An Event to Remember. . .or Forget (Event to Remember Series Book 1)

by Baldwin, Melissa

  The volunteers are still hard at work with the cleanup. I am beyond delirious now, but I manage to gather the remainder of the auction items and pledge cards. I have a meeting next week with the Cantons to close everything out and hopefully discuss the launch.

  A little while later, I drag myself up to my hotel room and lie down. I finally check my phone for the first time since earlier today. I have missed calls from Madison, my parents, and Luke. I am so emotionally drained that I don’t call any of them back. It can wait until tomorrow. As soon as I lie down, I cry myself to sleep.

  The next morning I wake up with a massive headache. I managed to get a decent night’s sleep, although I probably came pretty close to overdosing on Nyquil. I order breakfast and turn on the TV. All of the events of last night come rushing back to me, and I feel a huge lump in my throat. How could he do this to me? When did it start? As much as I don’t want to see him right now, I want some answers. I call Madison and, of course, she already knows about what happened. I knew Craig would call her.

  “I have been so worried about you,” she yells. “Why didn’t you call me to come stay with you?”

  “I know, I thought about it but honestly I was so tired. I just didn’t want to talk about it. So, I guess I owe you a big apology for all the times I yelled at you. You were right all along,” I say finally. “Go ahead and get it over with, I chose another bad one.”

  “You do not owe me an apology. I know I like to be right sometimes but . . .”

  “Sometimes?” I interrupt.

  “Ok, all the time. But this is one time I would give anything to be wrong,” she says insistently.

  “I know, me too. I haven’t officially broken things off with him YET. I just want some answers.” I take another bite of my oatmeal. The warmth feels good on my throat.

  “Wait a minute. You’re not taking him back, right?” she asks firmly.

  “Oh, not a chance in hell,” I reply. “This has been long overdue, especially after Palm Springs. Anyway, I’ll be home later. We can talk more then.”

  I get off the phone and check all of my messages. There is one from Luke saying that he wants to talk. This ought to be very interesting. I wonder what kind of explanation he will give to try to get out of this mess. I have no intention of calling him back today. I will let him sit on it for another day or so.

  I take my time getting ready and packing up. A few hours later, I head home.

  As I am driving, I start to wonder if Luke said anything to Carrie about me resigning. I can’t believe I didn’t think about this before. He couldn’t have told her because she would have said something to me by now, right? I still wonder how she could face me and have no remorse at all. She has to know that I can’t continue to work for her anymore. This is just all so overwhelming, and very soon I am going to be single AGAIN. I will be a twenty-seven-and-a-half-year-old old maid. It’s a good thing I hate cats, so at least I will never be referred to as the old, single cat lady. This is definitely not how I planned things. Although, if I have learned anything recently, it’s that you can’t plan everything.

  Monday morning, it’s the first day back at work after the big event. My voice has not completely returned, but at least I’m feeling a little bit better. I spent the majority of Sunday resting both physically and emotionally. I still haven’t talked to Luke.

  Craig is already at the office when I arrive.

  “Hey, I wasn’t sure if you were planning on coming in today.”

  “Yes, well, there’s still work to be completed. Let’s get all of the auction and pledge totals. I will meet with the Cantons tomorrow morning. We also need to organize and stock up the décor closet. I want to make sure everything is accounted for. We don’t need Carrie saying that we stole anything, not that she even knows what is in there.”

  “Oh please, after what she has done. She has no right to say anything. Which, by the way, reminds me. Have you thought any more about my revenge idea?” he says, giving me a wicked smile.

  “Um, no, I have not. Also, I would rather not discuss Carrie and the events from the other night. Let’s just get everything done so we can move on from this,” I plead.

  I have a busy and uneventful morning until around 2:00 p.m. when Luke shows up. I was not expecting him to stop by.

  “Oh, hello, Luke. Who are you here to see, Sienna or Carrie?” Craig says angrily. Luke is clearly irritated, but he ignores him.

