Her voice tickled her ear a little, and a flush of excitement raced over her. She tried to mimic her flirtatious tone. “My dance card is yours for the evening, Ms. Walker.”

Maddie stilled for a moment, then shook her head. “No—I’m afraid not. I’ve already promised myself to some of the other women here. And to both the grooms, of course.”

She pretended to pout. “Well, then, I’ll have to find someone to dance with myself, then, too. I want to drive you crazy with jealousy.”

Maddie kissed her then, their pretending over, and she let herself sink into the sensation. Like their kiss at the festival, and many kisses before that, the world seemed to fade away. They might have been the only people in here.

When she opened her eyes and they drew apart, she saw Stuart watching them. He appeared troubled, almost upset, but then he gave her a weak smile. She glanced up at Maddie, who’d also seen this exchange, and saw a similar worry pinch her lips and eyes. That earlier misgiving tried to steal into her heart, but Maddie’s expression cleared, and she gave her another quick kiss.

Maddie had done all the work regarding decorations for the reception, and no one had seen any of it. She’d explained last weekend that because no other events had been scheduled recently, she’d been allowed to spend a great deal of time setting up. Already, as the limo pulled into the parking lot, Ryann could see that the outside of the barn had been festooned in thousands of red and white twinkle lights. The sun was still up, but the lights were visible, especially on this side of the barn. Above the door, the names Jai and Stuart had been spelled out inside a heart of lights that flashed on and off in strobing rainbow colors. Jai and Stuart positively squealed at the sight of it, Stuart leaning forward to slap Maddie’s knee.

“I knew we could count on you to knock our socks off,” he said.

“Wait ’til you see it inside,” Maddie said.

A red carpet had been rolled out in front of the door, and the limo dropped them off there. After the men got out, Maddie climbed out and helped Ryann upright, her hand still much warmer than Ryann’s. They continued to hold hands all the way inside.