Page 10 of The Duke Who Saved Christmas
She jerked her head in a nodding motion. “Please. I have a few things to go over.”
Of course, she did.
It was a good thing I was used to dealing with bridezillas, because she was most certainly on the brink of transformation.
***
“The demolition date is definitely confirmed for January twenty-first?” I asked Kim, the council worker who oversaw organising the venue.
She nodded. “Yes, I confirmed with the contractors this morning. We wouldn’t have licensed it if it weren’t.”
“Thanks.” I jotted that down. “Can I get that in writing, signed and dated today, from both you and the contractor?”
“Shouldn’t be an issue. I can email you when we’re done here.”
“Thank you. Sorry. I’ve watchedFriendsfar too many times to be completely happy with this situation.”
She laughed. “As aFriendslover myself, I completely understand. It’s such a shame they condemned the old town hall.” Beth looked around at the old building with ornately carved ceilings, a sad smile curving her lips. “It’s not even as though it needs to be torn down.”
“Yes, well, money talks,” I replied, following her gaze with my own. “It was only a matter of time before property like this was sold out to developers.”
Kim made a non-committal noise and met my gaze. “Well, that’s the way the cookie crumbles,” she said evasively. “Fortunately, you booked it before the sale went through and Mr. Warner’s cheque cleared just in time.”
“I believe the cheque arrived with a minor threat to sue if they cancelled after the contract was signed.”
Minor was an understatement.
Hazel had wanted to get married here for as long as I could remember.
The old Castleton Town Hall was three hundred years old, but it hadn’t been used for around thirty of those. The Brownies and Scouts and other organisations from Weight Watchers to the hodgepodge crochet club had utilised the building as a safe meeting space for years in an attempt to stop the council selling it on, but it hadn’t been quite enough. Even an attempt at getting it registered as a listed building had failed.
The rumours of the sale had started around last Christmas. Julian knew that Hazel dreamt of getting married here, and it had been our first mission when they’d asked me to plan their wedding.
The sale was already being negotiated, but between myself and Julian, we’d managed to get the contract signed, sealed, and delivered before the sale one had. It’d secured the venue for their wedding and delayed the demolition until afterwards.
Julian’s father wasn’t a high-powered lawyer for nothing.
That didn’t stop me imagining the worst, though. It was kind of my job. I had to be ready for every single scenario, including the ones most people wouldn’t think about, and I needed to have someone take liability for anything going wrong.
It sure as hell wasn’t going to be me.
Kim chuckled as we headed into the main room where the ceremony would be held before it would be flipped for the reception. “The lines on the flooring show you roughly where everything will be set up,” she replied, handing me a slip of paper with a floor plan on. “I’m sure you have one of these already.”
“I drew it.” I laughed. “But it’s nice to see it all in place in person. Do you mind if I take a moment to measure it up?”
“Of course not. It’s only masking tape on the floor, so you can adjust what you need to.”
“Thank you.” I set my folders down by the door, pulled out my tape measure, and got to work.
I walked the aisle, making sure it was the correct number of steps for Hazel’s wedding march. I counted the chair spots, ensuring there was enough room for all the guests invited to the ceremony. I measured the spot that would house the festive floral archway they’d be married under, checked the marked positioning of the table where they’d sign their marriage certificate, and did it all again two more times to make sure.
Satisfied, I made a few notes that would be relevant and gathered all my belongings from the doorway.
I looked back at the room.
I could barely believe my baby sister would be married here in three weeks’ time. That there’d be white chairs with redand green velvet bows, a seasonal archway with holly and pines and mistletoe, Christmas trees in every corner, candles and fairy lights and every other imaginable festive wonder filling this room.
With a happy sigh, I coddled my folder to my chest and stepped outside to meet Kim. She reassured me again that I’d have a venue confirmation by the end of the day, and after double-checking my details were correct on her form, I bid her goodbye and headed for the town square.
