Rules of Engagement

by Kay Lyons

  "Yeah. And no worries, Carter said no. And a bit more would be my guess."

  Eliza bit her lower lip and folded her arms on the side of the tub to rest her chin on top. "What makes you say that?"

  Marsali's low chuckle warned Eliza that whatever her friend was about to say? She probably wasn't going to like it.

  "Lizzie, you can lie to yourself all you want, but we both know you and Carter have some serious chemistry. When you two are the in same room, you can feel it."

  "Chemistry isn't everything."

  "No, but it's definitely important. Just… let yourself trust that you've learned from the past, and you'll make the right decisions in the future."

  But would she? Because she'd made an awful lot of bad ones, and who was to say there weren't more in her future? "I… don't trust myself anymore. Not when it comes to men. I can't help it, I second-guess everything now."

  "I get it. But Carter has been honest with you, right?"

  "I suppose. How would I know?"

  "Have you seen any red flags?"

  "Other than the fact he's too pretty for his own good?"

  "You can't hold that against him when he had nothing to do with it."

  Maybe not. But she didn't have to like it. "It… scares me."

  "You do realize you're beautiful, right? And besides, looks have nothing to do with cheating. Cheaters lack some very important things. Integrity and honesty. A grounded moral compass."

  "I know that."

  "Good. Because actions speak louder than words, and Carter has gone above and beyond for you, and not just with the weddings."

  She closed her eyes and nodded to herself. He had. And even though it was sweet and friendly and honorable, a part of her still waited for him to change and not for the better.

  "And if that's not enough, he's gorgeous and ornery and fun, and I think he's just what you need in your life."

  "I don't need him." She'd made the mistake of letting James convince her she needed him and look what happened.

  "Eliza—"

  "No, I'm cancelling. If we do the business stuff, we'll keep it professional. Meet in his office or something." Not over candlelight.

  "Absolutely not. What will it hurt to go to dinner? He's someone I'd totally set you up with to get you out of your shell, as a practice date."

  "Why do you hate me?" Eliza groaned, sliding back into the tub with yet another splash.

  "Hate you? Seriously?" Marsali asked.

  "Yes, seriously. I don't have a 'shell,' and my schedule is insane and not about to let up anytime soon. I don't have time to date, and yet somehow I agreed to a dinner, which means I'm obviously not in my right mind."

  "Silly goose, your schedule is what you let it be and completely in your control."

  "Says the woman who has me planning a wedding—which has grown exponentially, by the way—in two weeks for one of her clients."

  "Well, there are a few exceptions to the rule, but that's a perfect example of why you should be dating, whether it's Carter or not. You can't work nonstop and never have any fun. Just don't lie to me and pretend you aren't drawn to Carter. I see how you look at him."

  Drawn? Yes, but not in any way healthy to her well-being. Or future.

  Or heart?

  Eliza's mind filled with an image of Carter Hayes with his dark good looks, sexy smile, and inked biceps, and she groaned.

  Did she admit to being attracted to Carter?

  Yes.

  Did it scare her?

  Unbelievably so.

  Because it wasn't just attraction she felt. It was the way he'd helped her, but more importantly, the way he treasured his baby girl and his brother, and how he'd stepped up for the mother of his child only to be rejected…

  He'd been there. In her shoes.

  And up until that point, she'd had the willpower to walk away from him from fear alone, but knowing he'd experienced the same kind of betrayal and walked through the fire and understood her fear because he'd lived it?

  It was like something inside of her had just latched on and bonded instantly to the shared pain.

  "You're becoming a boring workaholic who is so jaded you don't honor the love you work so hard to showcase with all of those beautiful weddings you pull together. You're filling your loneliness with busy-ness, and I'm seeing major signs of burnout. You see them, too, right?"

  "Maybe." The word was a breath, soft and shallow.

