Page 62 of Finding Chloe

“I have an idea, but it’s going to take all of us working together.” Kyle’s smile stretched from cheek to cheek.

“Whatever it is, I’m in.” I wanted Chloe in my arms as soon as possible. It had been too long since I’d seen her smiling face beside me.

“Chloe needs some help. We are her team, and we’ve been doing a real shitty job of having her back. I say we show her what being a team with us really means.”

“How do we do that? I haven’t been paying much attention to the wedding stuff,” I gruffly admitted, shame sliding down my spine.

“I’ve been helping her a little. I have access to her online files. I’ll find out what needs to be done and work from there. Matt, you’re good with the physical things. I know there is a lot that needs to be set up. She has it all scheduled, but let’s see if we can’t get most of it done tonight. I know you can handle the big things. I’ll handle the details.”

“What about me?” Hunter crossed his arms.

“You get to do what you do best.”

“What’s that?”

“Persuade as many people as possible to help. We can’t pitch a tent by ourselves,” I said, hoping he understood the metaphor. I knew we weren’t actually pitching tents. That’s what the tent crew would be doing, but we needed other people to help with manual labor.

“Got it.”

I tried not to laugh at Hunter’s enthusiasm. He turned on his heel and made his way to the barns where I hoped he could find recruits.

“Where is Chloe now?” I asked.

“I think she’s at the big house doing the rehearsal with the family and wedding party. Then a big dinner to follow.” Kyle took out his phone and checked over Chloe’s wedding notes. “Yeah, that’s what it shows on the calendar.” He swiped the screen again. “I’ll call the tent people and get the time they’redropping everything off. It seems like we might need some people to make runs into town to bring last-minute wedding items. Apparently there’s an issue with flowers, and Mrs. Meadows can’t fit some of the arrangements in her truck.”

“There are a whole bunch of boxes and crates in the dining hall and all over barn one that need to make it to the location. Once the tents are up, maybe we can work as quietly as possible and get those over to the site before morning.” I remembered Oliver had sent over a bunch of alcohol early so he didn’t have too much to bring on the day of—those needed to be set up in his bar tent.

“She has tent drop off on the schedule for”—he looked at his watch—“an hour ago. Maybe one of us can go by the location and see if they were delivered.”

“I’ll go do that while you take scope of the rest of the notes and get a list going. Be back in a few.”

After a quick nod from Kyle, I jogged to my truck and drove to the wedding site. The tents had been delivered as scheduled and were currently being assembled. I peeked at the layout, and something was off. After speaking with the tent crew, there was an issue with where the tents could go. The ground hadn’t dried enough in one area where two tents were supposed to be placed.

A text pinged on my phone, and I saw Kyle had started a new chat with the three of us. He said to meet them in the bunkhouse; they had reinforcements. “Give me twenty minutes, and I’ll see if we can’t get this worked out,” I told the tent crew and raced to the ranch.

When I returned, Kyle and Hunter were heading to the bunkhouse with a few men in tow. I recognized Gavin, Scott, the twins, and Ryder. I made it inside just as everyone settled into the common area. A few beers had been cracked, but everyone appeared ready and willing to help us.

Kyle listed off some of the major issues that would need addressing first.

“Wait, did anyone ask if Mrs. Roberts had a steamer? I know it’s probably not an industrial one, but if we need to figure out an alternative, then that might be it.” Gavin pointed his beer bottle in the direction of the big house.

“Good thinking. Go to the big house and see what she’s got. If she has something we can use, call Sarah at the dress shop and see if she can get here tonight.”

“The tent crew is setting up the tents as we speak, but we have a slight issue. The tent for the bar isn’t going to work in its current location. The ground is too wet for a secure hold.” I glanced at Kyle. “Let’s check out the map and see where we can move it.” Tonight was going to be a long night, but we had a wedding to finish and a woman to win over.

CHLOE

No matter how hard I tried, sleep didn’t come easy for me. My nerves were on high alert. The hair and makeup team arrived right on time. They were already working on the bridal party at the big house. The Kingstons were on the opposite side of the house, doing a prewedding tradition with their family, and didn’t need my assistance.

I checked over the schedule for today for the umpteenth time as I downed my cup of coffee. Mrs. Roberts made a travel mug for me, and then I was on my way to oversee all the last-minute tasks before Alex walked down the aisle.

The sun had only just risen, but it was going to be a long day. The tent crew would be at the location to begin setting up within the hour. When they were finished, I could start bringing things from the ranch. Everything was in totes and boxes, ready to be hauled over. It would be nice to empty out the girls’ bunkhouse where I’d been storing everything.

My phone pinged with an incoming text message.

Tent-o-rama: The tents were finished last night. Thank you for staying on top of things. Your helper was awesome.

Helper? What helper? He must be mistaken.

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