The Paid Bridesmaid(20)
Troy announced that it was time for Sadie to start opening her gifts. Krista and I had already decided that she would take point on this part so that I could continue to watch Brandy. Krista grabbed a seat next to Sadie, holding a pad of paper and a pen to write down the names and presents.
Sadie somehow managed to look surprised and delighted with each and every prearranged gift. As if she didn’t know exactly what she was getting.
I was so caught up in the fun atmosphere of Sadie enjoying her presents that it surprised me when Camden appeared next to me.
My body knew he was there before he even spoke, as if I’d somehow become attuned to him. His hand brushed gently against my arm and I shivered under his touch.
“I’m headed out,” he said.
Why did it give me a thrill that he was making sure to say goodbye to me? “You’re leaving before Sadie finishes opening the gifts?”
He held up his sad little flip phone. “I have a phone call I have to take.”
“I understand. Tell Abraham Lincoln I said hi.”
He grinned at me and said, “I’ll see you at your birthday.”
As he walked away I realized that he didn’t believe it was my birthday. I mean, it wasn’t, but he was always so paranoid. He was going to give himself a stress-related heart attack.
I might not have been what he suspected, but he obviously knew something was going on.
I just had to keep him from finding out exactly what that was.
CHAPTER SEVEN
After Sadie had finished with the presents and the party started to wind down, she came over to join me. I was seated at a table, keeping a close eye on Brandy. I had expected she might try to leave and score a drink somewhere else, but whatever Mandy had said to her earlier was keeping Brandy in line.
“Everything has gone so well!” I said, trying for a light and cheery mood. Sadie seemed a bit worn down, and I couldn’t blame her. Most brides had enough to deal with when it came to events and obnoxious relatives without Sadie’s added difficulty of her Instagram livestreaming. “You must be really happy.”
“Things are going well,” Sadie said, letting out a sigh as she sat. “Sometimes that worries me. Like the calm before the storm.”
“I get that.”
“So let’s talk about happier things. Like how glad I am that you and Camden have been hanging out.”
This is not the time to roll your eyes and make a gagging noise, I reminded myself. “The guy who thinks I’m a spy. Yeah, that’s going really well.”
She ignored my sarcasm. “You guys were laughing. I was waiting to come in with my mom and I saw you two.”
We had been laughing about her stepdad and his soon-to-be child bride. I certainly couldn’t tell Sadie that. “Just because we shared a laugh doesn’t mean anything. I have a really strict personal policy about not dating guys from weddings. I’m a big believer in the separation of work and date.”
Krista chose this moment to join us, sighing happily as she sat down and kicked off her heels. I’d hoped the presence of a new person might deter Sadie, but no such luck.
“I would consider it a huge favor if you could bend your policy just a little bit this time. You’re here to make me happy, right? Knowing that Camden had someone to hang out with would make Dan happy, which would make me happy.”
“Why would Dan care?”
Sadie smiled sadly. “Dan worries about his best friend. He thinks Camden is lonely and a workaholic.”
“So you decided to foist him off on me?”
“Oh come on,” Krista said. “You’re a workaholic, too. You literally picked a job that you could do twenty-four hours a day.”
Sadie tried to make it better. “If you could just help him have fun and not focus so much on work, that would mean a lot to me. Dan and Camden are basically like brothers. They were raised together.”
I couldn’t help myself. “They were?”
“You should ask him about it. Get to know him better. You don’t have to date him. Just be friendly, please.” I knew Sadie meant well and she seemed so sincere.
As if she sensed me wavering, Krista chimed in. “You don’t really have a choice now. Customer satisfaction is our number-one priority.”
This was how they wanted to play it? “The two of you planned this. You guys are setting me up.” I should have known better than to let them talk as Sadie opened her presents.
“Us?” Krista said in exaggerated shock. “Never!”
“It’s my fake birthday,” I grumbled, knowing I would do as she asked. “Shouldn’t I get to choose who I want to hang out with?”
“Sadie’s wedding trumps your fake birthday,” Krista said with a sorry-not-sorry expression. “And it must be oh-so-hard to have to spend time with a charming and extremely handsome man.”
Feeling obstinate I muttered, “He’s not that good-looking.”
That caused a heavy silence to descend over the table as both Sadie and Krista stared at me like I was stupid.
Krista was the first to speak. “If the world was about to be destroyed and I had to pick one man to repopulate the planet, he’s the one I would choose.”
Then you hang out with him was the reply that sprang to the tip of my tongue, but I swallowed it. Mostly because I’d been trying harder lately to not be rude or snappish, but also because of the inexplicable jealousy that had bubbled up inside me at the idea of Krista flirting with him.