Tess in Boots

by Courtney Rice Gager

  “I’m fine.” He flashed me a confident smile. “Even better now that you’re staying.”

  “Just know I’m here for you, Jake.”

  “I know, Tessy. You always are.”

  ***

  Back at the cottage, I checked my phone first thing and my heart soared. A new text message. When I opened it up, I saw it was from Annie. Call me when you get a sec. I felt a little deflated. Still no Logan.

  I dialed Annie’s number, and she picked it up on the third ring.

  “Hey,” she whispered into the phone.

  “Are you at work?” I stood at the French doors and looked over the trees to the mountains on the horizon.

  “I am. Hang on.” There was a rustling sound on the other end of the line. “Okay, I’m outside now.”

  “If this is a bad time—”

  “No. It’s fine. I can talk for a second.”

  “Well, good. How are things? I’ve missed you.”

  “Look, Tess. I have to tell you something. It’s something I don’t want to tell you. But you’re my best friend. So I’m going to tell you.”

  “Tell me what?”

  She took a long breath. “I saw Logan last night.”

  A wave of relief crashed over me. Logan! She saw him. But in the next instant, my relief was replaced by anxiety. Questions popped into my mind faster than I could ask them.

  “You did? What did he say? How did he look? Did he mention me at all?”

  “He didn’t see me.”

  I paced around the cottage. “What do you mean? I thought you said you saw him.”

  “I did. Tess, he was with someone.”

  I froze. All of the air left my lungs with a whoosh. Tears welled up in my eyes.

  “Are you there?”

  “I’m here.” My voice shook. “Do you think it was someone from work?”

  “I didn’t go up to him or anything. But… it didn’t seem like a business meeting to me. He was having a drink with some girl. They were talking and leaning in all close. They looked… familiar. I saw her kiss him on the cheek once. I didn’t see anything else.”

  “Was she pretty?”

  “Tess…”

  “Answer the question, Annie!”

  “Well, yeah. I guess she was pretty. But she’s no you.”

  I let the tears spill over and fall onto my cheeks.

  “Tess? Are you there?”

  “Yeah.”

  “I’m so sorry. It could be nothing. But still… it didn’t look like nothing. I felt like I should tell you. Do you want me to come down there this weekend? We could hang out.”

  “No.” My voice cracked, and I cleared my throat. “No, I’m fine. We’ve booked a wedding. I’m swamped for the next couple weeks.”

  “I shouldn’t have said anything…”

  “No! Annie, you did the right thing. Thank you.”

  “I hate this for you.”

  “I know. But you still did the right thing. You’re a good friend.”

  There was a commotion on her end of the line. “Listen, I gotta run. Call me tonight if you need to talk.”

  “Yeah. Bye.”

  “Bye, Tess.”

  I threw the phone onto the bed and leaned against the wall, letting myself sink down until I was sitting on the floor with my chin resting on my knees. All this time I was clinging to a speck of hope there was still a chance for me and Logan. Now I could feel that little speck of hope melting away forever.

  He was seeing someone. And well, so was I. But that was different. I hadn’t meant to kiss Thatcher. It happened out of the blue. And the whole reason I was in the situation to begin with was because I was hiding out and waiting around for Logan. Meanwhile, he was seeing someone else.

  It was over. Seven years, just… over. Gone. And the worst part was Logan hadn’t even bothered to tell me.

  ***

  I stood behind the bar, across from Vivian, leaning on the countertop and checking items off a handwritten list, one by one. There was so much to tackle; I suggested we start the process by brainstorming a list of everything she and I would be handling together.

  “Flowers?”

  “Yes.”

  “Music?”

  “Yes.”

  “Food?”

  “Yes.”

  “Drinks?”

  “Yes.”

  “Cake?”

  “Yes.”

  “Photographer?”

  “Yes.”

  “Officiant?”

  “Yes.”

