Not Quite Over You
Page 30

“We’ll be fine. I’m glad she’s going to stay current with her schoolwork.”
Leigh’s eyebrows rose. “I assume Drew is excited to meet her.”
Silver winced. “He will be.”
“Silver, you haven’t told him?”
“Not yet. It’s complicated.”
“It’s coming up soon. You have to let him know. I’ve already told Autumn and she wants to meet him. She’s also asking me how many dads are too many, but I guess that’s a good problem to have.”
“It is. And I will tell him.” She hoped she didn’t sound defensive. “Soon.”
“As long as he knows before we get there. I don’t want to be the one who has to explain it all to him.”
“You won’t. I’m going to do it.”
Leigh’s tone gentled. “He has to be ready or he’ll break Autumn’s heart. I know you don’t want that.”
“I don’t. I wouldn’t hurt her for anything. I’ll take care of it. I promise he’ll be totally on board before you and Autumn get here.”
After they’d hung up, Silver thought about her promise and hoped she wasn’t lying. Telling Drew was one thing—having him okay with the information was going to be another.
CHAPTER NINE
DREW HELD THE passenger door open for Silver.
“It’s just a party,” he said as he got in on his side. “Aside from food and drinks, what is there to plan?”
“Only everything. Is there a theme? What time of day? Is it lunch? Dinner? Afternoon? Will there be a band?” She glanced at him. “This isn’t just a party—it’s part wedding shower, part reception. For Bethany and Cade, this is the closest they’re going to get to a regular wedding-type event in Happily Inc. The actual wedding and reception will be defined by protocol and El Baharian tradition.”
“I stand corrected,” he said as he drove to Weddings Out of the Box. There was a meeting for all the vendors as Cade and Bethany discussed what they wanted. As Silver’s new business partner, Drew had been invited along to help with the brainstorming. Not that he had any idea of what they expected from him.
“What do you brainstorm?” he asked. “We’re just bartenders so you do drinks and that’s it?”
“I should slap you,” she said with a laugh. “Technically that is the service we provide, but at this point in the process, all ideas are usually welcome. There is the occasional bride who has been planning her wedding since she was ten and doesn’t want anyone else’s input, but most want to know what we think. We’ve done a lot of weddings and can often speak to the pitfalls. Some flowers are beautiful, but if they have a scent, they can overwhelm an event. Nothing makes food taste bad faster than stinky flowers.”
There was more to what Silver did than he’d first realized. As a guy, he’d known that, for the most part, weddings mattered a lot more to the bride than the groom. Ashley Lauren had been obsessed with the details and less concerned about their relationship.
They arrived at Weddings Out of the Box and parked. Silver collected her tote bag and walked next to him.
“We didn’t bring any samples,” he said.
“Until we know what they’re looking for, there’s no point. Once we pick a theme and colors, we’ll get together about the specifics. From what Pallas said, we have a really tight time frame, so nothing custom unless it can be done on a rush basis.”
“I suspect the king of El Bahar can pull a few strings.”
“I’m sure he can.”
Silver led the way to a conference room. Pallas was already there, along with Renee, Bethany and Cade.
Drew looked around. “I thought there would be more people.”
“I did, too.” Silver frowned. “The caterer at least and maybe a florist. Are we conferencing them in?”
“This is everyone,” Pallas confirmed. “Let’s take our seats and get started.”
Bethany sat next to Cade. Drew took a seat on his right. Silver, Pallas and Renee were on the other side of the table.
“To answer your question about the caterer,” Bethany said with a sigh, “my father wants me to use one from Los Angeles. Once we decide what the party is going to be, Cade and I will go see them and do our tasting there.”
Cade took her hand and squeezed her fingers. “We’re going to make this our party,” he told her.
“I want to believe you but my father is getting in the way.” She made a face. “He loves to take charge. It’s very annoying.”
Renee sighed. “Kings. What are you going to do?”
There was a moment of silence, then everyone laughed.
Pallas activated her tablet before looking at Bethany. “Even if the caterer is coming from LA, you still get a say in what you’re going to be eating. This party is for you and Cade, and we’re going to make it amazing.”
“There isn’t much time,” Bethany said, sounding doubtful. “We took so long arguing about what event was happening where and then picking a date, we aren’t going to be able to do anything really fun.” She looked at Cade. “I don’t want this to be some big royal event. All our friends will be there—I want them to have a good time. I want the party to be about us and how we are as a couple. What we like and how we see ourselves.”
“It will be,” he told her. “Have a little faith.”
Pallas leaned toward her. “Bethany, I know you’re overwhelmed. I promise to do everything in my power to make sure you love your party. Give us a chance to make you happy, okay?”
Bethany nodded. “Sorry. I’m being whiny. It’s just if you saw what was happening back in El Bahar, you’d run screaming into the night.”
Drew glanced at Silver. “Does she know it’s the middle of the day?” he asked in a stage whisper.
Bethany grinned. “It’s a figure of speech.” She drew in a breath. “Okay, let’s make this work.”
Drew didn’t consider himself overly intuitive when it came to women but even he could see that she was upset.
Renee picked up her pen. “Every good party needs a theme. If this were a traditional shower, it would be easier, but I’m not sure any of those ideas would work with the crowd we’re expecting.”
“Why not?” Cade asked.
Pallas and Renee exchanged a look. “Themes can range from spa day to lingerie. I’m not too sure we want to go there.”
“No hats,” Silver said with a smile. “So a Mad Hatter party is out. Let’s see. You two own a ranch and work with horses. What about a backyard barbecue?” Her eyes widened. “Oh, I know. Let’s do the I Do BBQ theme.”
Renee began writing furiously. “Yes, that would totally work. I’ve seen it done with weddings and showers. There are a million ideas on Pinterest. We dress as cowboys and cowgirls, the food is a combination of picnic, barbecue and down-home cooking.” She looked at Bethany. “What do you think?”
“I think I like it.” She turned to Cade. “Honey, are you good with that?”
He nodded. “It’s not scary. Or too pink. Men in suits will look out of place, but that was going to happen anyway.”
“Dark suits?” Pallas asked.
Bethany nodded. “Security for sure. My dad, the president.”