Madison and Cole are making their way through the crowd. I watch as they hug their family and friends. They are both beaming. The dinner is fantastic, which was to be expected. The entertainment starts when Susan asks everyone to share a memory or message. Most of the guests share sweet words of advice like, don’t go to bed angry, always communicate, and bring home surprises. The funny parts begin with stories of trips to Cabo and Tijuana, which were enough to give Susan an anxiety attack. At one point, I think considered choking herself with her pearls. The slide show, though, brought many laughs and tears.
After the slide show, Madison sits down with us for a few minutes.
“Are you guys having fun?” she asks.
“Do you have to ask?” Craig says, smiling. “This is a great show.”
“I know. It is an interesting mix of people,” Madison agrees.
Just then, Susan announces that it is time to open gifts. I actually hate this part of any party or shower. Let’s be honest, most of the guests have no desire to watch people open fifty-plus gifts. Although, this time I may make an exception, especially when Madison opens a huge box of lingerie and massage oils. The cheers and chants from the salon crowd have the Gardening Club blushing and whispering.
While the gift opening continues, Abby calls me over to a spot in the back. I know she wants to talk about Luke.
“So, are you doing OK?” she whispers.
“Surprisingly, yes,” I reply. “I’m taking some time to figure out my feelings. Even though Luke says he was in Palm Springs for work, he still lied to me. How can I trust him completely?”
“I understand,” she says. “Can I ask you something? Promise you won’t be mad at me?”
I start to laugh. “That’s never good when someone asks that question, but go ahead.”
“Does any of this have to do with Ace?” she leans back after she asks me.
“Why would this have anything to do with your baby?” I reply with a wink.
“That’s funny,” she says sarcastically. “You know what I’m talking about.” Just then, we are distracted by the gasps and screams of a gift that includes handcuffs. “I see Craig is having a great time watching the gift opening right from the front row.
I start laughing. “Poor Susan. All of her friends will be talking about this for weeks.” I can tell that Abby is waiting for my answer.
“Honestly, it doesn’t have anything to do with Ace. It has to do with the fact that I’m not sure if Luke and I are meant to be. I mean, he can’t even talk to me about something as simple as trying to go out on his own with his career. Hello . . . I am doing the same exact thing.”
“That’s a good point. I don’t really understand why he wouldn’t have told you either,” she says thoughtfully. “Hmm . . . Do you think there’s more to the story?”
I remain quiet for a minute. “Yes, I do,” I finally say. “Regardless, I have to put it out of my head for now and be committed to my event. Enough about that; let’s talk baby showers.”
Abby and I discuss options for her baby shower, and we come up with some really great ideas. Abby’s shower will not be the typical baby shower; I will be sure of that.
The gift opening for Madison and Cole drags on, and most of the items are boring except for the package of whipped cream and chocolate sauce. Even Craig gets up and spends the remainder of the party around the dessert table.
The last bit of entertainment comes at my expense when Susan asks where Luke is and tells me that I should “try to hang on to this one.” That’s pretty much my green light to get the hell out of here. Craig and I have a few laughs on the way home. I remind him to get plenty of sleep and be on his game first thing tomorrow. The big week has arrived, and I am ready to knock it out of the park.
CHAPTER 12
In my commitment to have a good and productive week, I am starting Monday morning off with a hard-core spinning class. I really need it considering my meals on Sunday included Madison’s cookies for breakfast, nothing for lunch, and several trips to Susan’s all-you-can-eat dessert buffet.
I’m the first to arrive at the office, so I make separate to-do lists for Craig, Nicole, the catering team, the pastry team, and the volunteers. I’m greeted with an email from the printers telling me that the files for the programs and the pledge cards still had not be sent. This is a stress I don’t need. I send a 911 text to Craig. Hopefully he arrives soon.
I double-check my schedule for the rest of the week. We have Friday marked off for setup and décor. So, I need those printed items in hand by Friday morning. Ugh, I can feel my blood pressure rising. If anything goes wrong I won’t be able to face the Cantons, and I’m pretty sure my launch party at their place will be out of the question as well.
I also receive an email from Mrs. Canton’s assistant requesting a meeting for Mrs. Canton and the catering team tomorrow afternoon. She has requested another last minute meeting to confirm the menu, and this makes me nervous because she has changed it so many times. I doubt she even remembers what she’s chosen.
Craig finally comes waltzing in with Krispy Kreme Donuts.
“I’m here with treats,” he calls out.
“Keep those evil things away from me. I ate my weight in garbage yesterday. If I keep it up, I won’t fit into my dress on Saturday.” All of this stress eating is going to do me in for sure. I did try on my dress last night and it fits fine, but there are still five days to go, so you never know.
“I need you to go the editors, get those files, and take them to the printers. They have had enough time. They need to send it as is.” I stop talking and look at Craig. He is giving me the strangest look.
“What? Do you have a smart-ass comment for me? It’s your job, do it.” I turn and walk back to my office. I hear him say “OK, Carrie” under his breath. I turn back and give him a dirty look, but we both start laughing. I did kind of sound like her, so maybe she has taught me something after all.
