Ghosted: Wicked Wedding Planners Series

by Alyssa Parsons

  ‘Lovely, I am so excited,’ says Honey.

  The week passes by quickly and before I know it, it’s Friday afternoon. We are getting ready for the rehearsal. Honey and her bridesmaids, the groom, his best man and the ushers as well as the parents will be there. The Watsons have also arrived and they will be around to sample the cocktails and take stock of all the changes to their house.

  The Watsons are a laid back couple and have been thrilled by the transformation of their grand country house into a tropical pineapple paradise.

  The rehearsal goes well and everyone seems to know what they need to do. Steve, Honey’s fiancé

  looks really happy with the venue and I can tell he can’t wait to marry Honey tomorrow. The signature cocktail called a Golden Honey goes down really well with the guests and the canapes are delicious.

  I finally get home at 9pm, exhausted and ready for bed. I’ve not seen anyone socially this week, not even Caspar. The only communication we have had is through text. He is going to a family friend’s wedding tomorrow with his parents who are down visiting. I can’t wait until Sunday to see him. He has planned a special date for us which he is keeping a surprise.

  Chapter 26

  I am up at 6 am today as its Honey’s wedding day. I put on a pale blush pink coloured dress and nude heels. I spend a bit of time on my make-up using primer, a glowing foundation, highlighter and bronzer. I use a lovely nude and gold eyeshadow palette. I need to look glamourous for this very sophisticated wedding. I brush my hair back into a high ponytail.

  I get to the Watson’s just before 7:30 am and it is a hive of activity. The florist will be here around 8:30 am to set up the magnificent floral arrangements. The caterers are just arriving so I direct them to the back of the house where they can park their mobile kitchens and start preparing the food.

  I go upstairs to find Honey. She is getting ready in one of the guest rooms. I find her with her bridesmaids and mother. Like most bridal parties getting ready, they are sipping prosecco in their dressing gowns with their hair in rollers. The mood is happy and everyone is giggling and making jokes. The make-up artist and hair dresser have set up and are ready to transform the girls.

  ‘Sammi, good morning,’ Honey comes over to hug me. ‘Have some prosecco.’

  ‘Thanks, maybe later,’ I decline the offer of the drink politely. ‘How are you feeling?’

  ‘So excited, I can’t wait.’

  ‘It’s looking really good downstairs. The caterers are here and food prep has begun. The florist is on her way so I will go down and make sure all the arrangements are placed in the right location. We will keep all the bouquets in the walk-in fridge so they don’t wilt. I will bring them up just before the ceremony starts,’ I am in full blown wedding planner mode.

  ‘Fantastic,’ Honey says as she gets taken away to have her hair done.

  ‘I’ll see you later, if you need me just text me,’ I realise how crazy that sounds considering we are in the same house. But this house is huge and it can take ages to find someone.

  ‘Will do.’

  For a wedding on this large a scale, everything is going very smoothly. We have placed all the floral arrangements in the right place and they look stunning. I have to admit the pineapple flower stems do look amazing. The roses are creamy, velvety and fragrant.

  The smell from the catering trucks is making my mouth water. The band and harpist have all turned up. And as an added bonus the sound system is working well.

  Thom is in the kitchen arranging all the tiers and adding the decorations to the magnificent cake. It was a bit awkward seeing him this morning but we have been able to communicate politely.

  I have never known a wedding to go without a glitch. So I keep my fingers crossed that we remain glitch free. Jodie has just arrived up to help me with today. I have so much to do behind the scenes so she will check through the guest list and seat everyone for me.

  ‘I’m so glad you are here,’ I hug her as she walks in.

  ‘Wow, I am speechless,’ Jodie says as she looks around and takes in the scene.

  ‘Come on let me give you a quick tour so you know where everything is,’ I start showing her around.

  The ceremony room is completely ready. It is more classic English wedding than tropical wedding with the cream and pale yellow roses. Jodie is totally blown away by the Orangerie which makes you feel like you have walked into a 5-star Tahitian beach resort.

