“Fine.” She groans. “Want to go look at dresses over the weekend? I also want to get you and the girls together for a night out. Not a bachelorette party or anything, but a nice dinner.”
“You don’t want a party?”
“Not the kind most of them want. They mentioned a strip club. I don’t have a problem with it, but it’s not my cup of tea.” She sighs and lays back on my bed, causing my pile of clothes to fall over. “If we do anything, I’d rather go dancing. And definitely not the night before the wedding. Puffy eyes on my big day is not the look I want.”
Look at my baby sister being smart about how she’s planning this whole thing out. As much as I don’t want to hang out with her friends more than necessary, I’ll do it for her.
“Dancing sounds fun.” It’s fitting because we used to dance together all the time at family parties when we were younger. It seems a fitting way to celebrate her next adventure in life. “Is there anything else we need to do for the wedding? It’s coming up quick.”
“Not that I can think of. Whoopsie Daisy is taking care of the bouquets and all that. Plus, the flower arrangements for the reception. I talked to a wedding planner at the festival and she hooked me up with sheer canopies for the ceremony.”
“Sounds like you and Jacob got a lot handled over the weekend.” A small pang of hurt hits me in the stomach. As much as I complain about taking care of the details, it feels weird not being needed. Is this what it’ll be like when both of them are off living their lives?
“Yep. We just need the table layout so we can figure out where people are sitting.”
“Have a lot of people already sent their RSVP? I don’t remember seeing you mail anything out.”
“We did it digitally. It’s easier for us to manage that way.”
“I didn’t get one.”
“Because we know you’ll be there. But I’ll share the link with you so you can save the photo we used. Oh, I want to do my bridal pictures in a couple of weeks. Are you available? I’m doing them in Asheville.”
“I didn’t even know you picked out a dress.” How could she not include me in that?
“I’ve tried a few on, but I’ve narrowed it down to three. Next Sunday I want to take you and Mom to lunch so you can be the deciding factors.”
“So, dress shopping and dinner on Saturday then lunch on Sunday?”
“Yep. I would never get my dress without you and Mom there. The two of you will be honest and not send me down the aisle in a catastrophe.”
I smile. “You’ve got that right. I can’t wait.” Picking up my phone, I make note of the dates. “I’ll call Parker tomorrow about the table set up. Do we want to go ahead and schedule out the rest of the things so we aren’t scrambling?”
That’s how we spend the rest of the night. Making plans for the rest of the month. Now I can find pockets of time to see Parker.
Nineteen
Parker
The past few days waking up in bed alone have been brutal. I never thought I’d miss having someone in my bed every night. Granted Jasmin’s only been in my bed twice, I’ve woken up to her once. It was perfection.
Her hair splayed out across the pillow and the covers tucked tightly around her. It’s an image I replay in my head every morning.
“Earth to Parker.” Piper snaps her fingers in front of my face. “You need to come back from dream land. We have two interviews today.”
“Are these new people or the second round on those we liked?” I can’t remember. After the baby shower event ended, I’ve been keeping my eye on our social media and review sites to see if Nicole is going to give us a horrible one.
“The ones we liked. Isela will be here first. After her is Colbie.”
“Her name reminds me of cheese.” I snort. Childish? Maybe, but I can’t help where my brain goes.
“Please don’t say that in front of her. We want her to work here.” Piper shakes her head and glances down at her tablet. “I’ll take notes during the meetings. Then we can make a final decision.”
“Why not hire both of them if we like them? We need all the extra help we can get. You shouldn’t be running yourself ragged making sure everything is flowing, and taking on all the shifts yourself.”
It would also help if our brothers worked behind the counter sometimes. But they refuse to help in that aspect. Well, except Peter. He comes to help if we really need him.
“That’s actually a good idea. We have the budget for it, and at this point I don’t really care what Pierce says. Maybe if he saw everything we do up here, he’d realize just how much work goes into it.”
