Page 26 of Seaside Cowboy's Marriage of Convenience

It appeared the time was now. And if his mother decided not to accept her into the family with a possible target on her back, that was a risk Kennedy had to take. Would Mrs. Lawrence even allow her sons to attend the wedding or decide to be around Kennedy herself?

A lump formed in her throat. Austin squeezed her hand and nodded, making things easier.

“A couple of incidents involving people close to me indicate my lifemightbe in danger. The incidents were reported to the police, and they are investigating.” She gave the short version of what had happened. “I hope I’m wrong, but I don’t want to leave anything to chance. I love your backyard, Mrs. Lawrence. I do. But it’s an open space and, therefore, too dangerous.”

Mrs. Lawrence gasped and sank onto the chair. “Oh no!”

“I’m sorry, Mom. That’s also our reason for a small wedding, besides the fact that we both want it to be an intimate one.” Austin didn’t leave room for argument.

The lump in Kennedy’s throat grew. “Mrs. Lawrence, I’ll understand if, after this, you won’t want to be present at the wedding. Or if you ask your sons not to attend.” She swallowed hard. “Including Austin.”

He shook his head. “I’m all in.”

Her heart warmed, but she couldn’t cause issues with his family.

His mother shot back to her feet. “Are you kidding me?”

Uh-oh. Kennedy tensed. Here it came.

Mrs. Lawrence rushed to Kennedy, sort of pulled her out of her chair, and hugged her in earnest. “If Austin abandoned you now, he wouldn’t be a son of mine. We’ll take care of you. If anyone wants to get to you, they’ll have to make it past me.”

Grateful tears heated Kennedy’s eyes, but she stemmed their flow. Like always. “Thank you so much. You have no idea what this means to me.”

The pressure on her chest eased, though breathing became difficult for a different reason. Mrs. Lawrence gave hugs like she meant them. But then, Kennedy had the impression her future mother-in-law—wow!—did everything like she meant it.

Austin joined in the hug, making Kennedy’s heart beat faster, and whispered, “Thank you so much, Mom.”

Kennedy’s uncle remained sitting, giving her a sting of regret, but then he’d never been one for public displays of affection. His eyes narrowed when everyone reseated themselves at the table. “Let’s work on logistics. We have security cameras in the venue already, and we’ll up the personnel monitoring them.”

“One couple surprisingly canceled their reception here, or we’d have difficulty with the venue on such short notice,” Kennedy said. “Our hotel’s usually booked for months ahead, and so are the other venues in Port Sunshine. Besides, other venues probably wouldn’t work, anyway, considering the need for heightened security.”

She and her uncle exchanged glances. She suspected he’d made that couple an offer they couldn’t refuse, and they’d agreed to move the date. He might’ve even offered to pay for the entire wedding. He never waited for things to fall into his lap. He made them happen.

He sipped the water in his crystal glass, and its platinum trim gleamed even in the recessed lighting. Always calm. “We’ll make sure everyone in the wedding is thoroughly vetted.”

Arms crossed over her chest, Mrs. Lawrence whirled to him. She didn’t lookcalmat all. “Are you hinting that someone inmyfamily might not be trusted?”

“Not at all.” He raised both hands as if in surrender. “I meant the personnel catering the reception, mostly.”

Time to defuse the situation, though it was kind of fun to see someone standing up to her uncle. Kennedy hadn’t seen it happen before. She opened her bottled water and took a few sips. Since her assistant’s accident, she didn’t drink anything she didn’t open herself. “I’m hiring a security company. They’ll provide personnel for the wedding, working undercover as waitstaff. The team lead is highly recommended. Plus her many other credentials, she has a black belt in karate and is a sharpshooter.” The tough image somewhat contrasted with the photo of a fragile woman with dimpled cheeks, but long ago, Kennedy had learned appearances and reality were often two different things. That appearance even worked in Rachel Arvidson’s favor because people wouldn’t expect her to be a threat.

Uncle’s gaze flicked over Kennedy. “Are you sure about this?”

“Positive.” She didn’t want more worries to affect his health if she could help it. It was bad enough that, while some people had a year to prepare for a wedding, Kennedy had decided to have it in a week and a half. But if someone could pull it off, her uncle could. When he spoke, people listened—and worked overtime if needed.

Well, Mrs. Lawrence looked like a force of nature, too.

“Did you choose your wedding party?” Mrs. Lawrence asked.

“Yes.” Kennedy nodded at her friend. “Marina here will be the matron of honor. Skylar will be my bridesmaid. Kai and Dallas will be Austin’s best man and groomsman. And they all know about, um, the current situation.” She took another sip of her water, then grimaced. It wasn’t right to risk putting the young couples in a possibly dangerous situation, was it? It was bad enough she might’ve caused her employees’ injuries.

Both Mason and Emma were doing much better. Emma was discharged already, and Kennedy gave her extended sick leave to recover from the mental blow.

Or was it all coincidence? Was Kennedy worried for nothing and making people close to her worry, as well?

As they discussed other wedding logistics—from the menu to the bouquet to the band—her gaze landed on the oil painting of a young girl in a cream-hued dress dancing on the edge of a fountain, of all places.

Their family curator usually bought art for their houses from established artists to secure bragging rights and investment potential. However, the rules for the hotel interiors were lax due to tighter budgets and stricter insurance policies. Kennedy had bought many of Skylar’s paintings, this one included. Those weren’t pity buys or a favor to a new friend. Talented Skylar possessed the ability to convey the carefree bliss Kennedy had searched for and rarely found in real life. She was coming close to it since that dinner with Austin, though.

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