Page 50 of Hot Shot

11

MARCO

Conquistadors is decorated, tables have been arranged with massive amounts of food and tubs of beer, and the guests have all arrived. I hand half of a photograph to one last guest, one of our SEAL brothers, with a smile and instructions to mingle and find the other half of the picture.

Carrie stands next to me, looking way too fuckable in a sexy little black number. I want to cover her up. The sleeveless dress hugs her curves, with a split up the front high on her thigh and no back whatsoever. My balls ache just from looking at her and I’m worried that every other guy in the place is experiencing the same thing. I want to hide her away from their lascivious looks.

She smiles at John, too. “Thanks for coming,” she says. “Beck and Hayden should be here in about five minutes. Right?” She turns to me.

I nod. “Right.” It took some doing, but Cade managed to convince them we’re having a small party to celebrate the birthday of one of our regular customers. It involved a helluva lot of lies and fabrications, and getting Dussen in on the plans, but he’s been great. We’re pretty sure Beck and Hayden have no idea.

Carrie’s eyes sparkle as she surveys the group of people assembled in the bar, mingling and sipping beers. “This is so awesome.” Once more she turns those big blue beauties on me. “Thank you for thinking of this.”

I shrug. “Thanks for helping.”

Carrie’s smile twists a little but her eyes warm. Then her eyes widen and she says, “Oh! I think they’re here!” She waves at one of the front windows.

I signal Cade, who flashes the lights off and on to alert the guests to quiet, and the chatter is just subsiding as Beck opens the door for Hayden and she walks in. When Beck steps in behind her, everyone yells, “Surprise!”

Hayden’s eyes fly open, Beck’s jaw drops, and they both stand statue still as they gape at the crowd.

“What’s going on?” Hayden’s forehead wrinkles with confusion. “Is Dussen not here yet?”

“I’m here,” he calls from over near the bar. He lifts his beer in a toast. “And it’s not my birthday.”

“I don’t understand.” Hayden turns to Carrie.

Carrie smiles at her friend. “This is your engagement party.”

“What?” Hayden glances at Beck.

He grins and slaps Marco’s back. “What the fuck, man? You lied to me?”

“Yeah.” I freely admit it. “Come on in. We’re celebrating you two tonight.”

Tears glint in Hayden’s eyes. Oh no. She’s not going to cry, is she? I don’t do well with crying females.

Carrie and Hayden hug in a long, tight embrace. “I can’t believe this,” Hayden sniffs.

Carrie draws back, smiling. “Come in. Let’s get you a drink and you can greet your guests and have some fun.”

Carrie and I lead Beck and Hayden through the crowd, both of them smiling and waving and shaking their heads. Soon they have a beer in their hands and move through the group to greet people, including Hayden’s Aunt Gina and Uncle Colin, some of her coworkers and other friends, and some of Beck’s SEAL teammates and his former lieutenant commander.

I hold up a hand and Carrie high-fives it. “Nicely done, Supermodel.”

“Same to you.”

We share a look of mutual satisfaction and happiness at seeing our friends surprised and delighted.

We collect the photos that were cut in half and stick them on a magnetic board Carrie found, so that guests can look at all the pictures of Hayden and Beck, the most recent one taken last week at Fly Zone, both of them in the air grinning at each other.

I check in the kitchen to see where they’re at with the burgers, then Carrie and I climb up to sit on the bar to play the Nearly Wed Game. Beck and Hayden stand near us as they take turns answering questions to hoots of laughter and a few dirty comments.

“In a dressing room at Bisou?” Carrie’s mouth falls open, staring at Hayden. “You never told me that!”

I grin and bump fists with Beck.

Soon the guests are loading up plates with burgers and a variety of toppings and side dishes. Carrie and I decorated a table for Beck and Hayden to sit at, while everyone else finds chairs randomly at other tables. We make sure the happy couple has everything they need and then finally fill our own plates.

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