“This event would be for children. I was on my way to a wedding the other day when I passed the park and saw they were having an airshow with remote control planes. I stopped for a minute and watched, and it seemed like an awful lot of fun. The kids there loved it, and I know when I was a kid, I loved seeing the big machines, planes, and firetrucks. It would be a great way to give back to the entire community.”
I liked the sound of helping children and giving back to the community, but I needed more details. “Where would we host something like this?”
“How about here? It’s big enough, you could get some planes brought out to look in, and we could have the air force do a flyover. There could be games and prizes, and of course, that remote airplane club could come out and put on a show too.”
Having our home office in an old airport hangar was about to pay off.
“It sounds like a lot of fun. I tell you what, research the cost a little and then get back to me. If we’re talking about planes and food and fun for the entire city, then we will have to make sure and set a healthy, but reasonable budget.”
Tanner grinned. “With the press we’ll get, we’ll still reap a reward.”
“I like the way you think, my friend. Let’s make it happen soon. Not this Saturday, but the next.”
Tanner’s eyes widened with surprise. “Holy shit, you’re not playing around, are you? Do you realize how much work this will take?”
“Then you had better get right on it.” I reached across the table and shook his hand, which he gave slowly.
Tanner wasn’t so sure. “I fear I may have stepped into something. Wouldn’t it be much better to take our time and advertise this a bit?”
“Nonsense,” I said. “Gather a few of the others, and form a committee. You should delegate and give them instructions. Lock down your attractions by the end of the day, and then send out a press release for first thing in the morning. You’ll pass most of the work off.”
“It’s going to cost more doing things on the spur of the moment, Cole. People have busy schedules, same as we do.”
“So, spend the little extra. We have it, and besides, it’s for the kids.” I had always loved children and hoped to have a few of my own one day. When I found the right the woman, preferably.
“Did you ever go to anything like it when you were a kid?” asked Tanner. He had known as much to know that my life was very different than his.
I thought back to the times my father and I would go to see the planes at the hangars. “No, I never did. Me and the old man would go down to the hangar now and then. We’d sit and look at the planes and watch the small aircrafts take off, but that was maybe three times. He mostly did it deciding on what model to make. He’d sit for hours making those things and drinking beer. Then it got to where he was drinking more and more, and I guess he stopped having money for the models.”
Tanner sat on the edge of his chair. It wasn’t often that I told him anything about my life, especially when my father was a part of the story. “How many models did you make?”
“We’d make them together. He might let me sort the pieces and glue a couple together, but he mostly stayed in charge. He never trusted me to not make a mess or tear something up. But he had this one plane; he had left it half done. It had always just sat there on the table like a bad memory until it was covered with dust. My mother had left us by then, and neither of us liked to clean very much. But one day, God, it had been years later, and he was working late. I decided that I was bored. I went over and dusted off the pieces and took the plane to the table. I sat there for three hours and finished the model. I was so proud. When Dad got home, I left it out so he could see. He noticed it right away, and at first, he frowned, and I thought I was about to get my ass handed to me for touching his shit, you know? That’s the way it usually happened, but no, he didn’t mind. He looked up and nodded his head. Then he gave me the closest thing to a smile I’d ever seen from him and said, ‘Not bad, kid.’ It was also the closest thing to a ‘way to go’ or ‘I’m proud of you’ that I ever got. And he even let me hang the plane up in my room. I kept it for a long time, but then my father sold a lot of our stuff when we had to move. I’ve never seen them again.”
“That’s too bad, man. I never knew it was your father who gave you the passion for planes.”
I thought about that for a minute. I’d never realized that he gave me anything more than bruises and a hard time. “I guess he did.” It was quiet a moment, and I took a deep breath, and Tanner got out his phone.
He drew his finger across it and then readied his thumbs to type. “Who should I ask to help?”
“Becky. She loves kids, and after seeing her in action the other night, I think she’s a lot more outgoing than she lets on.”
“Well, she did have a lot of liquid courage, but okay. I’ll see if she wants to help me organize.”
“I’d suggest only about four or five people. You need to keep it intimate to make sure things are running efficiently.”
“Got it, and I know just the people to ask.”
“I’d try the ones who actually have kids. They’ll probably have the best ideas and want to be involved. I’d plan a menu for free food. Maybe get a couple of food trucks to make it easier. Then get in touch with that club and see if they are available. And I want a photographer. Someone with talent.”
He typed all of the notes into his phone, and then his fingers stilled. “I don’t know anyone. Do you? I’ve never needed a photographer before.”
“Ask a friend. Just make sure that they are highly recommended, and pay them what they’re worth.”
“My cousin Ashlyn got married Saturday, and there was a photographer. Pretty thing, too. I’ll see if she’s available.”
“Fine, make sure you look at her portfolio. I want someone who has done more than take pictures of brides.” I wasn’t sure, but it seemed that taking pictures of airplanes and people might be very different.
Tanner didn’t seem to think so. “What difference does it make? I’m sure Ashlyn got the best she could find. She’s a very picky and spoiled girl.”
