The Bouquet List (16 page)

Lightning fast, he drew her to him and kissed her hard and long. She heard him pull in a sharp breath, and then he let her go and walked back into the restaurant.

Quaking all over, Yasmin looked down at the envelope in her hand and stroked it with a shaking fingertip. She could feel her bottom lip start to wobble as she hooked a finger under the flap of the envelope, then lifted out a cardboard wallet inside. Stamped on the front was the name of a European airline. Frowning, she flicked it open and then her heart stood still. A ticket, from New York to Rome.

Without doubt, this was the most perfect gift she’d ever received, and it broke her heart in two.

…

Yasmin spent the next hour talking to guests, posing for photographs, and trying to stop the unrelenting ache in her chest. Every few minutes she found herself looking for Lane, straining to hear his laugh and to watch the intense and focused way he spoke to people about the renovation.

How could she leave here? How could she leave
him
, knowing the way he made her feel, knowing there was so much she wanted to do with him, experience with him? Trying to imagine traveling to Italy without him was impossible; contemplating never waking up beside him again, unthinkable.

When dinner was over, Grace welcomed everyone to the Palace and gave a short introduction. “And through this whole process,” she was saying, “the Aegean Palace has been incredibly fortunate to have the superb skills of leading restaurateur Lane Griffiths to spearhead this rebirth.”

There was a deafening round of applause as Lane took the microphone from Grace and waited for quiet. “Ladies and gentlemen,” he said in that low, smooth voice Yasmin had come to know like the beat of her own heart. “I’d like to welcome you all here to the relaunch of the brand-new Aegean Palace.”

There was murmuring, and a few people broke into more applause. He looked so handsome in his tuxedo, and he spoke with such confidence and certainty that it brought more tears to Yasmin’s eyes. What if she’d never gotten sick? What if she hadn’t been faced with the possibility of never seeing her dreams come true? Maybe then she wouldn’t have this battle raging inside her—one half of her heart desperate to be true to her dreams, the other lost to Lane Griffiths. She thought of the airline ticket in its envelope, carefully tucked into her handbag, and she knew it was a symbol of the different lives she and Lane wanted to lead.

“Many of you will know me from my chain of restaurants in the city, and the experience I’ve had in hospitality management, but what you may not know is that my love for food and entertaining people began right in this very restaurant,” Lane said.

He held his hands wide and memories of lying wrapped in those arms, against his firm chest, stung. She’d never imagined him speaking in public like this, talking of his younger self and wearing his heart on his sleeve.

“It’s true that I learned to cook by watching Pia and Mano Katsalos preparing
souvla
for wedding receptions and baking Greek sweets for dessert, but that’s not the greatest thing I learned from them. Ladies and gentlemen, Pia and Mano Katsalos taught me about the power of a community, about the love and acceptance in a family that help an individual grow and prosper. Spending my impressionable years in the Aegean Palace gave me hope for families of the future, and an unbending belief that love can have the power to overcome anything. In my restaurants I’ve always tried to bring back that feeling of family and togetherness that I experienced every time I stepped through these doors, and now we’ve made sure that’s the real focus of the Aegean Palace for new generations.”

As he spoke, the lump in Yasmin’s throat became harder. Was this the same aloof, detached man she’d met only a few weeks ago? The audience was hanging on his every word. Nick and Grace were beaming in a corner. Leo was wiping his eyes with his apron, and when Genie caught Yasmin’s eye she did a dramatic two-fisted bump above her heart. Yes, Lane was having that effect on everyone.

“In a world of competition and the constant drive for success, it can be easy to lose sight of those things,” Lane said. “But in the new-look Aegean Palace
,
we want to celebrate community, embrace family, and acknowledge the importance of those two things in all our lives. To that end we’ve completely redecorated.” For the first time in his speech he looked up and when his eyes found hers, a slow smile spread across his face. “We’ve put in long tables so that people can mix and mingle more readily. We’ve designed a whole new menu that celebrates the colorful Greek heritage of so many of our clientele, but which is also modern and fresh, and something that will appeal to every couple, Greek or otherwise. A wedding is a time in a couple’s lives when they get to share the person they love most in the world with the people who have always been there for them.”

