Page 8 of Killian

The door opened and Deidra Mitchell walked in, smiling at Celine.

“Hey Deidra! Let me guess, no coffee at the diner today?” Celine teased.

Deidra chuckled, “I don’t drink it in the summer, but I’m here to invite you to a surprise party for Aunt Connie and Uncle Owen. They’re celebrating their forty-fifth wedding anniversary and we want to show them our appreciation.”

“Oh, that sounds like so much fun. When and where? I wouldn’t miss it.”

“Great. We’re trying to spread the word to everyone. It’ll be in two weeks, on a Sunday.”

“But how will you get them out of the diner? You know those two won’t leave willingly.” Celine grinned.

“Preston, along with Holt, Reece, and Trent have a plan. I’m not sure I want to know, but they’ll find a way to get them out.”

“I bet everyone will be there; who doesn’t love those two?” Celine smiled. “Oh, and where is it going to be?”

“Dewey’s. Scarlett and Noah offered to host it. It will be around six. But, please get there a little early. Preston wants to get them there by six.”

“That’s fantastic! Do we need to bring gifts?”

“It’s up to you. Just come and celebrate with us. Well, I should get going; I have more shops to visit,” Deidra said with a smile.

“Have fun, and if I don’t see you before then, I’ll see you at the party.”

“Okay, have a great day.” Deidra smiled and left the shop.

Celine couldn’t wait for the event. She hardly ever went out unless her friend Carly convinced her to. Since Brenna married Beau McCallister, and Kinley was engaged to Levi Thomas, she rarely got to spend time with them anymore, and Sydney seemed to be constantly working with running her ranch and the bookstore. The last time she’d been out was the night she met Killian. Pondering this, she wondered why he hadn’t been at Brenna and Beau’s wedding.

Once the shop closed for the day, Celine drove home and pulled into her driveway. She stepped from her vehicle and hurried inside to get out of the heat. Once inside, she pulled out her phone from the back pocket of her jeans and scrolled through her contacts until she found Brenna’s number.

“Hey, Celine.”

“I hope I’m not interrupting anything,” Celine said.

“No, not at all. What’s going on?”

“Why wasn’t Killian at your wedding?”

“He was away on an assignment. He missed Creed’s and Abbie’s too for that reason.”

“So, I would have met him if he’d been there. Okay. I was just curious because you mentioned that Beau liked him.”

“Yeah, Beau said Killian was disappointedabout missing the weddings. When I asked Beau about him, he couldn’t stop raving.”

“That makes me feel better.”

“Have you tried texting or calling him?”

“No, not yet. I’m too scared,” Celine admitted with a laugh.

“Wuss,” Brenna teased.

“Hey, did you get an invite to Connie and Owen’s party?”

“We did! I’m so excited to go. Honestly, this whole town, along with the other two towns,shouldbe throwing them a party. But how will they even make it there?”

Celine chuckled. “Deidra told me that Preston, Reece, Holt, and Trent have a plan, but she’s too afraid to ask for the details.”

Brenna laughed. “It must be something unexpected if it’s going to get them to close the diner.”

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