We all turned to look at him. His eyes locked with mine.
‘We have a space,’ he insisted. ‘It’s available, it’s out of the way, it’s a bit kooky. It’s even got its own mini terrace. It just needs a bit of . . . tidying.’
I was about to tell him off for using the word ‘kooky’ but then it suddenly clicked in my head what he was talking about.
‘But Cal, we can’t, it’s your hideaway. It wouldn’t be secret any more.’
‘This is more important.’ He nodded firmly. ‘Flick, it’sperfect.’
‘I guess if we cleared it out, it would be big enough,’ I said, considering.
‘It’s near the kitchens, easy to carry food and drink to and from.’
‘A band or DJ could fit into the far corner, and there would be enough dance space.’
‘We could put fairy lights down the tunnels, it would look amazing.’
‘Or we can tell the guests to come to the outside door via the back road and through into the room that way.’
‘Yes, you’re a genius! We could line the road with lanterns leading them to it.’
‘Magical and mysterious! It’s perfect!’
‘ENOUGH!’ Matthew stepped forwards. ‘What on EARTH are you two talking about?’
Cal and I grinned at each other like a couple of Cheshire cats.
‘Come on.’ I smiled. ‘We’ll show you.’
THEDAILYPOST
The Party’s Over for Skylar Chase!
By Nancy Rose
There’s trouble in paradise. The Daily Post has just learned that the famous London nightclub, Candle Bar, is temporarily shutting its doors due to emergency building repairs, leaving Skylar Chase in the lurch for her all-important star-studded London party that was scheduled to take place there tonight! According to a close source, the American pop star, due back in LA tomorrow, is devastated. ‘She’s in bits,’ the source disclosed. ‘This meant a lot to her and now she’ll likely have to cancel the event.’ We have contacted Miss Chase’s representative but so far they have declined to comment. Sorry, Skylar, but looks like your party’s over! You can cry if you want to . . .
‘The party is not over,’ I announced to the conference room, where Sky’s entourage had gathered. ‘I can confirm that we can hold it here tonight.’
They burst into applause and whoops, immediately getting their phones out at the ready.
‘But –’ I held up my hands to quieten them – ‘it’s going to be a lot of work and we’ll need all hands on deck. Let’s just say that the room we’ve got available isn’t exactly your average party venue.’ I shared a smile with Cal. ‘Let me introduce you to the team.’
I gestured to Audrey, Matthew, Cal, Chef and Ellie, who were all standing in a line next to me. They waved to the crowd.
‘We need a group of volunteers to help Cal clean out the venue and set it up. Chef and Sasha are going to be sorting canapés and Jamie will be in charge of drinks, so I’m going to need someone from Sky’s team to select from a list of food options. Audrey has called in our florist, who will be arriving any minute. They will be in charge of decorations. We need someone from your team to get in touch with Sky’s record company and get promotional material, anything they want on display when it comes to the latest album. Ellie is going to be sorting out the sound system, lights and any electrical equipment that we’ll need – can someone liaise with her about a DJ? She’s also going to book an official photographer. We have one on speed dial. Matthew will be in charge of the guest list; we need a confirmed one in the next half an hour so we can be sure of capacity and how much food we need to provide. We also need to make sure that each guest confirms they’re aware of the change of location. And –’ I took a deep breath – ‘I will be overseeing everything. If you have any questions or problems, you come to me. OK, now work out who of your team is doing what.’
They huddled together excitedly. I noticed Audrey watching me with a funny look on her face.
‘What?’
She hesitated. ‘It’s just, you really reminded me of your mother just then.’
‘What, bossing everyone around?’
‘No.’ She smiled. ‘Taking charge.’
I don’t know how we managed it, but it worked.