  After my phone call with Annie, I pulled all the curtains closed in the cottage and let myself fall apart. But I couldn’t stay there forever, not with this wedding looming overhead. So I picked myself off the floor and tried my best to conceal an afternoon of crying under a thick layer of powdered foundation. I hoped it worked, and if it didn’t, I hoped Vivian would at least be too busy to notice. Talk about perfect timing. Poring over the details of someone else’s happily ever after was about the last thing I felt like doing.

  “So…” I scanned my list and looked up at her. “We’re responsible for everything but the bridal attire and the invites.”

  She looked at the list and nodded. “Correct.”

  “Do we have an idea of how many guests?”

  “Yes. Twenty. Give or take a couple.”

  “Okay.” I jotted down the number twenty and circled it twice. “Nice and small. I like that.”

  She smiled.

  “Time?” I asked.

  “Hmm. What do you suggest?”

  Focus, Tess.

  “I think…” I looked out the barn window for inspiration. It was late in the afternoon, and the light around this time of day gave the whole place an orangey glow. “I think let’s do it in the evening. Around five-thirty. We’ll have the ceremony in here, with the sun peeking through the cracks in the roof, and we’ll light the whole place with white candles. Then, we’ll do cocktails and dinner under a tent out on the main lawn. Cut the cake at sunset. Turn on the lights around twilight and dance for the rest of the night. I’m picturing a big brass band and roses everywhere. How does that sound?”

  Vivian nodded vigorously. “It sounds like perfection. Like you’ve been planning this for years.”

  “Thank you.” I swallowed hard and made some meaningless doodles on my list until I was sure I could speak without crying. “Do you think they’ll want to do a rehearsal the night before? We have a fabulous bridal suite on the premises, and I can reserve some rooms downtown for the guests.”

  “Yes. I think so,” she said.

  I jotted down some more notes. “Well, it looks like we have our work cut out for us. I’m going to write all this up into a contract and have you sign it first thing in the morning. Our fees will be outlined there, and if there aren’t any issues with costs, we’ll get started.”

  “There won’t be,” she said.

  I nodded. “Good. I’m thinking we should start working tomorrow on finding a tent, tables, chairs, and all that stuff. Are you up for it?”

  “Yes. Of course.”

  “Great. Let’s meet here at nine? We can take my car.”

  “Nine it is. Thank you, Tess. I’ll see you in the morning.” Vivian picked her purse up from the bar and tucked it under her arm.

  “See you then,” I said. I walked her to the door and looked on as she got into her car and drove away.

  Off in the distance I spotted Thatcher walking among the overgrown grapevines alongside a man I hadn’t seen before. They were talking intently and stopping every few steps to examine the branches. I watched him for a while, until he seemed to feel my gaze on him. He peeked over his shoulder and caught me staring. I hesitated for a moment, and then lifted my hand in a small wave. Without breaking stride, he smiled and waved in return.

  My heart was still heavy from the news about Logan seeing someone else. And yet, despite it all, I couldn’t deny something new and exciting stirring inside me. It was the first time I’d seen Thatcher s
ince the kiss. I thought I’d be long gone by now, and I hadn’t even planned on saying goodbye. But I was glad I was here, in a way, because it felt good to get a glimpse of him. It was comforting.

  Maybe it was time to stop avoiding him. After all, there was nothing holding me back anymore, was there? So maybe I’d try and get to know him a little better. Just one person getting to know another. There wasn’t anything wrong with that.

  I would see him again, I decided.

  What could it hurt?

  CHAPTER 12

  “Um… chicken?” I gulped as I looked at the carcass dangling on the clothesline. From behind me, I could hear Vivian quietly gagging.

  “Nope.” The man in the bloody apron broke into a wide toothless smile. “Give up?”

  I placed a hand over my mouth to avoid a gag of my own. “Yes. I give up.”

  “Possum!” His chest puffed out with pride. “Fresh possum. Just found it this morning. By the looks of it, I reckon the poor feller got hit by a truck last night.”

  I gulped. “Possum, did you say?”