  "So," Marsali said, her tone changing over to one of persuasiveness, "go have some fun and flirt—even if it's only as friends or business associates. Recover some of the magic behind why you do what you do. Remember how much fun it was in the beginning? The love and romance?"

  "You think I'm just going through the motions."

  "Aren't you?"

  Eliza pinched the bridge of her nose and willed the nagging chronic headache to go away. Dang it, she hated when Marsali was right.

  "Look, what James did was awful but he wasn't your equal to begin with."

  "I know that. I see that now."

  "Good. Because this thing with Carter? This is an opportunity to find something better. Even if it's just a friendship that shows you there are still trustworthy people in this world."

  Eliza remained quiet, listening, pondering. Mulling over the wisdom Eliza had just imparted.

  "Lizzie, do you trust me?" Marsali asked softly.

  No, Marsali wasn't going to go there, was she? "You know I do, but—"

  "No buts. Yes or no? And remember years of friendship weigh in the balance."

  Tears stung her eyes, and Eliza blinked them away and blamed her upcoming period and stress and a diet lacking in chocolate—which she would rectify immediately. If she ever remembered to buy groceries. "You know I do."

  "Then do this. For me. Because I want this for you."

  She pressed both hands to her face, over her eyes, coming to terms with some hard truths. "I know you're right. Okay? I said it. Rationally, I know all men aren't sleazeballs, but—"

  "It's dinner. With someone I know and trust and feel good about for you. Even Mac likes Carter."

  "I'm not so sure about that."

  "He does. He's protective of you, that's all. Because we know how hurt you were. The thing is, you will never heal locked down the way you are. You have to get back out there and accept invitations from gorgeous single men, even though the meticulous control freak in you can't plan or predict the future because it's not in your control. That's all part of the fun. Remember fun?"

  Fun? Not really. And that was sad, wasn't it? "We need a change of subject," she said. "Tell me about you. Any more news on your book?"

  Marsali was silent a moment before Eliza heard her friend exhale.

  "My editor said they're getting lots of orders. Like, a lot. It's a little terrifying."

  "That's great! And not terrifying at all."

  "Okay, fine. Intimidating? Maybe that's a better word. I'm working on an outline for another idea now."

  "I'm happy for you, Marse. Congratulations. We'll have to go out and celebrate the day it releases."

  "I'd love that."

  "Mark your calendar. It's a date." The moment the words left Eliza's mouth, she winced because she knew it would bring Marsali full circle.

  "Don't cancel, Lizzie. That's an order. Or a personal request. A plea? Whatever holds the most weight."

  Eliza leaned her head against the back of the tub and stared at the ceiling.

  Once Lincoln and Amelia's wedding was over, Carter would be freed of his promise to keep his interest in check. Which meant, when the time came, would Carter want their business dinner to be more?

  Chapter 17

  The days before Lincoln and Amelia's wedding day stretched Eliza's last nerve. She was on edge due to her impending dinner with Carter, her overwhelming desire for this wedding to be perfect because of her newfound friendship with Amelia, and the awareness that her business was finally righting itself with every new phone call that landed i
n her voicemail.

  If anything, the break from James and his poor handling of all the clients he'd schmoozed and stolen had done her more favor. Because the clients who'd made that jump and regretted it now touted her skills and professionalism far and wide on social media, especially after she agreed to take them on again.

  But with all of that whirling around in her mind, she'd come to a decision regarding her dinner date with Carter. And despite her thoughts on cancelling, she wasn't going to. Not only that, she was going to let the evening flow in whichever direction it might, be it strictly professional or… not.

  Marsali was right. It was time to make a move forward into her future, and even though Carter had warning labels all over him, she couldn't help but think an evening spent flirting over candlelight with a gorgeous man would be fun.

  But that was after the wedding. Before the wedding came… details and stress and rain, a steady downpour that had covered the Wilmington area and made it impossible to set anything up ahead of time to get a jump on the process.

