“It’s a wonder you didn’t end up in a toxic relationship or friendship,” Taryn said.
“Did you?” Jorja asked.
“Almost, but then I woke up pretty quick and figured out that I didn’t need toxic people in my life,” Taryn answered.
“And you both travel a lot to keep from putting down roots where you might find someone and get hurt again, right?” Jorja asked.
“Now who’s the therapist?” Anna Rose answered. “I never thought that my traveling to take pictures was a part of the healing process, but I guess it is.”
“Too bad no one has made a one-time pill to cure trust issues,” Taryn said and wished there were such a medication. She would pop it into her mouth without even reading the long list of side effects on the paper from the pharmacist.
Chapter Eleven
Taryn had just said whatever had popped into her mind when she told Clinton and her cousins that she was having a wedding on a cruise ship, but when she walked into the sanctuary that Friday evening, she found new determination never to have a big church ceremony. Even the preacher, Brother James, sighed when he saw the mess that had been left behind.
“Kaitlin said that you folks are supposed to clean this up?” he asked.
“No, sir,” Clinton answered. “We were hired to bring the flowers, set up the equipment, and then come back and take the rented items back to the shop. We have a copy of the invoice if you need to see it or make a copy to show her.”
“The arch, the candelabras, and the prayer bench are the only things that we need to take back,” Taryn told him. “What happened in here?”
Several of the wineglass candles had been broken, and the glass was scattered all over the floor and the windowsills. Silk rose petals hadn’t just been left lying down the center aisle—it looked like they’d been shot out of a bazooka and landed all over the sanctuary. The bride’s veil was draped over the top of the piano. Then there were the candy wrappers and punch cups tossed about on almost every pew.
“Everything was pretty normal until I introduced them as a married couple, and then some kind of wild music started. The bride threw off her veil and it landed on the piano. The new couple started dancing up the aisle”—Brother James took a deep breath and let it out in a loudwhoosh—“like two chickens with their heads cut off, and rose petals began floating like they were raining from the rafters. I’ve never seen anything like it, and I’ve been performing weddings for forty years. The fellowship hall was full, so I suspect the reception spilled over back into the sanctuary after I left. You can see what happened. Had I known this kind of riot would break out in the church, I wouldn’t have scheduled a meeting with the Ministerial Alliance on the same evening as the wedding.”
“Since Kaitlin was the wedding coordinator, you’ll need to call her about the mess,” Jorja said.
“I will do that right now. Kaitlin has more weddings that she’s planning to help with, but I can guarantee you that she and I are going to have a talk about this mess. Usually, the church is pristine the morning after a wedding, even if the friends and family have to stay until dawn to get it cleaned up,” Brother James said. “Your things are sitting in the foyer. I was shocked when I unlocked the door. Do you have anything in the fellowship hall? I’m almost afraid to even go in there.”
“We have a cake server and matching knife that was rented,” Anna Rose answered, and headed that way. Her gasp when she opened the door could have been heard halfway back to the flower shop.
Taryn peeked over her shoulder and couldn’t believe that Kaitlin expected them to clean up. At least a third of the bride’s cake and a little less of the groom’s cake had been left behind. Cake was smeared in several places on the floor, and a few flies floated in the leftover punch.
“The bride and groom were very young,” the preacher said. “Young folks tend to be a little rowdier than the more mature couples. I guess we need to form a committee to make some rules about what should and should not be done at weddings. If I have to hire a professional crew to clean the punch stains off the pew cushions, Kaitlin will be paying the fees.”
Taryn stepped around the nasty mess on the floor and retrieved the knife and server from the bride’s table, then made her way back. “Maybeyou should think about making them put up a healthy deposit that’s returnable if the church and fellowship hall are left spotless. We ask for a deposit on each of our rental pieces—and after seeing this, we’ll check them out carefully.”
“That’s probably a good idea.” The preacher nodded as he rubbed a hand over his brow.
Clinton had already loaded the items that needed to go back to the shop into the van when Taryn and Anna Rose came out with the two things that they had recovered from the fellowship hall. “I’ve been working for the flower shop for the better part of a year, and I’ve never seen a mess like this or dealt with someone like Kaitlin. I took pictures of the sanctuary with my phone and sent them to Irene.”
“I did the same in the fellowship hall,” Anna Rose said as she and Jorja slid into the wide bench back seat of the van.
“I feel like they should hire someone to perform exorcism rites. A wedding is supposed to be a beautiful, serious exchanging of vows, not a melee that wrecks a church,” Jorja said. “It’s going to take hours to clean the cake icing from the arch, and the prayer bench will have to be reupholstered. No amount of scrubbing will clean the chocolate icing off the white velvet. If they wanted to have a wild and wicked wedding, they should have rented a bar, not had it in the church. Good Lord!” She threw up her hands in disgust. “I’m glad Zoe is too young to remember seeing such a thing, but I can’t unsee it.”
“And to think, Kaitlin assumed we would clean it up,” Clinton said as he started the engine and drove away. “I’m sure glad we don’t have to work with her anymore.”
Taryn slipped her phone from her hip pocket when it pinged. “Hello, Nana Irene.”
“I’ve seen the pictures, and Kaitlin will not get back a dime of her deposit. Replacing that prayer bench alone will cost more than she put up for damages.” Irene’s voice got louder with each word. “I’ve been in this business for decades, and I’ve never seen such a sight.”
“Yes, ma’am,” Taryn said. “We were thinking the exact same thing.”
“Y’all get another bench ordered for the next wedding. From here on out, the security deposit will be the replacement price of whatever piece of equipment anyone is renting.” Irene’s voice had settled back to normal. “If she wants to book anything else with us, don’t tell her no—tell herhellno.”
“We can do that,” Taryn said with a smile. “I’ll even let the new and improved Jorja do it so that she can use a swear word.”
“We’ve got to talk when y’all get here tomorrow,” Irene told her. “There’s something going on between you three, and I don’t know whether to be worried or celebrate—but for now, I’ve got supper on the stove. Bye, now.”
