Page 70 of Faking I Do
I could tell by the wide eyes he was telling the truth. I’d never seen or heard of anything like it, either. But with time running short and no other option, I swallowed any doubts and thrust my hand at Suzy. “You’re hired.”
“But you haven’t seen all of my pictures. I’ve got a great one here somewhere of a float I did for the funeral home for the county fair a few years back.” Papers fell to the floor as she shuffled through.
“It’s okay, I’ve seen enough to know you’re the one for us.” I pumped Suzy’s hand up and down. “We’re thinking something pretty simple. Do you have any suggestions?”
Suzy glanced from me to Bodie and back again. “Well, if the wedding is in May you know tulips will be in season. I could do a bouquet of tulips with some accents of freesia.”
“I love it.” I glanced at Bodie. “Anything to add?”
He shook his head. “No, this is your big day, Sweets. I want it to be everything you’ve ever dreamed of.”
I furrowed my brow. He was being awfully accommodating. I knew him well enough to know that could mean only one of two things: either he truly didn’t give a rat’s ass about what kind of flowers we had at our fake wedding, or he was going along because he wanted something.
With her pen flying over her notepad, Suzy counted aloud. “Two dozen, no, probably need three for the bridal bouquet. How many bridesmaids?”
“Oh.” How had I missed that question on the quick wedding-planning checklist I’d downloaded from the Internet? Who would I ask to stand next to me? The only person who came to mind was Zina, and she’d probably pitch a fit when she heard the news. “Probably just one.”
“Who?” Bodie asked.
“I was thinking of asking Zina.” I picked at a ragged cuticle. “Are you planning on having anyone stand up next to you?”
“I hadn’t really thought about it.”
“Well, now’s the time. You’ll need a best man, won’t you?”
“Just a best man or will you have groomsmen, too?” Suzy nibbled on the end of her pen. “And ushers? I suppose I didn’t ask about all the details. Where’s the ceremony going to be?”
“Inside the house,” Bodie said.
At the same time I blurted, “Outside on the lawn.”
“Oh, an outdoor wedding?” Suzy looked back and forth between us. “May can be a fairly unpredictable month for weather.”
“I don’t think everyone will fit inside for the ceremony.” I fluttered my lashes at Bodie. “Don’t you think we should have the reception inside and keep the ceremony outdoors?”
“How many people will you be inviting?” Suzy’s pen poised over the paper.
“Yes, just how many guests do you think we’ll have?” Bodie leaned toward me. “How many people need to witness this production?”
I cleared my throat. “It’s going to be on the small side. But we will have coverage from the Texas Times. That’s a magazine and they’re doing a big spread about the wedding and the preparations.”
“Oh, I do love being featured in magazines. I’ll make sure I put some extra Suzy magic into your flowers.” She leaned over and patted Bodie’s knee. “You know I was a centerfold once.”
Bodie glanced to me with a where in the hell did you dig this woman up? look on his face.
“Really?” I asked. “That must have been quite a moment.”
“It was. My dad was so proud when I showed him. He took that issue to work and passed it around the lunchroom for a week. I still get a chuckle when I think about that.”
Bodie coughed, covering his mouth up with his fist.
“I think I have a copy of it with me.” Suzy rummaged through her pile. “Oh, here it is.”
I closed my eyes. This was too much. I’d put all of my hope into the people of Ido and they just couldn’t hack it. Maybe they weren’t ready for the event center. I’d forced it on them when all they wanted was to go about their business, stuff woodchucks, and pose for whatever magazine centerfolds that moved them.
“Suzy, I?—”
“This is really something,” Bodie said.
