Page 59 of Love's a Glitch
Evidently tennis outfits and sailing outfits were the same in my mind. Sadly, Google hadn’t been much help. According to the images my search produced, there were as many options as fish in the sea. The most helpful tip I’d found mentioned knee-length dresses in lightweight fabric and solid colors or minimalist prints.
A short discussion with Laurel clarified the party wasn’tona yacht but at the clubhouse. Luke hadn’t realized I’d assumed otherwise, prompting me to joke we needed to work on our communication, while inside, a droning hum sounded in my brain, escalating my worries I’d commit some faux pas without realizing it.
My nude peep-toe heels sank into the grass as I took my first step onto the sprawling green lawn that fed into the clubhouse. Laurel described the party motif as “an Alice in Wonderland Garden Party on Crack” before correcting to “no, more heroin chic.” She’d explained there’d be large, ornately decorated tables and a platform with a podium up front so “the men can do the humble brag thing while patting themselves and their colleagues on the back. Then they break out the cigars and talk nonsense.”
“Oh, so like Absalom?”
“Who?” Laurel asked.
“The caterpillar in Alice and Wonderland.”
Laurel had snapped her fingers and then pointed at me. “Yes. Exactly like that. There’ll be a ton of delicious, amazing food. Unfortunately, all of it makes you grow larger, and there are no magical mushrooms that turn you smaller.”
We’d laughed, and she’d calmed my jitters by telling me she’d have my back.
First, I just had to find her and Luke among the expanse of people buzzing about, all of them dressed in collared shirts and ties or cocktail dresses in a variety of styles and colors. Even from here, I could see flashes of the jewelry adorning wrists, fingers, décolletages, and ears.
Large centerpieces that acted as both a vase for bouquets of colorful flowers and a candelabra for the tealight candles sat in the center of circular tables. Everything was done in purple and gold, and the gilded plates and the excessive amount of silverware flanking the place settings gleamed in the sunlight.
A canopy of twinkling lights was strewn from the awning of the club entrance to the white canopy tents covering the food, creating a starry night in the afternoon.
After my chat with Laurel, I’d known it’d be an extravagant event, and yet I’d undershot the lavishness by a mile. Or should I say a nautical mile, now that I was around seafaring folk?
Absolutely do not start talking like that.
I gripped the tiny pink clutch that matched the subdued hue woven into the floral pattern on my dress. The magnolia tree flowers were printed on a sheer cream-colored overlay, the extra layer beneath adding volume to the flowy skirt that swished around my upper calves with every step. I lifted my head high, reminding myself that I’d never cared about name brands before, so no need to do so now. Between the sun beating down on the crown of my head and my nerves shifting into high gear, I was glad I’d pulled my hair into a low, loose bun. With any luck, that’d keep the strands from ending up plastered to my face and neck. So much for my foundation, though. At least my lipstick would hold up to the sun as well as food, the pop of pink allowing me to feel more like me.
I scanned faces, my main thoughtnot Luke,not Luke,not one of Luke’s family members,not Luke.
“Luke.” It’d only been two days since I’d last had my arms around him, but my heart skipped a couple of beats, same way it’d done the first time I’d ever laid eyes on him, and I had to force myself not to sprint. If a couple of days felt like forever, I didn’t want to imagine how long a month or two was going to feel.
He turned as I approached, and I flung my arms around his neck, happiness overtaking me when he snaked his arm around my waist and boosted me higher so I could get better purchase on his lips. “There’s my girl,” he murmured. “I’ve been waiting for this moment all day.”
“Me too.”
His gaze ran down the length of me, leaving me dizzy with desire. “You look amazing.”
“Thank you,” I said, doing a little ogling of my own. He’d paired a tailored charcoal vest with matching slacks and a crisp white button-down shirt. “You’re looking mighty fine yourself.” I tiptoed my fingers to the open V of his collar and skirted them across the exposed skin. “Your rebellion is showing—no tie, yet still dressed up and smoking hot. Just how I like my men.”
“Well, it’s all for you, baby.”
I snuggled closer, finding it impossible not to fiddle with his vest and his collar, and if we were alone, there’d be some cupping of his backside. “Okay, I told myself not to geek out, but I just need to get one super nerdy joke off my chest.”
“As a very big fan of your chest, I’m ready for you to hit me with it.”
A huffed laugh spilled out. “This party is so fancy, it’s un-fathom-able. Get it?” I grinned, overly proud of my joke. “Since a fathom is a nautical unit of measurement?”
His low laugh ignited my nerve endings. “It’s unfathomable that I ever survived one of these events without you.” He placed his big hands on the small of my back, drawing me closer for a kiss. I closed my eyes and sank into his embrace, eager to earn participation points.
“…they are.” Donna’s voice invaded our intimate bubble and I lowered myself and spun to face her as she strode over with several other women in tow. Absolutely gorgeous in her textured gold sheath dress, she glimmered as bright as the centerpieces. The added glow spoke to her love of playing hostess, and her large necklace thudded against my chest as she pulled me into a hug. She leaned across to peck Luke on the cheek and said, “Everyone, this is Luke’s lovely girlfriend, Eloise Kost-opol…Kostplus…”
“Kostopoulous,” Luke cut in before I could. I flashed him a smile, savoring the tingly warmth that coursed through me. I’d told him he could use the easier, shorter version, but he’d replied that as someone with a strong opinion on his name, he wouldn’t rest until he got it right.
Donna introduced the women around her, and I did my best to commit them to memory.
I also had to suppress my giggles when the sentence finisher reared her way into the conversation, and I would’ve been able to keep them on lockdown if I hadn’t met Luke’s gaze, his blue eyes twinkling with our shared secret.
We’d barely broken free of the group of women when Chuck approached. “We’re about to get started,” he said. “Ellie, Donna saved you and Laurel a seat at her table. It’s that center one right there.”
