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Chapter 18
Therestoftheevening was filled with laughter and reminiscing on old times. I finally got to fill my stomach, content to stay in one place for a long stretch without dashing somewhere else. I still went home early so I could get to bed. I had a catering event the next morning, after all, so I needed to get to bed earlier than usual.
So far, the catering events had been easy. They were usually just a small office breakfast or a meeting between companies. The fun ones were a few swanky parties for the rich wives of Orange County businessmen, like Maritza Sanchez’s party celebrating her book launch. I doubted she even wrote a single word in that book, but those women had the money and influence to slap their name on anything. Those parties were in their homes, and we didn’t have to do much other than walk around and offer small bites and drinks. Not that these trophy wives ate much, but they definitely drank enough to make up for it.
The problem with the breakfast events was that I wasn’t hungry before I left my house, but I was starving by the time I arrived. I found out from Thea that I wasn’t as covert as I thought when I snuck those snacks the first few times we ran events together, so that solution was nixed.
Thea was a fun friend. She was sweet, like Amy, but she had a little more fire in her. Having left her family in San Diego to pursue her dreams here in Orange County, she was already independent and working hard. There was something about her past that she kept hidden, but I didn’t want to pry.
The rest of the week was busy. I had to finish the rhinestones for all the competition costumes, including Blake’s teams, because we had a competition showcase performance on Saturday. It was an informal performance at the studio where the girls could try out their competition dances in front of their families. The girls were all excited, but I was nervous. Blake’s teams were doing fine, since they were technically advanced and had experience competing. But my novice teams needed more work, and we didn’t have time for that.
By Saturday morning, I felt more run-down than ever. I climbed out of bed at seven and analyzed myself in the mirror. I looked like I had been run over by a semi. My eyes had bags under them, my clothes were hanging off of me, and my hair was a little more limp than usual. I shook my head and closed my eyes. There was no time to feel sorry for myself. I had work to do.
I wandered downstairs and opened the chicken coop for my parents. The hens were still asleep.
“Good morning, ladies,” I cooed to the seven chickens. We used to have eight, but one had been eaten by a raccoon over the summer. Katy was devastated, but she said at least it wasn’t “one of her favorite chickens.” They were her little pets, but now they had to share her attention with Waffles and Alfred. I checked the nest boxes and found four eggs, which was pretty average. I brought them inside, ran back upstairs to change for work, and left before anyone else was awake.
I kept jerking myself awake as I drove down the coast to the event. I ended up at one of the swankiest hotels in the area, the Sand & Sun. It was pretty chilly, since it was November by the coast, so I pulled my jacket over my hideous catering uniform and ran into the hotel.
Thea greeted me at the front of the banquet room. She looked gorgeous and well-rested. I’d have to ask her if she was taking any drugs. Just kidding. I’d never resort to that.
Right?
She handed me a cup of coffee. “I figured you’d need this. You have a long day today.”
I took a long sip and felt the caffeine instantly enter my stomach. Heaven. “Thank you. Are you coming to the studio for the showcase this afternoon?”
“I was thinking about it. I’d love to see my costumes in action.”
“You might be blinded by all the bling I added to them.”
She laughed. “Perfect.” She linked arms with me, and we headed into the banquet hall. It was one of their smaller rooms, but still bigger than most of the events we worked.
“Who is this one for?” I asked. I always relied on Thea to fill me in on our schedule and what was going on.
“Some big corporate company. Mark didn’t say who.”
I nodded. There were a million companies in Orange County. It didn’t really matter, anyway. We set our things down in our designated area in the kitchen, shed our coats, and got ready to serve.
I walked out the door with a tray full of French toast bites with bacon. I never understood why people wanted to mix sweet with salty. Give me some bacon next to French toast and I was happy. But they did not belong in the same bite together.
“Ivy?” a familiar voice sounded behind me. A voice I had made sure to avoid for the last few weeks.
No.
No, no, no.
Slowly, using my dancer-trained balance, I turned around to find the man whose face I had not seen in person, but couldn’t keep out of my dreams.
My heart rose into my throat at the sight of him. My face flushed, and butterflies appeared in my stomach. I instantly remembered why I intentionally avoided him. He caused an involuntary bodily reaction. I wanted nothing more than to be wrapped up in his arms, listening to him tell me that everything was going to be all right. I hadn’t realized how much I needed that until he was standing right in front of me.
Instead, I played it casual. “Hey, Scott. How’s it going?”
“What are you doing here?” he asked.
I felt a small wave of nausea. I was probably just hungry. “Working,” I replied.
He blinked a few times, looking me over. He clenched his jaw, then opened his mouth as if he wanted to speak.
