When I gallantly opened the door to let Canyon in, I heard Jules shout at me: “Straight across from you!”
I looked at her like she’d lost her mind… until I registered what she meant, and finally looked where she said…
Standing straight across from me was Spit-upGirl.
6. Ellie - SUNDAY MORNING
I left everything as is last night because Grey and Jules booked the entire venue for the whole weekend- which meant the girls would probably be enjoying the spa located in the hotel, the men were probably drinking on the golf course, and no one would be using the tent that I had to clean.
Looking in on the messy tent this morning made me regret not asking for at least a little bit of help last night though. The tear down would take a while and Nikki wouldn’t be able to come assist for a couple hours because she was working one of her other temp jobs. It was fine though; I was never one to shy away from a littlework.
I quickly walked behind the DJ stand and connected my phone to the aux cord to play some Taylor Swift songs. Music always helped me drown out my own thoughts; plus, as the epitome of female entrepreneurial success, Taylor Swift was an inspiration.
I immediately got to work stripping all the decorations and tablecloths off the tables. I would eventually have to haul them back to the hotel’s massive laundry unit to wash them.
Working kept my mind busy; it’s what was needed and healthy for me. When I dropped out of college five years ago, my parents thought I’d lost my mind, but I couldn’t face what had happened there. I shuddered against the memory…It’s fine, I’m fine,I remindedmyself.
I’d made all the right decisions since then, and my hard work paid off: I built a safe and stable life. Each weekend of the summer gave me the new challenge to run a perfect wedding, and during the week, I felt like I was really making a difference at the rink.
I lost myself in my own little world while I cleaned and thought about the work week ahead of me. It had to have been around noon by the time I made it to the de-tulle-ing of the tent’s ceiling. It really was a shame that my next wedding here didn’t want the twinkly lights and tulle, or else I could’ve left it. I stood on the ladder trying to untie the knot I’d been overzealous making on Thursday night during the set up.
As I struggled with the tulle, I heard someone rip open one of the tent flaps causing me to let out a shriek and wobble a bit on the ladder.
“My God! It’s just me!” a frustrated male voice yelled at me. “Some people have hangovers after weddings, you know.”
I paused for a moment, registering just how rude that outburst was.
I slid my gaze over to see who the offensive voice belonged to, and of course it was Hockey Douche.
Gone was his suit and tie, and instead he wore a light blue polo and nice golf shorts that showed off his muscular body. He topped off his outfit with a hat turned backwards… I was always a sucker for the stupid backwards hat.
He looked at me with wide eyes and outstretched arms, as if questioning why I screamed.
I put a hand to my heart to slow my breathing.
He started walking closer with concerned eyes then, but I wished he would’ve just turned around and left, because I knew what territory I was edging on now. I couldn’t stop my brain’s one-track lane to panic land. Why had he come back here? Why of all people would he see me in this compromisingposition?
I knew what I had to do, and as I started to scramble down the wobbly ladder, he rushed forward to keep the base of it still.
I could feel the tears starting to come forward and my entire body was beginning to tremble. I tried like hell to coach myself off the ledge, but just as usual, I couldn’t stop the shaking.
“Hey, hey,” I heard from my peripheral vision. “Water?” heasked.
I honestly am not sure what I even answered because I was busy performing a tip from a recent podcast about panic attacks: I laid straight down on the floor, wrapped my arms around myself, closed my eyes, and started to count my breaths.
One Mississippi, two Mississippi, three-
“What the fuck are you doing?”
My eyes flashed open, and I tried to throw him a glare in my scared state.
“I’m having… a…” I tried to get words out, but my body was shaking like it was 20 degrees despite the beautiful summer day.
He gave me a curious look then and pulled up a foldable chair next to where I was laying down. I almost cried out because I just wanted to be left the hell alone. I tried to close my eyes again and tell myself that nothing was wrong.
“You got this. Get back up! You’re a badass boss bitch!” he yelled down at me like he was some kind of football coach or something.
Which did not help the situation at all. I felt the tears erupt then.