  Eliza, Kellie, and the crew had staged everything they could inside Carter and Lincoln's homes, even arranging the items so that everything would be carried out in the order it was to be set up.

  Now Eliza adjusted her headset after the ceremony and watched the happy couple share a tantalizing kiss on the dance floor while staring into each other's eyes like no one else existed.

  Marsali had said Amelia and Lincoln had a great story, and having it learned it over the last two weeks, Eliza had to agree. They'd loved, lost each other for a time, and found one another again having learned countless lessons.

  And if anyone deserved the perfect day for a perfect wedding, it was them. Maybe that's why it had been.

  In her experience, every wedding had something go wrong. A broken zipper, a cranky ring bearer, or drunk groomsmen, something. But not this one. The rain clouds had moved on but left behind cooler temps, and setup had gone down without a single glitch. Like dominoes, the wedding preparations had taken place, each performed with military precision that left Eliza staring in rapt wonder.

  "Catering is gathering up," Kellie said via the headset.

  Eliza glanced at her watch, amazed to see that the night was almost over. Perfect weddings were hard to come by, and she was sad to see this one end. "Right on time. Thanks, Kel."

  "I never knew headsets could be sexy," a deep voice murmured behind her. "By the way, I considered snagging one of those from your crew earlier just so I could talk to you."

  Eliza turned to find Carter watching her, and she narrowed her gaze and lifted her chin. "Shouldn't you be flirting with the maid of honor? Or the photographer, perhaps?"

  His devilishly handsome lips lifted in a smirk, and she bit back a telling sigh. The man looked ever so gorgeous with his dark tan, white button-down shirt, crisp gray slacks, and suspenders.

  Amelia had opted for a beachy-boho-chic style that jived perfectly with her personality and profession as a set designer, which was why Lincoln's best man had wound up looking like a male model. The female photographer had loved getting shots of the brothers and taken quite a few of Carter by himself and with Piper.

  Now that the ceremony was over and the reception wrapping up, Carter had rid himself of the bow tie, unbuttoned the shirt, and rolled the sleeves up his impressive forearms. And the picture as a whole?

  Lawsy.

  "Jealous?"

  "Oh, no."

  "Good. Because the only woman I want to flirt with is right here." He lifted a hand and indicated the beautiful setting. "I didn't see how you could top what I'd already seen you do. Thank you, for making their day special."

  She couldn't stop the smile that formed at the praise and reveled in the success of the day. "It was gorgeous, wasn't it?" The day had definitely been blessed given all the things that could've gone wrong.

  "Unbelievably so. Which is why…" He looked around, jogged over to a nearby bar area and swiped an entire bottle of champagne and two glasses from a tray, and returned. "We're going to celebrate. You are coming with me."

  "Now?"

  A low chuckle rumbled out of his chest, and he moved closer to where she stood. His cologne teased her senses even more and dragged her into the spell he cast.

  Why couldn't she date him again?

  "Yes, now. You haven't taken a break all day. And I want you to see something," he said.

  "What?"

  "Ah, Eliza. Trust me, it won't disappoint. Everyone knows their jobs, the guests are leaving as well as the bride and groom," he said, a lift of his chin indicating the couple waving goodbye to their guests as they headed toward Lincoln's home, freeing the well-wishers to stay or go as they pleased. "You can spare a few minutes."

  It was true. Her crew—now back on track with Kellie as her second-in-command and Carter's two employees working as extras—would have no problem performing the remaining tasks.

  "Come on. You know you want to."

  He lowered his head, giving her a compelling look that made her ache to see how far he'd go to convince her.

  "It has been a great day."

  "Exactly. I heard about the magazine article."

  Oh. Yeah, that news? The best. She smiled again and bit her lower lip, more than a little pleased with being featured along with Amelia and Lincoln due to their connections in film and local real estate. "That was a nice bonus for today."

  "So what are you waiting for?"

