Jenni Beth scrolled through her contact list, found Pia’s number, and called her. She had absolutely no idea how to handle this mess and could come up with no good reason for Pia to have made a move like that.
Still second-guessing herself, she heard Pia answer.
“Bella Fiore.”
“Hey, Pia, Jenni Beth here. Um, have you talked to Stella recently?”
“Next week’s bride?”
“Yes.”
“No, I sure haven’t. Has she changed her mind about the flowers?”
“No, she hasn’t. You didn’t call her yesterday or last night?”
“No, I’ve never spoken with her. You’ve been the middleman.”
If Pia was lying, she was darned good at it.
“Is there a problem?”
“This is awkward. Somebody called to tell her the rose garden had been destroyed. That we couldn’t host her wedding at Magnolia House.”
“Oh no, Jenni Beth, I’m so sorry. When did that happen?”
“It didn’t.”
“But—” Pia hesitated. “I’m confused.”
“That makes two of us.”
“So, nothing’s wrong?”
Jenni Beth wasn’t so sure of that, but she said, “No, I guess not. I reassured Stella, and we’re good. Everything okay on your end?”
“Absolutely. Her flowers are ordered and my supplier promised them on Thursday, which gives me plenty of time to finish the arrangements.”
When she hung up, Jenni Beth was as confused as before. Had Pia made the call to Stella? If so, why? If not, could the accent simply be a coincidence?
She had a hard time swallowing that.
Jenni Beth had enjoyed Savannah, had more than enjoyed her time with Cole. Just thinking about him sent her body into spasms of ecstasy. So easy in his own body, the man had no problem navigating a woman’s, either.
And now? Time to see what was going on at home.
The minute she stopped her car in the drive, she hopped out and raced to the rose garden. The scent hit her as she rounded the corner. And there it was in all its glory.
A huge sigh of relief escaped.
A small piece of her had been so afraid the phone call hadn’t been a hoax.
But everything was okay.
Hurrying inside, Jenni Beth hugged her mom, dad, and Charlotte before giving them an abridged and carefully edited version of her trip. She left out her sleepover with Cole as well as the phone call that had brought her running home early.
Thanking Charlotte, she accepted a glass of sweet tea and carried it with her to the attic, her mind swirling with everything that had happened and with all the things she still needed to do for Magnolia House’s first wedding.
If she’d learned anything from this whole experience, it was that she couldn’t do it on her own. She’d gone into this with no partners and no backup. Had risked everything and felt all alone.
Somewhere along the line that had changed. Oh, the ultimate responsibility for the success or failure of Magnolia Brides rested on her shoulders. The decisions were still ultimately hers. But Cole and Beck had stepped up to the plate and helped her make her dream a reality.
Could she have done it by herself? She’d like to think so. Liked to think she could have hired and supervised a crew. Could have made the correct decisions on replacing all or part of the siding, on the best way to sand and stain the hardwood floors.
Truth, though? She didn’t know. And because they were such great friends, she hadn’t had to find out.
Wandering over to the board for next weekend’s wedding, she studied the printout of the photos Stella’d emailed her. Front, back, and side views of her dress. Ideas for flowers, for the cake. Jenni Beth had taped up color chips and fabric swatches to use in the decorations. Pia had sent mock-ups of the flower arrangements.
Lists covered every surface. In longhand, on the computer, and scrawled on Post-its. They were her life and always had been. Carefully she went through them again, making sure nothing had been neglected or forgotten.
By the time she finished, she’d come to the realization she’d need help on the actual day of the wedding. Charlotte had offered, as had her mom, but even with what they could do, she’d need someone else because, although they wouldn’t actually be eating here, there would be the cake, champagne, taped music to cue, and on and on. The list boggled her mind.
At Chateau Rouge, she’d had staff already in place. Not so at Chateau Magnolia.
She called Luanna and explained her situation. “I know it’s short notice, but do you think Dee-Ann would give you the day off to work the wedding? I’ll pay you two times what you make at the diner.”
“Two times?”
“Yes.” She winced, but it was the price of doing business. “Absolutely. I need you.”
“I’m already off Saturday, and the answer is yes. I’m your girl.”
“Bless you. I could really use another one or maybe even two more assistants, so if you know anyone—”
“I do.”
“Okay, great. Call them, see if they can work, and get back to me. But be sure they understand that if they agree to come in for this, they can’t back out. No excuses. No sick babies or cranky husbands. I need to be able to count on them. There’re going to be a lot more weddings here at Magnolia House, and I’ll need help at every one of them.”
With a mouthed “yes” and a fist pump, she checked that item off her to-do list. The cake and flowers were ordered and a couple of Beck’s men were constructing a temporary outside dance floor. Even though the reception itself would be held at Duffy’s Pub, the couple wanted their first dance as husband and wife to be here.
Jenni Beth wanted that, too.
Sooner or later, they’d need a moveable dance floor anyway. The guys had decided to make it in sections so that after the wedding it could be torn down and stored till the next time it was needed. Charlie had come up with the design, and it was a humdinger. The man was incredibly talented, and she wondered vaguely if Beck paid him enough. Or if she paid him enough.
Her mind switched back to the big picture. Once things got rolling on Saturday, there was one person she’d want beside her, one person she’d want to share the day with—other than Cole.
Tansy Calhoun. A slight problem with that, though. Now Tansy Forbes, she lived a three hours’ drive from here.
Bigger problem? Mr. Forbes. The biggest jerk Jenni Beth had ever had the displeasure of meeting.
At first, she’d tried to convince herself she disliked him out of loyalty to Beck, but it was more than that. It was the man himself.
Without giving herself any more time to think about it, Jenni Beth called her. “Tanz? Do you think you might be able to come home for a few days? I haven’t seen you in forever, and, well, I could really use some help.”
“On the house?”
“No, with my first wedding!” Excitedly, she filled Tansy in. “I’d love to have you here to share it.”
In the background, Jenni Beth heard the jerk hollering at his wife to get off the phone. He needed a fresh cup of coffee. His had grown cold.
“Jenni Beth, I’d love to help, but things are…unsettled here. I can’t make any promises.”
“Why do you put up with that?”
“He’s my husband.”
And she hung up.
Jenni Beth clicked off and wondered what had happened to the Tansy Calhoun she’d grown up with. Like a beaten dog, she cowered at her husband’s commands.
The last time she’d seen Tansy, her friend had been stick-thin and grim-faced. None of the spark that used to shine from her golden eyes had survived.
She’d pleaded with her to leave Emerson, to come home. But Tansy was nothing if not loyal. How good could it be, though, to raise a young girl in a home so completely dominated by that man? What kind of warped view of the male/female relationship would it foster in Gracie?
Well, she guessed she could add that to the list of things to keep her awake at night.
But it sure wouldn’t tonight. While she’d worried about Tansy, the sky outside had gone completely dark.
Too tired to even go downstairs to raid the refrigerator, she pulled off her clothes and fell into bed. A smile tugged at the corners of her mouth as she remembered exactly why she hadn’t gotten much sleep last night.
Too bad she’d woken up to such a mess. Tomorrow had to be better.