“What’s up?” We’d anticipated issues and had spent the better part of the past three days coming up with plans B, C, D,and all the way down to N. I was confident that whatever issue she was dealing with was one we’d already worked out a solution for.
“The flowers didn’t come in. Suzy didn’t question it and now we don’t have time to get all white like Chyna wanted.” Zina set her bag down on a table that hadn’t been draped with linens yet. The caterer was holding off on setting out the white tablecloths until the last moment lest the wind kick up and cover everything in a nice coat of dusty grit.
“Calm down. We’ll figure it out together.” I racked my brain trying to remember what our alternate plan was for a florist gone rogue. Surely, we’d talked about that.
“It looks like a circus threw up on the fence. What are we going to do?”
“How much time do we have?”
Zina checked her watch. “Two hours and forty-eight minutes until Chyna arrives.”
I bit my lip and took in a deep breath through my nose. The smell of paint hit me. Of course. “Come on, I’ve got an idea.”
I rushed to the front of the tent where one of Zina’s volunteers was touching up the paint on the front of the warehouse.
“No. That’s not going to work.” Zina crossed her arms over her chest.
“You’re right. We won’t have time to brush it on.” I turned to the guy wielding the paintbrush. “Y’all got a paint sprayer?”
Fifteen minutes later I stood over the bright garland of flowers. Here goes nothing. I squeezed the trigger and sprayed a light coating of white paint over a particularly large sunflower. “What do you think?” I shouted to Zina over the roar of the compressor.
She shrugged. “You’ve committed now. I say go for it.”
I nodded, then continued to coat the entire garland with a light layer of white. It almost looked like snow. Snow that had fallen in the middle of April, coating a crazy clash of colors in a soft layer of white. Who the hell would buy that? I dug in, continuing to layer light coat upon light coat until the entire garland sparkled in the sun.
Zina cut the compressor and stalked toward me. “I think that’s all we can do under the circumstances. How long will it take you to do the rest?”
I eyed the fence line. “Give me an hour. It ought to dry fast in this heat and then we’ll string them up long before she gets here. Sound good?”
Zina nodded, then pressed a kiss to my cheek. “Thanks. Have I told you how much I love you? I’d be totally lost without you right now.”
I gave her a half hug in return as I wielded the sprayer. For some reason her confidence in me tugged at me this morning, and not in a good way. I shook it off. “Don’t you have something more important to do than watch paint dry?”
“I do. I’m going to head over to the house and make sure they’ve got the buffet for the rehearsal dinner set up. Catch up with you in a few?”
“You bet.” I waited until she walked away before I fired up the sprayer. I’d been the happiest I’d ever been over the past few weeks. Spending time with Zina, working on a common goal, it had been fantastic being so close to her and taking on such a huge role in her life. But I’d also been getting a little freaked out. What if I ruined it? Everything was so good. What if I screwed it up like I always did? What if I failed her?
I finished the flowers and returned the sprayer to the warehouse. As I made my way back to ensure the penguins had been secured, I caught a glimpse of Gramps. The old man had Herbie on a leash and was heading my way.
“Hey, Gramps. You’ve got to kennel the dog.” Even though Zina had done her best to find new homes or shelters for the pups they’d had on-site, we still had a few that needed to remain out of sight and out of earshot over the next couple of days.
“It’s okay. This one’s coming up to the house with me.” Gramps stopped when he reached me. “I’ve been telling Herbie all about the pastures we’ve got at the ranch.”
“That’s great. I’m sure he’s been enjoying the stories.” Everyone had a part to play this weekend. Gramps needed to get it in gear and start working on his. He was in charge of helping with the penguins and making sure the remaining rescue dogs stayed under the radar.
“He sure is. I can’t wait to see him running loose out there.” Gramps reached down and ruffled Herbie behind the ears. The dog rewarded him by jumping up and swiping his tongue across the older man’s chin.
“Can you take him out of here? We don’t need anyone catching sight of the dogs when the wedding party arrives, right?”
“We’re going. Any idea when we’ll be moving out to the ranch? Zeb’s in. I told him he could take your grandmother’s old sewing room. We’ll have our work cut out for us fixing the place up. I figure you’ll need a few days to ship the penguins back, but?—”
“What?” I had already turned my back but now my grandfather had my full attention.
Gramps patted his forehead with a hanky. We’d sacrificed the portable air conditioner so Zina could run it out to the tent. The humidity hung in the air, making everyone glisten with a fine sheen of sweat. “When we move. You said you were going to stick around. I assumed you’d be moving into the ranch house with me. I suppose if Zeb’s there it’ll satisfy your sister, but where are you going to stay then?”
I closed my eyes and counted to three in my head. When I opened them again, I hoped I’d realize I’d inhaled too many paint fumes and was hallucinating. But no, Gramps stood in the same spot, the same furrow bisecting his brow. “We don’t have time to talk about this right now. Let’s just get through the wedding and then we’ll figure out a plan, okay?”
“I know it’s going to take some cash to make the improvements. I’ve got a little bit of money saved. Is it about the cash?”