  “Sienna, I would like to talk to you. I want to explain.”

  “What is there to explain? You’re disgusting,” interrupts Craig.

  “Craig, thank you for defending me, but I got this,” I whisper and turn to Luke. “Let’s get this over with, I’m extremely busy today,” I say as I walk into my office. He follows me quietly and sits down.

  “Thanks for talking to me. I need to explain how all of this happened.” He takes a deep breath and starts talking.

  “A while ago, I was starting to research the possibility of opening my own advertising firm. I have really been considering getting out on my own, especially after we lost that huge account. Once things started moving along for you with Sheer Happiness, I got a little envious, so I started looking for investors. One night I was out at a meeting with potential investors, and they also happened to be friends of Carrie’s. When Carrie heard my plans, she expressed a lot of interest in my idea.” He stops. “I’m not sure if you know this, but she is looking into selling this company.”

  “I had a feeling she was. Anyway, continue,” I say firmly.

  “OK. So she and the other friend invited me to come down to Palm Springs to discuss the plans. I didn’t say anything because I didn’t want to upset you. I know how things have been here with her, and I didn’t want to add to that stress. It started out as strictly business, and then it started to become a weekly trip. I had no intention of anything ever happening until she basically gave me an ultimatum, and I did what I thought I had to do. I told her that was it, but she doesn’t accept rejection very well.” He stops talking and stares at the floor.

  I sit there staring at him with my arms folded. “So, you are telling me that you cheated on me with my boss to get her to invest in an idea for a company? Did I get that right?”

  “Yes,” he replies. “I’m so sorry. I want you to know that I really do love you. I just made a bad decision.”

  “A bad decision?” I repeat. “Wow. You are the most pathetic human being I have ever met. Get out of my office and out of my life.” He sits there not moving.

  “I understand,” he finally says. “Hopefully in time you will forgive me, and we could start over, maybe?” he says, sounding hopeful. Is he serious?

  “Never,” I reply. “Get out.”

  He stands up to leave and I suddenly remember something.

  “Luke, wait.” He turns back to face me. “Don’t forget this,” I say as I hand him the nameplate he gave me for our anniversary. He looks at it for a few seconds before he takes it and turns to leave.

  I quietly sit back down at my desk. At first, I don’t feel anything until the tears slowly roll down my cheeks. Not because of what he has done to me, but because I wasted almost a full year of my life. A few minutes later, Craig comes in and sits down. He doesn’t say anything at first.

  “You OK?” he asks.

  “Yes, I will be fine,” I say, wiping my eyes. “Can you put a call in to Carrie that I want to have a meeting tomorrow afternoon with her? Tell her it’s to close out the Faith, Fashion, and Hope. It’s time for me to put in my resignation.

  I start to clean out my office, and I am amazed at the amount of junk I have collected in the past few years. While I’m packing up my stuff, I think about everything Luke said. He actually thought I would forgive him and take him back? He’s not as smart as I gave him credit for.

  In the bottom of one of my drawers, I find an envelope with photos in it. They are pictures of Carrie and I at one of the first events I did when I started here. I slowly tear each one of them
apart, and with each picture, I start to feel a little bit better. I bet that if and when I go to therapy, the therapist will tell me that this is a good way to express my emotions. I add *Go to Therapy to my to-do list.

  Craig comes back into my office. “Carrie said that she would be here in a few days because she is interviewing some new assistants. I think we need to warn those poor girls of what is in store for them. Don’t you?” he sits down and looks through the stuff on my desk. “We need to tell them all about working here. Job description includes late nights, weekends, and may include losing boyfriend to boss.” He gives a little giggle until he catches my eye.

  “I’m SO sorry that was really harsh.”

  “It’s OK. I just can’t believe all of the junk I’ve accumulated over the years,” I say, changing the subject.

  “I already cleaned out my desk a few weeks ago,” Craig says proudly. ”I have a few things left, but otherwise, I have one foot out the door. What have you been waiting for?”

