Kitty nodded. “Yes.”
“And then dinner after,” I said.
“Yes.”
Lucy flipped her notebook page. “Chairs. Have you ordered them?”
Kitty stared at her clipboard. “The inn has chairs.”
“Not seventy,” Lucy said.
Kitty made a faint sound. “I was hoping… maybe people would stand.”
I blinked. “For a wedding?”
Kitty raised her hands. “Not the whole time. Just maybe for a bit. During the ceremony.”
Lucy leaned in slightly. “Kitty.”
Kitty swallowed. “I haven’t ordered chairs.”
Lucy wrote, ORDER CHAIRS TODAY OR WE USE FLOUR BAGS.
Kitty’s face went pale. “We can’t seat people on flourbags.”
“We can do anything,” Lucy said calmly, “if we are desperate enough.”
I tried to keep my tone gentle. “Kitty, we need extra staff. Servers. Dishwashers. Setup help. Who did you hire?”
Kitty looked as if I had asked her to explain astrophysics. “Hire?”
“Yes,” I prompted.
She hesitated. “I thought… we wouldhandle it.”
Lucy pressed a hand to her chest. “Jane and I.”
“And Meri,” Kitty added quickly.
Lucy closed her eyes. “We are not an army.”
“We are very capable,” Kitty said weakly.
“Capability doesn't make extra hands appear,” Lucy said. “We need at least two extra servers and someone to do dishes who is not also baking.”
Kitty nodded rapidly. “Yes. Yes. We will hire some extra staff.”
“Today,” I said.
“Today,” Kitty echoed.
Lucy pointed her pencil at Kitty. “Cake. How many tiers?”
Kitty brightened again. “The bride wants something elegant.”
“That is not a number,” Lucy said.
Kitty’s face fell. “I will ask her.”
