What I Like About You

Chapter 2-1

Chapter 2

The food was amazing. Sebastian figured that was par for the course when the bride was a chef and she’d brought in another of her chef buddies to cater the rehearsal dinner. It sure as hell beat whatever he usually threw together and ate standing up in the kitchen of his tiny cabin. In the Army, it had been drilled into him that food was fuel. But whatever magic combination of beef and vegetables this was—sourced from Logan’s farm, Maxwell Organics, no doubt—was pure pleasure. Sebastian wondered if there was more in the kitchen.

Xander shoved back from the table. “Before we get on to dessert, we’d like to present Athena and Logan with a wedding gift from the whole family.”

From the chair beside Sebastian, Ari muttered, “Oh, this is gonna be good.”

She practically bounced in her seat, wicked humor dancing in those big brown eyes. At the arch of his brow, she pressed a finger to her lips.

When Xander came back a moment later with a large, flat parcel, wrapped in brown paper, Logan leaned back in his chair at the head of the table. “What are you up to, Kincaid?”

Expression deceptively bland, Xander propped the package, which measured maybe two feet by three feet, on one narrow edge. “Why don’t you two come find out?”

Exchanging a look, the bride and groom abandoned their mostly empty plates to investigate.

Logan accepted the thing, running his hands over the edges. “Feels like a picture frame.”

“Your powers of deduction have not failed you,” Kennedy announced. “A house isn’t a home without art, and we all collectively felt like this would make a fitting addition to your living room.”

Athena shot Maggie and Pru a questioning glance. “You two were involved in this?”

“We were,” Maggie answered.

“Then I guess we can trust it was in good taste.” Athena reached out and unceremoniously ripped the brown paper.

From his position across the dining room, Sebastian couldn’t see what the picture was, but Athena’s face had frozen in shock. Logan tore the paper the rest of the way, revealing a fancy, heavy wood frame. He blinked a few times, the corner of his mouth twitching.

“Well, what are you waiting for?” Porter asked. “Show everybody.”

Logan flipped the picture around. The image inside the professional frame was one of him and Athena standing in front of the house they shared at the farm. Logan was holding a pitchfork, and Athena stood to his left, wearing a chef’s coat, with her hair bundled into a bun and a scowl on her face. Was that…flour dusted over her nose and hair? Something had grayed out the usually brown sweep of it. The photo had obviously been Photoshopped as a magnificent gag gift, poking fun at the farmer and the chef.

“I give you Eden’s Ridge Gothic,” Xander announced.

Logan’s control cracked and he started to laugh. So did everyone else. Everyone except for his parents. Lawrence Maxwell’s brows drew down in forbidding disapproval, and his wife looked utterly appalled.

Sebastian decided Logan was either an alien or adopted. Either way, he wasn’t anything like his parents. His mom was a prim, proper society wife. Sebastian knew the type. He’d seen them often enough where he’d grown up in Kentucky, usually on the arm of some rich guy, who paid for people like his mother to take care of their Derby contenders. Her husband was obviously accustomed to calling the shots. From everything Sebastian had observed this afternoon, the other man didn’t appreciate the small, family wedding Athena and Logan had chosen or the non-country club setting for the rehearsal dinner and reception. Everything but the ceremony itself was being held at Athena’s family’s place, The Misfit Inn. Sebastian had a feeling that the only thing he’d find worse would be if festivities were being held out at the farm itself. It was clear they didn’t understand their son or approve of his life choices. It was equally clear that the down-to-earth and relaxed Logan didn’t give a s**t. He was happy with his life and his choice of wife.

That wife-to-be looked less than amused. She shot daggers at Moses. “You said you destroyed that picture.”

The big man crossed his arms, utterly unrepentant. “You really think I was gonna destroy evidence of what happened that time you tried to bake—”

“Stop!” She pointed in warning, but her own lips trembled with suppressed laughter. “What happens in the kitchen, stays in the kitchen.”

