Page 24 of Hopeless Romantic
“I don’t want to elope. I want a wedding.”
“I’m not a planner. I’m a personal concierge. Who doesn’t believe in fairy tales, by the way,” she reminded Annie. “I book tables at restaurants, assist people with relocations. You don’t need to hire me. I will help you with anything you need. Limo service, lodging for out-of-town guests, endless errands—I’m your girl. Planning a wedding is way above my pay grade.”
“We don’t want the fairy tale. We want a small, intimate celebration with close friends and family.” Annie rested her hand over Beckett’s. “You’re my best friend, Beck. That more than anything makes you the perfect person for the job.”
Or the perfect cause for alarm.
There was a reason Beckett could count the number of her friends on one hand and have three fingers to spare. Her life was as unpredictable as it was complicated—which was why she ran errands for a living. Turn down a few invites, split in the middle of one too many girls’ nights, and people stop calling.
Not Annie, though. She was one of those see-the-best-in-people kind of friends who never gave up—even when they’d been given a zillion reasons. Annie knew Beckett was more or less a sold-as-is kind of person, but she loved her anyway. No matter how many times she canceled plans at the last minute.
She couldn’t bail on an appointment with a wedding venue or stand Annie up when picking out floral arrangements. Then there was the pathetic, but all-too-real, truth.
“I don’t believe in love,” she said, and—wow—admitting it aloud was a million times worse than thinking it. But now that it was out there, no way would Annie still want to hire her.
“Sure you do,” Annie said softly. “You love your family.”
“That doesn’t count. It’s a result of shared DNA and forced proximity. Hashtag science. Look it up.”
“You love your animals.” The box slid toward her—again.
Beckett slid it back. “They don’t care if I shave my legs.”
“You love me. You love Lynn.”
“Against my will. You decided I was going to be your friend, and you were relentless,” Beckett teased, when in reality, it had been Beckett who’d sought out Annie.
She hadn’t walked up and said, “Want to be besties?” But she’d gone out of her way to put herself in Annie’s path. There was a barely contained joy about Annie that drew people in. People like Beckett who needed a little light in their lives.
Friends like that were as rare as a man with emotional maturity. And Beckett was terrified of disappointing her.
Taking the job would be like walking through a minefield of potential disappointments with her eyes closed, while wearing clown shoes. One wrong step and the wedding would go up in smoke. Then again, refusing would result in one-hundred-percent certainty of letting Annie down.
There was no way she’d do that to the one person who always had her back, no matter what.
Looked like Beckett needed to invest in one of those wedding-planner books and find a backup sitter for Thomas in the very likely event that Jeffery decided to go Jeffery during one of Annie’s appointments.
“Don’t say I didn’t warn you,” Beckett said.
Annie squealed and leaned all the way across the table to give Beckett a hug, which Beckett endured.
“Is that a yes?” Annie leaned back to study Beckett’s expression. “Oh my God, it’s a yes!”
“I’m going to open the box; just promise not to strangle me again.”
Annie promised, and Beckett opened the box. Inside sat an enormous eclair with white icing piped over the top. It read, SHE SAID YES!
Beckett reached in to pick it up, but Annie stopped her. “One last thing. I don’t want to know any of the details.”
“What does that even mean?” Beckett’s hearing must have malfunctioned. “You’re the bride. You have to know the details.”
“Actually, I don’t.” Annie pulled out a piece of paper. It was small and bridal pink with little check boxes in the margin. “These are the musts. The rest is up to you.”
“What do you mean, ‘The rest is up to me?’” Beckett flipped the list over, and—that was panic she was choking on. “There are only six items on this list. What do you want me to do, plan you a surprise wedding?”
Annie smiled. “Exactly!”
Chapter 6
