Page 45 of The Bodyguard's Fall

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Ann leaned around Tate to whisper to both of us, “I was hoping you’d be a better example for my boys about eating their vegetables.”

Tate’s nose wrinkled while I smiled. “If it were any other vegetable, I’d give it my best effort, but I can’t, in good conscience, eat asparagus.”

Ann grinned and went back to her plate, her blue eyes sparkling along with her blue gown. Someone in the front stood up to give a speech.

I had been trying not to look at Tate as much as possible tonight. He wore a blue suit and tie that looked like it was tailor-made for him. We’d been getting curious looks all night. Mostly from friends of Tate who raised their glasses to him from across the table—motioning to me. I didn’t watch the look Tate gave them, but it left them laughing and giving him a thumbs up. The exchange had me feeling tingly and unable to sit completely still.

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We leaned back in our chairs at the same moment, and he must have remembered we were dating at the same time I did. He wrapped his arm around my chair, scooting me closer to his side. It felt almost silly to be practicing this charade when the week was nearly over. But I didn’t want to think about going back to my apartment right now.

“Did you email your boss about your screenplay idea?” he whispered, meeting my eyes briefly before he swept his gaze around the room.

“Yes.”

“And?”

I almost hated to tell him he’d been right, but then I couldn't help myself. “She approved it.”

His face lit up. I held up a hand to lower his expectations.

“With conditions. It has to be light. It can’t overshadow the romance or take over the plot. And she gets the final say. I had to phrase the request in a way that made it sound like I was knee-deep in my story and just wanted to add this element in.”

“She’ll love it. It’s a good idea.”

“Don’t let it go to your head.”

“Too late.” He flashed me a smile. “I’m going to be hard to live with after this.”

I huffed out a laugh and looked away before he caught me staring.

After speeches and dessert, the ceremonious feel of the evening relaxed into voices and laughter as people mingled and chatted amongst themselves. Ari, who had indeed been sitting cozy with Wade on the other side of the room, had left right after dinner before I could say hi. It had been so long since I’d been back to Autumn Ridge that I clung to the few familiar faces I found.

One of whom was, surprisingly, Mayor Monroe.

Mayor Noah Monroe had been a piece of eye candy in this town since as long as I could remember. I believe the term “Daddy Mayor” had even been whispered amongst the more savage of the single female population of Autumn Ridge. Even my friends on the cheer squad in high school had hushed reverently whenever he visited the high school assemblies.

And I mean…according to my research, he had all the qualifications for swoon in a small-town setting. Medium build. Deep-set eyes. Hair the color of melted chocolate. Single dad lovingly caring for a daughter on his own. Kind, well-liked, service-oriented in the community. The kind of stuff that would melt the hardest of anti-romantic hearts.

He had remained a single father since his wife died in a car accident twenty years earlier. I waved to his daughter, Juliet, who stood talking with Luke like they were old friends. I hadn’t seen her since I’d babysat her as a little girl. She was still short, reminding me of the sweet, young thing I used to babysit, but in her dress, it was clear that she had since grown up.