"At least she has help," I say, making a note in my own binder. "Can you imagine doing this alone? Three newborns? Then again some omegas do it."
Jessica laughs. "I can't imagine doing it period."
"Okay," Jessica says, finally sitting up and taking a long drink of her coffee. "Let's focus on the thing we can actually control. The Tangle Peak wedding. Which is exactly four days away."
"Also, this wedding is going to bring in more business I'm sure of it," Jessica adds, and she's not joking. "After the Ben disaster, I was genuinely worried that nobody was going to hire us. But then Tangle Peak showed up, and suddenly we're planning something that actual celebrities are going to attend."
"Not celebrities," I correct gently. "Just the Brownbox pack and their close family. Tangle Peak specifically said she didn't want a big production. She wanted something intimate. Sixty guests maximum."
“I can’t believe they only invited sixty guests, It’s a lot less than I expected," Jessica says, pulling up her own files. "The pack, their family members, Tangle Peak's family, probably some close friends from the music industry. Sixty is actually really nice for a wedding."
I stand up and walk over to the window, looking out at Pine Hollow stretched below us. The town is beautiful in December, with snow covering the roofs of buildings and Christmas lights twinkling in the growing darkness. It's only four o'clock in the afternoon, and already the sun is setting.
"The difference is that they actually love each other," I say quietly. "Tangle Peak and the Brownbox pack are genuinely in love. They want this wedding."
Jessica joins me at the window, and she's standing close enough that our shoulders are almost touching. "It makes such a huge difference. When the they actually wants to be together,everything is easier. The planning flows. The decisions are simpler. Everyone's working toward the same goal."
"Which is why we're going to nail this," I say, and I can feel the determination in my own voice. "We're going to make sure this wedding is absolutely perfect."
We spend the next hour organizing our tasks and dividing up responsibilities. Jessica takes on the majority of the vendor coordination and the logistics of getting everything to the venue on time.
The venue is Riverside Ranch, which is the same place where Savannah got married to her pack. It's beautiful in a rustic way, with wooden beams and open spaces and the kind of natural beauty that doesn't require much decoration to look absolutely stunning. Luckily, Tangle organized their own security, so we didn’t have to worry about that.
"Flowers are confirmed, right?" Jessica says, making a note. "That was a nightmare to source."
"All set," I confirm. "Remember I went to three different florists trying to find someone who could do what Tangle Peak wanted? Flowers that basically don't exist yet?" Jessica laughs.
"I still can't believe you drove all over looking for the perfect florist."
"Well, when the client says money is no object and wants something that looks like it belongs on a magazine cover, you find someone who can make it happen," I say.
"The Denver florist I found specializes in custom work for celebrities. She understood exactly what Tangle Peak was going for."
"Which was?" "Modern meets organic. Not traditional at all. Think art installation that happens to be flowers," I explain.
"She's creating these cascading arrangements that blend metallics with living greenery. It's going to be stunning."
"And expensive," Jessica adds. "Very. But that's not our problem. Tangle Peak approved the budget without blinking."
"See, this is why you're the boss," Jessica says warmly. "You already handled the hardest part weeks ago.”
"Savannah is the boss. I'm just helping while she's on maternity leave."
"You're the boss right now," Jessica says firmly. "Savannah left you in charge of this wedding, which means you get to make the big decisions. That's what being in charge means."
I feel a flutter of something in my chest at that realization. I'm in charge. I'm making the decisions. I'm leading this project, and it's going to be a massive success because I'm going to make sure it is.
We spend the rest of the afternoon working through details. We confirm the caterer. We make sure the photography timeline is locked in. We verify that the band has all the songs that Tangle Peak wants played. We organize the seating chart, making sure that the Brownbox pack's family members are distributed in a way that makes sense and that the celebrities attending are seated with people they're likely to be comfortable with.
By six o'clock, we've made more progress than I expected. Jessica stands up and stretches, her arms reaching toward the ceiling. She's curvy in a way that I've come to really appreciate about her. She's soft and solid and takes up space without apologizing for it.
"I'm starving," she announces. "And I think we've earned a break. Let's go get dinner."
"Where do you want to go?" I ask, closing down my computer files and gathering up my binders.
"Somewhere warm," Jessica says, grabbing her coat. "Somewhere that has hot chocolate and maybe a grilled cheese sandwich or something equally comforting."
We end up at The Cozy Cup, a small cafe that specializes in comfort food and an atmosphere that makes you want to stay for hours. The lighting is warm and soft, and there are actual fireplaces in the corners that are currently lit and creating small pools of warmth throughout the space.
