Page 62 of Forever By Morning

“No worries. I’ll be fine.” I pulled out my phone for the first time since the wedding. The alarming amount of text messages waiting for me made me shove it right back in my purse and head into the sunny atrium.

I didn’t want to run into any of the wedding guests who were still checking out. I knew there was a side entrance thanks to being part of the wedding party. I wandered over to the large apple tree that was the star of the show. They’d built the Lodge around the old, gnarled tree. Between the skylights and stained glass, the light wood floors were a kaleidoscope of colors. The heavy, glossy leaves threw shadows in with the scattershot sunlight beams.

The room was round instead of square with handcrafted touches that urged people to follow walkways leading to the conference and banquet rooms. I followed the winding walkway past the tree and past the smaller conference room.

I heard Laverne’s voice soothing Cara as they hashed out what to do with an overbooking. Wedding season was in full swing, but there were other summer parties still going on. The warmer weather often made people want to gather.

The orchard was a perfect place full of charm and surprisingly elegant touches in with the rustic. I tried not to listen in on the issue, but I couldn’t help but feel bad for Cara. It sounded like the milestone birthday party was important and all the rooms were booked.

I slipped out the side double doors to the garden where people were still cleaning up from the wedding rehearsal mayhem. There were still sections corded off with yellow tape from the man who tried to attack or abduct Rachel’s sister, Willow.

She was a well-known internet figure with a staggering number of followers. Fame came in all sorts of levels and kinds these days. Unfortunately, that brought out new and scary ways for stalkers and obsessed fans to fixate on people.

It was only two nights ago, but for me, it felt like a lifetime had occurred in between.

If you cut away the awful police tape, the garden was spread out with walkways and little nooks for people to congregate and gather. It could be repurposed with a few strategically placed smaller tables. Maybe move some of the Adirondack chairs that were clustered together and make one centralized table for food.

It could work for a birthday party.

I turned to go inside and paused. It wasn’t my place to troubleshoot, and I had no idea if they had extra seating and tables they could use outside. The elements were always questionable, of course, but today the sun was shining, and the sky was clear.

There were enough trees to give cover…

Before I could talk myself out of it, I went back inside and found Laverne and Cara poring over a laptop.

“Laverne?”

She looked up from the screen, her glasses perched on her nose. “Oh, I’m sorry. It’s going to be some time before I can get this wrinkle ironed out.”

“I didn’t mean to overhear on my way by.”

Laverne pushed her glasses up onto her head, tucking her white hair back. “The curse of a busy season.”

“I was just thinking maybe you could make the side garden into a space for an impromptu birthday party.” I pitched my voice lower. “If the police have released the space, that is.”

“Oh, yes. We just haven’t opened up the paths yet again. We need to tidy things up.”

I moved into the conference room and spotted the legal pad on the table. I turned the page. “Good. Then maybe rearrange a few things, add some tables.” I drew a quick and dirty sketch from memory. “Make a few smaller tables for canapés, drinks here.” I made a trio of circles on one side then mirrored it across from the fire pit. “Make one desserts and one appetizers, maybe?” I looked up at her wide eyes. “I’m sorry, did I overstep?”

“No. I’m just mad I didn’t think about it before.” Laverne laughed. “And to think I was going to ask you about a different party that stumped me and here you are, saving my bacon.”

A warm rush of happiness slid through me. Years of my mother’s insane requests for parties made me a professional troubleshooter. It was nice to be able to use it for something else for a change. “If it’s an evening party, add some extra twinkle lights and maybe an outdoor heater or two. It would encourage people to mingle instead of sitting at tables.” I set the pen down. “If it’s age-appropriate.”

Laverne rushed at me and enveloped me in a huge hug. “Age-appropriate. You’re so cute. But yes, it’s a fortieth birthday party. And for some of the older people invited, we can make a seating area.” She let me go and turned to Cara. “Call over to Kira at the taproom and see if we can borrow some tables and chairs. She always has contacts for tables too since all of our rooms will be in use.”

Cara nodded and gave me a grateful smile. “I think you just saved my job.”

I squeezed her hand. “We all make mistakes.”

She sniffed and dabbed at her eyes. “I’ll just go get working on this.” She shot a worried glance at Laverne who only smiled at her.

“You’re not getting fired, Cara. This is just going to be a learning moment. Because you’re going to put this together.”

She gulped. “What? No. I screwed it all up. I can’t.”

“We all have to learn somewhere. I’ll help you out where I can.”

“I can help.” I heard myself blurt out.

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