The Bride's Best Man
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Once she stepped outside, however, she had to admit dining on the beach was a wonderful choice. Their table for four was set on a silken tarp, with the long tablecloth fluttering in the ocean breeze. Once they were seated, Shelby looked up and saw a moon rising in the sky over Pete’s shoulder.
“Look, Kay. Do you see the moon?” Shelby asked, gesturing toward Pete.
Pete looked at Shelby. “You don’t call her Aunt Kay?”
Shelby stared at the man before saying briefly, “No, not always. She’s only ten years older than me.”
“Really?” Pete asked, staring at Kay.
“Yes, really,” Shelby returned. She didn’t like the way the man was looking at Kay, as if sizing her up.
“Most people think I’m her mother,” Kay said with a chuckle.
“You are more my mother than my real mother ever was,” Shelby said softly, taking Kay’s hand.
Dan took her other hand. “She’s right, Kay, and we all know it.”
Shelby looked at Dan. “How do you know?”
“Kay wrote me about what happened.”
“You knew my mother?”
“We met,” he said briefly, shrugging his shoulders.
“And my father? Did you know him?”
“About as much as I knew your mother. I was more Kay’s friend.”
“So why did you move to Hawaii?” Shelby asked.
“I was in a bad situation and I needed to get away.”
Since Kay would’ve been only in her midteens, Shelby guessed she couldn’t blame him for leaving. “What does your company do, Dan?”
“Oh, a mixture of things. I import cars and sporting equipment, and I export Hawaiian items, such as macadamia nuts, leis, muumuus, most anything we think will sell on the mainland.”
“How interesting.” Shelby looked at Kay, to see if what he did was a surprise to her.
“Doesn’t that sound exciting, Shelby?” Kay asked.
“Yes, exciting,” Shelby agreed.
“What do you do, Shelby?” Dan asked.
“I just finished law school.” With a bright smile, she added, “But I guess you and Kay have more in common.”
Dan and Kay smiled at each other.
Pete needed more details. “Why do you say that?”
“They’re both in retail.”
Pete looked at Kay. “What do you sell?”
“Oh, I have a secondhand furniture store,” Kay said in a deprecating manner.
“Really,” Pete said. “Maybe we should start one of those here on the island. It certainly wouldn’t be worth shipping anything back to the mainland.”
Dan frowned. “I don’t know much about furniture, but it does sound like a good idea.”
“Maybe I should look into it. I’ll make some calls tomorrow and do some research to see if there are secondhand stores on the island.”
“Good idea, Pete. I bet Kay could give you advice.”
“Would you mind, Kay?” Pete asked.
“I would enjoy it.”
“And I’ll take you to lunch, Shelby, so you won’t feel left out,” Dan said with an easy smile.
“That’s quite all right. I’ll be fine lying at the pool and studying. I’ve planned to do that, but I was worried about Kay being entertained. That will work out just fine.”
Kay protested. “But, Shelby—”
“You promised me I could study if I felt the urge, Kay, and I do.” She gave her aunt a serious look.
“I know I did, but I was hoping you wouldn’t want to.”
It was Dan who eased the situation. “Don’t worry about it, Kay. Let Shelby study all day. Then, tomorrow night, we’ll all four go out to dinner.”
“But, Dan, you bought dinner tonight. I can’t let you take us out again.”
“Actually, he hasn’t paid for dinner tonight yet,” Shelby said. “Maybe it would be better if we split the cost tonight.” Shelby caught the look of outrage on Pete’s face. Dan didn’t seem upset at all.
“Nice try, young lady,” Dan said with a chuckle, “but I extended the invitation, so I’ll pay the bill.”
“Then you’d better save your money tomorrow night.”
“Shelby!” Kay said in an admonishing tone. “There’s no need to insult Dan. He’s been a wonderful host.”
“I didn’t mean to insult him. But I don’t know him. If he wants to take you out, he shouldn’t feel he has to drag me along. You’re old enough. You don’t need a chaperone.”
Dan laughed. “You’re a straight shooter, aren’t you, Shelby?”
“I try to be.”
“Okay, we’ll negotiate. I feel I owe Kay another dinner if she works all day with Pete tomorrow. But my chances of repaying Kay while abandoning you are nil. You know her. Am I right?”
“Yes, Dan, you’re right. I didn’t know if you knew Kay that well.”
“Even when she was young, she kept her dolls all together because she didn’t want any of them to think she was the favorite.”
Kay blushed and looked away from the table.
“Kay! You never told me that!”
“That wasn’t anything you needed to know,” her aunt said sheepishly.
Dan smiled at her. “Sorry to spill the beans on you, sweetheart. But it was something that had stuck in my memory.”
Shelby was beginning to see why Kay had remembered him for so long.
Kay managed to change the subject back to Pete’s original suggestion. Shelby allowed the three-sided conversation to flow for the rest of dinner without interruption. When they’d finished their meal, Dan leaned over and whispered something in Kay’s ear. Shelby noticed Pete’s complete attention was on Kay’s face.
“Oh, I’d love to,” Kay exclaimed.
Dan looked at Shelby. “I suggested to Kay that we take off our shoes and walk back to your hotel along the beach, instead of the way we came.”