Page 49 of The Bridesmaid (Brides of Beaufort 3)

“I promise.”

With an exaggerated sigh, I released her and regretfully stepped away, taking her hand in mine. It was warm and soft, and our fingers laced together in the same easy way as before. This whole thing was like coming home from a deployment or something. Coming home, in general. I could barely contain my happiness, though I did try, so I didn’t walk back under that tent grinning like an idiot.

Layla and I located our friends by the bar, but before we could reach them, a familiar face caught my eye. My head snapped back. “Beau Devereux?”

Beside me, Layla followed my gaze. “You know him?”

“No, not really. I met him on my first call, though.”

“Huh. Small world. What happened?”

I rolled my eyes, remembering the stack of paperwork I’d had to do thanks to his roommate’s false police report. Before I could give her the one-sentence rundown, Beau spotted me and headed our way.

“I swear, I didn’t do anything,” he said with a smile, extending his hand for me to shake.

A short laugh escaped me—laced with more than a little relief—as I shook his hand. Most people avoided PMO like the plague, even if they weren’t doing anything wrong. For him to come over and say hello meant he was a much cooler dude than I gave him credit for at our first meeting.

“Hey. How do you know the bride and groom?” I asked.

Beau jerked his head in their direction. “I’m here with Aria’s cousin.”

Layla snorted, then tried to cover it up by clearing her throat. “Sorry.”

“Okay,” I said, noting the way Beau narrowed his eyes at Layla like he was warning her to keep her mouth shut. I crossed my arms over my chest as I looked between them. “There’s definitely more tothatstory.”

“Not my story to tell, my man,” Beau said with a pat to my upper arm. “I’ll see you around base.”

“Right.” I watched him walk away, then turned to Layla. “Spill.”

“What? My coffee?” she teased, quoting me from this morning. I poked her in the side, and she giggled, giving in. “Beau’s here with Aria’s cousin because she hired him to be her date.”

I felt my face squish up in confusion, blinking at her as I processed what she’d said. “Wait, she hired him?”

“Yep. He’s a professional wedding date. It’s a side gig.”

“A side gig.”

“Yep.”

I opened my mouth, turning to see Beau dancing with the woman I assumed was Aria’s cousin. “So, she paid him to be her wedding date?”

“Yep. And before you get all nervous about it, that’s all she’s paying him for. Just the date.”

Laughing, I adjusted my collar. “Well, that’s a relief.”

“He’s got great branding. His business is called Mr. Fake Date, and he’s got multiple events per weekend all over the state. Seems like he makes decent money with it, too.”

“Don’t get any ideas,” I muttered, enjoying the quiet laughter floating from her lips.

“I wouldn’t dare.”

“Anyway, why didn’t he just tell me that when I asked?”

She shrugged, looking over at him. “He’s big on privacy. He uses contracts and stuff, and one of the things he puts in there is that he won’t spill the beans to other wedding guests if his client wants it to remain a secret. Clearly, this one does.”

“Wow. Seems thorough.”

“Very. Oh, and my sister’s in love with him, but she’ll never make a move.”