Page 6 of Accidental Wedding Crasher
The woman began to reply, stumbling over her words and blushing. On impulse, Evan crossed between Genevieve’s parents and put his arm around the woman.
“What do you mean, she crashed the wedding?” he asked. “This is my plus-one.”
Everyone looked at him, surprised, as the accusations fell silent. The woman looked particularly shocked, but he gave her a smile and a silent plea not to say anything, so she nodded.
“Yes, that’s right.”
Genevieve’s mother, a woman Evan had only spoken to once before, looked between them, the suspicion not gone from her smooth features.
“Is that so?” She turned to the woman. “Why didn’t you say so?”
“I’m sorry.” The woman shrugged, her posture already relaxing. “I got mixed up, I suppose, but I was about to explain. I didn’t get a chance.”
“And you.” The mother turned to Evan. “Evan Hirst, right? Tyler’s friend?”
“That’s right.” Evan nodded, impressed that she’d remembered. At their one previous meeting during the rehearsal dinner, Tyler had briefly introduced Evan before being pulled away for one of his various duties, and Genevieve’s mother had asked why Evanwasn’t Tyler’s best man, if he was his best friend. It had been a deeply awkward interaction — much like this one — and Evan had hurried away at the first opportunity.
“You didn’t check plus-one on your card,” she said.
“Goodness, didn’t I?” Evan turned on the charm that had gotten him favorable deals with numerous other tech companies that should have been Reign’s rivals. “I am so sorry, Mrs. Saint Claire. That must have been my mistake.” He smiled broadly.
“Please, you can call me Elizabeth.” The woman softened. Apparently, Evan’s charm worked wonders on her; he should have tried that the first time. “It is important to be accurate on those cards, you know. Wedding planning is difficult enough without unexpected guests.”
“I know, and I really am sorry. I can’t believe that you created such a beautiful event,” Evan exclaimed. “Is there anything we can do to fix this?”
“I suppose.” Elizabeth Saint Claire glanced back at the woman, her gaze narrowing again. “It’s fine.” She grabbed a passing staff member. “Can you make sure we have an extra place setting at dinner? This woman is Evan Hirst’s plus-one.”
“I’ll see what I can do.” The staff member nodded, and Elizabeth Saint Claire turned back to Evan and Mia.
“Well, it’s sorted for now, but do be more careful next time, Evan, darling.” She turned to Mia. “And you. Just…” Seemingly unable to complete her sentence, Elizabeth Saint Claire waved a hand as though dismissing an annoying insect.
“Thank you so much.” Evan took Mia’s hand. “Shall we go dance, sweetheart?”
She nodded, smiling as though she were holding back a laugh. “Of course. Dear.”
He pulled her toward the dance floor, and they slid into an open space between other couples as a lively instrumental cover of a hit song that Evan couldn’t remember the name of began to play. Evan took her hand with one of his and put his other hand on her waist. She placed her free hand on his shoulder, and they began to sway.
“Thank you so much,” she said quietly. Her brown eyes were wide. “You totally saved me back there.”
“It was my pleasure.” Evan spun her around and pulled her back into his arms. “Elizabeth Saint Claire is a force to be reckoned with.”
“I’m beginning to see that. But seriously, I owe you one.” She smiled, and Evan spotted an adorable dimple in one of her cheeks.
“Well, I’ll have to decide how I want to collect.” Evan winked at her, and her cheeks pinked.
“I would say I’ll pay you back in dancing, but I’m clearly not very talented at that.” She nodded at her feet.
“So far we haven’t had any major injuries, so I’d say we’re doing great.” He smiled. “But perhaps you could tell me your name, as a start.”
“Right!” The pink in her cheeks deepened. “My name is Mia. Mia Newton. And I believe you’re Evan Hirst, right?”
“That’s right. So, tell me, and I promise I won’t report you. Did you crash this wedding?”
As Evan had expected, her cheeks grew even redder. It was adorable.
“Well, kind of.” Mia winced. “See, I was supposed to come to my college roommate’s wedding. And I hadn’t talked to her in years, so it was a bit strange that I’d been invited, honestly, but I didn’t want to be rude and not show up. I was running late and rushing a lot, and when I arrived, I sat straight down, and the ceremony started. It was only when I saw that the bride didn’t look anything like my college roommate that I realized I’d come here on completely the wrong day. So I did crash the wedding, but it was an accident. I promise.”
Evan laughed. “You should fire your assistant. That’s a terrible mix-up.”
