Why Not Tonight (Happily Inc. #3)(66)
“Pallas told me you agreed to step in and help with the movie wedding.” Renee consulted her tablet before smiling at Natalie. “She’s been doing way too much for a woman dealing with her first pregnancy and all that morning sickness. I know she appreciates you providing support. I’m looking forward to working with you, as well, as I settle into my new position.”
There was a slight formality to her speech. Natalie couldn’t tell if it was because English hadn’t been her first language or if she’d gone to a really demanding high school. Maybe a private one where everyone had to use multisyllable words or risk being kicked out.
“It’s been fun,” Natalie said, then wanted to groan. Couldn’t she have come up with something less dweeby than that?
“I’ve been working in wedding planning for a couple of years now,” Renee told her. “In Beverly Hills. Those weddings were all very formal and traditional. I’m pleased to have the opportunity to experience events that are more relaxed and fun. The idea of a wedding based on a movie will provide great memories for the couple to share. I hadn’t seen the movie myself, but I watched it over the weekend.”
“What did you think?”
Renee hesitated before smiling. “Let’s just say I’m glad it’s so meaningful to them.”
Natalie laughed. “That is a very diplomatic way of saying it wasn’t your thing.”
“I’m more a foreign-film kind of girl.”
“Oh, really?” On purpose? Natalie tried to find common ground. “The guy I’ve been seeing loves action movies, but I’m willing to overlook that.”
Pallas joined them. “Oh, good. You’ve met. Sorry I’m running a little late. I actually got hungry and made myself a sandwich. Yay, progress.”
“You’re looking great,” Natalie said, noting her friend had some color in her cheeks and she didn’t look as tired. “I’m glad you’re feeling so much better.”
“Me, too. All right. The bride and groom have just pulled into the parking lot. Silver texted to say she’ll be here in minutes, and the parents are waiting on the conference room screen. Shall we?”
They walked toward the conference room. Natalie hung back a little, letting Renee go ahead. Pallas moved next to Natalie and lowered her voice.
“What do you think of Renee?”
Natalie looked at the petite redhead. “She scares me a little, but she seems nice. Is she as accomplished as she appears?”
“More. I know what you mean about the intimidation factor, but she knows her stuff. Sometimes I think she knows it better than me and she’s what? Two years younger. Ack!”
They reached the conference room just then and went to greet the bride and groom. Silver arrived and Pallas connected the parents for the meeting.
“Are we ready?” Pallas asked as everyone took a seat.
Ellen squeezed Barry’s hand. “I’m so excited about all this,” she said happily. “We’re talking menus and finalizing our plans. It’s starting to be real.”
“Very real,” Pallas told her with a smile. “Renee, why don’t you tell our bride and groom what you’ve been working on?”
Renee nodded, then glanced at Silver. “I’ve been consulting with our master mixologist and we have a few more exciting cocktail ideas for you to consider. Obviously the signature cocktail needs to be green, both for the Joker and Poison Ivy—two excellent and well-developed characters. Silver and I have been discussing infusing vodka with different flavors and then using an organic food coloring to get the shade of green we want.”
“I’ve been trying out a few ideas,” Silver said. “It’s going to be really easy and we can work with different ingredients.”
“That sounds great.” Ellen beamed. “I’m excited to try everything.”
“We’ll set up a tasting right after the meeting.”
“Not too much tasting,” Ellen’s mother said from the screen. “It’s the middle of the day.”
Ellen rolled her eyes. “Yes, Mom.”
Natalie tried not to smile.
Renee checked her tablet. “I have a vendor who will make custom tortilla chips. I’ve checked and a bat shape is no problem. That allows us to consider a wonderful chip and dip station. We can have the traditional salsas and guacamole, of course, but also things like crab dip or artichoke dip. I wrote down some thoughts.”
She passed around sheets of paper. Natalie blanched when she saw the neatly organized spreadsheet complete with a floor plan for the reception space and a flow for the guests. Pallas caught her eye and mouthed, “I know!”
Renee turned to Natalie. “I’ve been admiring your flowers. They’re lovely and I appreciate that you used comic book print to make them. Taking that one more step, a trend these days is to serve finger food in rolled-up paper.” She turned to Ellen. “The notes from the previous meeting mention that you’re interested in a lot of finger foods. What if we used the comic book paper for that, as well? It would be so charming and fun.”
Renee was on a roll. She shared over a dozen other ideas that all had the bride and groom giddy with excitement. Pallas seemed relieved and Silver was scribbling furiously every time a drink was mentioned.
Natalie realized her part-time gig as Pallas’s helper had ended. The slightly mysterious and very together Renee was going to pick up any slack, leaving Natalie free to return to her art projects, especially the one Atsuko had mentioned. And she would, just as soon as she stopped being curious about who Renee was and why she’d decided to move to Happily Inc.