Page 1 of All Because I Found You

Chapter 1

It was an absolute disaster. But that was okay. Raelyn worked best in times of crisis. All she needed was her coffee. She downed the rest of the magic elixir and placed her mug on the table. Think. How was she going to salvage this wedding?

She would do anything for her clients, even if it meant going to the flooded venue in a pair of galoshes and blow drying every square inch of flooring to get the area ready for the wedding in two weeks' time.

If only the hurricane had veered a little to the right, this all could have been avoided. Her entire town wouldn’t have looked like a scene out of an apocalypse movie. It was a little too late for wishful thinking. That ship sailed away with the hurricane.

Her head fell into her hands, and she took a deep breath. “A blow dryer can’t fix this,” she mumbled to herself, since she lived alone. “What am I going to do?”

She gave herself another minute of wallowing before pushing up from the table. She was Raelyn Shaw, best event planner in Morgan’s Bay, and she would figure this out if it was the last thing she did.

There was that barn on Beaver Creek. It looked promising. She just needed to find out who owned it and actually get a look inside to make sure it was safe. If it passed her inspection, and the owner said the structure was sound, then she could get the ball rolling. Problem was, she’d been by the barn twice already and not only was there no one around the property, the place was dead-bolted.

The universe was testing her, but lucky for her, she was resourceful. She texted a contact who worked for the zoning department, calling in a favor. She’d gotten Jimmy a ten percent discount on his catering bill when she helped plan his parents’ fiftieth wedding anniversary. He owed her.

He responded almost immediately that he would look into it. Great. But what was she supposed to do until then? Sit around and wait? There was no way that was going to happen. She grabbed her purse and keys and headed for the door.

Raelyn hadn’t had luck any of the times she’d been by the old barn, but she was desperate. Right now, all venues that hadn’t flooded out due to the hurricane or were currently without power were booked solid. Today was the day she needed to get the ball rolling, or she would fail her bride.

The drive through town always made her smile, grateful to have been born and raised in such a cute town, but today was different. Flood damaged debris sat piled outside homes, water restoration trucks and insurance adjusters parked in driveways where exhausted homeowners looked as if they were ready to collapse.

Raelyn had been lucky. Her place was just on the opposite side of Main Street where the floodwaters didn’t reach. Other than a few branches around her yard, she escaped the nightmare many people were dealing with.

It was why she needed this wedding to go off without a hitch. It was a local bride and she, along with her family and friends, needed something to celebrate. Something happy and uplifting. Raelyn was in the business of making that happen, and she would. Somehow.

She pulled onto Beaver Creek and followed it to the old barn. The place was a rustic beauty, surrounded by open fields of corn on one side and sunflowers on the other. Raelyn slowed as she approached, searching the vast area for any movement. Her heart sank when all that she spotted were birds and a few butterflies.

Throwing the car in park, she hopped out of the driver’s side and made her way up the gravel driveway, cursing herself for wearing wedged sandals. At least she wasn’t in pumps. Her feet wobbled as she maneuvered toward the large structure. An old farm wheel sat propped against the barn, making it look like something out of a photograph.

Raelyn got close, but there was still no sign of life. She moved to a window and pushed up from her wedges, cupping her hands on the glass and attempted to see inside. It would be a real waste of time if the inside was in shambles.

There wasn’t much she could see other than some old farm equipment, but for the most part, the condition seemed to be ideal. She lowered herself and scanned the property.

Her phone buzzed in her pocket, and she slipped it out. Her client’s name flashed on the screen, and she quickly answered.

“Hi Nicole,” Raelyn answered in her cheeriest voice.

“Rae, I’m freaking out. My wedding is in two weeks, I don’t have a venue, my grandparent’s basement is still drying out, my mother-in-law keeps insisting I reschedule, and I’m going to have a nervous breakdown. Please tell me you have good news.”

Raelyn bit her lip. She was never one to lie, but she was confident she would pull this off.

“Nicole, you are not rescheduling anything. You can tell your mother-in-law that your wedding planner has everything under control. As for you. Go help your grandparents, and I will make sure everything is ready to go.”

“Do we have a venue?”

“You’ll have one by the end of today. I promise.” Raelyn closed her eyes, praying she didn’t just stick her foot in her mouth.

Nicole let out a loud breath. “I knew I could count on you. Thank you. I look forward to hearing from you tonight.”

“You bet. Talk soon.”

Raelyn shook her head and ended the call, but her heart leaped when a new name flashed on her screen.

“Jimmy, please tell me you have something for me.”

“I do. It looks like the barn is owned by a company called RD Farms. The last known address for them is 22 Cedar Drive. Should be right around the corner from the barn.”

Raelyn jumped in place. “Thanks Jimmy. You’re the best.” She hung up and hurried to her car.

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