“Oh, and take those donuts with you,” I yell.
That old saying is true. When you want something done right, you have to do it yourself. Or send someone you trust to do it.
I hear the door open and someone calls out, “Ms. Harris?”
“Be right there,” I call back. Who could that be? When I go into the lobby, I see a beautiful bouquet of roses. Wow. Are those for me?
“Hi, I’m Sienna Harris.”
“Can you please sign for these?” he says, handing me a clipboard.
“Sure. Thank You.” I set them down and open the card. It reads, “Good luck this week. Love, Luke”
Wow. I can’t remember ever getting flowers from Luke. He must feel really guilty. I send him a text to thank him.
My big dilemma is to decide if I should still bring him to Faith, Fashion, and Hope. I made him promise for months that he would be available, and I really don’t want to show up without a date. Even though I will be kind of working, there will be some very important people there. At one time, he mentioned wanting to network for Summer Advertising. I’m not sure if he still wants to considering he may be leaving them for this other endeavor. Now thinking back over our conversation, he was pretty vague about that whole thing. He kept mentioning investors, but nothing about who they are. I know it’s a touchy situation considering he works with his family. I’m not sure how that’s going to go down when he leaves their business.
“Whoa. Who are those roses for? They are gorgeous,” says Nicole as soon as she arrives. I was so deep in my thoughts that I didn’t even hear her come in.
“Oh, they’re for me. Thanks.”
“Any word from Carrie today? I’m in pretty big trouble for giving you guys that resort info. She called me and went on a tirade for a good ten minutes. She said that we are having a meeting to discuss it, but I have no idea when she’s coming in.”
“That is so typical that she wants to take time out to discuss that when we are preparing for a very important event in a few days.” I roll my eyes. I remind myself to ha
ng in there. I have to make it through Saturday.
“That’s what I thought, too,” she replies. “Oh, that reminds me, do we have any extra seats? Carrie overfilled her table, but we need to find two more seats close by.”
“Of course she did. When Craig gets here, we can check over the seating floor plan. I’m not sure if there are empty seats other than our table. I’m not sure how Carrie’s guests will feel about being seated at a table with ‘the help,’ ” I say, giggling.
Several hours later, Craig returns and he looks exasperated.
“Please tell me they have the files” is the first thing I say, but I can tell by his face that I am not going to be happy with his answer.
He takes a deep breath. “Apparently, Mrs. Canton is waiting for one more ad spot from one of the designers. And if we don’t get it by this afternoon, the printers said there will be no way to complete them in time with their full workload this week,” he says as he dramatically falls back on the couch. “What are we going to do?”
I feel like I’m going to cry. We need programs for this event. All of the sponsors are expecting their names in print.
“Call every printer in town,” I tell both Craig and Nicole. “I will call Mrs. Canton and see if I can get that ad. We have to figure something out ASAP.” I hurry to my office and get on the phone.
After my call with Mrs. Canton, I feel even more defeated. She made it very clear that the programs cannot be printed without this ad because this designer’s work is a very large part of the auction.
“Any luck?” I ask the others.
“Not yet.”
My next idea is to call the printers and beg them to do the job. They remind me that we did promise them that all the files would be sent last week. I explained the situation and tried telling them it has been out of my hands. My whining and complaining didn’t get me anywhere. I even call Luke and ask him, but they use the same printers that we do.
Nicole knocks on my door. “Sorry to bother you, Sienna. Can I come in?”
“That’s fine,” I reply, picking up my head from banging it on the desk.
“We found a few empty seats at Mr. Eckelund’s table. Would you be able to contact him to ask if we can use them for Carrie’s guests? He only submitted five names for the table.”
I groan. “Yes, I will call him now.” She leaves and I look through my contacts to find his name. Hmm . . . five people? I wonder if he’s bringing a date. There I go again, acting crazy. It will be a miracle if I make it through this weekend without medication.
“Hello.”
“Hello, Ace, it’s Sienna Harris.” I try to sound as formal as possible just in case the little ears in my office are listening.
“How are things coming for the charity? I am looking forward to it.”
“We have had a pretty big issue arise today that I am trying to fix. Anyway, I have a big favor to ask you.” I explain about Carrie’s guests, and he says that it will be no problem for them to sit there. “I’m not sure who they are so I apologize in advance. I’m sure you saw some of the people that are in her crowd at Venice a few weeks back.”
“No worries,” he says kindly. “So, what is this big issue?” he asks.
I tell him all about what happened with the programs and the printers. I don’t plan to but I actually start crying, and not just a little bit of crying, but the BIG UGLY CRY. I’m just so glad that he isn’t here in person to see this. I’m so humiliated.
“Hey there. It will be alright,” he says sympathetically. “Have you tried any other printing companies?”
“Yes,” I reply through my sobbing. “I just really wanted everything to go perfectly.”
He’s quiet as he listens to my overreacting. “I am sure it will still be a wonderful success. Just remember what a great cause it is.”
“I know.”
He gets quiet for a few seconds. “Sienna, I have an idea. I can’t promise anything but I will call you back.” He hangs up.
