Page 10 of Bridesmaid Undercover
“Good,” I say as I sit then gesture to the display of food. “Don’t you think this is a little much? We’ve been in business together for a few months now—I don’t think we need to impress the Cane brothers.”
“We did it for our first meeting here, so we need to keep doing it or else they’re going to think we’re cheap asses who were just trying to impress them the first go around. Understand hosting ethics.”
“I don’t think the termhosting ethicsis a real thing.”
“Look it up,” Hudson says, nodding toward my phone.
“Why? Because you want to be embarrassed when I prove it’s not real?”
“No, because I want to see the look on your face when you realize that I’m right about everything and maybe you should stop questioning me,” he says.
I pick up my phone and pull up my search engine. “You are going to be so humiliated.”
“You think I come up with this shit on my own? I’m following the rules of society.”
I type inhosting ethicsand press search. I scroll some of the first few links, not seeing anything until I stumble across a link that says, “Miss Manners’ Rules on Hosting and Ethics.” I lift a brow to my brother. “Is this what you’re referring to?”
He leans in, his eyes narrowing in on the link. When he sits back, he adjusts his tie and says, “As a matter of fact, Miss Manners is a great source.”
“You’re an idiot,” I say just as the door to the conference room opens and Jude, our new brother-in-law and business partner, walks in.
He always makes quite the entrance. The man is a fucking beast. And I say that with respect to myself and Hudson, because we’re both tall, fit dudes, standing at six-foot-two with a decent amount of muscles packed onto our bones. Jude puts us to shame.
The man was built from glugging two dozen raw eggs every morning, lifting his house above his head as a blissful stretch, and pumping his veins with steel and pure, unfiltered black coffee.
Not to exaggerate, but he has a fist the size of my head, a chest that looks more like a parcel of land than bones and flesh, and biceps that make my legs quiver in jealousy and fear. Between you and me, I swear, I’ve seen his muscles fire off even when he blinks.
The first day I met him, I remember saying to myself I hope he doesn’t hurt Haisley, because there’s no way in hell I’d be able to go head to head with the silent beast.
Nope.
I’d have sent him a strongly worded and very displeased email instead.
Dear sir,
Don’t you ever treat my sister like that again. You have disappointed me.
Good day,
Hardy Hopper
Thankfully, he’s the nicest guy we’ve ever met, loyal to his core, and protective. He’s perfect for Haisley.
“Morning,” he says in his deep-timbre voice. Did you see the liquid in the glasses quiver? Yeah, his voice has the same impact as the stomp of a T-Rex. “Nice setup.” He gestures to the food and takes a seat, the poor chair beneath him squeaking under his weight.
“See, Jude appreciates the food,” Hudson says with a puff of his chest.
“I never said I didn’t appreciate the food,” I say as I reach for a muffin. “Just said that it was a bit much.”
Hudson swats at my hand. “That’s for our guests. Help yourself after they take their first pick.”
“Christ,” I say, shaking out my hand. “You’d think this is the first meeting with them. Why are you so jumpy?”
“I’m not jumpy.”
I give my brother a once-over. “You sure are, and you have that look in your eyes, the concerned, uptight look.”
“No, I don’t,” he says in frustration. “I’m fine. I just like to keep things professional.”
