She propped Steven against the wall. “Leave Cole alone. Promise?”
“Just one punch?” Steven wagged a finger at her. “He broke your heart last time. He’s going to do it again.”
Angie sighed deeply. Her friends were only protecting her. They had no idea that Cole just wanted to be friends. The anger bubbled up inside her. She was so tired of being one of the guys. “Okay, fine. One punch.”
“What?” Cole’s voice was right behind her.
Angie jumped and looked around to see Cole’s incredulous expression. “What? You have nothing to worry about. Steven’s never been in a fight in his life.”
“So you don’t just hate weddings,” Cole said with a look in his eyes that Angie couldn’t identify. “It’s marriage, too.”
She wasn’t ready to have this discussion. She hated being Brittany’s bridesmaid and she was getting sick of this wedding, but she didn’t hate the idea of weddings. Not really.
Angie believed in love and marriage. True, she never thought about it for herself until she met Cole. She wanted to make a lifelong commitment with him, but she also knew now that he would never marry or settle into a family life. Okay, he could commit to her but he still bore the scars of his childhood. Cole Foster was the only man she wanted to marry but that wasn’t going to happen no matter how much she wished for it.
“Cole, can you make sure Steven gets back to the rehearsal dinner? His sense of direction isn’t that great even when he’s sober.” She didn’t stop to see if Cole would agree. “Steven, have you seen Robin? The maid of honor?” she added, given her friend’s confused expression.
“Yeah, wow.” Steven shook his head. “She can’t hold her liquor.”
“What are you talking about?” Cole asked. “We just saw her and she was fine.”
“She was making a play for me. Then her face got all red and blotchy. She clutched her throat.”
“Like she was choking?” Angie asked.
“No. I assumed she was going to throw up. I saw her stagger into the bathroom.” Steven pointed at the door down the hall.
“I should check on her,” Angie told Cole as she rushed to the bathroom. She wasn’t sure why she was so worried. Robin was getting sick. It happens. No big deal.
But she couldn’t suppress the alarm that was shooting through her veins. Angie mentally braced herself before she pushed open the door. “Robin? Are you doing okay?”
Angie froze when she saw Robin sprawled on the bathroom floor.
15
COLE STOOD BEHIND Angie as they watched the paramedics wheel Robin away on a stretcher. Angie had taken care of Robin and now looked as if she were going to collapse herself. He knew how she felt.
“Are you okay?” he asked Angie softly as he put his arms around her. “You’re shaking like a leaf.”
“I’m fine. It’s just the adrenaline.” She stuffed her hands in her pockets. “It’ll go away soon.”
“You did great,” he said. “She’s going to recover.”
He had been impressed in how Angie jumped into action. He had raced to her when she called out. There had been something in the way she’d called his name. It shook him to the core and all he could think about was getting to Angie. He wanted to protect her and take over.
But by the time he stepped into the bathroom, Angie had already taken an EpiPen out of Robin’s small purse. Without any hesitation, she had jabbed the needle in the maid of honor’s thigh. She had continued with the rescue breathing while he phoned for an ambulance. Angie was shaking now but she had been focused and thorough during the crisis. It was one of the many things he admired about her.
He heard the piercing siren start and saw the ambulance’s lights as the vehicle sped away. “How did you even know she needed an epinephrine injection?” he asked.
“She said something about food allergies when she was at the hospital café.” Angie rested her head against his shoulder and didn’t protest when he stroked her hair. “I know Steven thought she was drunk but we had just seen her and she had complained of a headache. I figured something was off when he described the symptoms but I didn’t think about an allergic reaction until I saw her on the floor.”
“I wondered what was in the hors d’oeuvres,” he said as they walked slowly back to the dining room. It was eerily quiet compared to the festive spirit of a mere few minutes ago. Now the video was turned off and the guests were milling aimlessly in the entryway and parking lot. “Where was Robin going to sit?”