  “Good question. Granted, I have been a little busy,” I add.

  “I have a question for you,” Craig says as he is about to leave. “Now that you and Luke are finished, have you thought about giving things a try with Ace Eckelund? After all, he really came through for us this weekend.”

  “Craig, my relationship just officially ended an hour ago. I just found out my boyfriend cheated on me with our boss. I’m about to resign from a company I have worked with for over five years. I’m not in any kind of a mental state to start a new relationship.”

  “I guess you have a good point,” he replies. “But you never know what can happen in the future.”

  “That’s right, you don’t. Have a good night.”

  Craig leaves for the night, and once again, I am by myself. I continue to clean out my office and cry a little here and there. My phone rings and I see that Abby is calling. I forgot that she’s been out of town visiting family. I answer the phone and tell her the whole story. She doesn’t have anything to say at first. I’m sure she’s as shocked as the rest of us were. But then she offers the typical “sorry this happened” comments people make to you when something horrible happens in your life. We make plans to get together later in the week.

  I pack up a few small boxes of stuff that I am taking with me. It’s finally starting to feel real.

  The next morning I have a great meeting with the Cantons. We discuss how successful Faith, Fashion, and Hope was, and they ask if Sheer Happiness will plan next year’s event. I feel so honored and I thank them about fifty times.

  I inform them that I am officially resigning this week. They have also asked me to select a few possible dates for the launch party to get the ball rolling.

  When I leave the meeting, I’m suddenly rejuvenated that I actually forget about the whole Carrie/Luke nightmare. I notice I have three missed calls from Craig; here he goes again with his idea of urgent. I call him back right away.

  “Tell me what is urgent this time,” I say as soon as he answers.

  “I did it, I quit,” he says excitedly. “It was AWESOME. She told me that I was making a mistake, but I told her I have decided to explore new horizons. I was even impressed with my reason,” he says with a giggle. “When I left, she was about to interview a poor, unsuspecting victim.” Then he whispers, “When are you going to do it? Are you going to say anything about what happened with Luke?”

  “Of course I am,” I reply. “But on a different note, I had a great meeting with the Cantons, and I have really, really exciting news. They have asked Sheer Happiness to plan the event next year,” I say proudly.

  “That is AWESOME! This is the best day.” I can tell by his reaction that he’s probably dancing around the room. “Good luck, and now I am off to celebrate my freedom.”

  “Enjoy it now because it’s back to work very soon, and we need to take off running,” I tell him. “I know we have a few of events lined up, but we still need to find new business.”

  When I arrive at the office, my heart starts beating a mile a minute. Just seeing Carrie’s car parked outside makes me so anxious. When I go inside, she is in her office and the door is closed. I take a few deep breaths and head to my office. I take care of a few things on my to-do list and check my emails. There’s an email from Ace waiting for me. My stomach does a little flip.

  Sienna,

  I hope this email finds you well. I have been thinking about you and I wanted to call, but I figured you needed some space. When things settle down, we can discuss the launch party dates. Keep me posted on your plans.

  Best,

  Ace

  Honestly, I have been kind of avoiding him. I don’t really know what to say to him. After all, it’s because of my relationship with Luke that we even met in the first place. I’m sure Ace feels some kind of obligation to Luke even though he has no idea how much Luke hates him. I still don’t even know what happened after I left them all standing there.

  I start to write him back, but I erase it over and over again. I can’t seem to say the right things. I need to talk to Abby. She’s good with stuff like this.

  While I’m thinking about it, I hear Carrie’s door open and she is thanking the new girl for coming in and will be in touch.

  When she turns around, she sees me standing outside my office. Our eyes meet and she doesn’t say anything. Her face becomes completely emotionless.

  “Sienna, let’s conduct our review of Faith, Fashion, and Hope now. I have another interview in an hour.” She walks back into her office and I follow her.

  The discussion about the event goes pretty quickly because I have taken care of most of the details. After we finish, neither of us says anything at first.

