Work Wife

Bridesmaid

Eloise and I are knee-deep in sticky tags and seating charts in the conference room when I get a text from Ainslee. I wouldn't have checked it, but the buzzing draws Eloise's focus from the 10-top to my phone and she says, "Oh, what does Ainslee want now?"

I shake my head and stick the woman everyone apparently can't stand at table seven, next to the director of the charity's elderly mother. We have an event this weekend for a charity in Boulder that Chase personally donates to, so he's making this client our number one priority.

"I'm trying to use tact and precision with this damn seating chart, I don't have time for Ainslee at the moment."

"This really should be Susan's task. The director of this thing has a much better idea of vibes and personality types of her volunteers than we do."

I flit my eyes to Eloise who is glancing down at the massive seating chart we have taking over the long rectangular table, and she removes a hand off her tiny waist and points to the DJ booth squeezed in next to a table, "Whoever Susan hates should really be at table fourteen. They'll be blasted by some lame eighties music all night."

"Chase says I can pick where you and I will sit, but I doubt we'll have time to sit and eat. I think we should be at table three, closest to the entrance."

"Or at table nine which is right by the bar."

I am about to reply when I hear a knock on the door. Eloise and I both snap our gazes to Chase who is lingering on the threshold without his sportcoat and he asks, "Did you hear from Ains yet?" I tilt my head, wondering why Chase is asking me about his fianceè when he sees me hovering over a project.

"I've been doing this charity setup all afternoon, haven't had time to look at my phone. What's up?" He takes a step into the room and glances briefly at our project before answering, "Oh, I think she just had something she wanted to run by you." I already thanked her for the airline ticket when Chase presented it to me earlier this week, but he has the same energy now as he did then. He's being vague and has a mischievous gleam in his eye. He gives me that damn dimple and it has me taking a step away from charts and snatching up my phone from the other end of the table. I see the text from Ainslee and quickly read, Hey, something just came up and I wanted to run an idea by you. Can we set a time to Facetime later?

I look at Chase who is now inches away from me, close enough to enjoy his cologne and Eloise is just as curious as to what's on my phone.

"She said she wants to Facetime later," I tell them so as to not keep them waiting in suspense.

"She's free now if you want to call her real quick?" Chase suggests and he looks eager. I dart a quick glance to Eloise who is also just as eager and she nods her head in agreement.

"Oh, um. I mean, Eloise and I were just about done with the seating chart, and you said yourself that you wanted the Meaningful Journeys event buttoned up by four today." His anxiousness to tie up all loose ends for the demanding director forced me to skip my lunch break and move a meeting with a potential client to tomorrow. But I now have all the time in the world to have a chat with his fiancèe.

"It will be quick, come on, she'll be thrilled I am here too," he says with disarming smile and I am a little curious as to what is going on. Defeated, I open my call log and see the eight calls I've already had with the bride-to-be this week. I hit the Facetime button and Chase comes closer so he can squeeze inside the frame. It only rings twice before I see the wide, perfectly white smile of Chase's future wife but her face is covered by a mud mask, making her light blue eyes shine.

"Stella! Ah! I wasn't expecting you to call right away," she says and then giggles, like she is oh-so embarrassed to be caught in a mud mask and a towel wrapped around her head.