“And I’m sure this woman isn’t cheap, so make sure you don’t pay her more than twenty-five for the day.”
“Twenty-five? Hundred? Thousand?”
“I don’t know.” I shrugged. “Find out her going rate.”
“I’ll text my cousin. Her honeymoon isn’t until next week.” He let his fingers walk across the screen, and soon he hit send. “There. She should message me back in a second. She’s always on her phone and even had it tucked into the bust of her dress during the wedding. My mother always said that side was uncouth, but I didn’t believe it until then. I’m not sure how she ever put it down to say her vows, and she even took a picture of their wedding kiss and posted it on social media.”
“Kill me if I ever start dating anyone like that.” I couldn’t see how one could have a deep-meaning relationship with someone who kept their nose in their phone.
“Right? I’m not even sure she married the right groom. She may have been at the wrong wedding.” He gave a chuckle as he put his phone on his knee.
A moment later, the phone pinged. He looked down and his eyes widened. “Shit, she thinks I’m getting married. I better fix this before she tells my mother.” His fingers went flying across the phone’s screen, and a moment later, he got another ping. “She said she paid around twenty-five, but I bet it might be more with the last-minute request. I guess that’s the going rate for a good photographer. She sent me a link. Do you want to see?”
“Sure.” He got up and came around to my desk, and I looked at her website with him. Her bio was quirky and fun, and she seemed to have a lot of talent from her photos, but they were all wedding related. “Show me something from her miscellaneous gallery.”
“Gotcha,” he said as he touched the screen and pulled up an incredible photo of a plane from the airport and others around the city. “Wow, she’s good.”
I was
so taken aback by the photos that I couldn’t speak. She shouldn’t be stuck doing wedding photography. She should have been in a gallery somewhere.
“Well, what do you think?” Tanner asked.
I couldn’t help but appreciate the woman’s talent. “I like her work. Pay her a little more if you have to. Just make it happen.”
Chapter 4
Jessica
I strolled into the coffee shop to meet Leslie, feeling defeated, and by the time I made it to the table, she already had a look of sympathy on her face to welcome me. “How bad was it?” she asked.
She had sat at our usual table on the side. I pulled out a chair and joined her. “Awful. There were four others there waiting, and I was the only one with a child.” I’d been trying to get a new job for two months without any luck.
“That might work in your favor, you know? A lot of people want to help single mothers.”
“And a lot of people see me as a liability. They immediately think I’m going to ask for more time off, come in late, and that my kid is going to get sick and put them in a bind. You can read it all over their faces.”
“Sorry, Jess. Let’s order some coffee, a decadent pastry, and then I’ll go with you to get Cam.”
“He’ll like that. We’re going to the park if you want to come along. I had so much to do yesterday, I didn’t get to take him. I swear, my savings are depleting, and if I don’t get something soon, I don’t know what I’m going to do.”
She gave me a sidelong look. “I thought you were good for another month?”
“I am. For two actually. But the time is flying so fast, and I’m getting impatient.”
She waved the waitress over, and the younger woman took our orders. As she left, Leslie turned back to face me. “You’re making it okay on the weddings, aren’t you? Why not expand that like you always wanted to? It was Cameron’s dream for you, and I know it will make you happy.”
“It was my dream too, and I’d love it, but I’m always afraid I’ll hit a dry patch because of competition, and then where will I be?”
“You’re one of the best in the city, if not the best, and I think if you put a little effort into it instead of burning out every day looking for a job, then you’d do a hell of a lot better.”
“I might have to. It’s just, I know the slow season is coming. Everyone wants to get married in May and June, so I’m great for the next couple of months, but what happens in the deep winter months when no one plans a wedding?”
“We’ve talked about this before. You wanted to find another outlet and focus on that in the off months, remember?”
“I know, but it’s bad enough I don’t get enough time with Cam now. I just need a job. It will be easier than running my own business.” I didn’t need the headache of running a business with everything I had going in my life. I needed something steady and easy to manage where I’d have more time with my son.
“Well, don’t let yourself get so stressed, okay? It will happen. You’ll land in the right place, Jess.” She gave me a reassuring smile. “I have faith that everything is going to work out for you.”
I wished I was as sure as she was.
We made small talk and finished our coffee, along with the large slice of pie we’d split. And then, when it was time to pick up Camden, she rode with me to the school.
Cam was glad to see us and even happier that I was taking him to the park. “How was school today, Champ?” I asked as we pulled into the small lot and found a place to park.
“It was okay. I got to show off my little plane that Aunt Leslie bought me.” He leaned up between the seats and showed me the tiny matchbox-sized, silver plane. “It’s like the one that hangs over my bed.”
“I see that.” He loved the plane that hung over his bed. He had several that were from a collection his father had bought at a flea market. Cameron had always liked planes when he was alive, and so he’d bought up the models hoping to hang them in his office someday. He hadn’t always planned to work in the warehouse. No, he had planned to use his degree and start his own company. I had always admired him for having that passion and drive.
