Page 63 of Seductive Nights

Jace carried out the tables and put them in place. Hanna had a diagram, and he was happy to oblige.

He glanced at the diagram every so often just to make sure he was putting things where they needed to be. As he set the tables in place, Carley and Margo draped them with the tablecloths, secured the corners, and tucked the smaller bouquets of artificial flowers into each corner knot. Carley showed Margo how to fold the matching napkins to look like a rose and set them at each table setting. He enjoyed watching them work together. They chatted and laughed often. And he loved watching Margo comfortably organizing the finer details for his friends' wedding.

The flower shop van arrived, and Margo met them at the edge of the parking area. He watched her turn and point to a table at the edge without a tablecloth on it. The man nodded, and Margo was handed a large white box. She carried it to the table, and Carley hustled to the van to help. He hustled to the van to help as well.

He carried a large white box, which had some weight to it, to the table. Margo had opened the first box and stood staring at the array of flowers in the box.

He wrapped his arms around her from behind and looked over her shoulder, which wasn't hard. He was nearly a head taller than she was.

"Those are pretty," he whispered near her ear.

"They are. This is going to be such a beautiful wedding."

He kissed her ear. "It is. You're doing a fantastic job of decorating."

She chuckled. "It's not hard with this to work with."

He chuckled. "That’s true.”

Marching toward the van once more, he saw Carley trying to carry a crate, which looked heavy for her. "Hey, let me take that."

Carley smiled. "Thanks, Jace. It's heavier than I thought."

He hefted it to the table and peered inside. Margo glanced inside the crate. "Oh, there they are."

She gently reached inside and pulled out a small glass vase with a colorful arrangement of flowers. She set one in the center of each table. He picked up the crate and followed her. "This way you won't have to trudge back each time."

She smiled at him, and it occurred to him, he'd do anything for her if she continued to smile at him like that. Once the flowers were set on the tables, they went back to the other flowers awaiting disbursement.

Carley had an open box of small bouquets in front of her. "What are these for, Margo?"

"Ah, those are for the arbor." Margo picked up the box and moved it to the arbor. She began tucking the small bouquets into the vines. That detail brought out the effect of the arbor, and he thought the scene for his friend's wedding was spectacular. Margo finished tucking the flowers into the arbor and stood back to stare at her handiwork. He moved to stand next to her.

She smiled up at him, then turned toward the arbor. "When you stand here and see the arbor and the water behind, you can see what a gorgeous wedding this will be. In a couple of hours, while they are saying their vows, the sun will begin to set, and it's going to be magical."

"It sure is. Hanna had this vision and you've made it come to life. Bravo."

Margo laughed, and he thought she was much more of a vision than the scenic one before them.

"I only added flowers. This is Hanna's vision, and it's stunning."

He kissed her temple; he'd have to agree to disagree with that statement. But he was excited for his friend and the beginning of his new life. He'd been through hell with his ex, and he sure deserved this happiness he'd found now.

He was also excited about his business and the changes on the horizon.

He was excited about everything right now.

Margo was meandering around, adding flowers to the large blue pots on either side of the arbor, then she tied a bow around the top. He couldn't believe how this transformed his beach bar.

He stepped back and took pictures of Margo and Carley decorating. He took pictures of the staff setting up for the buffet that would be feeding the wedding guests in a couple of hours. He snapped photos of the tables as they were fresh and clean. He got it all. He'd likely start a photo album of the various events that were held here. In the future, hopefully, there'd be many. He could offer guests some ideas. He watched Margo a moment and grinned.

He pocketed his phone and strode across the beach to where she was now cleaning off the table that held the flower boxes. There was one large box left.

"Do you have room in the cooler for these flowers?"

"Sure. What are those for?"

She chuckled. "These are Hanna and the wedding party's flowers."

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