the soundman returned. “You’ve got everything under control for your part?”
“Piece of cake,” Pepper drawled, lips lifting in a smile, but she refused to elaborate.
“Rock on.” He leaned toward her slightly, whispering conspiratorially, “You’re lucky. Once you’re done, you get to leave. I get to play golden oldies until I’m twitchy.”
“Every job has its burdens.” Pepper kept a straight face, watching with interest as a flurry of activity started on the floor below.
“And that’s my cue,” Daniel said. He flicked a bunch of switches, and the opening strains of a wedding march began. Pepper watched Charlene’s parents stroll down the center aisle, waving enthusiastically to their friends and family who all rose to their feet to cheer them into the room.
Pepper found herself grinning like a fool without even realizing it. There was just so much joy happening before her, and she was so into observing everything that she missed the moment when Jack slipped into the room behind her.
He draped an arm over the back of her chair, leaning in to press his lips against her cheek. “Almost your time to shine.”
She caught hold of his fingers with her left hand, trapping him in place. He dragged over a chair and sat close, gently caressing the back of her neck as the welcome speech down on the podium finished, and everyone turned expectantly to the massive screens arranged on the walls.
One flick of a button started the media montage, and as the room lights dimmed, images of years shared flashed out bigger than life accompanied by the couple’s favorite songs. Friends and laughter, a growing family. Ageless beauty recorded in every smile, and it was Pepper’s skill that had made the entire thing possible.