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Jane stood at her kitchen counter, half-awake, patiently waiting for her coffee pot to finish brewing. It was like waiting for water to boil, the more you watched the pot, the longer it took to drip. This morning, she needed a strong cup of coffee because she had a meeting with Mr. Drew and Austin when she got to the office. She wasn’t looking forward to this meeting at all. She had been ready to handle this wedding herself, and now she would be babysitting Austin while also managing this huge Kat Kay and Mike Cummings wedding. And, if she was being honest with herself, the last thing she wanted was for Austin to recognize her from high school. Hopefully, that would not happen.
She knew that Mr. Drew had specifically assigned Austin to her to help out on this big wedding. Kat and Mike were two of the hottest stars on television right now. Each of them was the lead character in their own shows. They were constantly in the news and all over social media. They couldn’t step out of their house without paparazzi running at them. Their romance had been documented non-stop on social media for the last nine months, and when Mike popped the question, somewhere off the coast of Italy while they were on vacation, the world was fixated on where they would tie the knot. Everyone was expecting a star-studded wedding in L.A., but Kat Kay was a New England girl, with deep roots on the east coast, and she wanted her wedding in Rhode Island. Jane had just been hired when Kat Kay began to secretly tour properties in the Rhode Island area, and the moment she stepped foot into The Oxford, she knew this was where she wanted her wedding to be. She had finally sealed the deal with The Oxford last week, with the request that the wedding takes place in four weeks. Normally, that tight deadline would be a hard “no” with no discussion, but since it was Kat Kay, The Oxford made a huge exception. Jane knew the next few weeks would be crazy for her and her team, but she knew it was the right move. The Oxford Group had a lot to gain if they pulled off the wedding without a hitch. The publicity alone couldn’t be bought.
Thankfully, Jane had hit it off beautifully with Kat when she came to visit. They were both about the same age, so that made it easy to bond. Kat let Jane know at that point that she was in the process of hiring a wedding planner who would help her navigate everything and keep her on track. Jane didn’t always love working with wedding planners, because they came with a whole set of extra problems, but she was willing to do whatever she could to make this successful for The Oxford. With the current fame of Kat and Mike on and offline, this wedding would skyrocket her own wedding portfolio, and it could mean that her career could really take off. Once word got out about the venue, she knew she’d be contacted by the many wedding publications, bloggers, and influencers. This was no little wedding that they were getting at The Oxford, this was huge.
“You mind pouring me a cup when it’s ready?” She heard a soft voice from behind her in the kitchen.
Jane turned to see her sister dressed in her usual yoga attire. She was a loyal Alo Yoga clothing fan, and the brand was probably making tons of money off her alone, never mind the amount of Alo Yoga clothing she recommended to friends and clients. Ali had the perfect yoga body, long and lean at 5’8”, and she loved to show off her figure. This morning, Ali was wearing light gray Airbrush leggings with her favorite Airlift Intrigue bra in the same color, along with an off-the-shoulder V-neck black pullover. Jane, on the other hand, was still in her pajamas, waiting to get caffeine into her body.
“Were you up all night?” Ali asked as she began packing her lunch for the day. “I thought I heard you walking around.”
“Yes, I was. I couldn’t sleep. I’m meeting with Mr. Drew and Austin this morning,” Jane said. “I have no idea what to expect, although I imagine the big wedding will be top of mind.”
“It might be fun bossing Austin Drew around,” Ali laughed.
“If he’s actually capable of doing anything,” Jane growled, as she began to fill two mugs with coffee. “When everyone heard that he had officially been assigned to work with me, they gave me their sincere condolences. They all said he was totally useless, which doesn’t exactly help me. With this big wedding around the corner, I cannot afford to mess up. What if he causes additional problems for me?”
“Problems or not, I bet he’s still pretty to look at,” Ali chuckled, eyeing her sister. “I know this wedding is a big deal, but presumably Austin Drew has grown up a little since high school. You crushed hard on him back then…along with everyone else. I know you never talked much about it and kept it semi-private, but it was pretty obvious. Just remember that high school was a long time ago, so keep an open mind.”
“From what I keep hearing, it doesn’t seem like much has changed,” Jane shot back, having no interest in reliving the awkward time she had in high school.
“Well, if the other Drew brothers can make it work, hopefully the baby can, too,” Ali chuckled, as she grabbed her cup of coffee. “I remember the oldest one, Chris, being in my gym class. He was pretty smokin’ hot in high school, too.”
“I remember,” Jane laughed back as she took a sip of coffee, thankful for the diversion. “He’s actually working one-on-one with Mr. Drew right now and yes, he’s still good looking, although I think he’s dating someone. Seems like Mr. Drew is grooming him to take over his role, at least that’s the word on the street.”
“Imagine not having to worry about finding a good job, and the money to go with it,” Ali said, shaking her head with wide eyes as she looked over at her sister.
Jane and Ali’s parents, Andrew and Meredith Jones, were both teachers in Barrington, Rhode Island, the same town that they grew up in. Barrington was a picture-perfect place for a kid, a small New England town where everyone knew each other. The town had a handful of restaurants, one bakery, one post office, one bookshop, and one auto body shop. There was a beautiful bike path that weaved through town, a huge playground in the center of town, and a beautiful historic town hall for all to admire. Surrounded by Narragansett Bay, Barrington had the most magnificent backdrop of all the small Rhode Island towns. For all intents and purposes, growing up in Barrington was like growing up in a Hallmark movie. As much as Jane and Ali both hated the smallness of their town when they were growing up, because everyone always seemed to know everyone’s business, as they became older, they began to appreciate why their parents had chosen Barrington as a place to live. It was the most perfect, safest, most special place to raise a family.