  “Carrie, how could you do that to me?” I ask finally. She looks out the window before speaking.

  “This is business, Sienna. It’s a shame you can’t understand that.”

  “Business?” I say, feeling my blood pressure rise. “To betray me? After everything I have done for you and for this company.”

  “My mother built this company. So, maybe in recent years you have maintained relationships with clients, but it’s because of me that you have accomplished all that you have.” I can’t believe she has the nerve to say this. I tighten my jaw as I hand her my resignation letter. She opens it and reads it.

  “So, the rumors are true. You are going off on your own, trying to spread your wings?” she gives a little snicker. “Really, love, do you think this is a good idea? You are good at what you do, there’s no doubt about that, but you have been successful because you have MY name behind you.” She sits there and folds her arms. She really has no idea about what people think about her, and finally after all this time I have the opportunity to tell her everything. I sit back in my chair and fold my arms, ready to square off. I smile as I start.

  “Only one thing that you have said is true. I am good at what I do, and yes, you gave me this job. But I have built my own success and reputation. The majority of our clients know you are hands off and have nothing to do with the planning their events. You think that the stories of family reunions and out-of-state conferences were good enough reasons to miss the most important meetings? People see through you. We are in this industry to make the most important moments in people’s lives the most memorable and special. You have a reputation of being superficial and selfish. Please don’t sit here and compare yourself to me. I’m nothing like you and never will be.” I take a deep breath and continue, “Now you have lost Nicole, Craig, and me. You are a sinking ship.” She doesn’t say as I stand up to leave.

  “You may be right, but I did get one thing out of this. I got Luke,” she says finally.

  I turn to her before I walk out and give her a smile. “Well, you definitely got the short end of the stick.” At that moment, I feel as if the world has been lifted off my shoulders. I go to my office, collect the remainder of my things, and walk out of Carrie’s Classic Events and More. I know with all of my heart that I will never look ba
ck.

  I call Craig as soon as I get in the car to tell him all about our conversation.

  “I can’t believe she said that to you. Are you upset?” he asks.

  “Do you mean about the Luke thing? No way. Little does she know that Luke was trying to convince me to forgive him and give him another chance. I know she doesn’t really care about him anyway. She is all about making other people as miserable as she is, that’s why she sabotages other’s relationships. Think about what she has done just since we have been working for her. There are years of scandals following her.”

  “So, do you think there will be any backlash from her?” he says worriedly.

  “Maybe. I mean, I would never put anything past her. The good news is we have the Cantons behind us, and their connections alone will compensate for any negative press that she puts out.”

  “I hope you are right.” I can tell he’s concerned. I try to tell him not to be too worried about it, but I know all too well that he will be losing sleep over it.

  “Just take a few days to relax and we will meet at the end of the week to plan the launch party,” I say, trying to change the subject. “Oh yeah, I also received an email from Ace Eckelund, and he wants to meet to finalize his party.”

  “Oh yeah, I can’t wait to plan that party,” he says cheerfully. “So, I guess you’re in the clear now to go out with him.”

  “Um, no, I’m not. I already told you that I am in no place emotionally to get involved with anyone. I think I need to be by myself for a while. “

  “Hmm . . . I’m not so sure. He really likes you and he is fabulous.”

  I need to get off the phone before we continue this conversation any further. “I will be in touch, and please just relax about everything. We will be fine.” I hang up and start to feel uneasy. I hope I can take my own advice.

  The next few days I feel as if I’m in a dream world. I spend a lot of time cleaning out my apartment and moving things into my new office. I have been on the phone with my parents planning my trip to visit them in a few months. I also spend several hours sending emails to clients and friends informing them that I am no longer with Carrie’s Classic Events and give them my updated information. I finally realize a few days later that I never sent a reply email to Ace. I attempt to write him back several times and finally decide to call him. For some crazy reason I am a ball of nerves when the phone starts ringing.