Free Unexpectedly You by Mia Josephs, Riley Janes

to talk through it anyway. “So…How was your first wedding? Besides the microphone mishap.”
    She chuckles. “The makeup girl, the one who I think has been making eyes at you …” Brooke leans in bumping my shoulder with her knuckles because she may have brought it up two or fifty times throughout the day. “She offered me a free makeover and said she has more Clinique and MAC freebies than she knows what to do with. The flower people dropped me a few coupons, which I’m sure will come in handy at some point. I got two free meals from the restaurant that catered the event, a massage from your mom as a thank you, and one of your photographer helpers offered me a hand job.”
    “Wow.” I don’t even react to Brooke anymore. “Are you going to take him up on it?”
    “No, but…” she trails off.
    I skim over photos until I’m at the “candid” shots of the couple after the ceremony, which is where I wanted to work first.
    “But?” I prompt because nearly everything Brooke says is entertaining.
    “I got a date with one of the groomsmen. Second year law student at UNLV and totally future husband of Brooke material.”
    I’m immediately suspicious. Who picks up a girl at a wedding unless he just wants to get laid? “So, do you have your first date location planned yet?”
    “Yes I do.” She smiles wide. “I’m going to step it up a notch because I have the free meal thing, so we thought it might be fun.”
    “Of course he did.” I shake my head. This guy is probably an asshole. I’ll have to check him out at some point. “He gets a free meal with a pretty girl.”
    She stops chewing and looks at me with the oddest expression.
    “What?”
    A trace of vulnerability passes over her face and it makes me uncomfortable because Brooke is just…Brooke and forward. “You think I’m pretty?”
    I shrug. “Not my type, but of course you’re pretty.”
    “Yeah. Your type has a boyfriend .” And the moment the words are out, she claps her hands over her mouth before slowly pulling it away. “Wow, Bitchy Brooke moment. Sorry.”
    I wave her off because I can’t talk about this with her. “It’s fine, but promise me something.”
    “What’s that?”
    “Try… Just try to let yourself loosen up on your levels of dating thing. And seriously, don’t have sex on date number three unless you’re dying for it. Okay?”
    “And if I’m dying for it on date one?” she asks with a smirk.
    “Go for it.” I pause when I find the close-up shots of the couple. I really don’t want to think about Brooke screwing some guy. I must feel more protective of her than I thought.
    “Fine. But…” She bumps my arm with her elbow. “I think you should ask out makeup girl.”
    “I’m pretty sure Celeste has a boyfriend.” Celeste has been one of the regulars that Mom contracts with since…since I can remember. Most of the people who help at the wedding don’t work directly for Mom, they’re contract-labor for specific tasks. Like Celeste nearly always does the makeup when the bride asks Mom to find someone. Also, her boyfriend is an asshole, so I’m probably not her type.
    “Not anymore,” Brooke whispers. “The catering guy saw them arguing before a wedding at Caesars Palace two weeks ago and his girlfriend works with Celeste’s boyfriend at the Bellagio, and apparently it’s over.”
    I stop and shove a nacho in my mouth. “You’re almost as busy as a little old cat lady, aren’t you?”
    Brooke shrugs unapologetically. “She’s got that long dark hair you seem to like so much, but I want you to try my one, two, three dating thing because it totally works.”
    “Fair enough.” I start touching up the shiny spots on the groom’s forehead. It was wicked hot for an outdoor wedding today.
    “You’re giving in that easy?” she asks.
    “I’ll probably take Celeste out on five level-one dates,” I tease. “Unless she’s annoying and doesn’t make it past the first one, or we’re both dying