Coming Up Roses

by Anie Michaels

  “What about the zoo?” Angelica offered with instant enthusiasm. “They have events there all the time, and I know they serve alcohol during them. I went to a concert there once and had some wine.”

  “That’s not a bad idea,” I said thoughtfully. “Babe.” I turned to Aiden. “Can you get me my phone? I need to make a list.”

  He was on his way to my purse in a nanosecond.

  Ten minutes later, I called Riley back with a short, but hopeful list of options. Only three of the seven had Riley and the team not already investigated.

  “Okay, I’m going to look into these options, and while I’m at it, Jasper is going to make some calls to see if there’s even a vendor in town who’s not busy tomorrow who can handle a crowd that size.”

  “Sounds good,” I agreed. Then I made a decision. “Riley, I think you’re doing a great job, and there’s nothing you haven’t done or anything I would have done differently, but I’m going to come home and help handle this.”

  Riley groaned. “I understand. I didn’t want that to happen, but this is bigger than just a little problem. I’d want to be here too if I were you and it were my business.”

  “Once we leave the cabin, I won’t be reachable for a bit, but I’ll call you as soon as I have some more service. Just do your best, Riley. That’s all I ask.”

  “Always,” she replied, not unkindly.

  We hung up and I looked at Aiden.

  “I’m sorry. I have to go back to Portland.”

  “Of course you do,” he replied instantly, completely understanding. “We can be out of here in ten minutes if we hurry.”

  “Five. You go. I’ll close up. Maybe stay the night and read a book.”

  “You don’t mind, Mom?” Aiden asked.

  “Of course not. I planned on staying overnight anyway. I know how to turn off the electricity and close everything up. You guys should leave. I hope everything works out.”

  “Oh my gosh,” I said, getting up and walking to Angelica. “Thank you so much. I know it’s silly, but I really appreciate that you’d do that.”

  The next five minutes were a flurry of activity and Aiden and I ran around like mad people packing the few things we’d brought with us. I got one glimpse of the hot tub as I hurried down the stairs, absolutely crushed that we wouldn’t get our opportunity to enjoy it while watching the sky darken.

  “Next time,” Aiden whispered in my ear, coming up behind me.

  “Okay,” I agreed with a small smile.

  We hugged his mother goodbye, and she stood at the door waving at us as Aiden’s truck rumbled down the long gravel driveway. Once we were on the freeway, I couldn’t keep still, my leg bouncing uncontrollably.

  “C’mere.” He hooked his big hand around my thigh and pulled me across the bench seat until I was right next to him. He didn’t let my leg go, but instead fit his hand even farther into the crease between both of them and left it there.

  I didn’t mind.

  In fact, I took the opportunity to lean my head against his bicep and take a few calming breaths.

  “I know it seems out of control right now, but everything will work out.”

  “I’ve never had to cancel an event, Aiden. Never. And I hate that the one time I decided to take a few days off, everything fell apart.”

  “Babe,” he said in a tone that let me know he was a tad irritated by my statement. “This would have happened regardless of where you were. Your geographical location has no bearing on the sprinkler system inside the Hilton hotel.”

  His comment made me laugh. In part because he was right, but also because the idea was ridiculous. But silly as it seemed, I still bore the brunt of the responsibility. If this event was a failure, that would be on me.

  There wasn’t much else to say, nothing to do, as we drove back down the mountain, heading toward the city. So instead of worrying further, I let Aiden’s presence comfort me. Let his scent keep me calm, his strong body make me feel safe, and I thought about how—no matter what happened in the following twenty-four hours—I knew he’d still be there when it was over, offering the same unwavering support.

  Chapter Twenty-Seven

  Aiden

  I

  didn’t like seeing Rose stressed. I would have done anything to solve this problem for her, but the truth was, I could plan a party just about as good as Rose could probably build a house. Regardless of how useless I felt, I was going to stick by her side and help with whatever I could.

