Page 36 of Smoke Show

"Hey, Eve," Sophie welcomed as I slipped into the chair next to her.

She gestured to the picnic table. "I brought a carafe of hot cider tonight."

"Thanks," I said, warming my hands in front of the fire and greeting Gwen, Izzy, and Jo.

Eve Standard Time strikes again. Hiding my chagrin at being late, I grabbed a mug and poured myself a steaming cup.

"Now that we're all here, let's get down to business."

Gwen's reapproach was gentle, and no more than I deserved. My final client had run late, but I couldn't afford to miss out on the studio time. I'd been spending too many of my available hours on theSnow Queenwith Brady. While my graphic design commissions could pick up most of the financial slack, I was wary of relying too much on any one source of income. Keeping my tattoo business thriving was important.

"Eve, let's run through auction prep."

At Gwen's direction, I reviewed the catering, band, and donation status, then Izzy gave an update on ticket sales.

"Have the bachelors provided their bid packages yet?" Sophie asked.

"Are you asking so you can shop ahead?" I teased, noting the greedy glint in Sophie's eye.

"Maybe," she muttered, cheeks flushing. "Who all did you say was up for grabs?"

"Thepackagesinclude offerings from Cole Fenwick, Ivan Nemitz, Zander Nemitz, Brady Gleason, Davis Pruitt, Chris Farmer, Alex Martinez, and Lewis Ma."

Jo giggled, the sound uncharacteristic, and I glanced at her. "You saidpackages" she whispered.

"Just a reminder, you need a proxy if you want to bid at the auction," Gwen said.

"What? Why?" I asked.

"None of us should bid directly. I don't want it to look like we're playing favorites or influencing the results, and we're going to be too busy. We can't afford distractions during the bidding."

I bit my lip. Originally, I'd had no plans to bid on anything: my role as emcee would make it awkward. But the more time I spent with Brady, the less I liked the idea of his auction date going to someone else. I'd figured I could ask Jo or Sophie to bid on my behalf, but if Gwen asked us all to opt out of bidding, that created a problem. My list of acquaintances in Campfire was still relatively small, and mostly consisted of the women around the fire. Who else could I ask?

"Not even me?" Izzy asked, looking disappointed.

I couldn't blame her, it seemed silly that she not bid on her husband, now the cat was out of the bag.

Gwen flicked a hand. "You know Silvia will ensure he doesn't go to anyone else. Your mother-in-law will help you."

But what about me?

Icouldask Matty. But if I was going to approach her, I needed a firm plan for Thanksgiving first.

Feeling awkward for having to ask, I blurted out. "What is everyone doing for Thanksgiving this year?"

"Are you staying in town? You can come with Sophie, Jo, and me to the Gleason's. Matty puts on a big party every year," Gwen said.

"Or, you're welcome to join me with the Nemitz's. I'm giving my dad a wide berth for obvious reasons," Izzy said wryly.

I bit my lip. "Matty did invite me. I didn't realize it was a big group thing. Do you think it's weird to go, if Brady doesn't invite me himself?"

"Is this because you're… dating him?" Sophie asked, wiggling her dark brows for emphasis. The attempt at intimidation contrasted sharply with her bubblegum pink sweater and bright jacket, making it hard to take her seriously.

Still, I owed my friends the truth.

"We've been out a few times," I admitted cautiously.

Sophie squealed, the sound nearly splitting my eardrums. "I knew it!" she said, triumph in every line of her broad grin. "Tell us more."

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