Page 18 of The Magic of Sea Glass
“And mints and flowers,” Mary said, a sparkle returning to her eyes.
“Yes! I’d love to work up a plan and a budget for little amenities like that, if you’re up for it.”
“Definitely. We’ll have to be very tight with the budget, however.”
“Sure.”
Mary leaned over and inspected the computer screen. “You managed to get all this ironed out in one morning? My head is spinning.”
A deep pleasure filled Lauren at the idea that she could be of help. “I’ve had a lot of practice. It’s how I managed my events company. We had, sometimes, ten weddings all being planned at the same time. If we didn’t have a program to keep it all straight, we’d go crazy.”
“And who’s managing your company while you’re away?”
The finality of Lauren’s choice settled upon her, and she considered how Andy had taken that wedding that Lauren never would have. “I sold my half to my business partner.”
“Why, when you’re clearly so great at it?”
She turned to face Mary, wanting to explain without actually having to. “It’s… a long story.”
“I enjoy long stories.”
Lauren produced her manufactured smile. She liked Mary, but she didn’t want to have to get into the details of the last year. “Maybe one day I’ll tell you all about it.”
“All right. We need to focus on responding to Stephanie anyway. She’s coming back into town, and Melinda would like to bring her over to introduce you two tomorrow. That might be a good time to pin down a date.”
Lauren was not getting out of this. At the end of the day, she was employed by Mary, and if the woman wanted her to run the wedding, she’d have to put her fears aside and agree. “Yes, let’s find a time that works to meet her.”
She couldn’t have the inn losing money because of her personal issues. The Tide and Swallow needed this wedding.
* * *
“How’s your day been so far?” Andy asked on the other end of the phone while Lauren walked down the shore behind the inn, her arms full with a packed lunch and a blanket.
“Busy. This morning I met with the innkeeper about scheduling, and then I spent the rest of the time shadowing her, supervising the cleaning crews so I can take over those duties.”
“What are you doing now? I hear wind through the phone,” Andy said.
“Mary’s friend Joe called to say he was coming over, so she gave me a break. I thought I’d have lunch on the beach.”
“That sounds incredible.”
Lauren danced through the hot sand and shielded her eyes briefly with her free hand to relieve them of the intense light. “It’s not bad,” she said. “But it’s hot.”
Andy laughed. “I’d take the coastal heat any day.”
“Want to have some tomorrow?” she teased. “You could come in my place. I’m meeting the bride and groom.”
“How are you feeling about that?”
“I’m not sure yet. Part of me thinks it’ll never fly. We don’t have enough time. You and I both know that.”
“Yeah, you can probably convince the bride that there’s no way and be off the hook. Show her our yearly planning itinerary where we have every task broken down by month.”
“That’s a good idea.” She repositioned the strap of the small cooler bag on her shoulder, the sea air blowing her hair in circles.
“I didn’t even get to ask on the last call, apart from the shotgun wedding, are you getting settled okay?”
“I’ve settled in as well as expected.”