“Yes, Chef,” Moses rumbled, a chuckle underscoring the words.

“We figured you could hang it in a place of honor over the mantle,” Flynn said.

Well, that just made the older Maxwells look like they smelled something nasty. If the bride and groom noticed, they didn’t let on.

“Who on earth did you find to put all of this together?” Logan asked.

“I know a guy,” Maggie admitted.

As the ribbing continued, Sebastian’s gaze slid over to Laurel. She was a lot more buttoned up than her brother, though not stodgy with it like their parents. She had the look of a woman who needed to cut loose. Under other circumstances, Sebastian might have jumped at the chance to help her out with that. She’d put on a good front at the rehearsal, making all the right social remarks when she’d arrived. But she’d been strung tight as a bowstring, all but vibrating with tension. And just like one of his horses, she’d quieted at his touch. That fascinated him for reasons he didn’t quite understand. It was a fascination he couldn’t afford to indulge, despite the zing between them. She was Logan’s sister. As a friend and also his boss, that was double the reason for Sebastian to keep his hands to himself. He needed all the reasons he could get because Laurel Maxwell was a beautiful creature with wounded eyes, and those were his kryptonite.

Her lips curved in a quiet smile as she watched her brother and Athena continue to joke around with their friends and family. There was a wealth of affection in her expression that told him she had none of her parents’ reservations about Logan’s choices. Sebastian wondered if she had just a little bit of envy for the ease of the whole Reynolds clan, compared to her own family. It couldn’t have been easy coming up in a household with those parents and their undoubtedly high expectations.

Over the next few minutes, the table got cleared and dessert brought out. At the first bite, Sebastian forgot about seconds on dinner. Heaven was this creamy, chocolaty confection on a plate. Damn. Hanging out with chefs was going to ruin him for regular food.

“I would like to propose a toast.” Lawrence lifted his glass.

All conversation died and attention turned in his direction. Like everybody else, Sebastian picked up his glass. He hoped the guy wasn’t long-winded in toasts. He really wanted to get back to his dessert.

“To my baby girl.”

What the hell?

Sebastian glanced at Laurel, who’d lost her small sign of happiness, her lips bowing into a frown.

“She’s a hard worker and an exceptional student. She’ll be graduating in the top one percent of her class at Vanderbilt Law School.”

Laurel’s fingers flexed on the stem of her glass, and two bright flags of color bloomed across her cheeks. She knew as well as everyone else that Logan’s rehearsal dinner was not the time or place.

“Dad, what are you doing?” she murmured.

He’s dissing your brother’s choice to become a farmer, that’s what. Sebastian gritted his teeth, knowing Logan wouldn’t want a scene, but wishing he could do something to shut all this down.

“Today, all her hard work has finally paid off. She got a job with Carson, Danvers, Herbert, and Pike in New York, and I know she’s going to go on to do great things.”

Her back went ramrod straight, the last vestiges of relaxation evaporating as surprise, then resignation flickered over her face. “I haven’t accepted the position yet. And this isn’t—”

“Of course you’ll accept. Roger is very excited to have you join the firm.”

Around the room, the wedding party fidgeted in their seats.

Laurel had moved beyond embarrassed. The flush in her cheeks faded as her father continued to talk. The skin seemed to tighten over her cheekbones, emphasizing the angles of her face. A faint sheen of sweat popped on her brow. Sebastian kept a close eye on her, feeling his own pulse kick higher as he noted her respiration going fast and shallow.

Logan jumped into the breach, lifting his glass. “To my brilliant baby sister, who isn’t a baby anymore. We’re all exceptionally proud of you and wish you success in whatever you do.”

As the chorus of awkward cheers faded, Laurel pushed back from the table. “Excuse me.”

Sebastian counted down the seconds, while someone made a conversational volley about the dessert to try to get things back on track. At the one minute mark, he slipped out of his seat without a word and went in search of Laurel.