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Page 9
I flip on the light and stand there for a moment to let it sink in.
I’ve made it. I’m here. And even though the thirty-two-thousand-dollar salary isn’t a lot, it’s two thousand dollars more than I was making in Cherry Creek.
So squee again!
I sit at my old desk and take out my laptop and set it up next to my new desktop so I can check my mail.
I have a bunch of spam and an email from MrInvisible. I have to smirk as I open that up.
Enjoy your first day!
Wait. Did I tell him I started a new job? Did I give him my email?
“Grace?” Flora calls from outside my door. “You have a delivery.”
“Delivery?” I get up and peek out the door and spy the most ginormous bouquet of flowers I’ve ever seen. They are like two feet tall and four feet wide, I’m not even joking. “What’s that?” I ask, walking up to the reception desk.
“Flowers, obviously.” Flora says, peeking out from behind them and pushing up her nerd glasses. “You have a great guy, I’m so jealous.”
“Um, yeah. He’s really great. I don’t know if I can even carry—”
“I’ll get them, Grace,” Scott says as he walks up to us. “I was just coming to see if you were in yet.” He grabs the massive arrangement with ease, since he and Blake really are big guys, and walks it down to my office. He sets it down on the only table and then turns to face me. “We have a serious problem,” he says.
“Oh?”
“Yes, now listen, I don’t want you to think we’re taking advantage of you, but Grace, you’re the only person who can do this job.”
“What job?”
“The wedding,” he huffs out. “I know we don’t do weddings here, and the whole reason you wanted a promotion was so you can move away from weddings, but this is John Blazen’s fiancée. And Johnny went to school with us—with my sister, specifically—and wants us to handle the wedding, but the new Mrs. refuses to use Leah over at Little Lady.”
“Blazen? He’s the new quarterback for the Broncos?”
“Uh, yeeeahhh,” Scott says back, like he can’t believe I had to ask. “This wedding is the event of the year and it’s happening in two weeks. But Leah pissed off the future Mrs. Blazen, and now she wants Big Guys to handle everything. So…” He hesitates and shuffles from one foot to the next. “Will you do it?”
“How come I’ve never heard of this wedding?”
“Total hush-hush,” Scott says as he wipes his brow. He’s really sweating my answers. Which is ridiculous. I never say no. I’m a yes-girl. And besides, like I’d really turn down my first assignment. It’s something I do well and they need me. “Blazen just got raked over the coals by his ex after that whole cheating scandal, and didn’t want the media to know about it until after it’s over.”
“OK, I mean, sure, Scott. Whatever you guys need.”
He claps me on the shoulder—hard, like he must do to his brother—and beams a smile at me. “That’s great. I’ll make sure your club events are all taken care of this month. The wedding’s in Vegas in two weeks. I’ll have Flora get all Leah’s preparations over to you, stat, and you can set up a meet-and-greet with the future Mrs. Blazen today.”
Before I can ask if the future Mrs. Blazen has a name that might not reference the husband she doesn’t yet have, Scott is off, being his usual boisterous self to my new co-worker Adam.
I let out a deep breath. OK, for a first assignment, a wedding is right up my alley. It’s a good thing, really. It will give me time to settle in without the pressure of setting up club events on top of it.
Just one wedding in two weeks.
How hard can it be?
Plus, it’s a celebrity wedding. Sorta. The Broncos are superstars in this town, and everyone knows of Johnny Blazen, both on the field and off. He’s a huge playboy and his recent divorce from second wife Amber was a scandal this town will never forget.
At least until they have the new wedding to gossip about.
“Here you go, Grace,” Flora says as she hands me a thick paper file. “This is the hard copy of receipts and stuff that Linda sent. She said to tell you good luck. Apparently Mrs. Blazen is pretty difficult.”
“Oh, great.” I smile at her. “Hey, by any chance, do you know Mrs. Blazen’s first name?”
“Um…” Flora stops to think. “No, actually. I think she refers to herself that way.”
And then she’s gone and I’m alone in my office with my new assignment. I flip the folder open and find Mrs. Blazen’s number, key it into my phone, and then hit send.
“Hola,” a chirpy woman says on the other line. “Future Mrs. Blazen here.”
“Um, hi, Mrs. Blazen, this is Grace Kinsella from Big Guy Events. I’m your new—”
“Yes, Grace. We’ve met down at Little Lady Events. I’m thrilled to see you’ve been moved. I asked for you specifically a few months ago, but Leah refused to let you be my planner.”
“Oh, I had no idea. I just—”
“I have time to meet in an hour, can you come to my house in Park Hill?”
“Sure—”
“Great, see you then.”
And the call cuts off.
I just stare at my phone for a few seconds and then it rings in my hand. I press accept automatically without looking at the number. “Big Guy Events, Grace Kinsella speaking, can I help you?” Shit, I just answered my personal phone with my business greeting.
“Miss Kinsella, this Mr. Whitman at the bank.”
“Yeah?” Double shit, I bounced a check.
“I just wanted to personally let you know that your savings account conversion has been completed, and I wanted to check to make sure you didn’t need anything else before I leave for the day. My mother is not well and I’d like to—”
“Wait, what’s going on?”
“Oh, my mother, she’s a diabetic and she’s got a toe infection, so I have to go take her—”
“No, I mean…” I roll my eyes. “I’m sorry to hear that, so yes, of course you should go—”
“Great. Your new interest rate on your savings has been doubled.” He stops to chuckle. “After all, with a deposit like that, we offer special perks to our best customers.”
