But the magic of the night would happen when Darek picked up his bride, Ivy Madison, and carried her into their celebration. No one could be happier for Darek and his new life than Grace. If he could find happily ever after without leaving Deep Haven, then so could she.
First, she had to get to the wedding.
Grace climbed into the family truck and gunned it out of the dirt parking lot of the folk school grounds. The building’s sliding-glass doors overlooked the gold-splashed harbor of Deep Haven. With otters frolicking around the docks and seagulls perched to watch the festivities, a sun-soaked breeze blowing off the lake, and the scent of summer in the air, this Sunday evening of Memorial Day weekend held the promise of a beautiful celebration.
She glanced at her phone where she’d left it on the seat of the truck. Five missed calls.
Shoot.
Grace shifted her gaze back to the road in time to slam on her brakes for a couple of tourists, one wearing a baby in a back carrier, crossing the main drag and waving the orange flag provided to alert drivers to pedestrians as they came over the hill.
Easing forward, she made the light, then turned left up the hill to the church. The parking lot was full, music playing as she parked and hustled in.
The sanctuary doors hung closed, an usher standing just inside as she cracked one open. One of Darek’s firefighter buddies from the National Forest Service. She gave him a sheepish look as he quirked an eyebrow.
The overhead fans stirred the hushed air and she realized the music had ended and the pastor was praying. Good, maybe she’d arrived just after the processional. She ducked her head but shot a glance at the front, where Ivy and Darek held hands. Beside Ivy stood her matron of honor, Claire, petite and cute in her turquoise dress, holding Ivy’s bouquet of orange gerbera daisies.
Her heart could melt at the sight of Darek in his tuxedo, tall and handsome and healed and giving his heart away. Again. Or maybe fully, for the first time.
“Amen.” Pastor Dan lifted his eyes to the crowd, smiled at the couple. Grace looked for a place to scoot down the aisle and slip in at the end of her parents’ pew in front. Sure, a few people might notice, but it wasn’t as if she’d missed—
“I’d like to present, for the first time, Mr. and Mrs. Darek Christiansen.”
Darek looked up, smiled for the crowd, and met her eyes.
Oops.
She stepped out of the way as Ivy and Darek marched up the aisle. Then, before the ushers could open the sanctuary doors again to release the guests, she ducked out.
And caught the bride and groom in an after-ceremony smooch.
“Grace!” Darek said, releasing his bride. He had a grin in his eyes, and she credited Ivy for tempering his anger. “Where were you? We called and called. We finally had to rearrange our pictures—”
“I’m so sorry.” She grabbed Ivy’s hand, caught for a moment in the radiance of her new sister-in-law. Ivy wore a simple diamond necklace, a strapless taffeta gown, and with her red hair tucked up on her head, she looked like a fairy tale. “You’re gorgeous.”
“I know,” Darek said.
Ivy blushed. “We were worried. Are you okay?”
“I was dipping strawberries and lost track of time—I’m so sorry!”
“That’s okay.” Ivy leaned in and kissed Grace on the cheek. “I knew I could trust you with an amazing dinner.”
The guests had started to spill out of the sanctuary.
“I’m so sorry I missed the wedding—”
But Ivy wasn’t listening.
“I’ll see you at the reception,” Grace said and headed back to the parking lot before Eden could track her down.
Yeah, that wouldn’t be pretty.
But soon she’d wow them with her ravioli, impress them with the grilled chicken, stun them with the beautiful dipped strawberries—
I knew I could trust you with an amazing dinner. The Minneapolis Institute of Culinary Arts didn’t know what they were missing. Tonight Grace had prepared a dinner that would make everyone forget she never had any formal training. She didn’t need cooking school to go places.
And up here, one great party led to word of mouth across the county. She didn’t even have to make up business cards.
Grace spied the curl of smoke as she turned onto Main Street. Stomped the gas as she tracked its source.
The folk school.
No.
But her timing was finally perfect as she skidded into the parking lot, right behind the Deep Haven volunteer fire department.
Maxwell Sharpe wasn’t going down without a fight.
“Okay, listen, Evan. Your sister isn’t doing a good job of blocking around the end, so when I hand the ball off to you, I want you to run straight toward the big oak. Jenness and I will block for you. You just have to outrun a girl.”