Ruthless knight

 “Sawyer said you couldn’t make it,” a deep voice calls out before I walk into the hall.

Fuck. 

I stop short. “Hey, Mr. Church.” 

“Oh, shit,” Oakley whispers. “I’ll distract him. You make a run for it before he shoots you.” 

“He is not going to shoot me,” I snap. 

Mr. Church’s eyes narrow into tiny slits. “I might.” 

“Well, in that case, can I go inside and apologize to your daughter for being an asshole first?” I look at my watch. “I spent the last thirty-seven and a half hours in a car so I could be here.” 

His eyebrows shoot up to the ceiling. “Why?” 

“Because there was a hurricane warning and I thought they were going to ground the flights. I knew being here was important to her, and I didn’t want to miss it.” 

He looks at me like I’m crazy. “It’s March. There might be a little storm every now and then like today, but no hurricanes.” 

“Told you,” Oakley hisses. 

He gestures to the hall. “Sawyer’s at table two.” 

I hold out my hand. “Thank you.”

Shaking it, he looks at Oakley. “Who’s your friend?”

“Oakley. He’s—”

“Here for the bridesmaids.”

I was going to say mine and Sawyer’s mutual friend, but that’s out the window now. 

Mr. Church chuckles. “Well, today’s your lucky day, boy. My daughter Catherine’s in a sorority.” 

“Sweet. Is she hot?”

“She’s the bride,” I grit through my teeth. 

Mr. Church laughs. “I like you. If you touch my daughters, I’ll kill you…but I like you.” He clears his throat. “What I meant was that a few of the bridesmaids are sorority girls. However, they’re a little older than you are, so you better play your cards right.”

That’s like catnip to Oakley. 

Oakley fist pumps the air. “Thank you, Jesus.” 

I leave Oakley and Mr. Church to talk about sorority girls and head into the hall. 

Sawyer’s not sitting at her table and the purple hue of the room combined with the neon flashing lights on the dance floor makes it hard to find her. However, I do spot Sawyer’s grandfather. 

I promptly walk over and shake his hand. “Hey, do you know where Sawyer is? I’ve been looking all over for her.”

He points across the room. “Sure do. She’s over there.” 

The second I see her; my heart stops cold. For two reasons. 

One—she’s so gorgeous it takes my breath away. 

And two—she’s laughing and talking to some guy. 

A little too closely for my liking. 

“Who is he?” 

“Abbott Carney. They’ve known each other since they were in diapers. He helps out at the local church a lot. Real nice kid.”