Free The Wedding Favor by Caroline Mickelson Page B

was all he managed to say. He hoped she could see his appreciation in his eyes. Her smile assured him that she had an inkling of how he felt.
    “I love this dress,” she said. She went to stand on a platform in front of a set of three mirrors. She turned sideways and smoothed the front of the dress down. “What do you think? Is that what you had in mind or is it too formal?”
    “Too formal? No, Ava. It’s perfect.” Mateo marveled at how it looked as if it had been especially designed and sewn just for her. “You look incredible.” Unable to take his eyes off of her, Mateo took a step toward her, suddenly wanting nothing more in the world than to hold her close to him.
    Maricela, who had witnessed the conversation with a soft smile on her face, stepped between them. “Okay, you can save whatever you have to say for your wedding day, Mateo.” She guided Ava back to the dressing area, sparing him a quick look back. “Remember you two have a lifetime together.”
    Mateo sat back down, suddenly feeling forlorn. What at first had seemed like the perfect solution to his problems suddenly made him feel empty. And alone.

Chapter Nine
    Once the decision was made about her wedding dress, Ava was stunned at how quickly everything else fell into place. It helped inordinately that Mateo had a contact through his family for everything else they needed. His cousin’s best friend ran a floral shop and she was generous enough to help Ava pick out a simple yet elegant bouquet of cream and lavender roses. Another cousin who was a stay-at-home mom ran a small wedding cake business out of her home. How she managed to create such incredibly gorgeous cakes in between chasing after twin toddlers, Ava couldn’t imagine. But the sample they’d tasted had been heavenly and the designs were almost too elegant to consider eating. A brother-in-law of a cousin who was an ordained minister had agreed to officiate. The music for the ceremony and reception was safely in the hands of the Ortega family as well, Mateo assured her. So there was truly nothing else practical to concern herself with, Ava realized, except finding a way to convince Mateo that she was willing and able to pay for half of everything.
    “Considering that it’s my wedding, I feel it’s only fair I pay half of every bill,” Ava said. They’d just finished meeting with a photographer, also an Ortega family friend, who assured them that he’d be delighted to capture their happy day for posterity. The mention of which made both of them very uneasy but, like keepers of a shared secret, they’d thanked him for his willingness to squeeze them into his schedule. Ava pulled her sunglasses out of her handbag and looked up at Mateo.
    “It’s my wedding too,” Mateo answered, his smile was a tiny bit challenging and quite a bit charming.
    Although they stood near his car in a public parking lot, Ava suddenly felt they were all alone in the world. Increasingly her fiancé was having that effect on her. Which made her all the more determined to remain independent. It would be too easy to lose herself in Mateo’s world. In Mateo himself. She forced herself to focus on the matter at hand. “That isn’t a winning argument, Mateo.”
    His smile was gentle. “Ava, I completely respect how well you’ve done for yourself. But this isn’t about money. I know you can afford these expenses but we also both know that this isn’t a normal situation.” He leaned against his car. “This whole wedding is a favor to me, to my family, and you’ve given more than enough already. There’s no way I’m taking your money. That’s my final word on the subject.”
    Ava’s eyebrows rose.
    His expression was sheepish. “Okay, well, I guess that isn’t a very respectful way for a husband to talk to his wife, huh? Let me rephrase. Can you please agree that it’s really only appropriate I fund this whole thing?” He reached out for her hand and pulled her closer. “Fair enough?”
    She