Lane’s gaze held Yasmin’s, and although his lips kept moving, his words were drowned out by the beat of blood in her ears. Her family, this place, the renovation—they’d all had such a profound effect on him. She could see it in his eyes, could feel it deep in her heart. And he’d changed her view of herself, too. She’d come to see this place and her family as something precious and worth fighting for, her history and heritage something to cherish. But what if her drive to do things her way had cost Lane his reputation and the Palace its very existence? Above everything, what would her life be worth if she got on a plane and flew to the other side of the world without Lane?

Wrenching her gaze from his, she looked desperately for the door. She couldn’t listen any more, had to have air. She ran across the back of the room and out to the courtyard, pulling in ragged breaths as Lane’s smooth voice played in her ears.

Her vision was blinded with tears as she stumbled away from the restaurant and was only dimly aware of the sound of the door closing. He’d come to get her. He’d come to tell her he was ready to run off into the sunset and claim their happily ever after. When she turned around, she realized it was Nick.

“Yas, are you okay?”

“Not really,” she choked. She’d tell him about the dengue fever when tonight was over, but she wanted him to understand how she was feeling right now. “I think I’ve ruined everything.”

“You mean between you and Lane? I saw you talking earlier and I’d assumed you’d sorted some things out, but I can tell things aren’t right.”

Yasmin dragged a hand across her cheek. “He gave me a ticket to Italy. He bought me a one-way trip so I could live my dreams and I’ve never been more lost in my life. And what have I done to the Palace?”

She hiccuped on the last word, and Nick laid a hand on her shoulder. “What have you done? You’ve breathed new life into this place, Yas.”

She frowned. “But the review—”

“You guys have done a terrific job here, way beyond my expectations, and Dad’s too. Lane says he’s talked to some of the other press who were here that day and they raved about everything being so fresh and new.”

“But the tables—”

Nick touched her shoulder so she had to turn back toward the restaurant. “See how incredible it looks? See how everyone’s enjoying themselves? You’ve done all the right things here, Yas, and now Lane’s going to stay on and see things through.”

Yasmin looked into her brother’s face. “But how can he do two jobs at once? That hotel project means everything to him.”

Nick shrugged. “Apparently not anymore. He’s going to give up the restaurant and concentrate all his energies here.”

Yasmin gasped. Not only had Lane honored her list and her dreams, but in agreeing to stay on at the Palace, he’d had the strength to alter the things he wanted to do in his own life, for the simple reason that it would bring happiness to the lives of others.

She looked back inside the brightly lit restaurant. Nick was right; it was full of people celebrating life, and she realized what Lane had done for her. He’d allowed her to be who she wanted to be—no strings, no expectations, and never in her whole life had she felt more cherished, more honored, and more loved.

And it suddenly made everything clear. There was something she needed to do for him, too.

…

Later in the evening, Lane stood in front of the audience, though his chest remained as hollow as it had been for days.

In so many ways, this night had turned out exactly as he wanted: new decor, fresh menu, and an energized crowd of important and influential people, but in one all-encompassing way, tonight was the hardest of his life.

His heart told him he’d lost Yasmin, but his head knew better.

I never really had her at all.

And his head also told him that things could have turned out much worse—his relationship with Nick could have been damaged; more than just the one reviewer could have taken a shot at him—but none of that counted for anything when the woman he loved with every part of himself wanted something different.

He cleared his throat, ready to wrap the evening festivities up. One last time he looked for Yasmin or Nick. He’d left them outside in the courtyard for more than an hour, but he couldn’t hold off any longer. “I trust you enjoyed Leo’s food. I’m sure you’ll agree that he’s a culinary genius.” There were comments and whistles, and Lane noticed Yasmin finally step in from the courtyard with Nick. Maybe they’d been discussing the date she’d leave here to go off on her great adventure. Of course she’d never be completely gone from his world; he fully intended to be part of her parents’ and Nick’s lives for years to come, but he knew he’d always burn for her.