  The water feature at one end looks like a huge waterfall and the scent of jasmine fills the air. The bar staff are in full swing, chopping fruit and preparing cocktail mixes. The Orangerie leads out into the huge patio area which is looking awesome. Huge tropical plants have been placed around beach style seating areas. The glass pineapple lanterns are hanging up and will be lit later on together with the fairy lights.

  I give Jodie her checklist and get back to the tasks in hand. It’s just gone 11:00am so I head back to the kitchen to check on Thom and the cake. Mrs Watson is in there, drinking a cup of tea but there is no sign of Thom.

  ‘Hello dear, cup of tea?’ she offers.

  ‘Hello Mrs Watson, no thank you. How are you?’

  ‘Fine dear,’ she sips her tea, ‘It’s all so exciting’.

  ‘Yes but I feel like we are completely taking over your house.’

  ‘Nonsense, it’s fantastic, we haven’t had so much fun in years.’

  ‘I’m pleased you like it,’ I am relieved to know we are not putting them out too much. ‘Have you seen Thom, the cake maker by any chance?’

  ‘Oh yes, charming man,’ she trills. ‘You just missed him dear. He’s left the cake in the fridge. It’s spectacular.’

  ‘Oh good,’ I excuse myself and go to the fridge to check on the cake.

  I am slightly upset that Thom didn’t wait to show me the cake. He has always done so before and he never leaves without saying goodbye. He is obviously still hurt about the other week. I’ll have to try and sort things out with him next week but right now I am too busy to dwell on it.

  I step into the walk-in fridge and see the cake sitting on the trolley. It is a piece of art and Honey will be over the moon. Thin slices of dehydrated pineapple have been twisted into beautiful flower shapes and dusted with edible gold. The gold pineapple at the top of the cake has been studded with tiny sparkling crystals. It’s absolute perfection.

  I see the bouquets for the bride and bridesmaids have been left in boxes in the fridge too. I take a look and they are also divine.

  I find Jodie and tell her that the guests will probably start arriving in the next 20-30 minutes so to be on alert. Steve and the groomsmen have just arrived. After a bit of banter, I show them to the study which is near the ceremony room. This is the room where the usher, fathers of the bride and groom and Mr Watson will be hanging out until the ceremony begins.

  No doubt drinking whisky and smoking cigars if the décor of the study is anything to go by. I leave them to it and Jodie tells me that the registrar has turned up. I show the registrar through to the ceremony room and we spend a few moments going through a few details.

  It’s just gone 11:30am, less than an hour to go. Yikes! Jodie assures me she will handle all the guests and not to worry.

  I run back up to Honey’s room. I can hear excited chatter and laughing as I get nearer. I knock and enter the room.

  The photographer is taking the ‘getting ready ‘photos. Honey’s hair and make-up has been done and she looks great. Her porcelain skin is glowing and her glossy brown hair has been loosely curled. The tiara is absolutely splendid especially with the pineapple crystal sparkling at the centre of it.

  The bridesmaids are all ready and look pretty too. I tell the photographer that the groom and his party have arrived. She says she will run down and take pictures while Honey gets her dress on.

  ‘Honey, I will be back around 12:10 pm with the bouquets so we can get some pictures before the wedding starts,’ I tell her.

  ‘Okay that’s fine,’ she sa
ys happily.

  ‘Does that give you enough time to get the shots?’ I ask the photographer.

  ‘Yes no problems,’ she says. ‘Could you please show me to the study?’

  ‘Yes of course,’ I turn to Honey. ‘I’ll be back later.’

  ‘Oh Sammi, I forgot to tell you, I have a little change to make to the seating plans.’

  Ughh here we go, just at the last minute, Honey being true to form throws in another change. It’s so close to the ceremony now that making any changes will be difficult.

  ‘Four of the guess, some distant relatives of ours have had to cancel due to a bereavement. So we have invited some old family friends in their place,’ she tells me.

  ‘Don’t worry Sammi, I have the details,’ says Mrs Edward who sees the look on my face. ‘I can come and help change the seating plan.’

  ‘Right come with me,’ I am relieved to have her on hand.

  I show the photographer to the study and then I find Jodie.

  ‘I have a few things to do so I will leave you with Jodie who will help you take care of the seating plans,’ I say to Mrs Edwards.

