Which meant that I couldn’t tell Troy no, even if his request was ridiculous. So I paid attention as he showed me the proper length for the string, how I should double it up and knot it at one end, hooking the free end to this foot-long steel needle. He pushed the needle through the bottom of the flowers.
“And you just keep doing that until the lei is full.”
I looked around the room. “We have to make all of these?”
“Not we. My assistants and I are needed downstairs. But don’t worry. I’ve called for reinforcements. If you haven’t had lunch yet, please get room service. It’s on me. I’ve left you my cell phone on the notepad there. Call if you need anything. See you soon!”
My stomach gurgled at the offer. It was past lunchtime, but I wasn’t the least bit hungry. I still felt queasy and unsettled.
Then he left me alone. I sat down at the desk and sighed. I’d strung many a garland and arranged more than my fair share of floral centerpieces. A lei couldn’t be that much different. It seemed relatively straightforward—just time consuming.
I’d finished three lei, pleased with how they’d turned out, when there was a knock at the door. Finally, Krista had arrived. I wondered if Mary-Ellen was going to show up, too.
Throwing open the door I said, “It’s about time—” but immediately stopped when I saw who was standing there.
Camden.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
He smiled at me like everything was just fine and normal and he hadn’t woken up in my room at four in the morning, then announced, “I’m here about getting some lei.”
“You are such a child,” I told him. “And it’s making lei, not getting . . . you know what? Never mind. I don’t need any help.” I still had several hours before the surprise event started.
I turned around and let the door start to swing shut on its own, but Camden followed me inside. “It looks like you need help.”
Despite what I’d said, he wasn’t wrong. “Fine. I’ll show you how to make it.” We didn’t have to talk or anything. I put the desk between us as I gave him the exact same instructions Troy had given me. I didn’t make eye contact with Camden, focusing on my task.
Fingering a flower on one of the completed lei he said, “You do good work.”
He was not going to butter me up with compliments.
And I felt my resolve harden when he asked, “Should I write that down on a piece of paper so you can put it in your box?”
While I knew he was trying to be cute or whatever, his comment stung. It reminded me how much I’d shared with him last night. How I’d told him things I had never told another person.
Nobody else knew about my happy box.
“You can sit over there,” I told him.
A strange expression crossed his face, but he took his needle and string and did what I said. I sat down at the desk, focusing on my task and doing my best to ignore him completely.
For a moment I considered texting Krista and having her join us. The only reason I hadn’t so far was because when Troy said he had called for reinforcements, I’d assumed he meant the other bridesmaids. I never imagined that he would have contacted Camden.
And if I got in touch with Krista now? Once I told her what was going on she’d rush down here with a big bag of popcorn just to have the chance to enjoy watching my embarrassment. Then she’d probably say some inappropriate things.
Because this room was already chock-full of Grade-A one hundred percent awkwardness, and the longer our silence went on, the worse it got.
I was almost grateful when he finally spoke. “Are we just going to pretend like last night didn’t happen?”
Feeling less grateful. “Can we? Because that would be great.”
“It’s kind of hard to forget you guzzling drinks like you were an eighteenth-century soldier about to have your leg amputated.”
“That wasn’t—” I saw that he was teasing me.
“How are you feeling today?”
“Sick,” I responded.
“My guess is that comes from the duty-free pop-up you were running in your stomach.”
“Ha ha,” I told him although if I were being fair, it was a little bit funny.
“Did you need some aspirin? Or maybe a sledgehammer?” he offered.
He was relentless in trying to make me laugh, wasn’t he? Like he knew humor would be his way in. “No, I took the aspirin that . . .”
That he’d left for me, but I didn’t finish my sentence. I still didn’t want to talk about what had gone on last night. I asked him, “Are you always this loud?”