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Early Saturday morning, I pulled up to Lily’s farm. It was Colton and Remi’s wedding. Colton was a local police officer, and Remi owned Remi’s Juice Shop and led yoga and meditation classes at the yoga studio. They were an unlikely couple. The one time I met with them to discuss their arbor, Remi seemed willing to rely on my creativity whereas Colton wanted a rendering before he approved it. She was relaxed and open, and he was reserved. They reminded me a little of Everly and me, except reversed.
Gia placed more pressure on this wedding couple because it was a local couple, and most of the planners and vendors were friends with them. It was similar to Max and Zoe’s wedding that was held on the farm last spring. That was the first wedding at this venue, but we’d had numerous ones since and plenty of time to perfect them.
We were ready for any problem that might arise. It was my responsibility to be concerned with the weather forecast, which could be an issue this morning with the cloud cover.
“What do you think?” Gia greeted me with a clipboard as soon as I got out of my truck.
I’d say I was surprised to see her this early, but I wasn’t. If it was her wedding to plan and manage, she was the first to arrive, last to leave, and always available by phone. I was fairly positive she didn’t have a life outside of wedding planning and whatever else she was cooking up in her brain, possibly world domination.
“There’s a forty percent chance of rain at the time of the ceremony.” I’d checked the weather continually throughout the day in case something changed and expected to provide Gia with updates.
Gia blew a strand of hair out of her eyes. “What do you think we should do?”
“How badly does Remi want the wedding outdoors without the tent? We were planning on setting up under the cover of trees, so we should be okay if it doesn’t rain too hard. But if she wants a tent, we’ll need to move the ceremony to the open area by the pond.” Gia knew the brides better than me, having spent the last few months planning with them.
Gia rolled her eyes. “If I asked her, she’d probably tell me something like she meditated on it this morning and her intuition is telling her it’s not going to rain.”
“Does she have some kind of sixth sense about the weather? Maybe we should check in with her. She’s probably more accurate than these weather apps,” I said, flashing the weather screen in her direction.
Gia laughed. “Yeah, it’s worth a shot.”
I was a little surprised by her reaction. Usually, Gia would never rely on someone’s sixth sense or intuition. She was guided by data. “Are you feeling okay?”
She hugged her tablet to her chest. “Just tired. We’re booking more weddings than ever.”
“I thought that’s why you hired two additional wedding planners.” I crossed my arms over my chest, content to discuss business.
“It is. It’s just—” She let out a breath.
“You don’t trust that they can handle it like you do?” I guessed.
Gia smiled. “That sounds about right.”
“As a business owner, you need to hire good employees and trust that they can do their job. Otherwise, you’ll never get a break.”
“Like you do?” Gia teased.
“I haven’t hired anyone yet. But I will.” When the business could sustain it. I needed to figure out something before there was a change in custody. I wanted to be home with Wren if I had her.
I moved to the back of the truck to lower the tailgate. “I’m glad I caught you before anyone else arrived.”
I leaned a hip on the lowered gate, sensing she wanted to talk to me about something.
Gia’s face screwed up like she was about to say something distasteful. “I’ve heard a rumor that you and Everly are more than friends. That you might even be dating.”
I nodded slowly, unsure what the issue was. “That’s right.”
“I don’t know if you remember our last meeting, but we talked about not dating other vendors.”
I’d forgotten about that. I wanted to argue that I wasn’t a direct employee, more of a subcontractor, but the term vendor probably applied to my business. I didn’t want to do anything to jeopardize my contract with Gia. Her business supplied me with a steady income. “You know Everly and I were friends first. This isn’t just some fling.”
Gia’s forehead wrinkled. “I’m sympathetic to your situation, but we need to look professional.”
My stomach dropped. My personal opinion was that Gia was holding on too tightly to her business and could stand to take a few steps back. Her micromanagement would eventually create disgruntled employees. I racked my brain for any solution that would appease her because I needed this relationship not only for the custody case but for me. “Your clients want to see other happy couples. They want proof that their relationship will work out.”
Gia frowned. “Well, yes, but I don’t see how that relates to what we’re talking about.”
“If your wedding couples see that Everly and I have a happy ending, then it will make them feel better about their wedding.”
