Why Not Tonight (Happily Inc. #3)(46)

He and Natalie walked over to join the group. The afternoon was warm, at least a hundred degrees. No doubt familiar temperatures for a giraffe. He recognized several people he knew from town. Nick and Pallas were already there, as was Mathias.

Nick raised his eyebrows. “Didn’t think this was your kind of thing.”

Ronan glanced at Natalie, then back at Nick. “I hear it’s a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and not to be missed.”

Nick looked between them and seemed to put the pieces together. While Ronan hadn’t cared if people knew he and Natalie were seeing each other, she’d wanted to keep things quiet, so he hadn’t said anything. But in a town as small as Happily Inc, word was bound to get out. He knew his brothers wouldn’t say anything to anyone but him and he was pretty sure he was in for a ribbing.

Not a problem, he thought. Natalie was more than worth it.

An older woman he didn’t know walked over to him. “You’re Ronan Mitchell,” she said.

He didn’t think she’d asked a question, but nodded. “Yes, ma’am.”

“Uh-huh. I’ve seen your work in Atsuko’s gallery. It’s very expensive.”

“It is.”

She had salt-and-pepper hair and piercing black eyes. “You think you’re worth that much?”

“Some days. Not others.”

Her expression didn’t shift for at least three seconds. Then she laughed and cuffed him on the arm. “I like that. We all have those days. I hear you’re going to be using a car to decorate the bridge. You and your brother and Natalie here. I think it’s a great idea. Real interesting. This town needs a little shaking up.”

With that, she walked back to her group of friends. Ronan turned to Natalie. “Do you know who she is?”

“I haven’t got a clue.”

A low rumbling noise interrupted them. They both turned and saw the custom truck moving toward them. The cab was normal size but the back was overly tall, with canvas sides and a frame top. As they watched, the truck came to a stop.

Carol and several assistants walked over to talk to the driver. He turned the truck and backed it toward the enclosures. As the rig got closer, Ronan could see the upper back was open and a giraffe watched as he was moved closer to his new home.

“He’s so handsome,” Natalie said, grabbing his hand and squeezing his fingers. “I wonder if he has a name or if we get to name him. That would be fun.”

She had a zest for life that impressed the hell out of him. Next to her, he was King Dour—something that had happened gradually.

Carol worked gates and portable fencing, creating a walkway for the giraffe. When everything was in place, she opened the rear door of the truck. The giraffe looked toward the enclosure, then at the people standing around, watching. He sniffed once or twice before cautiously stepping down the ramp. Once he reached solid ground, he walked more quickly and stepped right into his enclosure. Carol secured the gate behind him.

“He’ll stay on his own for a couple of weeks,” Natalie said. “Once he’s comfortable, the other giraffes will spend time in stalls close to him so they can all get used to each other. Eventually they’ll be able to roam around together.”

“And have sex.”

She rolled her eyes. “You are such a guy. Yes, they’ll have sex and eventually we’ll have baby giraffes. They’re so cute. Have you seen videos of baby giraffes? They’re totally adorable. So leggy and awkward.” She sighed, then dropped his hand. “All right. Back to work.”

He chuckled. “Way to break the mood.”

“Did you need to cuddle?” she asked, her voice teasing.

“I don’t know. It would have been nice, but never mind now.”

She leaned close. “I’ll make it up to you later. I promise.”

Which was about all the inspiration he needed.





CHAPTER ELEVEN

HAPPILY INC WAS a destination wedding town. Several venues offered wedding parties the opportunity to fulfill their wildest marital fantasies—at least when it came to actually getting married. Hotels had theme rooms, there were emergency tailors and florists, not to mention officiants on the go. The bride and groom could choose to be cowboys, royalty, pirates or become legally bound in a hot-air balloon.

Natalie had discovered the unique rhythm of the town when she’d first decided to make the area her home. Locals learned not to expect to go out to dinner on the weekends and to avoid the center of town unless you wanted to get stuck behind a horse-drawn carriage.

The previous evening Pallas had texted and asked if Natalie could attend a planning meeting for the Batman & Robin movie-themed wedding. Natalie had agreed. As she parked outside of Weddings Out of the Box, she wondered what on earth she could add to the discussion. Still, her friend had asked, so here she was.

She found Pallas in the main conference room. There was a long table for client meetings and a large video screen and computer set up to work as a projector. Shelves and a buffet table had been set up along one wall displaying several small cakes, unopened shipping boxes of various sizes and stacks of linens.

“Hi,” Natalie said, carrying in the two vases she’d filled with paper flowers. “Do you really go through all this with every wedding? It’s so much work. I had no idea.”