Page 16 of The Planner (Brides of Beaufort 2)

“After what happened last time? Not worth it. I’d rather just go by myself. If I’m by myself, it’s a guaranteed good time with minimal drama.”

“Oh, come on. Bobby and Cassidy’s wedding? It wasn’tthatbad.”

“Bro, my date recognized Shelby’s date as the gigolo who broke her heart. She spent forty minutes crying in the bathroom on the phone with her best friend and then called an Uber and left. Or maybe you were too busy staring daggers at the gigolo for being there with Shelby to notice.”

Paul’s head dropped back, and he laughed then returned his eyes to the road with a shake of his head. “Yeah, okay. I was definitely distracted. I knew she was mad about the no kissing clause in his contract, but I didn’t realize she got that dramatic about it.”

“Oh, yeah. It was rough. If it weren’t for the fact that Aria kept bringing me beers while I hung out near the bathroom, I would have really been hating life.”

“Aria brought you beers? That’s gold.”

“Yeah, she’s the real MVP.” Every time she’d brought one, I’d wished she’d stay and chat. But instead, she’d make a snarky little comment and leave with a flip of her hair, driving me nuts with how gorgeous she’d looked in her cocktail dress and sky-high heels.

“Well, you’ll get your chance to stare your own daggers at the gigolo at our wedding. He’ll be there again.”

“Not with Shelby this time, I hope?”

He chuckled. “No, not with Shelby.”

For some dumb reason, my friend didn’t elaborate. Didn’t he know I was sitting on pins and needles over here? I cleared my throat. “So, uh, who’s he taking this time?”

“I don’t know.”

I gaped at him. “What do you mean, you don’t know? Mr. Fake Date himself is coming to your wedding, but you don’t remember who his date is?”

“I heard Shelby and Aria talking about him coming, but I was distracted with the game, so I didn’t think to ask who hired him.”

My nose wrinkled involuntarily. That was insane. He heard his sister talking to his fiancée about a professional wedding date being in attendance at his wedding, and it hadn’t occurred to him to find out who hired the man? He’d certainly cared when Shelby had been the one who’d hired him for Bobby and Cassidy’s wedding, even though that was at Aria’s insistence. But that was what worried me. Aria was the one who’d met Mr. Fake Date through her business, and she was the one who’d pushed Shelby to hire him. Had she decided to hire him herself for Shelby’s wedding? Or had she pushed another friend into it?

Well, I planned to ask her about it tonight. I wasn’t sure why I cared, but I did.