Delirious by Suzannah Daniels Page B

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    I pulled into a parking spot directly in front of the restaurant. A large cowbell rang as we opened the glass door. After taking a seat at a booth along the row of windows at the front of the building, we waited for our server.
    Reaching over the table, I held Dara’s hand, running my thumbs along the soft flesh of her palm. “Is there anything we have to do this weekend as far as the wedding’s concerned?”
    “For the most part, everything’s taken care of. I am gonna pick my mother up in the morning and go to the dress shop. My gown’s supposed to be ready, so I’ll just try it on one more time to make sure the alterations are good.”
    “ My mother wanted me to tell you that she’s scheduled the rehearsal dinner two days before the wedding instead of the night before. She thought that might be less stressful.”
    “That’s fine with me. I just want everything to hurry up and get here.”
    “In a hurry to get started with the honeymoon, huh?”
    “Why should I be?” She cocked her dainty, blond brows at me.
    “ Because on the back of a motorcycle isn’t the only place that I’m a badass.”
    She shot me a playful look of disbelief .
    I grinned. “Wait and see.”
    The server brought us menus, but we waved them away and ordered vegetable plates, which were delivered fairly quickly. It didn’t take us long to wrap up the meal and arrive at the theater.
    Pulling out my credit card, I paid for our tickets, and we found a couple of seats near the back of the theater.
    I motioned for her to enter the row before me, and I held the seat down for her while she sat. “Do you want popcorn?” I asked.
    “I’m not really hungry, but it does sound good. Maybe just a small one.”
    “I’ll be right back.”
    Standing in line, I purchased us each a small drink and popcorn and carried the cardboard tray back to our seats.
    I didn’t pay much attention to the movie. Instead, I focused on Dara. I placed my arm around her shoulder, and she cuddled against my chest. I closed my eyes, breathing in the scent of her hair. It smelled clean and fresh, but with a floral scent that was definitely feminine. Her palm rested on my jean-clad thigh, and she rubbed her fingertips back and forth in a gentle stroking motion. Damn, I wished we were on our honeymoon. Weddings were stressful enough, but this fiasco with her father was enough to send me over the freaking edge, and if he caused more trouble, I wasn’t sure what I’d do to him. That’s what worried me. Despite what he’d done to my family, he was still Dara’s father, and I was walking on a thin layer of ice between the hatred that my family manifested and the unconditional love of a child.
    I let my thoughts turn back to Dara and our honeymoon. We’d talked of spending it in Hawaii, but since we were trying to save our money for our new house, Dara wanted to go to Florida, instead. I couldn’t deny that she’d had a point when she said we’d most likely be spending a lot of time in our suite, so we decided to save Hawaii for our wedding anniversary.
    I booked a moderate-sized house in Destin, a place she’d wanted to visit for a while. The white sand and transparent, blue waters made for one of the most beautiful beaches in America, and I couldn’t wait to see her face. Despite the fact that Tennessee was no more than a few hours from several beaches, Dara had never been to the ocean.
    I kissed her temple and squeezed her to my side, wondering why I hadn’t already taken her to the beach. We’d been busy with coll ege and with growing the business. Dara, her mother, and I had poured a lot of time and effort into making Quail Mountain Books a success. I refused to let Luke down, and even though Dara had never met him, she felt as strongly as I did.
    Her mother had surprised us both with how diligently she had worked at the bookstore , and once Tom moved to Hamilton Enterprises, Dara’s mother had been the obvious choice to replace him as the manager.