Why Not Tonight
Page 48

“It’s been fun,” Natalie said, then wanted to groan. Couldn’t she have come up with something less dweeby than that?
“I’ve been working in wedding planning for a couple of years now,” Renee told her. “In Beverly Hills. Those weddings were all very formal and traditional. I’m pleased to have the opportunity to experience events that are more relaxed and fun. The idea of a wedding based on a movie will provide great memories for the couple to share. I hadn’t seen the movie myself, but I watched it over the weekend.”
“What did you think?”
Renee hesitated before smiling. “Let’s just say I’m glad it’s so meaningful to them.”
Natalie laughed. “That is a very diplomatic way of saying it wasn’t your thing.”
“I’m more a foreign-film kind of girl.”
“Oh, really?” On purpose? Natalie tried to find common ground. “The guy I’ve been seeing loves action movies, but I’m willing to overlook that.”
Pallas joined them. “Oh, good. You’ve met. Sorry I’m running a little late. I actually got hungry and made myself a sandwich. Yay, progress.”
“You’re looking great,” Natalie said, noting her friend had some color in her cheeks and she didn’t look as tired. “I’m glad you’re feeling so much better.”
“Me, too. All right. The bride and groom have just pulled into the parking lot. Silver texted to say she’ll be here in minutes, and the parents are waiting on the conference room screen. Shall we?”
They walked toward the conference room. Natalie hung back a little, letting Renee go ahead. Pallas moved next to Natalie and lowered her voice.
“What do you think of Renee?”
Natalie looked at the petite redhead. “She scares me a little, but she seems nice. Is she as accomplished as she appears?”
“More. I know what you mean about the intimidation factor, but she knows her stuff. Sometimes I think she knows it better than me and she’s what? Two years younger. Ack!”
They reached the conference room just then and went to greet the bride and groom. Silver arrived and Pallas connected the parents for the meeting.
“Are we ready?” Pallas asked as everyone took a seat.
Ellen squeezed Barry’s hand. “I’m so excited about all this,” she said happily. “We’re talking menus and finalizing our plans. It’s starting to be real.”
“Very real,” Pallas told her with a smile. “Renee, why don’t you tell our bride and groom what you’ve been working on?”
Renee nodded, then glanced at Silver. “I’ve been consulting with our master mixologist and we have a few more exciting cocktail ideas for you to consider. Obviously the signature cocktail needs to be green, both for the Joker and Poison Ivy—two excellent and well-developed characters. Silver and I have been discussing infusing vodka with different flavors and then using an organic food coloring to get the shade of green we want.”
“I’ve been trying out a few ideas,” Silver said. “It’s going to be really easy and we can work with different ingredients.”
“That sounds great.” Ellen beamed. “I’m excited to try everything.”
“We’ll set up a tasting right after the meeting.”
“Not too much tasting,” Ellen’s mother said from the screen. “It’s the middle of the day.”
Ellen rolled her eyes. “Yes, Mom.”
Natalie tried not to smile.
Renee checked her tablet. “I have a vendor who will make custom tortilla chips. I’ve checked and a bat shape is no problem. That allows us to consider a wonderful chip and dip station. We can have the traditional salsas and guacamole, of course, but also things like crab dip or artichoke dip. I wrote down some thoughts.”
She passed around sheets of paper. Natalie blanched when she saw the neatly organized spreadsheet complete with a floor plan for the reception space and a flow for the guests. Pallas caught her eye and mouthed, “I know!”
Renee turned to Natalie. “I’ve been admiring your flowers. They’re lovely and I appreciate that you used comic book print to make them. Taking that one more step, a trend these days is to serve finger food in rolled-up paper.” She turned to Ellen. “The notes from the previous meeting mention that you’re interested in a lot of finger foods. What if we used the comic book paper for that, as well? It would be so charming and fun.”
Renee was on a roll. She shared over a dozen other ideas that all had the bride and groom giddy with excitement. Pallas seemed relieved and Silver was scribbling furiously every time a drink was mentioned.
Natalie realized her part-time gig as Pallas’s helper had ended. The slightly mysterious and very together Renee was going to pick up any slack, leaving Natalie free to return to her art projects, especially the one Atsuko had mentioned. And she would, just as soon as she stopped being curious about who Renee was and why she’d decided to move to Happily Inc.
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
THE SALLY RIDE Elementary School was about two blocks from the Rio de los Suenos and ten minutes from the gallery. Ronan figured he’d driven by it maybe a hundred times and had never once paid attention to it. Today, he pulled into the parking lot and told himself he was an idiot. Who was he to think he could help some kid he’d never met? Or a kid he had met. He wasn’t equipped or trained. His entire experience with children came from being a kid himself. He should cancel the meeting and go back to work. Only he couldn’t.
Natalie’s talk about her mother had lodged in his brain and refused to let go. He’d gone online and done some preliminary research and had found out that studies really did show that art made a difference in a child’s mental development. It improved confidence, motor skills and focus. Creating art used both sides of the brain and, as Natalie had said, showed more than one way to solve a problem.
He grabbed his backpack and walked into the school. After introducing himself to the man at the front desk, he was shown to the principal’s office.
Dr. Anthony was in her midfifties. She motioned for Ronan to take a seat on a very worn sofa while she sat in an equally battered club chair.
“This is where I hang out with nervous parents,” she joked. “I call it my corner of tears. Having said that, let’s both try not to cry during this meeting. You’ll be humiliated and that will make me uncomfortable.”
Ronan chuckled. “It’s a deal.”
She studied him. “When I saw your name on my calendar, I thought it sounded familiar, so I looked you up online. You have an interesting reputation, Mr. Mitchell.”
“Ronan, please. As for my reputation, I’m assuming it was all about my work.”
“It is. Your personal life is a bit of a mystery. In this day and age, that’s rare. Most people who can get their fifteen minutes of fame seem willing to do almost anything.”
“I prefer to work in quiet.”
“Then how can I help you?”
He wasn’t sure what to say. “I understand that school budgets are squeezed these days. More students and requirements with less money. Programs get cut.”
“You’re talking about art programs, aren’t you?”
He nodded.
She sighed. “Yes, they have been. We try. Our regular teachers fill in as best they can, but we don’t have a designated art teacher anymore.”