Within ten minutes, the common room looks like a tornado hit it. Boxes are stacked on tables, garment bags are draped over chairs, and Hope's got a clipboard in one hand and a Sharpie in the other, marking things off as we go.
“Centerpieces?” she calls out.
“Got 'em,” Amy says, hauling a box toward the door. “All twelve. And they're heavy as hell, by the way.”
“Place cards?”
“Here,” Sharon says, holding up a smaller box.
“Favors?”
Colt appears from the hallway with another box. “Is it these little bags with the chocolates?”
“Yes. Thank you.”
Eagle and Hawk are loading up the truck outside, and I can hear them arguing about the best way to stack everything so nothing gets crushed. Chaos is double-checking the garment bags, making sure none of the suits get left behind.
“Did anyone grab the guest book?” Hope asks suddenly, her voice pitching up slightly.
Everyone freezes.
“The what?” Chaos asks.
“The guest book. The leather one with our initials. It was on the bar earlier.”
There's a beat of silence, and then Amy groans. “I'll find it.”
She disappears behind the bar, and Hope exhales, running a hand through her hair. I step up behind her, resting my hands on her shoulders.
“You're doing great,” I murmur.
“I feel like I'm forgetting something.”
“You're not. And even if you are, we'll figure it out.”
She leans back against me, just for a second, and I press a kiss to the top of her head.
“Found it!” Amy reappears, waving the guest book triumphantly.
“Thank God,” Hope mutters.
Another twenty minutes, and everything's finally packed. The truck's loaded, the checklist is complete, and Hope's standing in the middle of the common room, looking around like she's waiting for something to go wrong.
“We did it, darlin’,” I say.
She looks up at me and smiles. “We did.”
“Damn right we did,” Amy says, flopping onto the couch. “Now, can we please get some sleep before we drive to Spring Valley tomorrow?”
Hope laughs, and the tension in her shoulders eases. “Alright, alright. Thank you, everyone, for your help. Let's go to bed.”
I take her hand, and we head toward the hallway. Tomorrow, we drive to Spring Valley, and the day after that, our rehearsal dinner. That much closer to finally tying myself to my soul mate for the rest of our lives.
Six days… And counting.
CHAPTER 6
HOPE
