“I know you can, and if I need you to call them, I’ll let you know.”
“Okay, now that we have business out of the way, how are you doing? How is it to be living back in the mountains?”
“I’m enjoying it more than I thought. Things have been so hectic–I had to find a job and a place to live…”
“I thought you were staying with your parents?”
“Um…yeah. That didn’t last. But I did find a great little house to rent, so everything’s good now.” She glanced at the clock and realized it was getting late and she still had another dozen or so calls to make.
“Say no more,” Hailey said with amusement. “I love my parents, but I don’t think I could ever live with them again.”
“Exactly.” She paused. “Listen, Hailey, I am so excited to be working with you again, but I really need to go. Tons of calls to make and I’m sure you’re busy, too. I promise we’ll catch up when you’re here.”
“Sounds good, Cammie. And thanks for thinking of us!”
“Well, you are the best of the best! And thanks again. I can’t wait to get things started!”
After saying goodbye, she hung up and let out a happy little sigh. This was going to be good for her. The opportunity to head up such a big event and have it run smoothly would ensure that her boss would be impressed with her.
“Nothing can stop me now!”
Little did she know those would be her famous last words…
Chapter 1
Eight fifty-seven in the morning and Cammie Parker was already running late.
As she quickly made her way across the massive lobby of the Emerald Grove Resort, she prayed no one would stop her. This was her first chance to head up a planning meeting and it would not be cool to be late.
Eight fifty-nine.
Quickly turning a corner, she sprinted down the hall and stopped at the door to the offices. Taking a deep breath, she ran a hand over her hair–which was thankfully pulled back in a sleek ponytail–and opened the door.
“Good morning,” she said and cursed how breathless she was.
The receptionist, Anna May Massey, looked up from the front desk and smiled. “Good morning!” Then she studied Cammie for a moment. “You okay?”
What was the point in lying? “I was running a little late and pretty much sprinted here from my car.”
Standing, Anna May laughed. “Well, take a minute to catch your breath, and then we’re meeting in Dixie’s office at nine-fifteen.”
Cammie watched as Anna May walked away and almost sagged with relief. She wasn’t late–not really–and she had a few minutes to pull herself together. Working at the resort was a bit of a dream come true. Not only because of the timing, but because she had lived not far from it since her sophomore year of high school–and before moving to Raleigh several years ago–and Emerald Grove was a place that always called to her. And now, here she was!
Grabbing a bottle of water, she quickly took several sips and began to cool down. The opportunity with Dixie Cruz couldn’t have come along at a better time. And after a rough patch in her life that she’d love to forget, it seemed like things were finally going her way.
At nine-thirteen, she took her seat in Dixie’s office. Anna May was already in there, and after saying hello to Dixie, she swiped her tablet screen to pull up the agenda.
“Okay, let’s start by looking at our upcoming calendar. We’ve got six events in the next two weeks,” Dixie began.
“Six?” Cammie asked. “But...how…?”
“You’ll get used to the pace,” Anna May said with a smile. “Although I’m sure it’s only going to get busier now that the resort is done being under construction. I know a lot of people are just dying to come in and look at it all and see for themselves! I’ll bet…”
“Anna May,” Dixie interrupted with a bit of a snap. “May I continue?”
Cammie had to hide a smile. In the last month she had learned that Dixie was extremely task-oriented while Anna May tended to constantly run off on a tangent.
It made for some interesting conversations.
“And you don’t worry, Cammie,” Dixie added. “We’re not just going to throw you to the wolves.”
“Thank God,” she sighed and then relaxed.
“Except for the expo,” Anna May chimed in. “I know we haven’t talked a lot about it yet, but it already sounds a bit overwhelming! I’m sure you could teach us a thing or two where that event is concerned!”
Dixie let out a loud sigh and then went on. “First up is our Friday night wedding - second time around for both, only two attendants and two dozen guests for dinner. We could almost do that one with our eyes closed.”
“Agreed,” Anna May said.
“We’ll follow that up Saturday afternoon with the Malcolm-Charles wedding. More traditional - four attendants, fifty guests for lunch. No weird requests, so I think we’re good there too.”
Everyone nodded and checked off their lists.
“Saturday night is the Briggs-Davies event,” Dixie continued. “High-maintenance bride, uninterested groom, bitchy mother of the bride.”
Cammie looked up and saw she was the only one who seemed dismayed. As if sensing her apprehension, Anna May reached over and patted her hand. “You’ll get used to it. We have to be brutally honest with one another on these things. And we keep that brutal honesty here behind closed doors. It makes it all run smoother.”
“Are... are all the events filled with…”
“Drama?” Anna May finished for her. “Yes. It goes with the territory. Some events…”
“Like the Malcolm one…” Dixie supplied.
“Are a breeze. Then you get the Briggs group in here and you have to wonder why they’re even getting married when divorce is so clearly in their future.”
Cammie found the whole thing a little disenchanting. Weddings were supposed to be a beautiful event - a happy event - and yet the business end of it was totally…not.
Anna May patted her hand again and smiled. “You’ll get used to it. Trust me. We don’t take these things lightly, but after a while, you begin to see the signs and…”
“It’s hard to keep your observations to yourself,” Dixie said with a sympathetic smile.
Rather than respond, Cammie just nodded. “Got it.”
They went down the list of the Sunday events before letting Cammie take the floor to discuss the expo's plans. It felt a little strange to be the one taking the lead on this, but she’d done so many of them with Hailey and the girls at Enchanted over the last two years that it was like second nature.
Once she was done, they went over the two small events scheduled for next weekend–an engagement party and an anniversary one. Neither seemed overly complicated.
Next on the agenda were the appointments with prospective couples wanting to book a destination wedding with them. Cammie followed along as Dixie read off the list, and then she gasped and choked on her own saliva.
“Oh my God, Cammie! Are you all right?” Anna May cried as she jumped up.
Both women surrounded her, patting her on the back, pouring her a glass of water as she tried to catch her breath. It took a few minutes, but when she was finally able to breathe again, she looked at Dixie in dismay. “I’m sorry, did you say Van Wilkinson-Cameron wedding?”