“No,” Jane smiled with a wistful look in her eyes. “I can’t imagine what it would be like not to worry about money. I remember just getting excited when Mom and Dad would buy us donuts as a special treat,” she chuckled.
“But, in a way, we were lucky. We learned to appreciate the value of working hard and earning our own money. Meanwhile, the Drew brothers had everything money could buy. Didn’t they all have BMWs? One of them even had a red BMW convertible.”
Jane rolled her eyes and laughed, “Yes… that was Austin. It was a red convertible with a black top. He would drive around the school parking lot with the roof down, just for the attention,” she added, remembering back. She would sit with her girlfriends as they all pretended not to notice him. He loved the attention, and he knew they were looking at him, but he would never give them a second glance.
“Well,” Ali said, looking over at her sister, “he probably believed he was God’s gift to women. That’s what money and good looks can do to people. They begin to think they’re better than everyone.”
“Well, his parents aren’t like that in the slightest. They run The Oxford like a well-oiled machine, and they are kind and considerate. Unless you knew they were millionaires, you would think they were just regular people.” Jane said.
“What does Mrs. Drew do there?” Ali asked.
“I don’t know if she has an exact position. But she’s just always there, talking with the staff, taking an interest in everyone. She knows us all by name and she even knows the names of our spouses and family members. She is so positive, and she is the perfect spokesperson for the place. Everyone who walks through the doors seems to know her and, if they don’t, she introduces herself. Walking into The Oxford must be like walking into her home. She likes to make sure everyone is comfortable and enjoying themselves.”
“And they still live in Barrington, right?” Ali replied as she gathered her things for the day and tossed them into her work tote.
“Yes,” Jane answered, as she leaned back against the counter and watched her sister. “They still live in that huge house on the water down near the country club. I swear you could get lost in that place,” she chuckled. “A far cry from all this,” Jane added, as she looked around their tiny kitchen. They had moved into their apartment three years ago, a small two-bedroom in the center of the town of Bristol, only a few miles from Barrington. Their apartment was on the second floor of a historical building, and it offered them a front window overlooking Main Street. It was perfect for people watching. It wasn’t huge, but it was perfect for them because the rent was reasonable and the location was perfect, since Ali had her yoga studio in Bristol, and it was only a 30-minute drive to Newport for Jane.
As much as the girls had a deep appreciation for Barrington, it wasn’t where they wanted to live, at least not yet. It was a great town for families, but for a young professional, Bristol was a perfect alternative--a quaint New England town that had local bars, restaurants, cute local shops, and beautiful parks. The 4th of July in Bristol was always a huge deal, which made living in Bristol worth it for them, even just for that one day each year. The parade is part of the oldest Fourth of July celebration in the U.S. The town gets so into the celebration that a red, white, and blue stripe is painted down the middle of Main Street, just to get the community extra excited. It's the coolest thing for locals and tourists to see every year and their apartment had a perfect view of a section of it.
“We lucked out with this place,” Ali said as she looked at her watch. “I’m terrified the rent is going to double or triple one of these days. It’s almost too good to be true, and now that my yoga studio rent is going up, I bet all the landlords are going to jump aboard and raise their prices, too.”
“It’s not going to double or triple,” Jane chuckled, shaking her head. “Your yoga studio overlooks the water! This overlooks Main Street, which is not something everyone would want. Besides, I don’t have time to worry about our rent. I’ve got to get focused on my meeting.”
“You think he'll recognize you?” Ali asked, feeling it was the million-dollar question that her sister might not want to answer.
“I don’t know,” Jane shrugged. “I wasn’t exactly memorable in high school. When I told Mr. and Mrs. Drew during my interview that I grew up in Barrington and knew of their sons, they both didn’t seem to recognize me, or our last name. Chris certainly didn’t know who I was when we were introduced, but he was older. And the twins seemed oblivious, too, when I met them. I doubt Mr. Drew said anything about me to them, but who knows.”
“You should say something to Austin if you get a chance today,” Ali suggested.
“Oh come on, he’s not going to remember me!” Jane shot back, feeling her stomach tighten. “You know that. He was oblivious to me, not even on his radar.”
“I would still say something. You were in class with him at one point, so don’t be shy. You’re a little hottie,” Ali winked, as she grabbed her tote bag and tossed it over her shoulder. “Make him regret the fact that he completely ignored you in high school.”
Jane looked down at the last bit of coffee she had in her cup. She didn’t want to mention anything about high school to Austin, because she was terrified he’d remember exactly who she was. The good thing was that their brief connection had happened over 10 years ago, so the chances of him remembering her or the incident were hopefully slim to none, but she certainly remembered it. Not that it was a huge deal in the scope of things, but it was an embarrassing time that she would never forget. She had been so embarrassed and mortified by the incident that she had never even mentioned it to Ali, not even after all these years. She hadn't wanted her sister to use it as sister ammunition all those years ago, so she kept quiet about it, just wanting the memory to go away. She knew it wouldn’t be a big deal now, but back then it was totally horrifying. Keeping it tucked far away in her brain had been the best thing to do.
