“I knew her reticence was too good to last.” Matthew smiled.
“Don’t shoot the messenger, son. Ever since you agreed to come to the ball, your mother has been on the phone with every society hag with a daughter or granddaughter.” He covered his mouth. “Oh, I didn’t mean to say it like that.”
“Whether you meant to or not, Dad, that about sums it up.” He sighed. “I’ve told Mom a million times that I will meet someone on my own.”
“She’s getting a little anxious, especially since your younger brother’s getting married soon.”
“I know. Nevertheless the bottom line is when I’ve met the right woman I’ll let you know. Black, blue, white, red, or yellow, when it’s the right woman, I’ll know it.”
“I hear you, son, but you know how it is when those ladies get a bone. They run with it.”
“I remember. It’s one of the reasons I’ve stayed away from these functions for so long.”
Mr. Smythe patted his son on the back. “I understand, and you won’t get any pressure from me.”
“Thanks. Can you talk to Mom?”
“I’ll do my best. But you know how she is.”
“So buy two of those Prince racquets. That should help.”
“You might be right about that.” He went back to the display.
Most women love flowers, but Margaret Smythe wasn’t most women. The latest tennis racquet was the equivalent of three dozen long-stemmed roses, and it lasted longer. Matthew hoped it would buy him some quiet before he told them about Paige.
* * *
It was Friday morning and Bliss was in full swing. Deidre had an appointment with the dentist and would come in late, so that left Paige to cover the phones.
“Good morning. This is Bliss. How can I help you?”
“Paige?”
“Yes. Is that you, Patricia?” She was shocked but pleased to hear her voice. She hadn’t been able to reach her by phone and had been a little worried.
“Yes.”
“Oh, my God. You have been on my mind. I left you a few messages.”
“I know, and I appreciate it. I’m sorry I didn’t get back to you.”
“There’s no need for you to apologize. How are you feeling?”
“Little by little it’s getting easier.”
“We have to take things one step at a time. How’s your dad?”
“He’s okay. Did you get his card?”
“I certainly did. Please tell him how much I appreciated it.”
“We really appreciated your help that day.”
“I was happy to do anything I could. Oh, my goodness, Patricia, I could ramble on all day but you called me. What can I do for you?”
“I was looking for Stuart.”
“Let me check to see if he’s on the phone. Would you hold a minute?”
“Sure.”
She put her on hold.
Paige walked into Stuart’s office as he was hanging up the phone. “Hey, boss lady.”
“Hi.”
“What can I do for you?”
“You have a call on line one. It’s Patricia.”
“Patricia? Okay. I called her to see how she was a little while back. I guess she couldn’t get back to me until now.”
Paige stood there in disbelief. “Don’t play innocent with me, Stuart. I didn’t just fall off the coffee truck. You’ve been in contact with her. Own it, brother. It’s your life.”
“I can explain.”
“Listen to me, Stuart, I’m not here to judge you. What you do in your personal life is totally your business. She’s a single woman and you’re a single man. Mazel tov! Now don’t keep the lady hanging. I’ll be in my office.” She left and shut the door behind her.
“Stuart and Patricia,” she muttered. “It was only a matter of time.”
Paige turned on the satellite radio in her office. With Beethoven’s Piano Sonata Number 29 playing in the background, she went over the spreadsheets and lists she created for Jennifer’s wedding.
An hour and a dozen plus sheets of paper later, Paige finally had time to call her favorite makeup professional, Sinclair James, and hairstylist Iris Sanchez to book them for the Platinum Ball. Two phone calls later, her mission was partly accomplished. Paige made her own appointment with their answering machines.
“Knock, knock, boss lady.”
“Hey, Adriana.”
“So did you get them for Saturday?”
“Sort of.”
“What does that mean?”
“I took it upon myself to make the appointments with their machines.”
Adriana furrowed her brow. “Let’s hope they confirm.”
“I’ll keep my fingers crossed.”
