Chapter 16
The next morning I wake up to Cole snoring lightly next to me. I stare at him for a few minutes and roll back over and think about the events of the past few weeks and especially last night. I keep replaying everything in my head, and then I hear my phone buzzing from my bag. Who would call me the morning after my wedding night? I’m going to kill them.
It’s Sienna, and she has called three times. I know she would only call if it was important, or at least something she thinks is important.
“What’s wrong?” I ask as soon as I answer.
“I’m so sorry. I know this is bad timing. I just wanted to tell you something.”
“How are you feeling?” I ask. “I know last night was a little rough. Especially with Ellie and Luke’s announcement.” I know that no matter how much time has passed that break up was very difficult. At the time, she handled it very well, but she was also preoccupied with the launch of Sheer Happiness. Sometimes it takes people longer to really get over things.
“I feel good, like I finally have closure,” she says. “Luke actually came up to me at the end of the night. He told me he was truly sorry about everything. I didn’t know what to say, but I think it gave me some closure. He also said something really interesting that made me think.”
Luke said something interesting? This ought to be really good.
“What did he have to say?”
“Well, two things actually.” She pauses. “First, he said that the thing he regrets the most in his life was how he treated me. Then he said . . .” she pauses again. “He said I should give things a chance with Ace.”
Well, that is a big surprise. Ace and Luke go way back to college days and were pretty good friends until some girl came between their friendship. When Ace came to town, he and Sienna hit it off, but they were only friends and business associates. Nothing more happened, but Luke was extremely jealous. Go figure, he was the one cheating the whole time.
“That is surprising. He told me something similar about being sorry about what he did to you. That was after I told Ellie that she was too good for him.” I laugh.
“You said that? That’s awesome.” She sounds so happy. I think I just made her week, or maybe even her year.
“Yeah. Can you believe it? Last night was pretty crazy.”
When I get off the phone, Cole is still asleep, so I check some emails and take care of a few things before our honeymoon. Most of the messages in my inbox are junk. I cringe when I see an email that states that my application to the So-Cal Garden Club has been approved. I have to do something about this or else soon I will be gossiping with a bunch of rich ladies, wearing pearls to play tennis, and hosting my own dinner parties.
I scroll through my emails and find something very interesting. It’s from a bakery in Malibu.
Ms. Wales,
I saw your cookie feature at Bev’s in Beverly Hills and I think your cookies are precious. I was interested in having you featured in my pastry shop for the holidays. It would only be for Thanksgiving, Hanukkah, and Christmas. Would you be able to provide me with a few samples? Please let me know if your schedule allows.
Namaste,
Marie Peterson
Sugar*Sugar*Sugar Pastry Shop
“YES!” I shout so loudly that I wake Cole up.
“I’m sorry, babe.” I get up and crawl back into bed with him. “I just got an email from a bakery in Malibu.”
I tell him about the offer and how I was convinced that my cookie days were over after Bev’s rejection. Cole has always been so supportive of everything I’ve attempted to do. I’ve been thinking about this, and I think it’s time I did the same.
“So, I’ve been thinking.” We’re still lying in bed and he is playing with my hair. “I want to start traveling with you more. I want to be more involved in your career.”
I’ve visited a few of his shows in the past but haven’t had the chance to travel as much as I would like to.
“Really?” he asks excitedly. “Well, that’s what a good wife should do.” He kisses me. “I would love that, but what about work?”
“What about it? I pretty much make my own schedule already, so I’ll just schedule all of my clients around your shows. It’s the best of both worlds.”
Cole must have really wanted me to travel with him because I haven’t seen him this happy in a while. We finally get up and get ready to go to brunch. We are staying at the Ritz for two nights and then going home to finish moving into the house before we leave for Hawaii in a few days.
“Do you think that Ellie and Luke’s engagement is for real?” I ask Cole while we are at brunch. “It wouldn’t be a huge shock if they staged the whole thing.” It really wouldn’t be; Ellie would probably do anything to draw attention away from my big day.
“No way,” Cole says confidently. “That engagement was a totally legit, and you know I don’t think Luke is that bad. He just made a bad decision. Maybe it’s time for everyone to move on.”
“Yeah, yeah.” I roll my eyes.
“I thought you worked things out with your cousins? Didn’t you confront them about everything, then made up and braided each other’s hair?”
“I did, well, all except for the braiding hair part,” I reply. But that doesn’t mean that they wouldn’t have had this planned prior, and since when is Cole the voice of reason. That role is usually played by Abby or Sienna.
“Do you regret accusing Ellie of sabotaging the Four Seasons?” Cole asks finally. I don’t know how to answer that question.
“Maybe a little, but I guess I justify it because of how horribly they treated me for years. I know, I know . . . I need to stop letting my childhood issues take over.” Cole gives me a curious look.
“Um, yeah, you do.”
“Oh, don’t judge me ‘Mr. Blacksheep’ of the family.” He really should talk.
Thankfully, we move on from that subject and start talking about decorating the house, and Cole wants to look into adding a pool. I’m so excited to start our life together.
