Chapter 25 #2
I fought the urge to disappear through the back door and hop in my truck.
Lacey’s was a relatively short drive away.
Or I could head over to the Burger Bonanza and drown my worries in an extra-large version of what they tried to pass off as a cappuccino and a breakfast full of enough grease to make sure my worries slid right away.
Instead, I took cautious steps toward the front of the building.
Alex
“That’s actually a brilliant idea.” Chyna slid the giant shades from her eyes and let them rest on top of her head. “I think the Munyon family will be very pleased with what you’ve put together.”
The waves of panic that had been rolling through my gut stilled. “Fantastic. We just want to make sure the bride has the wedding of her dreams.”
“It will be. My staff will make sure.” Chyna paused at the entrance to the warehouse. “Now, walk me through exactly how you envision the setup.”
The waves gathered momentum, crashing into the sides of my stomach. This was it, the moment where Chyna would realize I didn’t have a plan. The moment everything would fall apart.
Zina came out of nowhere. “Actually, we thought it might be best to hold the ceremony and reception in tents.”
Tents? Since when had we talked about tents? I blinked, hard, trying to figure out where that idea had come from.
She gave a slight shake of her head. I nodded, willing to see how it played out.
“Tents?” Chyna pulled her blouse away from her skin and fanned herself, even though the sun hadn’t fully risen and the temperature lingered in the low seventies this early in the morning.
“Air-conditioned tents, of course.” Zina nodded. “Alex mentioned that Mr. Munyon was willing to spare no expense.”
“That’s true, but tents?” Chyna eyed us both from under thick fake lashes. “Don’t you think that’s a bit, um, rustic?”
I bit back a laugh. Rustic? We were having a winter wonderland wedding in the middle of nowhere with penguins. And she was worried about guests feeling like the location was too rustic?
“With a tent we can create whatever kind of environment we’d like. For the winter wonderland I was thinking a white tent with blue snowflakes projected on the walls and ceiling,” Zina said.
Chyna nodded. “I can see it. The white sides of the tent will make guests feel like they’re surrounded by a frosty winter wonderland.”
“Right.” I jumped into the conversation. “And we can have ice sculptures on the buffet tables—”
“No buffet. This will be a sit-down dinner.” The look Chyna shot me could have turned me to ice.
At that point I decided to shut the hell up and let the two women figure out how best to set the scene. My job was to make sure the penguins played their part, no more, no less.
“And the penguins . . .” Chyna turned her attention on me. “I’d like to do a run-through so I can let Mr. Munyon know the birds are ready for their role in all of this.”
“Um, sure.” I glanced to Zina for direction.
“Why don’t you head into town for breakfast while Alex and I set up? We’ll mark off where the tents will be and then do a quick run-through with the penguins,” Zina suggested.
“I could use a double espresso. That flight sucked the life force right out of me.” Chyna spritzed something on her face from a small spray bottle she pulled out of her clutch. “I also need to hydrate. The heat and humidity are taking a toll on my skin. I can feel it already.”
Zina put a hand on Chyna’s back and directed her to the parking lot. “Give us at least an hour. We’ll have everything ready to go when you get back.”
“That sounds good.” She paused when she reached the door of a white Mercedes. “I’ll be back at nine sharp. I’d also love to have Mayor Cherish on the scene when I return. She’s the one I’ve been dealing with on this.”
I opened my mouth to tell her Lacey wouldn’t be able to join us, but Zina waved me off.
“I’ll see if she’s available on such short notice. She’s very busy this time of year.” Zina stepped next to me while the wedding planner situated herself inside the vehicle and slowly pulled away.
“What was that?” I asked. “How are we going to get Lacey here while she’s on bed rest? Tents? Do you have any idea where we’re going to get a tent big enough to hold the wedding and the reception?”
Zina waited until I finished spewing out rhetorical questions. “Would you rather have her mingle with the pit bulls and penguins? The whole warehouse smells like a sushi factory.”
“I was going to work on that once we got the dogs out of there.” I hung my head. “This whole thing is turning into a shit show.”
“You’re right about that.” Zina bit her lip, a move I had come to recognize as her thinking mode.
“But this is going to be our shit show. Let me get Lacey on video and we’ll figure this out.
There’s no way she can get over here. We’ll say she’s out of town or something.
But she’s the one who’s put more work into this than any of us.
She’ll know what to do. Grab some of those stakes and a hammer.
I’m going to look up tent rental places so we can mark off a perimeter.
I figure you’ll parade your penguins out, have them walk down the aisle, and then she’ll be on her way. ”
“Yeah, okay.” I left Zina standing in front of the warehouse while I went inside to find the hammer and stakes. One thing was certain. If I’d questioned our commitment to each other before this, it was clear we were now in this together, for better or for worse.