  ‘No problems Sammi, I will take care of it,’ Jodie reassures me. I think she can sense I am feeling a bit stressed.

  ‘Thanks, I have some spare pineapple labels. You will need to write the names out in gold pen and stick them over the existing labels on the seating plan. Mrs Edwards is going to shuffle a few people around so she will come with you now.’

  Mrs Edwards nods and I thank her. Luckily I have spare labels and the gold pen in my handbag anticipating that there may have been names spelled incorrectly or some seating changes. I quickly find my bag and hand them the stuff.

  I check on the caterers who will be ready to serve canapes from 1:30 pm until 2 pm outside on the patio. The bar staff will be serving prosecco and both alcoholic and non-alcoholic versions of the signature cocktail. I quickly check in on the men in the study. Steve is slightly nervous but he is ready to go.

  I get the bouquets and take them up to Honey’s room. I open the door and see that the photographer has come back up to get the shots of Honey in her wedding dress. I take a moment to admire Honey in her dress. She looks absolutely amazing.

  ‘Wow Honey,’ I can feel myself tearing up.

  ‘I know, I can’t believe I am finally getting married,’ Honey is starting to get emotional.

  ‘No tears,’ I warn her. ‘Only happy pineapple thoughts allowed.’

  She giggles and I hand out the bouquets to the bridal party. The photographer gets a few more shots and Honey’s mother is back.

  ‘She looks beautiful,’ I tell her.

  ‘Doesn’t she,’ Mrs Edwards looks proudly over at Honey. ‘You are gorgeous, darling.’

  ‘Thanks Mum,’ Honey leans over to give her mother a hug.

  ‘Right, I will run down to get your father Honey,’ I look at my watch. ‘You have about 10minutes girls.’

  ‘Mrs Edwards, would you like to come down to take your seat?’ I turn Mrs Edwards.

  ‘Yes of course,’ she whispers a few words of encouragement to her daughter and we head down the stairs.

  ‘Did Jodie manage to get the seating plan sorted?’ I ask Mrs Edwards as we walk down the stairs.

  ‘Yes, all done and she did a marvellous job with the handwriting.’

  ‘Fantastic,’ I make a note to check the seating plan after the ceremony.

  I take a quick peak inside the ceremony room and it looks like all the guests have arrived and been seated. Mrs Edwards walks in and waves at a few of the guests as she takes her seat down the front. Steve is in position with his best man and the registrar is ready.

  I head to the study to collect Mr Edwards. He is chatting to Mr Watson and Steve’s Dad.

  ‘Okay gentlemen, it’s time,’ I announce. ‘Mr Edwards if you’d like to come with me, I’ll take you up to Honey.’

  ‘Right chaps, I’ll see you later,’ he says. ‘Coming, Sammi.’

  I leave Mr Edwards with Honey and I lead the bridesmaids down to wait outside the ceremony room. This will give the photographer a chance to take some pictures of them and they can have some father-daughter time.

  Jodie is standing outside the ceremony room.

  ‘Everything good to go?’ I check with her.

  ‘Yes, the harpist is ready whenever I give her the sign.’

  ‘Great,’ I say with relief.

  ‘There is just one thing…’ she says.

  ‘Oh no, is it urgent?’ I groan.

  ‘No, not at all,’ she smiles.

  ‘Alright, tell me later.’ I head off to do my final checks.

  A couple of minutes later, I go upstairs to collect Honey and her father. All this running up and down the stairs is exhausting. I won’t need the gym this weekend.

  ‘Right this is it guy’s, it’s time,’ I tell Honey and her father.

  They walk down the stairs with the photographer snapping away. We reach the outside of the ceremony room and I tell Honey to stand back so she can’t be seen by the guests yet. I signal to Jodie to start the proceedings. The photographer follows Jodie in and a few seconds later, the music and harpist starts.

  The bridesmaids take the lead and walk down the aisle. I check on Honey and I can see she is feeling a mix of nervousness and happiness.

  Suddenly the music changes and Jodie makes the announcement to be upstanding for the bride.

  ‘Good luck and enjoy,’ I encourage Honey and she sets off down the aisle.

