Tess could have responded that once Scott got a plan in mind, he rarely saw a reason to delay implementing it. She was his new plan, she’d thought a bit wistfully. And he seemed quite satisfied with how it was coming along.
Stevie, who’d been so perky and bubbly that Tess had wondered if there was some overcompensation involved in the cheeriness, grew a bit quieter when Scott’s name came up. “I talked with him a little at the Holiday Open Home,” she’d confessed. “I have to admit I was trying to read his feelings about you, just for my own curiosity.”
Lifting her eyebrows, Tess had asked, “And...?”
“And I still don’t know,” Stevie had said. “He’s a hard guy to read. He told me he values you highly. When I told him I’d hate to see you hurt, he assured me he would hate that, too.”
Tess didn’t know how she felt about Stevie issuing warnings on her behalf. She was certainly capable of taking care of herself, of course. Still, it was so characteristic of Stevie to feel protective of her friend. Hiding her annoyance, she’d let it go.
It was the same tonight, though as she entered the engagement party, it was nervousness she hid, this time behind a forced smile. Scott’s hand at the small of her back was reassuring, reminding her she wasn’t in this alone. They’d passed the test of whether they could continue to work efficiently despite their personal relationship. Tonight it was important they not be seen as boss and office manager, but as equals. To that end, she held her head high and her shoulders back as she and Scott entered Trapnall Hall, the historic antebellum home that had been rented for tonight’s event.
Built in 1843, the Greek Revival–style brick house had been meticulously restored, and served as the Arkansas governor’s official receiving hall. Tess had been here a few times in the past for various events—business gatherings, a couple of weddings, a charity fashion luncheon, among others—but it had been a while and she was struck again by the beauty of the place. Decorated for the holidays and the reception, it was undeniably the perfect setting for a momentous celebration. The guests mingled around impeccably set round tables with white cloths and glittering tableware, and Tess was secretly relieved to note that her green dress with its touch of glitter had been just the right choice for the evening.
She suspected that Scott’s family had been waiting for them to arrive. The whole clan descended on them almost immediately, greeting them both with warm smiles and cheek kisses.
Short and plump, Holly Prince was towered over by her husband and three sons, adored and healthily feared by all of them. Tess had always liked the cheerful, gregarious woman, but suspected no one had better hurt anyone in Holly’s family lest they feel her wrath. Her husband, Barry, like their sons, was tall and naturally slender. His thinning silver hair topped a face that Tess had always thought looked like Scott in one of those age-progression drawings. Eli and Jake bore a resemblance to their dad, but Scott was his younger duplicate.
“We’re so happy to have you here with us this evening, Tess,” Holly assured her. “You look lovely. What a pretty dress.”
Scott’s sister-in-law Libby studied the green dress with envious dark eyes. “I’ve been looking for something similar for a Christmas party next week. Do you mind if I ask where you got it?”
Tess was always happy to plug her friend’s boutique. She chatted for a few minutes with the Prince women until Holly towed her into the room to present her to other guests, including the happy young couple. No one seemed surprised Scott was there with a date, reminding her that he’d never had trouble finding female companionship, an uncomfortable thought she immediately pushed away.
Tess and Scott dined at a table for eight with his parents, two brothers and their wives. Because she already knew everyone, Tess was able to join in the lively conversation easily enough, though it once again amused her that the Prince clan tended to talk over one another when they got deeply involved in a topic. They were so obviously close-knit, sharing quick grins and private jokes and good-natured insults, yet making Tess feel welcome among them.
She could see both Libby and Christina felt close to their in-laws, as comfortable in the circle as if they’d been born into the family. Tess suspected the ease was partially a result of Holly and Barry Prince’s warm, laid-back parenting style. Scott had informed her his parents had been fairly strict when their sons were in their formative years, but they made it a practice not to get overly involved in their adult lives. They were always there for their sons and grandchildren, but they kept their advice and opinions to themselves unless asked—a policy that served them well with their daughters-in-law, Scott had added with a smile.
Dinner was followed by half a dozen heartfelt toasts from family and friends of the bride-and groom-to-be and then a twenty-minute performance by a smooth-voiced, Arkansas-born pop singer who’d performed well on a nationally televised talent show. The party
pretty much ended with the resulting applause.
Scott gave her a sign that he was ready to slip out as soon as possible. She thought he was probably tired after being in meetings for two days, then on the road for four hours that afternoon. He got delayed for a few minutes of conversation with his father, and Tess hovered patiently nearby, watching in amusement as various starstruck party guests posed for snapshots with the singer.
Her attention lingered for a moment on the engaged couple, who were saying goodbyes to departing guests at the door. They were holding hands, she noted, their fingers interlocked at their sides. Every few minutes their gazes held and they smiled just for each other. They looked young and happy and visibly in love, she thought with a funny little pang she couldn’t quite define.
“Tess, it was lovely to see you this evening,” Holly said warmly as she, too, prepared to leave.
“You, too, Mrs. Prince.”
The older woman patted her arm. “Please, call me Holly. There’s no need to be so formal now that you and my son are seeing each other.”
Was that Scott’s mother’s way of giving her blessing? Tess smiled but had no chance to respond before Scott returned to take her arm. “Okay, now we can leave. We’ve done our duty, right, Mom?”
Holly rolled her eyes comically. “Yes, Scott. You may go now. Thank you for coming. I know Bethany and her family were happy to have you here.”
“As if I’d have had the nerve to skip it,” he muttered, kissing his mother’s soft cheek with a fond impertinence that displayed absolutely no wariness of her. “G’night, Mom.”
She stroked his cheek. “Good night, sweetie. Drive carefully.”
Tess bit her lip as another twinge rippled through her. Maybe she was just weary from a long, busy week, but she was feeling a bit more sentimental than usual tonight.
“You’ve been quiet since we left the party,” Scott observed as he walked her to her door a short while later. “Is everything okay?”
“Of course.” She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and smiled faintly up at him as she unlocked her door. “Just tired, I guess. Probably not as much as you, though. You’ve had a very long day, haven’t you?”
He didn’t look entirely reassured. “No one said anything to you? Upset you in any way?”
“Of course not, Scott. Everyone was very nice. Frankly, I was expecting some personal questions or comments, but between dinner, speeches and the musical performance, there wasn’t a lot of time for personal conversations.”