Susanna Carr - The Bridesmaid's Best Man

His muscles clenched as her knuckles rubbed against his hipbone. Cole hissed in a breath as he felt his penis get hard. He wasn’t going to be able to hide his reaction. It would take the last of his self-control not to take her hand and press it against his erection.

Cole closed his eyes, praying for restraint, when a frightened scream ripped through the air. He whirled around and instinctively held Angie back when she jumped from her chair.

“Over there.” Angie motioned at Brittany, who stood by an empty table. The bride-to-be pointed at the floor.

Cole ran forward. He felt Angie right behind him. There was something about that scream that had sent a chill down his spine.

He saw a woman lying on the floor, partially under a table. She was facedown and a tablecloth hid her from the waist up. All he saw were two legs and silver stilettos.

“It’s Heidi,” Angie said.

3

“BACK UP,” ANGIE ordered the women surrounding Heidi. She followed Cole, pushing her way through the crowd. “Give her some space.”

Angie crouched down next to Heidi and watched Cole carefully roll her onto her back. She knew first aid and CPR for her job, but she was glad he was with her. He was calm and in control during times of crisis. She knew she could depend on him.

“Someone call an ambulance,” she called out to the crowd as Cole checked the maid of honor’s airway.

“I’m on it,” Cheryl said as she got her phone out of her tiny purse.

“What do we have here?” she asked Cole. She slid Heidi’s golden bracelet aside so she could check the woman’s pulse. She noticed Heidi’s skin was warm to the touch.

“Airways are clear and she’s breathing.” The relief in his voice was unmistakable.

“Pulse is strong.” Angie addressed the other guests. “What happened? Did anyone see her fall? Did she faint?”

She saw the women shrug and shake their heads. From the murmurs and snatches of conversation, it was clear that no one had seen Heidi after her lap dance. She had her spotlight and then melted back into the crowd.

“Is she on anything?” Cole asked in a low, confidential tone.

“I have no idea.” She had spent a lot of time with Heidi in the past week, but she wasn’t that knowledgeable about the maid of honor.

“I didn’t catch that.” Brittany was at Cole’s side. Her movements were choppy and frantic. “What did you ask?”

“Is she on any medication?” Angie quickly rephrased the question and Cole gave her a look of gratitude.

“How should I know?” Brittany tossed up her hands as her voice rose to a shriek. “Check her purse.”

Angie looked around. The floor was sticky and pink from a spilled drink and a martini glass was next to Heidi’s hand. She found the handbag under the table and opened it. “Cell phone. Credit card. Dollar bills. Lipstick.”

Cole glanced up. “That’s it?”

Angie had thought the same thing. For someone who was as high-maintenance as Heidi, she expected more. At least a bag of beauty products. “I don’t think anything is missing. This purse is too small.”

“Keys? Driver’s license?”

“I don’t think she brought them along,” Angie said. “She took the party bus like the rest of us.”

“We should roll her onto her side.”

Angie knew why Cole suggested that. Heidi could vomit if she was intoxicated or under the influence. They eased her sideways and put her in the recovery position.

To her, it was very obvious how she and Cole still worked in sync. In the past they could share a mere look and understand. Or she could say a word—not a sentence, not even a phrase—and Cole would know what she was talking about. She thought the year apart would diminish their shorthand communication, but it was all still there.

“Does anyone have a jacket I can use?” Angie asked the other women. “Something to keep her warm while we wait for the ambulance?”

“I’ll go find something,” Cheryl said before she hurried away.

Cole gently tipped Heidi’s head back to keep the airways open. He went still when he cupped her head. Angie was immediately aware of his wariness. That was one thing she wished had disappeared since they broke up. She was too aware of him. She knew the instant when his mood shifted. He would show no change in expression but somehow she knew.

She leaned over Heidi and blocked Cole’s face from the crowd. “What is it?” she asked.

He pulled his hand away. She saw the dark stain on his fingers. “Blood.”

“What did she fall on?” She examined the table next to Heidi. There was no blood on the white tablecloth.

Cole’s expression was grim. He leaned forward to whisper in her ear. “I think she got hit.”

“With what?” She glanced around. All the tables and chairs were in place. The metallic vases were upright and not a flower was out of place. The drinking glasses were plastic. She had no idea what could be used as a weapon.

“This isn’t happening,” Brittany wailed as she stomped off. “I should have known Heidi would do this to me.”

Robin ran over to her and wrapped her arms around Brittany’s shoulders. “It’s going to be okay.”

“How can you say that?” Brittany started to cry. “My party is ruined.”

Angie rolled her eyes and moved closer to recheck Heidi’s pulse. “Remind me never to be around Brittany when there’s an emergency.”

“I recommend staying clear when she finds out one of her friends did this.”

* * *

COLE SQUINTED AS he checked out the strip club. The building was a lot different when all the lights were on and the music stopped. The paramedics had left with Heidi on a stretcher and now the place felt barren and deserted. The white tablecloths and colorful flower arrangements couldn’t hide the utilitarian setting.

“Anything else?” he asked Linda, the first officer on the scene. He remembered her from the force. Sometimes he missed the camaraderie at the police station. He missed having a partner. Having backup.

“Yeah, I really like the outfit, Foster,” Linda said as she tapped her pen against her notebook. “It’s so you.”

He crossed his arms and glared at her. He couldn’t wait to get out of these leather pants and put a shirt on. “Yeah, yeah, yeah. I’ve already heard it from the other guys. I’m sure all the customers are curious about how I know everyone.”

“They can think you’re friends with a few guys in law enforcement. Get over it. We have more important concerns. Now let me go over this statement again.”

Cole took a deep breath. Linda was right. It didn’t matter if they found out he was an ex-cop or a private investigator. He needed to know what happened to Heidi. It bothered him that he got distracted and she was injured on his watch.

“So,” Linda began as she perused her notes, “you were giving a lap dance.”

He pressed his lips together. “I was undercover.”

She raised her eyebrows. “To your ex-girlfriend.”

“She’s a bridesmaid.” He glanced over to Angie. She was sitting alone, her arms and legs crossed, her face tilted away from the rest of the guests. She was quiet and thoughtful while the others chatted or used their cell phones.

“And the lap dance was how long?”

“I wasn’t keeping track.” Cole spotted Linda holding back a smile. He winced. He was never going to hear the end of this. “What hospital is the victim going to? I should notify her family.”

The woman’s smile disappeared and she gave a nod, sliding back into her professional demeanor. “I’ll find out and get back to you.”

“Thanks.” He gestured back to where they had found Heidi on the floor. “What do you think happened?”

Linda shrugged. “I think drinking and high heels don’t mix.”