  He nodded. “Yep. And with any luck, I’ll have a few more by the weekend. Caterin’ a graduation party. Lots of mouths to feed.”

  “Did they… did they order possum?”

  The man gave a loud guffaw and slapped me on the back. “No one ever orders possum. But it passes for pork. Most of the time.”

  I glanced over my shoulder and gave Vivian an apologetic look. This was a mistake. I should have known better than to drag her out to the first caterer I found in the phonebook. At this rate, my stint as a wedding planner would be over before it began.

  “Hang on. Let me run inside and get ya a brochure.” He wiped his bloody hands on his apron as he headed through the tall grass, past several broken-down vehicles, and toward a small house.

  As soon as he was out of earshot, I turned to Vivian. “I think we should leave,” I whispered. “I think we should leave right now.”

  We regarded one another for a few seconds, and then without another word, broke into a frenzied dash to my car. I hit the accelerator and sped away before we’d even finished buckling our seatbelts.

  I tried to remain composed as we turned onto the main road, “I’m so sorry about that. This was a brand new recommendation, so I figured we’d make a quick stop and check him out. Because, well, it was on our way and all. We won’t be using him, of course.”

  “Of course,” Vivian echoed. I expected her to be appalled, but I thought I detected a hint of amusement in her voice.

  I was one day into it, and already this wedding-planning thing was a whole lot more work than I ever expected.

  I stayed up late making a list of caterers and hunting down the only party-rental company in the area, as well as creating a contract to itemize the vineyard’s event planning and hosting fees. I never created a contract before, but thanks to a sample I found online, I was able to draft one up in a hurry. I was glad I only had to answer to Jake, because I wasn’t sure how official my makeshift contract was. But it would have to do, at least until the dust settled and we had a chance to put together something more formal for next time. Did we need to register as some sort of corporation? Had we already done that? Were these things that had even crossed Jake’s mind?

  I shook my head and adjusted my hands on the steering wheel. There was no time. I needed to concentrate on getting through the next two weeks. This first wedding would have to be a trial run, dead possums and all. We’d iron out the details later.

  “What about the rental company?” Vivian asked from the passenger seat. “Have you been there before?”

  The rental company was right down the street from the road kill caterer, and I slowed the car as we neared our turn.

  I didn’t want to lie to her, but I didn’t want to let on I had no idea what I was doing, either. “They’re the best around,” I said. It was true, I hoped, because as far as I knew, they were the only ones around.

  We pulled onto a gravel road which led to a large single-story warehouse. From the outside it looked like an abandoned meat-packing factory. I sucked in my breath. Maybe it hadn’t been a good idea for Vivian to tag along here, either.

  “This is it!” I turned to her and flashed a chipper smile. “Shall we?”

  We got out of the car and walked together to the front door. It was locked, but there was a sign instructing visitors to ring the doorbell. I pushed it and heard a loud buzzing noise echoing off the walls inside.

  A few seconds later, a man propped the door open just enough to peek his head through. “Yes? Can I help you?”

  “Good morning. We’d like to talk to you about rentals for a wedding,” I said.

  “Do you have an appointment?”

  “An appointment?” I hadn’t even thought about making one. “Well, no. But we’ve come a long way, and—”

  “Come in, then.” He heaved a sigh and muttered to himself as he opened the door wider and allowed us to pass through.

  Inside, the place was much more elegant than its stark outward appearance made it seem. I felt a rush of relief as I looked around. There was soft music playing, and a reception area was set up like a formal living room under a large chandelier.

  “Have a seat.” He gestured for us to sit on the sofa, and then lowered himself into a chair across from us, crossing his legs and peering over his glasses.

  I sat on the edge of the sofa and rested my hands on my knees. “Thank you. Well… um… we’re having a wedding. At Carl’s Creek. It’s a vineyard about an hour up the road. And we’re looking for a tent, chairs, things like that.”

  He picked up a pad of paper from a nearby coffee table and began to make notes. “Do you have any existing supplies at the venue?”

