“No. Actually the whole thing was Piper’s idea.”
“She thought you should have this out of the blue wedding just to save the paper?” Skepticism dripped from her voice.
“My girl loves a crazy plan.” He explained how the whole thing had come about.
“That’s messed up, Myles.”
“Little bit,” he agreed. “But I’m not going to lose the paper, so set your mind at ease.”
“I hope you know what you’re doing.”
“Me too. And listen, keep that to yourself. I don’t want anyone worrying needlessly.”
She nodded. “Fine. But keep me in the loop. If something goes wrong…”
Myles crossed to Simone and took her shoulders. “Nothing’s going wrong.”
“Right. You’re getting married in eight days to a woman lunatic enough to think this was a good idea. What could go wrong?”
“Don’t say that. It’s temping the fates. I’ve got to get on. Piper’s waiting for me.” It struck him then, that after next week, she’d be waiting for him every night. What would it be like going home to something other than silence and solitude? Because Myles was confident life with Piper would never lend itself to something so mundane as silence. Life with her would never, ever be boring.
On the short drive to The Mudcat, Myles decided he could do with a little boring after all the drama this week. He hoped he wasn’t about to walk into more of it. Over the last several months, he’d become friends with most of her friends because of the show and because Wishful was a small town. But he really didn’t know how they’d respond to the news. Surely if Piper ran into trouble, she’d text or call another 911 like she had when Gram showed up.
A wave of sound hit him when he walked into the bar. Some days he loved this. The noise, the sound of people. Today wasn’t one of those days. But no way was he leaving Piper to fend for herself. They were in this together. Resolute, he made his way through the throngs of people, until he spotted her in a booth in the back. The fatigue slid away at the sight of her smiling and laughing with the others.
One more week and that smile would be waiting for him every night.
I am a lucky S.O.B.
“Please tell me the three of you are available to go dress shopping tomorrow. Because if you don’t go, then it’ll be just my mom and Leah and maybe Myles’ scary grandmother to make sure I don’t pick anything that will embarrass the family. I need allies.”
“You’ve got one in me,” Myles said, sliding into the booth beside her. “I’ll have the minister add that to my vows. Love, honor, and protect from scary grandmother. Only fair since you ripped my dad a new one at the engagement dinner.”
Piper wrinkled her nose adorably. “He deserved it. And you can’t come. You aren’t allowed to see the dress. Also—” She grabbed a fistful of his shirt and tugged him forward for a kiss.
Myles felt the last strain of the day bleed out.
She grinned. “Hi.”
He grinned back, loving that she was a little bit breathless. “Hi yourself.”
“You get everything straightened out?”
“Yeah, it’s all set. Everything okay here?” He shifted his gaze to the others.
Norah was fairly bouncing with excitement. Given she’d been planning her own wedding for the past several months, she was absolutely in that mode. Miranda, whom he didn’t know well, seemed amused more than anything else.
“I understand congratulations are in order.” Tyler’s brows were arched as she looked from Piper to him.
“Congratulations? No threats? Attempts to talk us out of it
? Lectures on practicality and the way things are supposed to be done?”
“Please. I’ve known Piper since we were in diapers. Any of that would fall on deaf ears. Besides, given the role you played last fall in getting Brody and me back together, I can only assume you’re a kindred spirit and perfect for her. Sneaky bastard.” Her smile took the sting out.
Myles laughed. “I’ll take that as a compliment.”
Tucker, who’d remained silent, tipped back the last of his beer. “Can I have a word with you in private? There’s been a new development in that matter I was handling for you.”