  When we’d driven far enough down the mountain to get service, Rose had immediately called Riley, and all she got was more bad news.

  None of their ideas for a venue had panned out.

  They’d found someone to handle the bar and secured them, but without a location for the party, that wasn’t as exciting news as it could have been.

  “Keep thinking, Riley. There’s an answer. We just have to think outside the box.”

  “You got it, boss,” Riley responded from the speaker of Rose’s phone.

  “I’ll be there in about an hour, I think,” Rose said, looking at me for confirmation.

  I gave her a nod, but I thought I could probably get her there in forty-five minutes if I tried hard enough.

  “I’ll see you when I get there, but call me if you think of anything before then.”

  “Okay. Drive carefully, Aiden,” Riley called out.

  “You got it,” I replied.

  When we arrived at the office – Fifty minutes later, thank you very much – Rose and I found a whole team of people in the office, working hard on a Saturday evening.

  After being brought up to speed, we learned nothing had really changed since we last spoke. They still needed a place to have a giant party.

  “Have you spoken to the Reiglemans?” Rose asked Riley.

  “Yes, unfortunately, the Hilton called them first, so Mrs. Reigleman called us panicked. But I was able to calm her down and let her know we were working on a solution. I told her everything would be fine. I think I got her to believe me, so there’s that. But she’s definitely waiting for us to call and tell her what the plan is.”

  “There has to be something we’re not thinking of. You’ve tried the riverboats? OMSI? The Museum of Art?”

  “They’re all either booked or can’t safely accommodate that number of people.”

  “So, we need a big venue, that’s not booked on a Sunday evening, that can hold a thousand people in twenty-four hours.” Rose looked around at the ten or so people in the room who, I noticed, were all looking at her. She slumped in the nearest chair and scrubbed her face with her hands. “This is a disaster.” She inhaled deeply and then let it out. She sat up straight, squared her shoulders, and then stated, “We’ll just have to cancel. I can’t see a way out of this.”

  Riley let out a quiet groan, but I heard it. Canceling the event bothered Riley just as much as it did Rose. “We’ll give them a full refund, and if they’ll let us, we’ll reschedule and comp the bill. That’s fair, right? I mean, it’s the least we can do.”

  “Maybe we can offer to send a small group out to dinner tomorrow as an apology. It’s not a huge party, but it’s better than sitting at home when you’re supposed to be celebrating.” This suggestion came from Jasper, and I had to admit, it was a good idea. Any reasonable person would be able to see how far Rose was willing to bend over backward to make this happen and how far out of her control it was.

  Rose sighed again. “I guess that’ll have to be enough. Call the nicest restaurant in the city who can hold a hundred people and see if they can make it happen. Keep calling until you find some sort of alternative. I can’t call this poor woman and tell her the party she’s been planning for a whole year is cancelled without something good to offer her. Book a suite at a nice hotel—not the Hilton—and comp that too.”

  I went to stand behind Rose, rubbing her shoulders, trying to be there for her even if I felt useless.

  Rose’s employees all went to work on the latest mission�
�find a crappy alternative to an awesome party. There was a buzz in the room and people started typing on keyboards and looking things up on their phones and making calls.

  Jasper and Rachel were a few tables away, both deep in thought.

  “You know how anniversary parties are. They don’t need anything exciting to do, they just need space.” They were clearly still trying to find a solution to the bigger problem. “Like, even just a field would do. We can get a DJ, no problem. Portland is full of them. I can call twenty right now who’d kill to play for a thousand people. We literally just need a place.”

  And that’s when the huge light bulb exploded over my head.

  “I’ll be right back,” I whispered into Rose’s ear and then walked as quickly as my legs would take me into the hallway.

  My idea was a little crazy, but I didn’t want to get Rose’s hopes up.

  As soon as I was in the hall, I made my way to the stairwell and pulled out my phone. I searched my contacts and when I found the person I needed, I hit Send.