“Can we go to the swings first? There’s no one there.” He pointed across the park.
“Have at it, kid. I’ll be sitting on that closest bench, so you stay alert, okay?” I had tried to give him space, but I couldn’t help the overwhelming fear that I’d lose him too. There was just so much crime in the world, and you never knew when someone was going to be there one minute and gone the next.
I let him get out, but I didn’t take my eyes off him as he darted to the swings and started to play. Leslie joined me, and we walked across the lawn to the bench. “You don’t have to sit and watch him like a hawk, you know? I mean, there’s barely anyone here today, and he’s not even thirty feet away.”
“I know. I’m trying to be better, really. I just worry.” Before I could say another word, my phone rang. I glanced at the screen and didn’t know who it could be. “Hm, I better take this. It might be about the job.” I crossed my fingers and then answered. “Hello?”
“Hello, Ms. Hyde?” I was surprised to hear a man’s voice, and I got even more excited that it might be about the job. Most of the people who called me for wedding photography were women.
“This is she,” I said with excitement in my voice.
“Hi, this is Tanner Barnhart with Saunders Aeronautical Industries. We’re hosting a children’s event next Saturday and are looking to book you as a photographer.”
“Next Saturday? What hours?”
The man let out a long breath. “I would think it would be an all-day affair. Maybe into the evening.”
I looked at the calendar and realized I had marked down a zoo trip with my son. It was a surprise for him, and I knew that I might have to end up taking a job, but how much would this children’s event really want to pay me? It might not be worth it. “I’m sorry, I already have something down on my calendar.”
“Oh no. Would there be any way I could get you to free your calendar? We’d really like to use you as you come highly recommended from my cousin, Ashlyn Turner. You worked her wedding last weekend.”
“I don’t know. I had a day planned with my son.”
“Then bring him to our event, and I’ll pay you double what you’re going rate is.”
“Double?” I laughed. “Double my pay?” I was starting to get suspicious. “How about you make it twenty-grand, and you have a deal.”
“Done. But we would want you to include processing, and we’d like a large print to put in our office.”
“Wait, are you aware that you just agreed to pay me twenty thousand dollars?”
“I won’t go over twenty-five. My boss loves your work, and he wants a true artist. He’s willing to pay up to twenty-five, and that’s it.”
“Twenty-five thousand dollars for the entire day?” I glanced over at Leslie, who narrowed her eyes and gave me a look that told me to be cautious.
“Yes. Could you come early? Say around eight in the morning? We’re hoping to get pictures of our employees and their families with our plane before the festivities start. And again, you’re welcome to bring your family along.”
“I’ll be there and thank you.” I didn’t know what to say and contemplated telling the man that he was grossly overpaying me, but then another part of me thought that if it’s what they were willing to pay to have me, who was I to argue?
The man sounded relieved and much more upbeat. “I’ll text you the details, and I’ll be seeing you, Ms. Hyde.”
The call ended, and I sat there in shock, looking at the tiny device like it was some source of wizardry.
“Was that a joke?” asked Leslie, who still looked just as puzzled as I felt.
“It didn’t sound like one. It was an aeronautical company. They are hosting some big kids’ event and want a photographer for the entire day. They offered to pay me twenty-five grand for the day and said I could bring my family.”
�
�An event with planes? How more perfect can that be? You’re going to make an assload of money and make your son the happiest little boy in the world.” She was suddenly super excited and gave me a pinch on the arm. “You’re not dreaming, Jess. It’s real.”
“I haven’t got the money yet. But shit, do you realize that’s nearly what I make in a year? Even as a receptionist at the medical clinic, the most I brought home was thirty-two thousand in a year.” I started thinking about all the possibilities and what I could do with the money to make mine and Camden’s lives better.
“Wow, girl, I’m impressed and a little jealous, but a windfall like that? It couldn’t happen to better people than you and Cam.”
About that time, my son ran over to us with a rock he’d found. “Look, it’s painted like a turtle!”
“That’s one of those rocks people hide for the treasure hunt,” said Leslie. “Some of the mothers at the Little Wings event were talking about them. Some are good for freebies.”
I took the little turtle-painted rock and turned it over. “This is a website. Let’s look it up.”
Leslie took out her phone and typed in the address. When it came up, she smiled. “Looks like you get a free treat of your choice at Tortoise Ice Cream Etc.”
“Can we go?” He gave me his best pleading look, and Leslie did the same.
I couldn’t help but laugh at the two of them. “Of course, we can. I think we all deserve a sweet treat on our lucky day!”
Cam’s eyes widened, and he jumped up and down. “Did you have luck too, Mama?”
“I did. And come next Saturday, I have a surprise for you.” I looked over at Leslie who was smiling ear to ear. “I want you to come with us. They said I could bring my family.”
Leslie looked like she was unsure. “We’ll see. I already made plans for that weekend, but if something falls through, I’m all yours.” She gave me a pat on the back as we got up to leave. “I told you things were going to work out.”
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