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“It’s okay, Beau. Paul knows Aria hired you.”
“Oh. Well, okay then.” He gave her a look that I couldn’t decipher, but it seemed to speak of an inside joke of some sort. I made a mental note to ask her about it later as he looked over his shoulder to make sure no one was around. “Amber didn’t read our contract thoroughly enough and was pretty peeved about the kissing section.”
“You have a kissing section in your contract?” I asked, not sure if I’d heard that right.
He nodded. “Oh yeah. Ground rules are very important in my line of work.”
“Did you read the kissing section?” I asked Shelby.
“I did. It was highly entertaining.”
I narrowed my eyes as Beau chuckled beside her. He held out his hands with a small shrug. “There are certain times when kissing is warranted, and certain times when it’s not. If it happens, there’s a small surcharge.”
“And when is it warranted?” I asked, straightening.
“If I’m supposed to be a real date, sometimes a kiss is necessary to make it convincing. But if we’re alone, then it’s not about putting on a show, so that’s a hard no. I’m not trying to lead anyone on or make them think it’s more than business.”
Shelby shook her head. “Don’t worry, that won’t be necessary tonight.”
“Definitely not,” I agreed in a clipped tone, making Beau chuckle again.
The DJ came over the speakers then, announcing the start of the reception under the big white tent off to the side of the main house. We made our way over and took our seats, and I did my best to make it through dinner and the traditional wedding dances without acting as awkward as I had during the cocktail hour. It wasn’t easy though, and when the dance floor opened up, Beau wasted no time whisking Shelby out onto the dance floor. And that was where they stayed for long enough that it took everything I had not to go out there and tell her to sit down and rest for a while. But she was a big girl. She knew when she needed to take a break, and treating her like she didn’t was plain wrong.
“How’s it going, big brother?” Aria asked when she dropped into the chair beside me.
“Great, thanks. How are you?”
“Fabulous. I’ve only had a handful of small fires to put out and none of them had anything to do with me, so I’d call that a win.”
I frowned. “If they didn’t have to do with you, why were you the one putting them out?”
“Because I’m the wedding planner. Drama with family, wardrobe malfunctions, and missing children become part of my job description.”
“Missing children?”
“She was hiding under a cocktail table. No biggie.”
With a short laugh, I turned back to the dance floor, fixing my eyes on Shelby and Beau as they danced to a country slow jam. I wondered all night why Shelby followed through with this date. Now that I was here alone, we could have spent the whole evening together, even if it was just as friends. She wouldn’t feel lonely in a sea of couples if she had me.
But as I sat watching her laugh and dance with the professional wedding date, I also started to get it. She’d already committed, and it was guaranteed fun with no strings attached. She deserved a night like this. She deserved to be spun around the dance floor without worrying about hidden connotations or if moving together to the beat of the music would ruin a friendship that meant more to us than anything.
“She looks gorgeous tonight,” Aria said, nodding at Shelby.
“She does.”
“Are you mad at me for setting her up with Beau?”
I looked over at my sister briefly, then back to Shelby. “Yep.”
“Good. Maybe now you’ll get off your lazy butt and make a move. You’re both going to be eighty before either one of you admits how you feel.”
My heart pounded in my chest as I slowly returned my gaze to Aria. “And how does she feel?”
“Oh, no you don’t. That’s not my story to tell. You’ll have to talk to the source.”
“Figures you’d meddle without actually throwing me a bone.”
“Love you, mean it,” she replied as she stood and sauntered away.
Sighing, I recognized that the song was coming to an end. Looked like it was time to get off my lazy butt and make a move.
