Ihad my doubts about the cake safe, but as Levi pulls the rod out of the middle of the cake and carefully places it in the center of the table, I sigh with relief. It’s perfect. And he’s right, the small hole on top will be covered once the plastic couple is placed on it.
He hands me the miniature bride and groom. “Do you want to do the honors?”
“Are you kidding? This is the crowning piece. You should put it on. Besides, I don’t think I’m tall enough.”
He laughs, his gaze sliding over me. “Shorty.”
I whack his side. “Why is there no mean nickname for tall people?”
He bends down, wraps his arms around my legs, and lifts me into the air. “Hey!”
“Come on, Spreadsheet. Place the couple on top.”
A giggle bubbles up my chest, which is very uncharacteristic of me, but the way he’s hugging me tightly to him is doing things to me. I gently put the bride and groom in their place, and he lets me slide down him until we’re at eye level with each other.
“Perfect,” he whispers.
“Your cake looks delicious.”
“I can’t wait to hear what you think of it.”
I raise my eyebrows. “It’s gluten-free?”
“Yep.” His gaze slides down to my lips, and before I know it, I’m tossing away all propriety and kissing him.
Skyler comes running into the reception area, and Levi drops me to my feet, and we break apart.
“Hey, Little Pup,” he says, grinning at her.
She runs over to us, her eyes growing big as she looks at the cake. “Ooh, that looks good.” Before either of us can do anything, her hand whips out and she pokes the cake, right in the middle of the bottom layer, swiping a piece of frosting. She licks it off her finger as Levi stares at her, horrified.
I put out my hand. “Oh, sweetie, don’t touch the cake.” But it’s too late. A big hole in the frosting shows the chocolate cake peeking through.
“Kiki’s going to kill me,” Levi says as Skyler runs off.
“No. No, we can fix this,” I say, trying to scramble and figure out what we can do.
“How? I left all my frosting at the bakery. People will be arriving any moment.” He runs a hand through his hair, pulling it.
I can tell he’s spiraling, so I run over to one of the flower arrangements and pop off three of the buds. I walk over to the cake and place one in the hole and two other flowers on top so it looks like it was done on purpose. “There. Fixed.”
He eyes it. The purple flowers go perfectly with the purple-frosting flowers it’s decorated with. Before he can say anything, Kiki comes in, trailing her long train and looking like a princess.
Her gaze lands on the cake, and her eyes widen. “Oh, Levi. It’s so perfect. And I love how you incorporated my wedding flowers. You are a genius!”
I stifle a giggle as Levi looks like he’s about ready to crack. “Um, yeah. That was totally my idea.”
“You are the best brother-in-law a girl could have.” Kiki pulls him into a hug.
The reception hall is soon filled with the bustle of guests and the hum of conversation. I notice Micah standing off to the side, like he wishes he could disappear, and I feel bad for him.
We mingle for a while, and Levi introduces me to some people from the island that I haven’t met yet, mostly older women who seem quite eager for Levi to tell them who I am. He’s very good and doesn’t slip up on my fake name even once.
They announce that it’s time for the bride to throw the bouquet, and we all gather around. I’m forced to stand with the eligible women, and Kiki turns her back to us, bouquet in hand, a grin spreading across her face.
“One… two…” Kiki calls, the women around me squealing in anticipation.
She throws.