Page 53 of Take Me to the Wedding

“Hey, I keep telling you that I’m a nice person. Besides, you were nice to me.” He moved his hand back and forth between us. “See, it works both ways.”

At that exact moment, the sun broke through the clouds, dappling down through the trees, bathing the plain barnyard in golden light.

His smile broke through to me. Made me feel all fuzzy and hot, like I’d just quickly downed an entire mug of hot chocolate in the middle of a summer day. Made me realize that Caleb was not only a good human being but also a really handsome one.

Just as suddenly, a more ominous feeling moved through me. A warning kind of feeling, telling me to watch myself. Because I could get myself in big trouble with a man like that.

And maybe I already had.

Caleb cleared his throat. A horse nickered.

He held out his hand, palm up. “Here, give me your hand.”

Why was I not able to think coherently? I found myself surrendering it. And I was sadly on the verge of surrendering the rest of me.

He opened the Band-Aid and placed it expertly on my finger, which was still oozing. He was so gentle, so careful, that I felt a sudden panic. I wasn’t used to anyone doing such a thing. As he bent over me, focused, long fingers steady, I noticed his hair, wavy and thick, dark brown but with golden strands lit up by the sun. He had the thickest hair. I wanted to sweep it back. Touch it to feel its silky-coarse texture.

What was happening to me?

“Boo-boo fixed,” he said with a magnanimous smile.

My knees felt weak. I realized I’d been holding perfectly still, not even daring to breathe.

And then he turned to go.

I shook myself out of the strange fugue. “Caleb,” I called after him.

He turned. He was tall, but he had a way of moving fluidly, with ease. I would bet a paycheck that he’d been one of the cool kids in high school, based solely on his grace. I understood how that confidence would translate into being a great surgeon. “What is it?”

“Thanks. For the Band-Aid.”Thanks for caring. For not leaving me alone. Those were the things I didn’t say out loud.

I’m not going to lie, but my hands and feet felt a little tingly. Probably from the ice-cold hose water. And the awful, stabbing hunger. And the nagging mental stress that I was way in over my head.

I headed into the farm kitchen with my eggs, proud to have earned my breakfast.

I decided that if there was bacon, I swear I was going to eat every last bite.

ChapterFifteen

Caleb

We set out on the big hike right after breakfast, with Marin and Tater leading us straight toward the woods. The summer morning was glorious, sunny and warm, birds chirping up a storm high in the trees above us on the dirt path. It seemed like a low-key, tame adventure that I wanted to be all-in for Ani. But I couldn’t help thinking that the karma of the universe seemed a little off—Lilly seemed different, more attentive, but I had no idea why.

“We’ve got a waterfall, some caves and hieroglyphs, and some stunning cliffs to see,” Marin said, cataloging what we were about to experience. “So everyone stick together, okay? Tater, watch where you’re going!” Tatum, who was walking along playing a handheld video game, shot her an obstinate look and kept playing as he walked.

How many doctors did it take to keep an eye on a bored ten-year-old? Maybe just one, because no one else besides me seemed to be noticing.

I had a lot of questions about how athletic this hike was going to be if it was led in part by a ten-year-old, but I deferred to sweet Ani and decided to do my best to liven up the group. Besides, it was Saturday, our last day, thank goodness. I vowed as a solid member of the wedding party to make it a good one.

Sam seemed to be walking as far away from me as possible. Maybe I shouldn’t have done the Band-Aid thing. But I hated that she was alone—I mean, she was surrounded by friends, but existentially, she went it alone. I wanted to help her. And talk with her. And I had so many questions, from how she got to med school with the struggles she’d had, to what did she really like to eat for breakfast?

Meanwhile, Lilly seemed to do a complete one-eighty, showering me with attention, sitting near me at breakfast, chatting with me. She seemed strangely possessive, considering she’d barely given me the time of day before. She’d even said, “Jeez, Caleb, you’re running out with a Band-Aid for someone who was careless enough to get pecked by a chicken sitting on her nest,” which I thought was a little over the top.

Sam was up at the front of the group with Brax, listening to Quinn give an impromptu lecture on poison ivy, oak, and other plants to avoid. Lilly eventually ran up front with the others to listen. Gabe walked with Jason, clearly happy that he’d decided to take a break and join us.

I caught up with Tyler, whose skinny, pale legs looked like they hadn’t seen any vitamin D in quite a while. “Hey, Ty, your face looks a lot less puffy today,” I quipped. “I can actually see your cheekbones.”

“The miracles of allergy meds,” he said. “And I’ve sprayed myself from head to toe with bug spray.”

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