Chapter 7
Seven
Parker
How in the world does someone make a request like that and silence their phone? My fingers itched to call her the rest of the night. But I doubt she works as close to her office as I do. Plus, I didn’t want to cause her more stress. She had to have been under duress to even ask.
She essentially asked me to be her boyfriend for the wedding. I’m sure there are professional boundaries we are crossing. There has to be. Maybe I should ask my sister about it.
As soon as I have the thought, I erase it from my mind. The last thing I need is for her to get on my ass about ruining this event. Especially when she swore to Pierce, I can do it.
Honestly, I don’t know why she put so much faith in me.
I’ve never been the person to rely on in the family.
If they want to have a good time, sure I’ve got them.
On serious matters, I’m not the person. It’s the whole reason I was the one who went and talked to stores about carrying our wine.
Piper is great with the social media aspect, and I’m amazing in person.
It made no sense for her to want to move me somewhere else.
Unless she’s getting Beau to help on that front, but I don’t see Pierce approving that.
For now, the best thing I can do is put all of it out of my mind and get to work.
I still have to finish the seating plan and get ready for this consultation for the baby shower.
They want me to do this job, and I’ll do the best I can to make sure it’s a success, even if I’m not confident, I’m the right person for it.
I pull up my current playlist and turn it on before setting my headphones over my head.
Grabbing a piece of graph paper, I begin sketching out possible setups.
Being able to give Daniela and Jasmin options for the ceremony is my goal for today.
The reception can wait until later. Piper already has various arrangements drawn up for that after the events we’ve hosted for holidays.
There’s a knock on the office door before Piper takes a step inside. “Hey, Park, your appointment for the baby shower is here. Do you want me to show them back?”
I glance around the desk at the scattered pages. “I’ll come out to meet with them. Thanks.”
“Sounds good. I’ll straighten up in here while you show them the new space for small gatherings. I don’t think they’ll need much more than that.”
I get up from the desk and hurry to the door. I don’t want to leave them waiting. “You can just put those in a stack. They aren’t in any order.”
Piper moves behind the desk and studies them as she stacks them. “These are good.”
“That’s good.” I sigh in relief. I still have no clue what I’m doing, but it makes me happy that my sister approves. Knowing her, she’ll put her favorite ones on top because she can’t just let things be.
Two women are waiting in the lobby as I slow my steps into the room. One is visibly pregnant, and I’m glad she’s here so I can gauge how comfortable she is with the setting.
“Hi, I’m Parker.” I hold my hand out and shake each of their hands.
“I’m Nicole,” the not pregnant woman says. I don’t miss the way she flutters her lashes at me and flips her hair over her shoulder. She’s clearly flirting, and for whatever reason it has no effect on me. A month ago, I’d already be putting my number in her phone. What is going on with me?
“And I’m Brooklyn.” The soon to be mom introduces herself.
They give me the same vibe I got from the horrible girls in high school.
They were the “it” girls and made sure everyone knew they were above others.
I’m pretty sure these two are that type, and probably why Piper was so eager for me to meet with them.
She never did well with cliques in high school.
“It’s nice to meet you.” I nod toward the side door. “Is your guest count still around twenty?”
“Oh, yes,” Nicole says. “It’s a small gathering of our friends to celebrate the new addition to come.” I glance behind me and see she’s rubbing Brooklyn’s belly. Brooklyn looks annoyed by it, but it’s not my place to say anything.
“Well, I’m not sure if you’ve been here before, but we’ve updated the patio. It’s the perfect spot for small parties. You’ll have two hours before the event time to decorate, and another two after to tear down.”
I open the door and let them walk out in front of me. Nicole gasps as she sees the patio. The string lights are still up from Valentine’s Day, and something we’re keeping out here. It adds to the ambiance of the space.
“This is perfect.” Nicole claps her hands. Brooklynn smiles in agreement. “Can we bring in our own appetizers?”
I don’t want to deal with that logistical nightmare, especially with this woman. She seems like she’s going to be a lot, and I don’t want that extra work added to my plate.
“Absolutely. We’ll, of course, serve the wine. We can open a tab for the group, or each individual. Whatever you decide.”
“This is definitely the spot we want. Right, Brooklyn?” She glances back at her friend who nods in agreement.
For this being her baby shower, she doesn’t seem to get much say.
“We’ll also provide water for those who don’t drink.” I can see the relief on Brooklyn’s face.
“What do we need to do now?” Nicole asks and takes a step closer to me.
“You’ll need to sign the contract and pay the deposit. After that, you’re good to go.”
“Perfect.” She heads toward the door and shockingly holds it open for her friend. “The shower will be amazing.”
“You can join me in the office and I’ll get the contract printed up.”
