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18
BEAU
The next morning, Lyndi and I barely spoke when we were in the privacy of the cottage. But outside with the family, we had to play nice. We had breakfast with her parents and grandparents, did team-building activities like the bride had arranged, and even made it through a round of mini-golf with her parents, Zac, Layla, and Grayson.
I was fine since this was my job, and I was a master at putting on a good show. No matter how frustrated I might be on the inside, on the outside I was cool as a cucumber.
Lyndi, on the other hand, not so much. But oddly, I didn’t think it had anything to do with me or our fake relationship. If I wasn’t mistaken, it was simply the setting. I could practically feel the tension coming off her in waves, so I needed to pull her aside and make sure she was okay before she took off screaming.
“How’s it going?” I asked when I was sure we were far enough away from anyone who could overhear us.
“Great,” she lied.
I angled my head so I could catch her gaze. “Lyndi. How’s it going?”
“I’m freaking out.”
Chuckling, I tucked my hands into the pockets of my dress slacks. “I can tell.”
“Do you think anyone else can?”
I shook my head. “No.”Not yet.
“It’s just a lot. There’s a lot of people here, and I kind of want to go back to the cottage and read. How terrible am I?”
“Not terrible. In fact, more normal than you think. I bet you half the people here would rather be somewhere else, too.”
She frowned up at me. “You think?”
“I do. I’ve been to plenty of weddings with introverts who only hired me to help them make it through the day without going nuts. Don’t get me wrong, I think there is a ton about you that’s really… unique.” I almost saidspecialorintriguingormind-blowingly interesting, but it felt like a little too much. I had a point to make, and it wasn’t to tell her how I felt about her beautifully different brain. “You’d be surprised how many people have stuff they mask when they’re in public. Includingme, if you remember.”
“What, so you’re saying I’ve got issues, but you have them too?”
“Oh for sure, you’re a twelve-month subscription. In fact…” I paced in a circle around her, lifting each arm and looking underneath it, making her squirm and twist to get away from me.
“What are you doing?” she hissed.
“I’m looking for one of those little white cards that falls out of the magazine. It’s gotta be here somewhere.” I continued to poke at her until—“There it is.”
“What? The card?”
“No. The smile you don’t think too much about.” The blinding smile on her face faltered slightly as she looked away, so I cleared my throat and took a step back. “Anyway, if you want me to stay here and tell everyone you’re not feeling well so you can take a beat to recharge, I will.”
“No, I should stay. I’ll regret it if I don’t.”
“Okay. But the minute you’re done, say the word, and I’ll get you out of here.”
“Thanks.”
“Hello, you two. Are you having fun?” Ms. Hattie asked, seeming to materialize out of nowhere with her husband on her arm.
“Yep,” Lyndi said, a smile coming quickly now, “lots of fun.”
She stepped closer to me, so I put my arm around her for probably the twentieth time that day. But my reaction to having her so close was just as potent now as it had been the first time I’d done it.
“Hi, Thatcher,” Lyndi greeted him, “good to see you.”
“You too, Lyndi. Hey, Beau, how’s it going?” he asked me, shaking my hand with a kind smile.
