“Christopher, you asked for cornflower and cadet, and that is what Gilbert provided for us.” Bradley, the shorter and sassier member of the soon-to-be-married couple waved his white wine glass around so much I thought it would slosh out onto the tablecloth.
“But I thought cadet would be more….” Christopher’s voice trailed off.
It wasn’t the first time the couple had discussed wedding colors in depth, and it certainly wasn’t the first time they’d second guessed their decisions. Half of my job as a wedding planner and organizer involved making sure the couple got exactly what they wanted. The other half was making themwant something reasonable. One week before the wedding, and already ensconced at the inn where they planned to tie the knot, reasonable meant no more changes.
Of course, they’d still change their minds on some things, and I’d do my best to give them options. At this point, it was mostly logistics and handling. Why did I ever decide to start this business in the first place? It wasn’t like I had personal experience with weddings or happy marriages. I stifled my sigh. Not that I hadn’t thought of it.
“You’ll look so handsome in cadet, though,” Bradley crooned and leaned over to twine his fingers with his fiancé’s. “It’s the perfect shade for your gorgeous eyes.”
It helped when at least one of the clients had handling skills, too. I took another bite of my delicious chicken salad and stared out the window toward the lake. Come to think of it, cadet blue was pretty close to the nanny’s eyes. Or did you call a man who provided childcare a manny? I didn’t know the right terminology.
All I knew was that Sam had really pretty eyes. Blue and gray with a bit of warm hazel mixed in near his pupils. His eyelashes were actually reddish, paler than his hair, but amazing.
I’d tried not to stare at them when we sat on the couch going over his hours and other details of Evie’s care. I tried not to map the cute freckles across his nose and cheeks, and absolutely did my best not to wonder how his brilliant red hair would feel between my fingers. He had a wide-open smile that had charmed Evie right away. Me too.
I shook my head and tuned back in to what my clients were talking about on the other side of the table. It had been a long time since I’d looked at another man and found myself fighting attraction. The ones Paige invited to our bed were always hot, but—
“Can we swap the daisies for ranunculus, Gilbert?” Christopher tented his fingers under his chin in the classic pretty-please pose. The hopeful smile on his face made him look younger than his fifty-two years. I suspected it was Botox and a skilled cosmetic surgeon that made Bradley look in his forties when I knew he was really pushing sixty.
I whipped out my phone and, in a few taps and swipes, verified that my second-choice florist in the city had the popular flower on regular order. “That we can do. What color?”
Christopher clapped his hands. “Ooh! Pink. No, white.” He glanced at Bradley. “Is white too bridal? I don’t want our wedding to look heteronormative.”
“As neither of us is a woman, that won’t be an issue, sweetheart,” Bradley said.
“You don’t want a bouquet, right? Just for your boutonnieres?”
“Right. And the display on the table.”
I’d ordered the final approved design of the centerpiece a month earlier and changing it a week before the wedding would be expensive as well as obnoxious for the florist shop. “How about the same daisy display with some added pink ranunculus as accents. It would set off the cadet and cornflower suits nicely.”
“Oh, I don’t know about the daisies at all now. It’s not like that bitch is going to show up anyway.” Christopher plunked his wine glass on the table and fiddled with his fork.
My plate lay empty before me, and I’d managed half the glass of wine Bradley suggested with lunch. The last thing I wanted to do was sit there and listen to my client moan about his sister again.
Daisies were her favorite flower, apparently, and he wanted to honor her as she was his only surviving family member. From what I gathered from the vacillating sobs and ranting, she wasn’t homophobic, but didn’t want her brother to marryBradley because his father went to the same university as her ex-husband’s brother. Or something.
“Well.” I slipped my napkin onto the table next to my plate. “I must get busy with work. Lots to do before your big day. Thank you so much for lunch.” I stood up and smiled down at them. “I’ll do my best to make it perfect for you both.”
Bradley patted the table between us. “Oh, we know you will. It’s not about the wedding anyway, right? That’s what they say. It’s about our love.”
Christopher’s fork rattled against his plate. “What’s that supposed to mean? You were the one who wanted…”
I strode across the empty restaurant, pulled my coat from the rack near the back door, and hurried out into the cold. I assumed the two men loved each other. They’d been together for sixteen years, after all, but they sure did like to stir up drama.
A frigid breeze off the lake ruffled my hair and sent a chill down my spine. I’d had enough drama to last me a lifetime. Unplanned pregnancy. Paige disappearing from the hospital. Ten months of figuring out how to be a single dad to the most wonderful girl in the world. And now… My thoughts turned back to Sam, the redheaded manny with the bright smile.
I couldn’t deal with this attraction. It wasn’t allowed. I shoved my hands deeper into my coat pockets and hurried back to the Cardinal Cabin, my baby, and the distracting stranger I’d be living with for the next two weeks.
***
Just past six o’clock, a porter bundled up for a polar expedition knocked on the door and handed over a large basket with a smile. The Cardinal Cabin at the Halcyon Inn was one of the biggest on site, but it still didn’t have a whole kitchen. The counter over the mini fridge held cannisters of formula, a boxof multi-grain O’s cereal, a well-stocked fruit bowl, and various other staples. The inn’s kitchen provided the rest.
Sam sat cross-legged on the floor with his laptop on the coffee table in front of him. He typed and clicked away while Evie played with her wooden cars nearby. After her nap, they’d alternated guided play and free time with no whining or tears at all.
Evie was a sunshiny baby, but Sam seemed to have a magic touch when it came to keeping her happy and engaged. Whatever stress I had about changing her caregiver for these two weeks had disappeared like the earlier clouds over the lake.
I pulled the covered dishes out of the basket. “Dinner’s here. I’ll set it out on the table.” Our eyes met when he looked up from his screen. “That is, if you want to eat with us. You can eat…” My voice drifted off as I glanced around the room. I didn’t want him to feel like he was banished to the bedroom whenever I was available. He was still technically on duty, but it wasn’t like I needed his help to feed my daughter.