I lead them toward the office and gesture for them to take a seat in the two chairs in front of my desk while I draft the contract.
The two women talk amongst themselves, and I'm grateful for the opportunity to not have to listen to Nicole hit on me. Wow, I think that’s the first time I’ve not wanted someone to try to get my attention. What is happening to me?
As soon as the papers are printed, I slide them over the desk to Nicole and have her put down her information and sign them. I probably should have given them to Brooklyn, but I can tell she’s not the one who runs the show.
She stands up before sliding them back to me. As soon as Brooklyn is far enough away from the desk, she whispers, “I put my cell phone number on there, so call me for anything you need.”
Her attempt at making her voice husky isn’t great, and it’s a sure sign nothing will ever happen with this woman. “Uh, thanks?” I’m not sure what I’m supposed to say to that.
I hold up a hand to wave goodbye as the two of them leave the office. The polite thing would be to walk them out, but I don’t have it in me. Besides, I have a feeling Nicole would make it awkward, and that’s the last thing I want.
As soon as I no longer hear their voices, I breathe a sigh of relief and head back to the desk. For my second event consultation, it wasn’t too bad. Well, aside from Nicole trying to get my attention in the worst ways possible. That I could have done without.
Opening up the calendar I start putting in the shower details. Piper will murder me if I don’t get it done right away. Since I’ve taken this new position, I don’t know who is worse, Piper or Pierce. Both of them intimidate me more than they ever have.
I shove those thoughts aside and continue putting in the details for the baby shower.
I really hope Brooklyn is happy with the location.
It’s not my place, but she looked so unsure of everything.
Maybe she was uncomfortable because of the pregnancy?
I’ve never been around a pregnant woman and don’t know the different expressions.
But…this seemed more like her supposed best friend making decisions for her based on her own wants instead of what’s good for her friend.
I shouldn’t be letting this get to me, I know that. It’s hard not to though. Just because I only do one night stands, doesn’t mean I don’t care about other people.
“Why do you have that look on your face?” Phillip, one of my older brothers, asks as he comes into the office.
“What do you mean?”
“Like someone just pissed in your cereal.”
Of course, he’d come in when I’m deep in thought.
“One of the women from my event consultation.” I can’t help rolling my eyes. “She was so freaking self-involved. But that’s not the worst of it. She made sure to let me know I could use her phone number for anything.” I use air quotes in the last worst.
“And you didn’t take her up on that offer?”
“She’s not my type.” Laughter bursts out from him. “What the hell is so funny?”
“Nothing,” he wheezes while trying to catch his breath. “It’s just that…well, I wasn’t aware you had a type.”
Of course I do. Everyone does. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
Phillip pulls one of the chairs behind the desk and sits next to me. “No offense, but I’ve never seen you turn down a prospective date. Not once. The fact you did means you’re dating someone. Or, you’ve been body swapped.” He leans forward, resting his elbows on his knees. “So, which is it?”
Do I tell him about the proposition with Jasmin?
It’s not really any of his business, but maybe it’ll get him to stop giving me crap.
On the other hand, he may get the wrong idea and think me and Jasmin are something more than we are.
Screw it. I need to talk it out with someone and that person can’t be Piper or Paul.
They are both coupled up and will read into more than they should.
“Last time I checked I’m still me.” I type in the last details of the shower and close the window. “But, I am going to be the plus one for a wedding.”
He straightens his back and studies me. “Please tell me it’s not for the wedding we’re hosting.”
“It is.”
“You realize how bad an idea that is, right?” He runs a hand through his hair. “If something goes wrong between the two of you, it could lose us the event.”
“That’s the beauty of it. She just needs me to act like her boyfriend to keep her mom off her back.” I shrug my shoulders. “Besides we both have the same views on relationships. They aren’t for us. There’s no way this can backfire.”
He rolls his eyes. “That’s what you think.
But be careful okay. I’m not saying anything will come of it, but make sure it stays fake.
Not only because of the booking, but because you really do suck at relationships.
The last thing you want is to give this girl any ideas that you can be more than that. ”
I love the vote of confidence my brother has in me. “I won’t mislead her. We actually met at the Valentine’s event. I’m pretty sure she asked me because she knows I won’t press for more.”
“Have you told our little sister?” He stands and moves toward the door.
“Nope. I don’t plan on it unless I feel it’s necessary.” He opens his mouth to argue, but I cut him off. “Which it won’t be. It’s nothing serious. Trust me.”
“If you say so.” He shakes his head and walks out of the office.
For someone who usually has my back and doesn’t give me shit about my dating lifestyle, I feel like he’s judging me. His reaction is exactly why I’m not telling anyone else. They don’t need to know. Unless, I can add my own stipulation. I need to talk to Jasmin.