  I stand by the door watching the ceremony. It’s my favourite part, watching the groom when he sees his beautiful bride coming down the aisle. Steve doesn’t disappoint. His face just lights up when he sees Honey. He is totally beaming with happiness and love.

  The readings are done and they exchange their vows. It is a beautiful ceremony and I know Honey will be pleased with it. As they are signing the register, a group of guests catch my eye. I could swear one of them looks like Caspar.

  Surely not?

  Chapter 27

  I t’s hard to tell from the back but it really looks like him. Don’t be silly, I tell myself. He hasn’t been invited. I mean I’ve seen the guest list a hundred times and I would have noticed his name. The Caspar look alike is sitting next to a woman who is wearing a green dress with medium length mousy brown hair which has been pinned up.

  I am intrigued to see what he looks like from the front. I bet he looks nothing like him. I haven’t seen Caspar all week and I am missing him. That is probably why I am seeing Caspar look-alikes around me. I can’t wait until tomorrow when we get to spend the whole together on our date.

  The bride and groom get ready to walk back up the aisle hand in hand as the guests stand up. I take another look at the guy who reminds me of Caspar.

  I gasp.

  It is Caspar and the woman he is standing next to looks like Alice.

  What the hell? My head is spinning. I now also see Caspar’s parents standing in the row in front of them. How did I not notice them all on the guest list before?

  What is he doing here with Alice? He can’t be with her, surely not. Dating both of us? There must be some kind of explanation. I can’t really see what kind of explanation could justify this. Plus he lied to me. Well technically he didn’t lie but he omitted some pretty important information. That he was attending a family friend’s wedding with Alice in tow. It hadn’t even occurred to me that the wedding he was going to was Honey’s.

  ‘I didn’t realise Caspar was going to be here today,’ Jodie comes up to me. ‘Did you know?’

  ‘No not really but we haven’t got time to think about that now.’ I try to cover up my shock at seeing him here.

  ‘Sammi are you okay?’ she says. ‘You don’t look so good.’

  ‘I’m fine thanks, just thinking through what I need to do next. So much to do and it’s ever so hot in here,’ I fan myself to make my point.

  ‘I suppose so’, Jodie looks a bit concerned.

  ‘Do
you need a hand with anything?’

  ‘Yes, please could you lead the guests to the patio area for drinks and canapes?’

  There was no way I was going to suffer the humiliation of facing Caspar and his family. I just couldn’t

  ‘Yeah sure,’ she says.

  ‘Thanks Jodie,’ I walk off to the reception room.

  I scan the seating plan. There it is. Phil, Bethany and Caspar are sitting at the same table as the Turners. They must have been the last minute guests. But how did I not notice Alice Turner on the guest list? There is no Alice Turner. All I can see is a Nigel, Fiona, Matthew and Elizabeth Turner. She must have a different first name.

  How am I going to be able to get through this wedding with the Danes and Turners here? I can’t believe Caspar didn’t tell me he was going to a wedding with Alice. Once again he has blindsided me. I need to stay calm and professional but I am struggling. Right, I need to focus. I visit the catering station to make sure they are ready to go with the canapes.

  Luckily everything wedding-related is going well. What am I going to do? Caspar obviously didn’t know that I was planning this wedding. He probably thought he could get away with this and I would be none the wiser.

  The weather is really warm outside so I know the guests will spend about an hour or so on the patio enjoying drinks and nibbles. I run upstairs to Honey’s room to the window as it looks out on to the patio area. I scan the group of guests and see Caspar standing with his parents. They are chatting to a middle-aged couple who I don’t know. Alice doesn’t seem to be with him for now.

  ‘Hello dear,’ I nearly jump out of my skin. It’s Mrs Edwards.

  ‘Hi Mrs Edwards, is everything ok?’

  ‘Yes, I have just come up to get my phone so I can take some pictures. What are you doing up here?’

  ‘Oh umm I thought I’d get an overhead view of the grounds and just make sure everything is in order,’ I think quickly on my feet.

  ‘Well it’s going very well,’ she says smiling.

  ‘Yes, it’s all gone to plan,’ I agree.