Page 178 of Happily Never After

“That sounds lovely, Clairebear. You’re the expert. Anything you’re hungry for is fine.”

Three aggravating hours later, Claire and her parents had shared tapas and sangria and had gone to three separate stores looking for sage bundles that had been sourced from Alice’s preferred region. When they climbed back in the car, Claire glanced at the clock.

“I better drop you guys off so I can head back to the venue. I need to make sure the trucks are arriving and everyone has what they need.”

“Oh, we’ll go with you, sweetheart. No need to make a special trip.”

“Are you sure?” she asked even though she had already pointed the car in the direction away from Luke’s house. Thank god. There wasn’t much time to spare.

“Of course, sweetheart. I’d like to prepare the space for Luke so that he has a good experience tonight. Drive-in theaters are notorious for inconsistent energy.”

“Sure they are.” Claire turned onto a highway that wound out of town. They passed an expansive graveyard, several gas stations, and a couple of housing developments before reaching the drive-in theater.

“Oh, hell no,” Claire said as she parked her car. She jumped out and slammed her door. “What is this trailer doing here? I didn’t approve a trailer.”

Next to the entrance, a white trailer had been set up, completely compromising her aesthetic. Mindy stood nearby, talking on the phone.

“Claire, I don’t know what the deal is with the trailer?—”

“Oh, that was me, darling.” Alice marched over the grass in her heels, not even sinking into the ground. “It was supposed to be a surprise. It’s a trailer for Luke so that if he gets overwhelmed from the attention, he can duck in and decompress for a few minutes.”

Claire paused and frowned. It was actually pretty thoughtful. Why hadn’t she thought of that?

“And also, sweetie, there’s one other surprise. I hired a hair and makeup team to get us ready in the trailer. Just for fun. A little celebration to chase away all the bad energy from the past year.”

Claire glanced back at the trailer and deflated like a balloon. She had been fully ready to rip someone’s head off, and here it had been a considerate surprise from her mother. Clearly she still had work to do when it came to releasing the reins.

“This sure beats getting dressed in a cinder block bathroom next to the suffocating stench of old popcorn. Thank you, Mom.”

“Oh look, they’re here! Aren’t these the girls you usually hire for hair and makeup? I assumed they were the best.”

Claire glanced over her shoulder. Two cars had pulled up alongside them as she’d raged about the trailer. “Sharice! And Judy. It’s so good to see both of you.” Claire smiled warmly. “It’s been months. I’m so glad to run into you. I was actually hoping to talk to you about a couple proposals we have coming up.”

As they started setting up inside the trailer, she nailed them both down for her dates and was delighted to cross something off a To Do list she hadn’t even made yet.

“Thanks, girls. I’ll be back in an hour. I better go check on a few things.” She walked out tingling with excitement. Food trucks were starting to arrive, and her stomach growled at the smell of funnel cakes. The sun was dipping lower on the horizon. In just two hours, Luke would be surrounded by people he loved (or begrudgingly tolerated—they still hadn’t confirmed if his brother, George, was coming) and celebrating what was sure to be the biggest accomplishment of his career.

“No, no, no,” Claire said and sprinted toward the bar. The bartender was hanging a signature drink sign below the bar, but it was the wrong one. “Those aren’t the right signs. We nixed the scotch and soda. Let me just track them down.”

It was a good thing she had left herself an extra hour. She couldn’t trust just anyone to pull this off.

CHAPTER SIXTY-SIX

To Do:

- Give Luke the best night ever

“You’re all set, sugar.”Sharice spun Claire around in the chair.

“Oh, wow. You did such a great job with my hair. Thank you, Sharice,” Claire said, leaning over to hug her and slip her a twenty-dollar bill. She glanced at her watch. “I better get out there. Thanks again, girls.” She waved as she exited the trailer.

Golden hour was just beginning. Pink and gold light softly illuminated the rows of white chairs. The Edison bulbs gleamed. Music was already thumping. Her insides twisted. Would everything go well? Would Luke be disappointed? She stepped carefully down the stairs in the royal blue dress that Mindy had insisted on. Now she just had to focus on not getting whoopie pie on it.

Alice had already finished and left to mingle with the other guests. Claire spotted her talking to Nicole from a mile awaythanks to her pink suit. She couldn’t see Roy, but if she had to guess, he was probably assisting the team that was erecting a small stage in front of the screen where Luke would give his speech. Where was Luke, anyway? He was cutting it close. He was probably sitting at home second-guessing his dress shirt options or stress-cleaning the gutters.

Dozens of people dressed in black-tie evening wear milled around. One of the studio executives was talking to Sawyer. Who knew they made tuxes that big? Mindy laughed at something he said. She had managed to change into a glittering silver dress with matching heels. Her hair was braided on one side and left long and down her back. Heather was there too, in an emerald-green cocktail dress with a scalloped hem. Ruby slippers glittered on her feet. Where did this girl get all her adorable shoes? Claire made a mental note to ask.

The food trucks were all set. The beer garden was teeming with people she didn’t recognize but assumed were friends of Luke’s. Nicole and Kyle were there though. Nicole looked adorable in a drapey peach dress. Her camera was slung around her neck, and the slightest hint of a bump was appearing in her midsection. A dozen rows of seats were lined up in front of the still-dark movie screen.

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