What could he possibly do? He’s given me a tiny bit of hope, though. I go out to give Nicole the good news about the seats. She seems very relieved to have that taken care of, but both she and Craig look as defeated as I feel.
“Were you crying?” asks Craig as he squints his eyes.
“Yes, it’s shocking, I know. I have cried more in the past few weeks than I have in the past ten years.”
“Anything?” I ask already knowing the answer. Craig shakes his head. “I’m so sorry. You told me last week to stay on top of that but I didn’t.”
“It’s not your fault.”
I have a hard time concentrating the rest of the afternoon. I receive a text from Ace that said he was working on something and would keep me posted.
I’m just thankful that no other issues arise, but I keep reminding myself that tomorrow is another day. Carrie called Nicole and mentioned that she would be here Tuesday or Wednesday. I decided not to say anything about the programs yet. I might as well wait until she comes in.
I don’t get home until after 8:00 p.m. Madison isn’t here; she’s probably with Cole. I make some dinner and turn on the TV. I haven’t felt this lonely in a while. I know exactly what I need to do. I call my mom.
I end up talking to my parents for a couple of hours. I tell them about Palm Springs, Ace, Carrie, Faith, Fashion, and Hope, and the program issues. As always, they make me feel better by listening and giving me some advice. We talk about me meeting them in Florida in a few months. I feel so much better after talking to them.
My dad made a great point that really rang true. He reminded me that I have been successful in my career because I know how to handle a crisis, and that I should remember why I chose this profession, which was to bring joy. He reminded me to focus on that, and everything will fall into place.
When I pull up at the office the next morning, I see Carrie’s car. I take a deep breath and mentally prepare myself. I’m sure she will spend a good part of the morning berating us on why her vacations should remain private. Then at some point, I will have to tell her about the programs. I still haven’t heard back from Ace. I have pretty much lost all hope.
When I walk in, I can hear her on the phone in her office.
“I would have loved for you to escort me to the event. Remember what’s on the line here. There is a lot at stake.”
I make some noise so she doesn’t think I am listening. She quickly finishes her conversation.
“Sienna, is that you?”
“Yes. Good morning,” I say as I take a few deep breaths.
“Let me know when the others arrive and we can have our meeting. I have to make a few more calls.”
I go to my office and text both Craig and Nicole. They both show up within a few minutes. Poor Nicole looks like a deer in headlights. I try to remind her to breathe. As we sit down in Carrie’s office, I decide to speak up before she has a chance to. At this point, I figure I have nothing to lose.
“Carrie, I would like to start by apologizing. I take full responsibility for contacting you over the weekend. Please understand that with the event coming up in a few days I am trying ensure that everything runs perfectly.”
She doesn’t say anything right away. I think she’s surprised I spoke up.
“Yes.” She hesitates. “Well, don’t let this happen again. You may think that I’m away strictly for leisure. That is not always the case. I’m dealing with business more than you know. “
Success! I am so glad I spoke up first. It’s really pretty sad that I had to remind her of the importance of this and why I had to go to such lengths to track her down. We all attempt to stand up to get back to work when she holds up her hand.
“We are not done here,” she says firmly. We all look at each other and sit right back down in our chairs.
“Nicole, I am especially disappointed in you. I gave you very strict instructions and you went against them.”
“Carrie,” I interrupt. “Really it was me. I practically begged her on my han
ds and knees to give me the information.”
She holds up her hand again. “She doesn’t work for you, Sienna. She works for me.”
I look over and see Nicole hanging her head. And then the unthinkable occurs.
“Not anymore I don’t,” Nicole says. Craig and I look at each other in shock. What is she doing?
“Since you have such a problem with me and the way I do my job, you can do it yourself because I quit. I would like to see how you do without me.” She stands up and walks to her desk. I look over at Carrie who looks in shock. I’m not really sure what to do next.
I decide to go talk to Nicole. She’s already cleaning out her desk.
“Nicole, don’t you think this is a rash decision? You have worked so hard on Faith, Fashion, and Hope. Don’t you want to see all your work come to life?” I plead with her to reconsider, but at the same time, I completely understand.
“You are making a horrible mistake,” Carrie says, coming out of her office. “I will give you a chance to change your mind.”
Nicole continues to gather her belongings and doesn’t acknowledge Carrie.
“I’m sorry, but I work very hard and I am tired of feeling unappreciated.” She turns to Craig and me and says as checks her desk drawers, “Good luck to you with Faith, Fashion, and Hope.”
“You will regret this,” Carrie says as she heads back to her office and shuts the door behind her.
“What the hell are you doing?” Craig asks. “You can’t leave. Do you have another job?”
“Not yet. I just can’t do this anymore. I know that I am leaving at the worst time.” She sits down in her chair. “I’m sure that the minute I walk out of here I will regret it.”
A few minutes later, she’s gone.
“I did not see that coming at all,” Craig says as he sits down in her chair. “What do you think she’s going to do?” he whispers, pointing toward Carrie’s office.
An Event to Remember. . .or Forget (Event to Remember Series Book 1) Page 14