  “No, but we have an empty barn and a large field. We want to do the ceremony in the barn and the reception outdoors.”

  “Number of people?” he asked.

  “Twenty or so,” I said.

  “Restrooms?”

  I blinked. “Excuse me?”

  “Do you have restrooms on the premises, or will you be needing them?”

  The thought hadn’t even occurred to me. Oh boy. But I was supposed to have done this before, I reminded myself. Be confident, Tess. “We will need them. But not those porta-potty things.”

  He smirked. “I’m referring to our luxury restroom trailers. They come with granite countertops, marble tiles, and mahogany woodwork. They’re quite nice.” He made a few more notes. “It sounds like we’ll need the works. Tent, lighting, dance floor, tables, chairs, tablecloths, napkins, place settings, flatware, barware, restrooms, candelabras, candles, aisle runner… am I missing anything?”

  I shook my head.

  He lifted a finger. “Oh, right. Have you chosen a caterer yet?”

  “Not yet,” I said.

  “We work with one I can put you in touch with,” he said.

  “Oh, that would be wonderful. They don’t serve possum, do they?”

  A look of disgust crossed his face. “I beg your pardon?”

  I glanced at Vivian. “Nothing. It was a joke.”

  “They’re the best I’ve come across. They have their own catering tents and supplies. You know, grills, ice machines, coolers, buffet servers.”

  Grills? Catering tents? Buffet servers? More things I didn’t realize we’d need. “Of course.” I folded my hands on my lap. It was the only thing keeping me from tearing away at my fingernails.

  “Date?” he asked.

  “The thirtieth,” I said.

  “Of?”

  “June. This June.”

  He threw back his head and laughed. “Oh, you’re too much,” he said once he composed himself. “All right, what’s the date?”

  “June thirtieth,” I said.

  “Get out.” He threw the notepad onto the table and pointed to the door. “Out, out, out!”

  I could feel myself breaking into a sweat. What now? There was no backup plan. This was my only option. I opened up my mo
uth to say something, but Vivian chimed in before I could find the right words.

  “We’ll pay anything.” Her voice was abrupt and a little desperate. “Anything at all.”

  He pursed his lips and looked at her for a long moment. Then he picked up the notepad and gave a noisy click of his pen.

  “I was kidding, of course. Let’s talk color schemes.”

  ***

  Vivian and I arrived back at the vineyard around three in the afternoon, exhausted from wedding overload. On our way home, we shared a good laugh recounting the details of our adventures at the caterer’s and the rental company. If she noticed I was nervous, she didn’t let on.

  “I think I need a nap,” I said as I got out of the car.

  “I think I need a drink!” Vivian tossed her hands up in the air.

  I laughed. “Flowers tomorrow?”

  “Yes. But I’m spent for today. I’m going back to the hotel to freshen up and get some rest.”

  “Are you staying in town?”

  She nodded.

  “Maybe we could get something to eat sometime,” I said.

  She seemed to be giving it careful consideration. “Yes,” she finally said. “I think we could do that. Why don’t we meet for lunch tomorrow, before the florist?”

  “That sounds good.”

  “There’s a diner, right when you get into town.”

  The place Thatcher took me to get pancakes, I realized. “I know the one. What time?”

  “Around noon?”

  “That’s great. I’ll see you there, Vivian.”

  “See you there. And call me Viv. My friends call me Viv.”

  “Okay. Viv.” I smiled at her as we parted ways.

  I turned and headed back to the barn, carrying a wedding binder that was already filling up with paperwork. I was fumbling with a loose piece of paper when I passed through the door and came close to slamming into Thatcher.

  “Hey,” I said.

  “Hey, yourself.”

  It was my first real encounter with him since the kiss, and I didn’t expect to see him so soon. He looked down at me with such intensity that for a second, I forgot what I was doing. I felt the weight of the binder in my arms. Oh, yeah. The paper. I balanced the binder on my knee and tucked the stray paper back into place.