Page 75 of Bad at Love

“What’s wrong?” I ask.

“Are you sure this is okay?” He gestures down his body.

I smile, making a show of looking him up and down. “It issookay.”

He gives me a little shove. “I mean for the wedding.”

The elevator goes up, the sixth floor button lit up.

“Gabriel, I promise you it’s fine. You look…” I give him another once over. “So good. But if you’re uncomfortable, you can change.”

When I saw him in this outfit, I knew it was the one. It’s a beige linen summer suit. Just the pants and a vest, with a white button-up underneath. It’s so him, yet for some reason, he thinks he looks awful.

“I don’t want to change, I just…”

“What?” I ask softly, putting my hands on his shoulders. “What do you want?”

He chews on his lip, closing his eyes for a few seconds before saying, “I want it to be comfortable. For me, I mean. The clothes are fine, but it’s justnotme, and I want it to be.”

I don’t know what it is about the outfit he doesn’t feel suits him. He said he can’t pinpoint it. As with everything else, I didn’t want to force him to do something he didn’t want to do, but he assured me he was okay wearing it. That he trusts my judgement.

“Then stop thinking about it,” I answer with a shrug.

“That’s really difficult to—”

I kiss him, cutting his words off so abruptly it's humorous. I can’t laugh though, not when there’s a million emotions and feelings running through me. His lips send so many memories to the forefront of my mind—ones that make me want to take him back to our room. I swear I could do this all day. The elevator stops and I pull away just as the doors open. Though we’ve been holding hands all day in public, I don’t know how he feels about more. Of course I’m fine with it, but I’m out in the open and happy with who I am. I take Gabriel’s hand and move to his side, hoping it’s enough to tell him I’m just trying to be polite and not jump his bones in front of a stranger.

“Oh, are you going down?” the woman outside of the elevator asks.

“Yes,” I answer.

She smiles, stepping onto the elevator and pressing the lobby button. She gives us a look over.

“You two look very handsome,” she says with a little smile.

She’s young. About our age, if I’d have to guess. Very pretty in a classical sort of way. Her hair is dark, lips painted with bright red lipstick.

“See,” I say to Gabriel, nudging him with my elbow. “Told you.”

“Thank you,” he says, likely to her and not me.

“You never know what kind of day someone is having, so I try to pay someone a compliment as often as I can.”

“That’s pretty damn cool,” I say.

She gives a little shrug, looking at me from the side of her eye. “It’s the small things.”

The doors open once we reach the bottom floor, and this time when I walk out, Gabriel is with me.

“Have a lovely day,” the young woman calls, holding her hand up in a small wave.

“You too,” we both say as we move toward the doors that lead to the beach.

Mikah and Dominic are staying at this hotel too, in one of the suites all the way at the top. They’re probably already down at the beach because they aren’t doing anything traditional for their wedding.

The taste of salt is in the air, the breeze perfectly warm. The sun is low, setting soon. Which is exactly what they wanted. A wedding at sunset. It’ll make for beautiful photos, and I can’t wait to see them.

When we reach the beach, I spot the set up immediately. There are ten chairs lined up not too far from the walkway, just a short way down. A few are already taken up. Dominic and Mikah are standing together, champagne in their hands, while they speak to someone I don’t recognize. I lead Gabriel up to them so we can let them know we’re here.

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