“Think positive.” She plopped onto Paige’s sofa.
“Tell me about it. Now if I can get these spreadsheets for the Klein wedding together life will be perfect.”
The intercom buzzed. “Paige?”
“Yes, Deidre?”
“Ms. Jennifer Klein to see you.”
Paige panicked. She quickly went through her appointment book and the computer schedule.
“You made an appointment with Jennifer for today?” Adriana asked.
“No. That’s not something that I’d forget.” She quickly sent Deidre an instant message. Deidre, did you make an appointment and forget to tell me? She hit send.
“This is wild.” Paige shook her head.
Deidre sent a note. I didn’t make an appointment for her. She said she was just in the neighborhood and decided to drop in.
“What did she say?”
“She said Jennifer was just in the neighborhood and decided to drop in.”
“Doesn’t she live on the Upper East Side? This is a long way from her neighborhood.”
“I know.” Paige stood up and smoothed her suit out. “Come along so I can introduce you.”
Adriana followed Paige out into the waiting room.
“Jennifer?”
Jennifer put down the magazine. “Hi, Paige. I know I don’t have an appointment. I hope you don’t mind.”
“It’s a light day for me so it isn’t a problem.”
“Great!”
“Let me introduce you to my team of planners. They will be working with me more as we get closer to your wedding date. You’ve already met Deidre.”
Deidre smiled.
“Hi.”
Paige then turned to Adriana. “This is Adriana Tassone. Adriana this is Jennifer Klein.” They shook hands.
“Nice to meet you,” Adriana smiled.
“Likewise.”
“Follow me.”
Paige knocked on Stuart’s door. He was still on the phone.
“Stuart?”
He put the phone on hold. “Stuart, this is Jennifer Klein. Jennifer, this is my office manager, Stuart.”
She walked in to shake his hand. “Nice to meet you, Stuart.”
“Same here, Ms. Klein.”
Both Daisy and Eve were in the conference room.
Paige walked in. “Hello, ladies. I’d like to introduce you to Jennifer Klein. Jennifer, that’s Daisy Martinez on the left and Eve McMillan on the right.”
They got up and shook hands.
“Wow, Paige, you have an office full of great-looking people.”
“I know.”
Daisy and Eve laughed.
Daisy stood up. “Okay, Paige, I’m going over to the stationers to pick up the menu cards for the Forrester wedding.”
“Okay, I’ll see you later.”
“Nice to meet you, Jennifer. I’ll see you again before you know it.”
“I look forward to it.”
Jennifer followed Paige to her office. She was taken aback at the décor. “Wow, Paige, this is some office you have here.”
“Thanks.” She sat down behind her desk.
Jennifer sat on the sofa. “It’s modern yet romantic. You’re a multifaceted woman, Paige.”
“That’s what they tell me. So what
can I do for you?”
“I came because I need help with the Platinum Ball. I know it’s not a part of your wedding duties, but I don’t have anything decent to wear. My mother had a couple of dresses designed for me and they are hideous.”
“They can’t be that bad.”
“Would you like to place a wager on that?” She scrolled through her phone pictures, then handed the phone to Paige.
Paige went cross-eyed. “Oh, my God, they’re hideous.”
“See. What am I going to do?”
Paige thought about the gown at her sister’s shop. “I think I have a solution for you.”
“Really?” Her eyes lit up.
“Yes. We have to go over to my sister’s showroom.” Paige looked at her watch. “Shoot! I have to meet a client at David’s.”
“I can go with you and then we can leave for Siobhan’s showroom.”
“Are you sure you don’t mind?”
“Not at all. We can take my car.”
“You drove out here?”
“Yeah. I don’t get chauffeured around all the time. I like to drive.”
Once Paige put on her coat and went outside she saw why Jennifer liked driving so much. She had a BMW 328i convertible to tool around in.
Paige put her seatbelt on. “This must be a blast in the summer.”