We have a couples’ massage scheduled for later in the afternoon, and then Cole planned a dinner on the beach. He loves planning trips, and he’s really good at it. He practically planned our entire Hawaii trip with a few of my requests of course, and he says that he has a few surprises planned too.
The next day we arrive home, and I have one more day to get things ready for the movers to come. Sienna is moving into her place this coming weekend. I call her when I get home.
“I’m home. How is everything?”
“Fine. How was the Ritz?
I can tell she’s preoccupied with something. I give her a quick rundown of our stay and ask her what’s wrong.
“I’m probably overreacting, but Craig told me that he heard that there are rumors that Sheer Happiness is going under.” She sounds so worried. “Have you heard anything?”
Ugh, she’s totally putting me on the spot. I just don’t have the heart to tell her exactly everything, so I give her a watered-down version.
“I haven’t heard that exactly, but Bev was asking how things were going for you. I told her I thought everything was fine. Don’t you have some pretty important events coming up?”
Hopefully people haven’t gotten wind of any of these rumors and canceled on her.
“Yes, I do! That’s the strangest part; I don’t know where these rumors are coming from. Of course, I know there is always going to be bad publicity.” She pauses. “But it’s not good if clients hear that my company is going under either.”
I try to convince her to ignore the rumors and focus on her work. I know that’s easier said than done.
“We have the Grazian wedding coming up, and soon we will start the planning Faith, Fashion, and Hope for next year.” That’s a huge relief to hear; Faith, Fashion, and Hope is a huge charity event. Sienna planned it last year, and it was an amazing success.
“See! Everything will be fine,” I assure her. “So, how are things going with Ace? A
re you going to take Luke’s advice?” I can’t believe I just said that out loud. I feel like I need to get some soap and wash my mouth out.
She lets out a sigh. “Things are really good, except for Allyson.” She tells me about their dinner date the other night being interrupted yet again by an urgent issue that came up. If this Allyson is so brilliant then why is she always having a problem that needs Ace’s immediate attention? You would think that he would catch on to her helpless act.
“Don’t sit on this. You need to be honest with him about your feelings,” I demand.
“Oh, don’t worry, I’m planning on it.”
Chapter 17
When I arrive at my new house, I unload my car. Susan called me on my way and asked if she could bring over a meal because we aren’t quite moved in yet. I thankfully accept, and Cole will be very happy to hear that she’s recognizing her boundaries and calling first.
I have started neatly unpacking and organizing all of my cookie stuff. I’m so excited about my cookie room. I even have some framed pictures of a few of my favorite designs. I’m busily hanging them on the walls when I hear a knock at my door. Susan is right on time as usual. Except it’s not Susan at the door, it’s Ellie.
“Ellie? What are you doing here?”
“Hi, Madie. I wasn’t sure if you would be here, but my office is nearby so I thought I’d check.” She walks right by me into the house.
“Your office is nearby?” I repeat. Crap! Maybe I can convince Cole and his parents to move.
“Yes. Anyway, I wanted to talk to you about Sienna. Is there any way that you can convince her to be my wedding planner?” She wanders into the cookie room and starts looking around.
What? I thought she was kidding when she asked me that.
“Ellie, I don’t think so. You do remember that Luke and Sienna used to date, and Luke really did her wrong. That would just be really awkward.”
Ellie stares at me. Sometimes I wonder if she has selective hearing when I talk to her. It’s almost as if she ignores half the things I say.
“Of course I remember, but that was a long time ago, and Luke even talked to her at the wedding. Also, I’m not sure you knew this, but Luke and her boyfriend are really good friends,” she adds, looking at her nails.
“Not anymore they’re not.”
Ellie insists that Luke and Ace have moved on from their issues from the past. I sit down on a barstool after I offer Ellie some coffee. I try to explain that Sienna is not the best option, but I’m sure she could recommend someone else.
“Would she really want to send me to her competition?” Ellie asks. “I mean, starting a business is difficult, I would think she could use all the business she can get.” So even Ellie has heard the rumors.
“I’ll talk to her for you,” I finally agree. I know by now that sometimes it’s better to just agree and deal with the fallout later. She thanks me (sincerely) and gives me a quick hug. I admit I’m surprised because I don’t remember the last time she thanked me or hugged me.
“There is something else I wanted to talk to you about.” I can tell by her expression that I’m not going to like this.
“I have a confession to make and I hope this doesn’t change things with us, you know, since we’ve become closer.” Closer?
“It’s about Bev’s Sweet Treats . . .” she trails off.
I sit there as I listen to Ellie’s confession. It turns out that she was the one who told Bev that Sheer Happiness was going under, and she also told her about the wedding being canceled. She even suggested that the cookies be removed because it could be considered false advertising because I was no longer having a “Four Seasons” wedding.
“Madie, I really regret it now. I was angry that you would accuse me of ruining your wedding.” She looks at her hands. “But I understand if you need some time.”
I don’t really know what to say or how to respond.
My silence is interrupted by Susan’s arrival with our dinner. She tries to hide her surprise to see Ellie, but she doesn’t do a very good job. Ellie leaves shortly after and asks me again to talk to Sienna. She really has a lot of nerve.
