Her cell phone buzzed, and she saw her best friend Harper’s name on the screen. She pressed speaker and set the phone on the end table, leaning back so she could relax.
“Hey Harper,” she said.
“How’d it go? Don’t tell me bridezilla still hasn’t made up her mind about a wedding location.”
Caitlyn’s lips quirked. “She picked the beach. We drove all over San Diego, walked farther than anyone on crutches should ever have to, and of course the last spot we looked at was ‘the one.’ She wanted me to come down onto the sand and then proceeded to leave me there while she and her sisters went for a walk.”
“Of course. Geez. Didn’t she realize you had a broken ankle?”
Caitlyn blew out a sigh, her gaze landing on her purple cast. “Oh, she did. She just didn’t care. It’s all about her, remember?” she asked with a laugh. “That’s why she’s paying me the big bucks.”
“More like her daddy’s paying,” Harper snorted. “You should charge more. Your business is growing. You can be more selective and pick the events you want.”
“I know. Honestly, I might drop wedding planning entirely from my repertoire,” she said. “It’s never been my favorite, and there are so many other events that don’t involve high-strung brides—parties, conferences.”
“Don’t I know it,” Harper agreed. “I love baking wedding cakes, but damn. Some of those couples are nearly impossible to please. And believe me, it’s usually the woman. The guys don’t care.”
Caitlyn smiled, thinking of her best friend’s small bakery. She and Harper were total opposites. While Caitlyn aimed to please, Harper always spoke her mind—consequences be damned. With her jet-black hair and small nose piercing, she looked more like she should work as a bartender than in a bakery. She even had an intricate tattoo trailing up her ribcage, which she liked to show off in a bikini.
Caitlyn was slender but with curves. She didn’t mind wearing bikinis at the beach, but she wasn’t one to prance around in front of all the single guys like Harper. Her friend was tanned and toned. Caitlyn was pale and freckled. Not to mention petite, as Troy had noticed. With her flaming red hair, she stood out everywhere. It wasn’t that she was shy exactly, she just didn’t love all the extra attention she sometimes got.
“Well, it might’ve been worth trekking all over the place and ending up at the beach tonight….”
“No. You met someone?”
“What makes you think that?” Caitlyn asked with a laugh.
“What else could make it worth it? Unless you got a zillion more clients who are willing to pay you more.”
“Nope. It was a guy.”
“Cute?” Harper asked. “Tell me he had some single friends.”
Caitlyn laughed. “He was hot. And I think most of his friends were already dating someone. Well, except this one guy who the bride’s sister was flirting with. Anyway. I was waiting on the boardwalk while they scouted out the beach. The bride wanted me to come down, and Troy literally swooped me up into his arms and carried me down the steps.”
“My my,” Harper teased. “That sounds promising.”
“I swear, the chemistry between us was crazy. When we shook hands, sparks shot straight through me. It’s like I couldn’t even think clearly when he was near me.”
“So when are you going out?”
“He asked me to dinner, but we didn’t set anything up. I got his number, so the ball is in my court I guess.”
“He didn’t want your number?”
“He did. I didn’t want to give a guy I just met my phone number. I was there to pick a wedding location with my client, not meet a guy. He kind of sprung up out of nowhere. I was flustered and trying to work. I keyed his number into my phone and that was that.”
“You should call him. Make plans for one night this week.”
“No, I just got home,” Caitlyn said, feeling rattled all over again. “I can’t call him an hour after we met. Maybe in a few days after I think it over.”
“Think what over? Was he a total dick or something?”
Caitlyn nearly choked on her iced coffee. “No, he wasn’t a dick. He was nice. When bridezilla and her friends went for a walk, he was worried they’d left me stranded on the beach.”
“Well, they did. You’re in a cast and on crutches.”
“But we drove separately. I just needed to get back to my car—”
“And you had Mr. Hottie to help you.”
Caitlyn’s skin heated thinking about it. When she’d stumbled slightly on the steps, Troy’s large hands had moved to her waist, lifting her back up to the boardwalk. She shivered just recalling his heat and strength behind her. Troy was nothing but solid muscle. She felt almost inadequate next to him. There she was, hobbling around on crutches with a purple cast on one leg, and he was in perfect shape. He hadn’t seemed to mind helping her though. He’d even said she was exactly his type.
“I’ll text him later this week. Maybe.”
“You will,” Harper said. “Let the man take you out to dinner. So what else do you know about him?”
“He’s in the Navy. Actually, he and his friends are all SEALs. He had to leave to go to base for something after he got a phone call from his commander. He might not even be around. I got the impression that he gets sent out a lot on missions.”
“Hmmm. Well, it’s probably legit. Why would he ask for your number and then just disappear? And he’s bound to be better than some of the other men we’ve
