Page 27 of The Proposal (Brides of Beaufort 1)

“How did that go?” Shelby asked.

“It was quick.” I turned and leaned my back against the railing, crossing my arms and my ankles. “She gave me my stuff, grabbed her stuff, then told me she was headed to Texas to take that job with her friend. I’m not really sure how I feel about it all yet.”

Shelby pulled her lips to the side. “Well, if you ever want to talk about it, you know I’m here.”

“What, you mean like you talked to me about hiring a male escort to take you to Bobby and Cassidy’s wedding?”

She let out a small burst of air. “I wasn’t aware that I needed to.”

“You didn’t,” I said quickly, wishing I hadn’t said anything. “I’m sorry. I was surprised, that’s all.”

“Why?”

“You don’t really date.”

“I’ve dated.” She put a hand on her hip, lifting her chin with indignation.

I pulled my head backward and harrumphed. “I mean, sporadically. But you’ve always said you weren’t looking for anything serious, so why date. Has that changed?”

“Why, because I’m going to a wedding with a Marine who moonlights as a wedding date for hire? Does that sound like anything’s changed?”

“No. But why not go alone?”

She looked away, staring out at the dark street behind me. “I don’t know, Paul. It was mostly Aria. She was just trying to be helpful. My friends are all bringing dates—guys they actually know—and you had Roxy, and Will is probably bringing whoever the flavor of the week is. She knew I’d be the only one without a date. So she set this up because this guy has worked at weddings she’s thrown before, and she said he’s great. It’s really not a big deal.”

“So, to be clear, you’re not going into this with expectations of falling in love with the guy?”

Shelby looked down at her hands. “Nope. Definitely not.”

“Okay, well … do you think he’d mind if you saved me a dance?”

Her eyes flew up to meet mine, causing my stomach to flip painfully. “Uh, no. I’m sure he wouldn’t.”

“Cool.”

We both laughed again, and I reached up and scratched the back of my head. A dance would be good. The idea of going slow was good. It seemed even more important now that we’d discussed the fact that she wasn’t looking for anything serious. Shelby probably knew I was talking about her when I’d said I couldn’t have what I wanted. And if she knew, and she wasn’t saying that I could, in fact, have her, that was telling.

Shelby hooked her thumb over her shoulder. “We should probably get back in there.”

“Yeah, guess so,” I replied.

Without another word, she turned on her heel and went back inside, graceful as always. I trailed behind, preparing myself to spend the rest of the evening thinking about tomorrow.