Page 8 of Hot SEAL, Under Pressure

She turned to Alicia. “Your man is brilliant. You know that, right?”

Alicia frowned. “Shh. I don’t need him getting cocky about it.”

“Thanks, babe. You’re always right there keeping me humble.” He shook his head and let out a chuckle before he turned his attention back to Shelly. “I’ll hook you up with a list of local guys who just got out, if it will help.”

“Yes, it will help.” She let out a breath, finally feeling the weight lift and like she might have a future again. “I can’t thank you enough.”

“No thanks needed. Just don’t ask me to fix you up again and we’ll call it even.”

“Done.” She beamed.

It was an easy promise to make. Who needed a man when she could have a hit show instead?

ChapterFour

Shelly realized the error in her plan pretty quickly. It was clear by the steady shaking of the heads of the three men standing in front of her.

She’d done everything right.

Waited for the bridal shower to get rolling and for the guys to get a couple of drinks in them before she’d approached, isolating them from their dates and the rest of the guests in a corner of the yard.

She set the idea up as a challenge they didn’t want to miss to tempt them before giving the details.

When she presented the concept to them, Nick laughed out loud.

Zach had trouble swallowing his mouthful of beer before looking at her like she’d grown another head.

Clay glared at her, his jaw set as he delivered a definitive, “No.”

“Hell, no,” Zach elaborated.

“Good luck with it though,” Nick added. The youngest of the bunch always was sweet and polite.

“But—”

“No,” Clay repeated, the crease in his forehead above his icy stare deepening.

“You’d be paired up with your wives,” she added quickly as incentive.

That had all three of them, even stone-faced Clay, breaking into a smile and then an outright laugh.

“Tasha? On the O-Course?” Clay let out a snort. “Might be worth saying yes just to see that.”

Her hopes rose like a phoenix from the ashes.

“But no,” Clay said, with a firm shake of his head.

“It would only be for—”

“No,” all three said at once, cutting her off.

She let out a sigh. “All right. Thanks for listening.”

They nodded and as she walked away, slow and in mourning over her career as it died before her very eyes, she heard them continue to chat about the ridiculous concept of their wives being on the show.

“Can you picture Tasha on her stomach in the sand, getting all dirty and sweaty for the Low Crawl?” Clay laughed.

Nick let out a chuckle. “Or Dani trying to get over the Dirty Name. She would give it two tries, fail and then stalk off mad.”

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