The Summer Girlfriend (Heart Beach, #1)(5)
In her line of side hustle, Noelle was often hit on by drunk guests who were excited to see a new face in their familiar ecosystem. But she held firm on maintaining boundaries with her clients and their loved ones. It was the only way to keep things professional. And on a personal level, she had no interest in dating right now. Why willingly give away what little time and energy she had to someone who more than likely wouldn’t bother meeting her halfway? She’d learned the hard way not to set herself up for disappointment in that regard.
“You dipped without saying goodbye,” Brian said as he approached her with a lazy smile. His cheeks were flushed, and his eyelids drooped. He was drunk, obviously. “Broke my heart a little.”
Noelle forced a smile. If Tati were here, she would have told Brian to fuck off without thinking twice. But Noelle hadn’t been hired for an Ultimate Best Friend package in a while. It had been an unusually slow summer for Bridal Bestie. Last summer, Noelle had worked at least two weddings a month. This summer, she’d worked one wedding in May, and the wedding she’d been assigned to in June had been called off at the last minute because the wedding planner had discovered that the venue was hiding a black mold infestation. Noelle had zero weddings lined up for July and August. Weddings were just too expensive now. People were opting to get married at the courthouse or to elope abroad. Noelle needed this gig with Sheree. It was good money, and she didn’t want to screw up her payday by cursing out one of the groom’s best friends.
“Yeah, I’m just tired,” she said, stepping toward the street and putting space between herself and Brian. “I’m heading home now.”
He nodded and crossed his arms over his chest. “I’ll stand out here with you. This city’s dangerous. Somebody might try to snatch your pretty self up.”
He winked. Noelle fought the urge to grimace.
Most days, she wore a Hidden Gems Books T-shirt and a pair of jeans and sneakers. When she wasn’t working, she wore whatever clothes she bought off the sale rack. For her Bridal Bestie gigs, with the exception of the bridesmaid dresses that were provided for her, she borrowed cute clothes from Tati. Like the sleeveless navy blue bodysuit, high-rise barrel jeans, and silver Mary Janes that she wore tonight. A few days ago, when Tati had last been home, she’d styled Noelle’s hair in goddess braids that fell down her back, which Noelle wore loose.
All this to say, Noelle was aware that she looked nicer than usual tonight. And because of her five-foot-three-inch height, she was also aware that people sometimes assumed she couldn’t take care of herself. But she didn’t leave the house without pepper spray in her purse and she wasn’t afraid to use it.
“That’s nice of you,” she said. “But I’m okay, really.”
If Brian heard her response, he pretended not to. “You mentioned at dinner that you work in Jersey City,” he said.
Noelle nodded, eyes on the rideshare app. The car was two minutes away.
“I live in Bayonne,” Brian said. “We should get together and chill some time.”
Damn, was he really gonna make her say it? Fine. Better to get this over with now rather than wait until the wedding in a couple months when he inevitably cornered her again.
“Actually, I don’t think that would be a good idea,” she said.
He blinked and huffed out a surprised chuckle. “No? Why not?”
She was saved from having to answer him as her phone vibrated in her palm. Her rideshare car turned and drove down the street toward them.
“Oh, look, my ride’s here. It was nice to meet you, Brian. Have a good night!”
She double-checked the car’s license plate and verified that the driver was there to pick her up before diving into the back seat.
“Can I get your number?!” she heard Brian call as the car pulled away.
She let out a grateful sigh of relief and sank deeper into the back seat. It wasn’t until they were driving through the Holland Tunnel that she realized she’d left her old leather jacket on Sheree’s shoulders.
It was too late to turn back now. She sent a quick text to Sheree about finding a time to meet up soon to get her jacket back.
Of course! I’ll bring it to you asap! came Sheree’s immediate reply. Thanks again for working with me.
Noelle’s phone chimed again with an email from Bridal Bestie, confirming that Sheree had paid for tonight. Seven hundred and fifty dollars. Amazing. Of course, the agency deducted their 20 percent commission. So Noelle took home six hundred dollars. It was the one hang-up she had about Bridal Bestie. Imagine if she was able to keep the entire fee for herself? She could do this work on her own, but she liked the legitimacy that the agency provided. By the time this agreement ended in September, Sheree would have paid a total of two thousand dollars, with sixteen hundred dollars going to Noelle.
It all put Noelle one step closer to obtaining her bachelor’s degree, and after she graduated, she planned to apply to grad school to get her master’s in library and information science. During her first go-round at college, Noelle had spent more time chasing after her ex-boyfriend than she had contemplating her future. Amid one of the toughest times in her life, the library had provided solace and had helped her discover a newfound love of reading. She knew that her goal of becoming a librarian would put her in even more student loan debt, but after six years of zigzags and unexpected detours, at twenty-seven years old, she had discovered her calling. And she wasn’t going to give up on herself now.