I’ve made it. I’m here. And even though the thirty-two-thousand-dollar salary isn’t a lot, it’s two thousand dollars more than I was making in Cherry Creek.
So squee again!
I sit at my old desk and take out my laptop and set it up next to my new desktop so I can check my mail.
I have a bunch of spam and an email from MrInvisible. I have to smirk as I open that up.
Enjoy your first day!
Wait. Did I tell him I started a new job? Did I give him my email?
“Grace?” Flora calls from outside my door. “You have a delivery.”
“Delivery?” I get up and peek out the door and spy the most ginormous bouquet of flowers I’ve ever seen. They are like two feet tall and four feet wide, I’m not even joking. “What’s that?” I ask, walking up to the reception desk.
“Flowers, obviously.” Flora says, peeking out from behind them and pushing up her nerd glasses. “You have a great guy, I’m so jealous.”
“Um, yeah. He’s really great. I don’t know if I can even carry—”
“I’ll get them, Grace,” Scott says as he walks up to us. “I was just coming to see if you were in yet.” He grabs the massive arrangement with ease, since he and Blake really are big guys, and walks it down to my office. He sets it down on the only table and then turns to face me. “We have a serious problem,” he says.
“Oh?”
“Yes, now listen, I don’t want you to think we’re taking advantage of you, but Grace, you’re the only person who can do this job.”
“What job?”
“The wedding,” he huffs out. “I know we don’t do weddings here, and the whole reason you wanted a promotion was so you can move away from weddings, but this is John Blazen’s fiancée. And Johnny went to school with us—with my sister, specifically—and wants us to handle the wedding, but the new Mrs. refuses to use Leah over at Little Lady.”
“Blazen? He’s the new quarterback for the Broncos?”
“Uh, yeeeahhh,” Scott says back, like he can’t believe I had to ask. “This wedding is the event of the year and it’s happening in two weeks. But Leah pissed off the future Mrs. Blazen, and now she wants Big Guys to handle everything. So…” He hesitates and shuffles from one foot to the next. “Will you do it?”
“How come I’ve never heard of this wedding?”
“Total hush-hush,” Scott says as he wipes his brow. He’s really sweating my answers. Which is ridiculous. I never say no. I’m a yes-girl. And besides, like I’d really turn down my first assignment. It’s something I do well and they need me. “Blazen just got raked over the coals by his ex after that whole cheating scandal, and didn’t want the media to know about it until after it’s over.”
“OK, I mean, sure, Scott. Whatever you guys need.”
He claps me on the shoulder—hard, like he must do to his brother—and beams a smile at me. “That’s great. I’ll make sure your club events are all taken care of this month. The wedding’s in Vegas in two weeks. I’ll have Flora get all Leah’s preparations over to you, stat, and you can set up a meet-and-greet with the future Mrs. Blazen today.”
Before I can ask if the future Mrs. Blazen has a name that might not reference the husband she doesn’t yet have, Scott is off, being his usual boisterous self to my new co-worker Adam.
I let out a deep breath. OK, for a first assignment, a wedding is right up my alley. It’s a good thing, really. It will give me time to settle in without the pressure of setting up club events on top of it.
Just one wedding in two weeks.
How hard can it be?
Plus, it’s a celebrity wedding. Sorta. The Broncos are superstars in this town, and everyone knows of Johnny Blazen, both on the field and off. He’s a huge playboy and his recent divorce from second wife Amber was a scandal this town will never forget.
At least until they have the new wedding to gossip about.
“Here you go, Grace,” Flora says as she hands me a thick paper file. “This is the hard copy of receipts and stuff that Linda sent. She said to tell you good luck. Apparently Mrs. Blazen is pretty difficult.”
“Oh, great.” I smile at her. “Hey, by any chance, do you know Mrs. Blazen’s first name?”
“Um…” Flora stops to think. “No, actually. I think she refers to herself that way.”
And then she’s gone and I’m alone in my office with my new assignment. I flip the folder open and find Mrs. Blazen’s number, key it into my phone, and then hit send.
“Hola,” a chirpy woman says on the other line. “Future Mrs. Blazen here.”
“Um, hi, Mrs. Blazen, this is Grace Kinsella from Big Guy Events. I’m your new—”
“Yes, Grace. We’ve met down at Little Lady Events. I’m thrilled to see you’ve been moved. I asked for you specifically a few months ago, but Leah refused to let you be my planner.”
“Oh, I had no idea. I just—”
“I have time to meet in an hour, can you come to my house in Park Hill?”
“Sure—”
“Great, see you then.”
And the call cuts off.
I just stare at my phone for a few seconds and then it rings in my hand. I press accept automatically without looking at the number. “Big Guy Events, Grace Kinsella speaking, can I help you?” Shit, I just answered my personal phone with my business greeting.
“Miss Kinsella, this Mr. Whitman at the bank.”
“Yeah?” Double shit, I bounced a check.
“I just wanted to personally let you know that your savings account conversion has been completed, and I wanted to check to make sure you didn’t need anything else before I leave for the day. My mother is not well and I’d like to—”
“Wait, what’s going on?”
“Oh, my mother, she’s a diabetic and she’s got a toe infection, so I have to go take her—”
“No, I mean…” I roll my eyes. “I’m sorry to hear that, so yes, of course you should go—”
“Great. Your new interest rate on your savings has been doubled.” He stops to chuckle. “After all, with a deposit like that, we offer special perks to our best customers.”
