“And the penguins . . .” Chyna turned her attention on me. “I’d like to do a run-through so I can let Mr. Munyon know the birds are ready for their role in all of this.”
“Um, sure.” I glanced to Zina for direction.
“Why don’t you head into town for breakfast while Alex and I set up? We’ll mark off where the tents will be and then do a quick run-through with the penguins,” Zina suggested.
“I could use a double espresso. That flight sucked the life force right out of me.” Chyna spritzed something on her face from a small spray bottle she pulled out of her clutch. “I also need to hydrate. The heat and humidity are taking a toll on my skin. I can feel it already.”
Zina put a hand on Chyna’s back and directed her to the parking lot. “Give us at least an hour. We’ll have everything ready to go when you get back.”
“That sounds good.” She paused when she reached the door of a white Mercedes. “I’ll be back at nine sharp. I’d also love to have Mayor Cherish on the scene when I return. She’s the one I’ve been dealing with on this.”
I opened my mouth to tell her Lacey wouldn’t be able to join us, but Zina waved me off.
“I’ll see if she’s available on such short notice. She’s very busy this time of year.” Zina stepped next to me while the wedding planner situated herself inside the vehicle and slowly pulled away.
“What was that?” I asked. “How are we going to get Lacey here while she’s on bed rest? Tents? Do you have any idea where we’re going to get a tent big enough to hold the wedding and the reception?”
Zina waited until I finished spewing out rhetorical questions. “Would you rather have her mingle with the pit bulls and penguins? The whole warehouse smells like a sushi factory.”
“I was going to work on that once we got the dogs out of there.” I hung my head. “This whole thing is turning into a shit show.”
“You’re right about that.” Zina bit her lip, a move I had come to recognize as her thinking mode. “But this is going to be our shit show. Let me get Lacey on video and we’ll figure this out. There’s no way she can get over here. We’ll say she’s out of town or something. But she’s the one who’s put more work into this than any of us. She’ll know what to do. Grab some of those stakes and a hammer. I’m going to look up tent rental places so we can mark off a perimeter. I figure you’ll parade your penguins out, have them walk down the aisle, and then she’ll be on her way.”
“Yeah, okay.” I left Zina standing in front of the warehouse while I went inside to find the hammer and stakes. One thing was certain. If I’d questioned our commitment to each otherbefore this, it was clear we were now in this together, for better or for worse.
CHAPTER 26
ZINA
“I toldyou not to come over here.” I tried to stuff Lacey back in the truck. “You’re supposed to be on bed rest.”
“I can’t miss out on this.” Lacey pushed the door open, leaving me no choice but to step back or get sideswiped. “Why didn’t she call ahead? Why didn’t she tell me she was coming?” Lacey continued to shout questions even as she stomped toward the warehouse.
“I told you, she didn’t tell anyone she was coming. She wanted it to be a surprise. I think she wanted to catch us totally unprepared to see how we’d react.”
Lacey stopped and spun around. “That’s just mean.”
I couldn’t agree with her more. “Just wait until you meet her.”
“How much time do we have until she gets back?” Lacey propelled herself toward Alex like she had a rocket strapped to her hips. I had to jog to keep up with her.
“We told her to come back at nine, but I wouldn’t be surprised if she showed up a bit early.”
“This is all we need. On top of being on bed rest, now I’ve got the biggest wedding this town will ever see imploding aroundme.” Lacey waved her hands over her head, mimicking the tornado she must imagine swirling around her.
“We’ve got this.” I stopped, thrust my hands to my hips, and leveled my friend with my best glare. “Alex is marking off where the tents will go. I already called the place in Houston and reserved their two largest event tents for that day. Chyna seemed to like the idea, plus it means we won’t have to worry about moving the dogs out of the warehouse so fast.”
“Yeah, but how are you going to make sure they don’t bark through the whole wedding?” Lacey rounded on me.
“I haven’t made it that far yet.”
“Hey”—Alex joined us and slung an arm over my shoulders—“coming up with the tent idea on the spur of the moment was pure genius. I’m sure you’ll think of something between now and the wedding.”
I leaned against him, grateful for his show of support.
“Let me ask you this.” Lacey’s jaw clenched. “How did you go from hating the idea of turning this town into wedding central to running behind the scenes on our biggest wedding yet?”
I looked from Lacey to Alex and back again. “I guess I got pulled into it. You know I’ve got your back though. There’s a ton riding on this, not just the reputation of Ido, but the dog shelter, too. We’ve all got a vested interest in pulling this off.”
