Page 64 of Kiss the Bride

“The problem appears to be with a transformer. One hundred customers have been affected. Time to repair is estimated at …” A bead of sweat trickled down his neck. “Six hours.”

Six hours! Oh, crap! The words struck a harsh blow to his gut. His thoughts swam.

“We appreciate your—”

He didn’t bother listening to the rest. Panic gnawed at his center. He searched for answers in the faces of those around him and found only more questions.

Outside the bridal suite, Evelyn rested her back against the door. She’d done her best to put Brianna’s fears to rest, but she couldn’t ignore the uneasy feeling in the pit of her stomach. Surely by now the backup generator should’ve kicked on. Why hadn’t it? Determined to learn the answer, she headed through the barn doors to the reception hall, where gray skies and pouring rain cast the large room in semidarkness despite the floor-to-ceiling windows.

A small group had gathered in one corner. She spotted Ryan standing off to one side, his phone pressed to his ear. Across from him, Curtis likewise had his cell phone out. The tiny screens bathed their faces in a bluish glow. Jenny and Alicia stood apart from the group, whispering, their heads close. In between, Daniel and his groomsmen, Mildred Morrey and her assistants, and Janet Hubbard all spoke at once.

“When’s the power coming back on?”

“What about meal prep?”

“Will the wedding go on as scheduled?”

“What do you mean, there’s no backup generator?”

That last ominous question sent Evelyn’s stomach into freefall. She shuddered, crossed her fingers, and prayed the electric company would be Johnny-on-the-spot with their repairs.

She’d no sooner finished than Ryan lowered his phone. His face pale, he announced, “A transformer blew. The earliest estimate for repairs is late tonight. It could take longer.”

Shock echoed through the room. The electricity couldn’t possibly be restored in time for a wedding that was only hours away.

“Quiet, everyone,” barked the least expected voice in the crowd. At Curtis’s firm command, silence rained down like the deluge on the other side of the windows. “I have Ms. Charm on the line.” He rocked his phone away from his ear and back again. “She wants me to remind you that, due to deadlines beyond our control, there can be no delay in tonight’s festivities.” He scanned the faces crowded around him. “Does anyone have a weather report?”

One of Daniel’s groomsmen spoke up. “I do. The storm should move offshore within the next thirty minutes.”

“Good. That’s good news.” Curtis relayed the information to his boss. After a brief pause, his chest heaved. Sliding the phone into his pocket, he took in his surroundings. “The bad news is, we can’t have a wedding here without power. We’ll have to move to a different location.”

“Now, wait a minute,” Ryan began.

Curtis shushed him with a chopping motion. Holding up his fingers, he counted off problems one by one. “There’s no electricity. The sun’s going down. By seven, this room will be in total darkness. No light means no photographs. No photographs means no special wedding edition.”

Before anyone could count to ten, the significance of Curtis’s reasoning sank in. Everyone began to talk at once. Evelyn held her breath. Many of the vendors counted on the article in Weddings Today to drum up new business that’d help them recoup substantial investments in Wedding-in-a-Week. They had every right to complain.

Though Ryan fumed, his shoulders slumped. Evelyn shot him a sympathetic glance. But she wasn’t ready to throw in the towel quite so easily. There had to be a way to save the wedding for him.

Curtis aimed a pointed look in her direction. “Evelyn, you reserved one of your ballrooms for tonight’s festivities in case Brianna and Daniel chose the Captain’s Cottage, didn’t you? I trust you haven’t rented it out on such short notice.”

Is he serious?

The heavy weight of failure melted from her shoulders. Relief shivered through her midsection. For an instant, she imagined Jason’s face when she told him they’d won a coveted spot in the Weddings Today article after all. She pictured herself standing in the background holding Ryan’s hand while Curtis snapped pictures of Brianna and Daniel.

Ryan.

She couldn’t snatch success from his hands. She wouldn’t. But according to Curtis, things were headed in a direction that left a sour taste in her mouth.

When she failed to respond immediately, the photographer phrased his question more sharply. “Is the room available or not?”

“It is,” she answered, wishing the floor would open up and swallow her.

“Good.” Curtis’s head bobbed as if he’d been expecting her answer. “We’ll move everything there.”

“No!” Ryan shouted. His voice dropped to a growl. “You can’t do that. Daniel and Brianna chose to get married here. Everything is nearly ready.” A few last-minute details were all that remained.

“No!” She added her own protest. Curtis expected them to pick up and move an entire wedding to a different location and still have everything go off without a hitch? The idea was ludicrous. She eyed JoJo Moss. Her photo booth alone required at least ninety minutes to erect. Then there were the floral arrangements to transport, the wedding arch, the bride. She stopped, her thoughts in a jumble. How were they supposed to get Brianna and her dress clear across town in the pouring rain? It couldn’t be done.

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