“There’s nothing like riding with the top down. Michael loves taking long drives.”
“That’s nice.”
Paige gave her directions to David’s.
* * *
Even though Paige made it a point to meet every client, try as she might she couldn’t familiarize herself with every client’s details. Fortunately, she had been there for the initial consultation with Adriana and knew quite a bit about Ann Marie Hayden. Ann Marie was one of Bliss’s older brides, if you can call twenty-nine older. She was a plus size woman and a quiet person, the last of her sisters to get married. Her family wanted to make sure she felt like a princess and so did Paige.
When they arrived at David’s, the first person they saw was Danielle, the manager.
“Hey, Paige. I didn’t expect to see you here today.”
“I wasn’t supposed to be here. I’m covering for Adriana. We had a menu card snafu for a wedding that’s tomorrow.”
“Oh, I can see how that would be a problem.”
“Are they here yet?”
“They just got here a minute ago. You haven’t kept them waiting.”
“Thanks.”
Paige composed herself and walked over to the gown area. Jennifer walked quietly behind her.
“Good afternoon, ladies. How are you?”
Ann Marie’s sisters Jill and Beth were there.
“Hi, Ms. Baldwin. We weren’t expecting you. We thought Adriana was coming.”
“We had a problem with the stationer for a wedding we’re doing tomorrow. So while she handles that I’ve come prepared to play dress up.” Paige smiled.
Both ladies seemed impressed.
“See, Ann Marie, the owner of the company is here for you.”
Ann Marie seemed far less impressed. “She’s just covering.”
Paige could see Ann Marie’s sisters were frustrated, but thankfully Paige knew just where Ann Marie was coming from and what to do about it.
She looked through gowns. “There’s nothing here that’s going to fit me. I told you guys that I needed to lose weight before I started shopping.”
Paige looked through the file. “I’m sorry, that wasn’t noted in the file. Ladies, I apologize.”
They looked confused. Paige waited for Ann Marie to take the bait.
“You didn’t see what in the files?”
“The notation that this is an arranged marriage.”
“An arranged marriage? This isn’t an arranged marriage.”
“Oh, good thing you told me. I just assumed. So he’s seen you before?”
“Sure.”
“And he proposed. As far as I can tell, honey, getting them to commit is 99.9% of the battle. Everything else is just gravy.”
The women laughed, including Ann Marie. Jennifer, who was sitting in the showroom, was impressed with how deftly Paige handled the situation.
“Now you come over here, Ann Marie, and let’s have a little chitchat.”
She sat down in the chair beside Paige.
“You are going to be a beautiful bride. I guarantee it. You just have to trust me on that one. We will find you the perfect gown in your size. Don’t stress about losing weight. It tends to happen naturally while planning a wedding anyway. Allow yourself to surrender to the joy of getting married. You hired me to handle the headaches.”
She took Paige’s hand. “Thanks.”
“You’re welcome. Now let’s find you a gown.” The wheels in Paige’s mind were in motion.
Pauline, one of the sales consultants, walked over. “Hello, Paige. Is this our bride?”
“Hey, Pauline. Yes this is Ann Marie Hayden. Ann Marie, this is Pauline.” Paige turned and waved Jill and Beth over. “Jill and Beth, this is Pauline, she’s one of the consultants here. Pauline, these are the lovely sisters of the bride, Jill and Beth.”
They shook hands. “Nice to meet you, Pauline.” Ann Marie smiled.
It’s a pleasure to meet you, Ann Marie, and congratulations.”
“Thank you.” Ann Marie continued grinning.
Jill and Beth shook hands with Pauline as well. “Nice to meet you both.”
“When’s the big day?”
“November of next year.”
“November is a nice time of year for a wedding.”
“It’s my favorite month.” She still seemed a little hesitant. “So what do we do first?”
Paige stood up. “Ann Marie, can you stand in front of the three-way mirror for me please?”
“Sure.” She stood in front of the mirror.