  The phone rang, and I realized it was a Saturday evening and I’d be lucky if the person I was calling even answered the phone.

  When he did, though, I let out a relieved breath. But the battle wasn’t over. I still had to convince him of my plan.

  “Hello, sir. It’s Aiden Daniels. I have a proposition for you.”

  Chapter Twenty-Eight

  Rose

  T

  his was my worst nightmare. I’d never had an event hit this kind of roadblock with such devastating consequences. Sure, there’d been problems in the past—every event has at least one—but never to this magnitude and never with this terrible of outcomes.

  I hated that I was going to have to cancel a fortieth wedding anniversary party. It gutted me. I didn’t care so much about the profit I would lose, or the problems it may cause as far as reputation for my company. I really just hated that I was going to have to tell Mr. and Mrs. Reigleman they weren’t going to have the party they’d dreamed of. At least not tomorrow.

  “Good news,” Riley said, taking the seat next to me. Although, she didn’t sound excited about this good news. She was feeling this loss just as badly as I was.

  “Portland City can take a party of seventy-five, tomorrow at six.”

  “Well, that’s great, but it also sucks.”

  “I know,” Riley groaned. “I’m sorry, Rose.”

  “Riley, I swear, if you apologize one more time...” I didn’t finish the sentence because I had no idea what I was threatening. I’d what? Forgive her again? Thank her for doing exactly what I would have done? Exactly what I would have wanted anyone to do in her position?

  The door opened behind me and when I turned I saw Aiden come through the doors. When he’d left I thought it was to use the restroom or something. So why was he coming in from outside the office? He must have seen the confused expression on my face because as soon as he was close enough, he gave me an answer.

  “I may have a solution,” he said, almost sounding as though he was out of breath. “I just called Mr. Meir, the owner of the Belmont Estate, and he’s agreed to allow the Reiglemans to have their party there tomorrow.”

  “Wait, what?” Riley practically shouted.

  “You mean the mansion you’re not done renovating yet?” I asked, confused even more so.

  “All the basics are there, babe. Plus, it’s got a killer view and if you put up tents, a dance floor, and people warmers, they won’t even pay attention to the inside of the building. There’s plenty of space up there, and tomorrow’s weather is supposed to be clear.”

  “That could totally work,” Jasper said from the other side of the room.

  Suddenly I noticed that everyone was looking at me, waiting for me to say something.

  “But what about catering?” Rachel called out.

  “The Reiglemans hired catering outside of the Hilton anyway. We’ll just need to make sure they can either cook what they need before they get there, or have the capability to cook it there,” Rose said, sounding certain.

  “Electricity is no issue. There’s power.”

  “Bathrooms,” someone else called out.

  “I have the number of the very best portable toilet company in the area. They can have a whole building set up with toilets in a few hours,” Jasper said. That was true. When you planned events for a living, you made friends with people who had weird skills. “They’re very high-scale. You wouldn’t even know you were in a port-o-potty.”

  Without even meaning to, I turned to Aiden and gave him a smile. What a strange relationship quirk, to get all mushy over portable toilets.

  “What else?” Riley asked, encouraging everyone to brainstorm possible issues, so we could have a plan ahead of time.

  “Tents. We’d have to rent tents.” That came from Emily.

  “Hardly anyone has outdoor parties right now. I’m sure there’s a rental company who would love to rent their tents out. And chairs.” I didn’t want to get overconfident, but this plan wasn’t half bad. It was almost doable.

  An hour later, I nervously made the call to the Reiglemans. The wife answered the phone and she sounded absolutely beside herself, completely upset she’d have to cancel her party.

  “Mrs. Reigleman, let me assure you, I’m going to do whatever I can to make sure you get the party you want. And before we go any further, I want you to know that I will be giving you a complete refund for my services, regardless of the outcome for this particular event.”

  I was in my office with Mrs. Reigleman on speaker. All my employees were in the office with me with the explicit instructions to remain silent unless I asked them a question directly.

