Game of Hearts by Kathryn J. Bain

ready to throw the bouquet. I thought you might want to come try to catch it."
    "You go on without me. I'll put my faith in God, not a bunch of flowers."
    "Sarah." Brandon stood. "I'm going to take your mom for a walk. Here's my cell—if you're ready to go before we get back, call your mom's number."
    She shook her index finger at me. "Do I have to give you two a curfew?"
    ****
    We walked down a path through freshly mowed grass. Trees loomed high over us. Though it was chilly out, I didn't mind. I had Brandon's arm around my shoulder to keep me warm. I'd never felt this good in my life. Please God, don't let anything ruin it.
    "Come on." He pulled me off the path into a patch of trees surrounded by water.
    "What are you up to?" I loved his playful nature.
    "Nothing."
    Brandon took me in his arms and our lips met. My hip vibrated. It took me a few seconds to realize the earth hadn't shaken from the intensity of his kiss. I pulled out my cell and glanced at the caller ID. Sarah.
    "Yes, dear." Brandon's lips were warm against my neck. My heart beat so loud in my ears I wasn't sure I'd be able to hear her.
    "Dad and Patrice are getting ready to leave," Sarah said. "He said we'd better be going too."
    "Okay. We'll be right there." I disconnected and nudged Brandon's face from my neck to ensure he heard me. "We have to go."
    He pulled me into a hug and kissed my forehead. "I really need to talk to that girl about her timing."
    When we returned, half the room had emptied. I couldn't believe how fast the wedding had taken place. Most receptions lasted hours, yet it had hardly been ninety minutes for this one. Michael paced in the corner behind what remained of the wedding cake. Patrice patted him on the shoulder. The kids stood at the wall to his left.
    "What took you so long?" His jaw tightened.
    "We came as soon as Sarah called," I said.
    "We have to leave, and I didn't expect someone else to watch the kids."
    "It's okay, Michael." Patrice walked up even with him. "We have plenty of time. The ship doesn't leave until tomorrow."
    Michael glared at me. "You're trying to ruin the wedding."
    No point in arguing. "Come on, kids. It's time to go." I turned to leave, but Michael grabbed hold of my arm.
    "I'm not going to put up with you trying to ruin my marriage."
    Brandon stepped forward. "Let go of her."
    "This is none of your business."
    "I said let go of her. Now."
    Michael let loose of me and threw a punch at Brandon. He dodged. T hen Michael shoved him into me. My arms flailed, but my backside hit the table. Its legs gave way and I slid down as the table slanted up. The top tier of the cake slid over my shoulder and landed in my lap. A purple lily stood at attention on top of my right breast. The remainder of the cake rested on my back.
    Gasps, whispers, and giggles sounded from people surrounding us. Brandon rushed over to me. "Are you all right?"
    "Yes." This is becoming a habit.
    "Michael, look what you did!" Patrice said. She and Brandon helped me to my feet. I slid in the icing.
    "I'm sorry." Patrice wiped at the mess on my dress. "He must have had too much champagne. We'll pay to get the dress dry cleaned."
    "It's all right." I glanced at Brandon, whose eyes burned with anger. "I'm getting used to taking cake baths."
    I did the best I could to clean up before getting to the car. So much for my makeup. The aroma of frosting coated me. Every time I looked at Brandon, he had a smile on his face.
    "That was pretty cool, Mom," Anthony said as he buckled his seat belt. "I especially liked it when the cake landed on you."
    "I'm glad you had such a good time," I said in a droll voice. Brandon snickered. I smacked his arm. His grin widened.
    "I'm just glad it happened after the reception, instead of before." I pulled the visor down. At least I didn't get it on top of my head this time.
    Giggles came from the back seat, where Sarah and Anthony laughed about the incident. Matthew sulked in the corner of the car, glaring out the