Paige walked around her once, then stopped. “Thank you, Ann Marie. You can sit down if you want to.”
“Okay.” She was definitely thrown off balance but it was just the way Paige’s mind worked.
“If you ladies will pardon me for just a few minutes, I will be right back.”
Paige walked over into the gown area.
“Don’t worry. She’s a professional. She has something in mind for you,” Pauline assured them.
Paige had worked with David’s for a number of years, especially when brides were on a tight budget. Sometimes Danielle accused her of knowing their stock better than her staff. She selected four different styles for Ann Marie to choose from. Danielle helped her bring the gowns back to the fitting area.
They placed the gowns on the rack.
“Thanks, Danielle.”
“Not a problem.”
“I’m sorry to have kept you waiting and I apologize for not explaining myself earlier, but there is a method to my madness.”
“That’s not a problem. Pauline told us.” Jill smiled.
“What did you tell them, Pauline?”
“I just told them when it comes to gowns you have a one track mind for each and every bride you work with.”
“That was very nice of you, Pauline. Are you sure they don’t think you’re on my payroll?”
Everyone laughed, including Jennifer.
“She said that’s why you had me stand in front of the mirror,” Ann Marie said.
“True. Finding the right gown is a matter of picking the right styles to flatter your shape. I don’t know if you know it, Ann Marie, but you’re an hourglass.”
“I’m an hourglass?”
“Yes, and it also means you have a lot of options, which is why I selected four different styles. This way you can decide what speaks more to your personality and your style.”
Ann Marie cracked a smile.
“Go on, Paige. You have her complete attention.” Beth looked pleased.
She pointed to the gowns. “Full-figured brides have options. You can be slinky, sexy, romantic, or modern. Whatever fee
ls right.”
“I can wear those dresses?”
“You absolutely can.”
“Wow!”
“Pauline, can you put these in the dressing room for Ann Marie, please?”
“Sure.” She hung the gowns up in the room.
“Thank you. Okay, I’m not marrying you to any of the gowns I picked. I just want you to see how you feel about the style of gown and we’ll go from there.”
Ann Marie stood up. “I’m actually getting excited.”
“Good. Now go on in there and try a dress on.”
“Should I go in any particular order?”
“Not necessarily.”
“Okay.” She went in.
“Let us know when you’re in the dress and we’ll help zip you up.”
“Okay, Paige. Jill, Beth, can you come in here, please?”
“Sure.” They went into the room.
Pauline stood next to Paige. “So, just between you and me, which one do you think she’s going to try on first?” she whispered.
“Underneath that shy demeanor beats the heart of a sexy woman ready to bust out. She’s going for the slinky beaded gown first.” Paige was confident.
“You think so?”
“Oh yes. Mark my words, it’s always the quiet ones.”
Excited chatter came from the dressing room.
“Okay, Paige, here she comes.”
Paige had called it. Ann Marie had gone straight for the slinky gown, and it looked fantastic on her.
“Oh, my God! That looks great on you. How do you feel?”
“Good. I really like it.”
“So, sisters, what do you think?”
“I love it,” Beth gushed.
“It’s so sexy and slinky I think George will be knocked out.”
Ann Marie giggled. “Stop it, Jill.”
Jennifer walked over to Paige. “You’re sort of a fairy godmother, aren’t you?”
“I guess so. I love doing this.”
“It shows.” She paused. “I’m really happy to have met you.”
Paige smiled. “Same here.”
* * *
CHAPTER 17
While Matthew looked around Brooks Brothers, Larry squirmed in the chair like an anxious seven-year-old waiting for recess in math class.
“Come on, man. I thought we were going to grab a beer. If I knew we were going shopping I would have brought my wife.”
Matthew was looking at a rack of tuxedos. “I told you we are going to grab a beer, but I have to get a tuxedo for tomorrow night.”
Bliss, Inc. (Indigo Love Spectrum) Page 18