“There is, of course, dessert,” he said, trying to focus on the purpose of being here, “and I don’t want to keep you from that, but there is just one more announcement I’d like to make before we bury ourselves in baklava.”

“Wait!”

The whole room turned to see Yasmin walking quickly from the back of the room. “I’d like to say a few words first.”

The crowd parted and she moved toward him, her white dress hugging the beautiful shape of her that had become so familiar. Her purple hair shone and a smile covered her perfect face.

What is she doing?

“Just give us a couple of minutes,” he said to the crowd.

“No,” she said as she made it to the stage and drew up beside him. “I want everyone to hear this.”

The crowd suddenly stilled and Lane managed to catch her eye. “Are you okay?” he whispered. “Are you feeling sick?”

“I’ve never felt more alive in my life,” she said. She pushed a purple strand of hair over her shoulder, and the stud in her nose twinkled under the new restaurant lights as she stepped in front of the microphone. “Ladies and gentleman, my name is Yasmin Katsalos, and like Lane, I’ve spent an awful lot of time in this place and it holds very powerful memories for me.”

She reached out and grabbed his hand, then squeezed. Her palm was damp and her cheeks were red, just like they were when she’d blushed that very first day he’d seen her again, and his whole body ached with the need to be close to her. When he stepped back to give her room, she held his hand more firmly and pulled him to stand alongside her.

“But I have to tell you that none of those days compares to what I’m feeling right now. Hearing Lane speak about the values of the Palace
,
how in this relaunch we’re also rebooting to a time of strong communities and connected families, it’s made me realize that in my pursuit of things that make
me
feel alive, there’s nothing that makes me happier than the joy of the people around me.”

Yasmin turned and gazed into Lane’s face, her brown eyes sparkling with tears. “The other day, I said a terrible thing. I told Lane he’d never be a part of this family. Nothing could be further from the truth, both because I want nothing more than that to be true and because he always has been.

“Recently, I had a brush with death in Borneo, and after I found out I was going to survive, I made a list of all the things I wanted to do with my life: my bouquet list. And in a week or so, I’m going to take a trip to Rome, to fulfill a dream I’ve always had, and I’m hoping I can fulfill the very newest thing on my list—take Lane to Rome. I’m hoping with all my heart that the man I love will come with me so we can share the joy together.”

The sound in Lane’s ears became muffled and all he could hear were the last words Yasmin had just spoken. She loved him? Wanted to travel with him? The hole in his chest became filled with his wildly beating heart.

“And then in a month or two I’m hoping we can return to Westchester to start working through his own list of dreams.”

“What are you saying?” Lane whispered. “I’ve agreed to run things for your dad. You need to go off and not feel tied down by me or anyone.”

“Sweetheart, don’t you see,” she said, turning toward him, her face shining. “All I was looking for in my list was a chance to feel alive, to feel as though my time on this earth was worth something, but you’ve made me realize that nothing will be worth anything if I’m not with you. There’s one other entry on my list that I still need to fulfill, and that’s to follow my heart and not my head. I love you, Lane, and I want to be with you. Always.”

She stepped forward and threw her arms around his neck. “I’ve talked to Nick and he’s agreed to step in while we take our trip to Rome, and then I want us to come back here and build a new list, of all the things we want to do in our lives. Together.”

There might have been cheering, a band might have been playing in the background, but all Lane could hear were the words of the woman he loved telling him she wanted to be with him. He took her in his arms and kissed her perfect mouth.

“I just want what you want,” Yasmin said when she finally lifted her lips from his and looked up into his eyes. “That’s the thing that’s going to make me happy from now on. You’re always going to be my number ten.”

He touched her cheek. “We’ll work it out. We know we can work together, we’ve proven we can laugh ’til dawn, and we’ll have the love of your family behind us.”

“Our family,” she said, and his heart soared.

“Is this just a publicity stunt?” someone yelled.