Instead, I called my best friend, Rachel.
She listened quietly.
Then said,
“You need a date.”
“I don’t have one.”
“Then acquire one.”
I laughed.
“Acquire a man?”
“Rent one.”
I stopped laughing.
Rachel did event planning for corporate clients, so I assumed she was joking.
She wasn’t.
“There are agencies,” she said. “Actors. Models. Professional companions. People hire them for reunions, weddings, business events.”
“That is completely insane.”
“Your ex invited you to his wedding specifically so you could attend alone.”
I considered that.
“Okay. Less insane than Mason.”
“Exactly.”
Two days later, Rachel sent me a number.