“I’m sorry if I interrupted something,” Susan apologizes. I tell her not to worry about it and then explain about Luke, Sienna, and Ellie wanting her to plan the wedding. Then I tell her about Bev’s.
“My goodness,” Susan says, taking a sip of her coffee. “Perhaps the guilt was eating away at her. You know . . . she could have never admitted it, and you would have been none the wiser. I think that’s progress.”
I know she’s right; I just need time to let it soak in.
The next morning I meet the movers at the apartment. Sienna’s still there, so I go ahead and mention Ellie’s request. I decide not to mention anything about Bev’s to her. This is about business, and it wouldn’t be fair of me to keep Sienna from planning another event no matter what my personal issues are.
“What? Why would she want me to plan her wedding? I thought she said I did a horrible job with your shower?”
“No, she was just mad at me as usual. She knows you’re the best and that’s why she wants you.”
“I don’t know . . . I have to think about it,” she says. Really? I’m completely shocked that she even agreed to think about it. Is she really that desperate for business?
She leaves for the office right before the movers arrive and load up the remainder of my stuff. Cole is meeting the movers at the new house because I have three clients this afternoon. I look around the apartment and reminisce for a few minutes. A slide show of memories goes through my mind, as if I was in a movie or TV show. I imagine a sad song would be playing along with it. I can’t believe I’m married and moving into my first home with my new husband. This feels so surreal; I guess the time comes for everyone to have to grow up.
At work, Caycee asks me if I used her shower gift yet. I tell her that I haven’t but promise to bring it on our honeymoon. Seriously, why does she care so much? I’m busy organizing some products when I get a group text from Sienna.
Ace is inviting everyone to Venice tonight. Let me know if you can come, 7pm.
I send her a text her back that we will be there for sure. I really should be packing for Hawaii, but I love Venice and we always get the best service when we go with Ace because one of his family members is the head chef. I call Cole and tell him about our plans.
A few hours later, we are all at Venice. The band is playing, and we are passing around baby Ace. I’m happily playing with him when Abby tells Cole and I that we are up next to have a baby. I’m not surprised she has already started in with this. Abby got pregnant with baby Ace shortly after they were married, and I’m expecting a call any day that she is pregnant with Ace’s little brother or sister.
“Seriously, Abby, we’ve only been married for three days; there will be no babies any time soon,” I say firmly.
“Amen to that!” Cole agrees.
We’re having such a fun time. I look around the table at my wonderful friends, and I remind myself that families aren’t always biological. Thank goodness.
I go with Abby to the restroom to change the baby. The restroom is huge and the counter is full of makeup, lotions, and even disposable toothbrushes. This place is as much fun as the restaurant.
While we are in the restroom, another familiar face joins us. It’s Elizabeth, one of the owners from my wedding venue and Carrie’s friend. At first, she pretends that she doesn’t recognize me.
“Don’t I know you?” she asks even though she knows exactly who I am.
“Yes, you do. My wedding was just at your hotel a few nights ago.” I roll my eyes. Abby is busy with the baby, but she is obviously listening to our conversation.
“Oh, that’s right. I kicked you out of my home a few years ago,” she says with the same smug expression she had the other night. “Everything went well with the wedding, I’m assuming?”
“It sure did thanks to my awesome wedding planner.” She doesn’
t respond to me complimenting Sienna. I start to smell some of the designer perfumes they have on display, and Elizabeth is doing the same thing.
“I’m glad to hear it. I guess it was a good thing those documents got lost so you had to change venues.”
I stop smelling perfumes and look at her. “How do you know that’s what happened?” I ask. Abby gets the baby changed and joins me.
Elizabeth starts to look very uncomfortable.
“My party is waiting for me, so if you will excuse me.” She starts to walk away when I grab her arm.
“Wait. How did you know that happened?” I repeat. She starts to squirm, and I can tell she’s trying to think of an excuse.
“Sienna told us when she called to book your event, and I suggest you let go of my arm or I will call security,” she says quickly and pulls her arm away.
Abby and I look at each other. I can’t believe it; this was all Carrie. She was behind the whole thing. This whole thing was about ruining Sienna’s credibility and not about me at all.
“So, Carrie was behind all of it after all? Don’t try to lie your way out of it.”
“You think Carrie really cares about your silly little wedding?” she gives a smirk. “This is business. The three of us bought this resort, and we will make it a huge success no matter what it takes.”
“Three of you?” Abby asks.
Elizabeth gives a wicked smile. “Yes. Me, Carrie, and our new partner, Stephanie Smith of AMC Architects.”
What?
She doesn’t say another word and leaves. Abby and I stand there, speechless. The only sound is baby Ace, cooing.
“Madie.”
“I know.” I shake my head. This must be what going into shock feels like.
So the whole time I thought everything was Ellie’s fault, it was Stephy. But how? What are the chances that Stephy knows Carrie? I’m trying to wrap my brain around this new information.
“You OK?” Abby asks.
Wedding Haters (Event to Remember Series-Book 2) Page 16