  “We have two options for you, and please understand that these are just options. We will do whatever we can to accommodate you.” I breathed in, trying to prepare myself for complete disappointment from Mrs. Reigleman, then continued. “We have arranged, if you wish, for a party of seventy-five to have dinner tomorrow at Portland City Grill. Obviously, this bill would be covered by me and Rose City Event Coordination. All deposits you’ve put down on vendors would remain, and we could reschedule the actual party for a better date.”

  “Oh, dear,” Mrs. Reigleman said, and I could have sworn I heard a sniffle in her voice, breaking my heart.

  “Or, we have the option to move the party to the Belmont Estate. Are you familiar with the property?”

  It was quiet for just a moment, but then she spoke. “You mean the beautiful mansion that sits atop the west hill? With the gardens and the breathtaking view?”

  I smiled, but then tried to rein in my excitement.

  “That’s the one. We have a connection with the owner and he’s agreed to let us use it tomorrow, at no cost to you. But there are a few catches.”

  “Such as?”

  “It would become an outdoor party. That means we’d have to bring in tents and heaters, dance floors and find a new DJ. But, if that’s the choice you want to make, I’m confident we can make all that happen.”

  “What about all the guests who will be showing up at the Hilton tomorrow night?”

  “Well, we can either have people there to inform your guests that the party has unfortunately been postponed, or we can provide transportation from the hotel to the Belmont, if that’s what your guests would prefer.”

  “A lot of the guests are coming in from out of town and staying there,” she replied contemplatively.

  “Then it would be easy to rent five-star transportation, and then your guests could enjoy themselves without worrying about driving.”

  “So, you’re saying you can move the party to the Belmont without any problems?”

  I almost laughed out loud. Problems? There would be many. But I wasn’t about to tell her that.

  “It would be a pleasure to move the party to the Belmont. And I must add, the weather tomorrow is supposed to be beautiful and the view from the estate is incredible. It would make a very memorable party.”

 
“Oh, I’m so relieved,” Mrs. Reigleman said on a sigh. “I was very worried we wouldn’t get our party. We’ve been looking forward to it for so long.”

  Everyone in the room threw their hands up in silent celebration. My eyes went to Aiden, who stood in the corner, feet spread wide, one arm crossed over his chest, his other hand at his beard. He was smiling, I knew it, even if I couldn’t see it. I could feel it.

  He’d absolutely saved the day.

  “It’s going to be a great party, Mrs. Reigleman. And I don’t want you to worry about anything. We’ve got everything under control.”

  I spent the next ten minutes going over details with her and when we hung up the entire office erupted into cheers. I let them have their celebration, and I participated, smiling and clapping, but then I had to turn into the boss again.

  “Is there anyone in this room who might be available all day tomorrow?”

  I waited for a response, knowing that no one here owed me their entire Sunday for any reason. When hands started reaching into the air I tried to ignore the tugging at my chest and the wave of emotion that came over me.

  “Okay, let’s get the loose ends tied up for now, then meet back here tomorrow at ten a.m. so we can break up into teams and check off all the things on our lists.”

  Everyone started moving and chatting, and I remembered one last thing.

  “Also, everyone,” I called out over the noise.

  Everyone stopped talking and looked at me, waiting for whatever I had to say.

  “Thank you all, very much, for putting in the work today. And every day. I’m always proud of what we accomplish, but today I am especially proud of all of you. So, thanks.”

  Everyone gave me smiles and left with waves and different variations of “See you tomorrow” until it was just Aiden and me left in the office.

  “That was crazy,” he said when we were finally alone, walking slowly toward my desk.

  “It was. But I think it’s all going to work out. We’ll see tomorrow, though. It’s not over until it’s over.” I leaned back in my chair, feeling a little relaxed for the first time in hours. Something warm was unfurling inside me. It felt like a mixture of happiness and contentment.