  Maybe it was the seemingly effortless day or the fact that things were finally looking up, or maybe it was the utterly breathtaking way Carter looked at her, but Eliza pressed a finger to her mic and told the gang she would be around but was taking a break.

  The moment she removed the earpiece and set it safely inside of her bridal binder, Carter's calloused hand slid into hers. He tugged her away from the lights and into the dark toward the waterway. "Where are we going?"

  She saw his smile flash over his shoulder and hurried along in her sensible flats as they crossed the back of the lawn to the wooden planks leading toward a dock. A boat bobbed gently up and down in the water. "Carter, I can't actually leave."

  "We're not going anywhere," he said.

  Carter stepped onto the boat and lowered the items he carried before turning toward her and holding up both hands. The moment she moved close enough, he grasped her waist and lifted her easily but didn't let go once her feet touched the deck.

  "I've wanted to tell you all day how beautiful you are."

  "Th-thank you." The silvery-gray dress was one of her favorites, with a bell skirt and halter neck that left her back bare.

  She shivered as his fingertips skimmed across her skin as he finally released her.

  "Follow me."

  He plucked up the bottle and glasses once more and then took her hand and led the way up some stairs to the upper part of the boat. Once there, she gasped at the sight of the gorgeous tent resplendent with lights with the houses of "bachelor row" lit up from top to bottom, amazed by the sheer beauty of the reception from their vantage point.

  "Uh-huh. I thought you might like that view of your handiwork," he murmured, the words whispered into her ear. “And just so you know, I brought the photographer up here to get some shots for you to use in your brochures and stuff. You’ll get them soon.”

  He had?

  The statement reminded Eliza of what Marsali had said about Carter going above and beyond to prove his interest.

  The cork popped and Carter poured two very full flutes, giving her one before lifting his.

  "To second chances and beautiful women."

  A huff of a laugh left her before she could stop it. Really, though? He'd left the toast ambiguous enough that he could've referred to Lincoln and Amelia—or to her. So which was it? "To Amelia and Lincoln," she said softly.

  They clinked their glasses before sipping, and Eliza watched from their perch as guests began trickling out of the tent toward the front of the homes, where golf carts waited to transport them
back to their cars.

  The quiet of the night was broken by the sounds of crickets and frogs, the boat bobbing in the water, the low hum of talking and laughter from the tent. It was spectacularly beautiful, the perfect end to what had been a perfect day.

  "So what kind do you want?"

  "Pardon?"

  Carter stood so close she felt the heat of his body enveloping her, warding off the chill of the breeze off the water.

  "Wedding. How do you envision your perfect wedding?"

  Chapter 18

  Asking a woman what kind of wedding she wanted wasn't normally something he did, but for Eliza and her profession, it just came naturally.

  At least, until she put her head back and laughed.

  "Oh, no way. If I'm ever crazy enough to get married, I'd elope."

  He braced his forearms against the railing in front of him, taken aback by her words. "You're joking."

  "Nope. What, you don't believe me?"

  "I'm just… surprised," he said, his gaze lowering to her lips as they always did when she said the P sound that way. Did she do it on purpose? Sometimes he wondered, because it drove him crazy and made him want to kiss her.

  Eliza sipped from her glass, her lips damp from champagne, and lifted one beautiful bare shoulder in a shrug.

  Of all of the assets a woman had, he'd never considered shoulders or backs sexy, but looking at her in that dress, all he wanted was to touch her, stroke his fingers over her spine, and kiss her like—

  "Yeah, well, after planning so many of them and seeing how crazy people get… I'll pass. Besides, I don't think my headset would pair well with a veil, and I'm too much of a control freak to hand it over to someone else. What about you? Did today make you think about your next wedding?"

  "It did." Because the entire time he'd stood up there by Lincoln, he'd found his gaze on a certain headset-wearing wedding planner. "I think I'd follow Lincoln's lead, though. Let her pick the details."

  "What did you and Piper's mother do?"