Brian sighs. “We’ve talked about this, Kate. My dad’s business contacts are VIPs, and their social calendars fill up early. We need to have as many as possible attend the wedding to establish a stronger personal relationship between them and us as a couple, especially since I’ll be taking over for my dad. You’ll understand once we’re married when we see an influx of invites for various social events.”
What he says makes sense. My mom has parroted the same sentiment almost a dozen times. She also sees my wedding as a way to show off to everyone in town, highlighting that I’m living in a big city and am engaged to a successful, well-known man. The type of life she’s always wanted for me. The type of lifeI wantfor myself.
Less than five years ago, I didn’t know Brian. Never had a boyfriend, and I definitely wasn’t experienced in sex. The definition of a late bloomer. He was my first everything. Soon, he’ll be my husband, assuming I get my shit together. The last thing I want is to make a bad impression or disappoint anyone.
“I’ll make sure it’s handled. I won’t let anything get overlooked. I promise.”
This will be the wedding of our dreams.
Nothing will stop me from planning the perfect wedding.
From marrying the perfect man.
From living my perfect life.
I’ll make sure of it.
two
Deep breaths.
I’ve got this, I remind myself while pacing outside the elevator bay on the thirty-seventh floor of my agency’s downtown office. The biggest potential client of my career will arrive any minute now to hear the pitch my team has worked on around the clock for weeks. Have I been a bit obsessive about this pitch? Sure, but I’ve worked toward this promotion for years. Being vice president is so close I can almost taste it, proving all the late nights and sacrifices were worth it.
I plaster on my biggest smile as the entourage exits the elevator. It’s showtime. My immediate career path will be determined by how the next few hours go. It’s time to dazzle. Prove to them why my team is the best in the business.
“Thank you so much for coming. We’re excited to share what we’ve put together.” I smile and shake everyone’s hands. Introductions are unnecessary. We’ve virtually met with this group countless times before today. Us and every other major agency.
The new chief marketing officer, Sarah, seems more approachable than I expected, based on her no-nonsense stylein our previous virtual meetings. She’s wearing a perfectly tailored red blazer, dark jeans, and what appear to be Christian Louboutin’s. Her outfit is polished, professional, and radiates power player. “We’ve been impressed with what we’ve seen from your team so far. However, the bar has been set extraordinarily high from the meetings we’ve already conducted with your competitors. Let’s see if you can rise to the occasion and wow us,” Sarah says coolly.
I smile and maintain eye contact. My body might be firmly planted in the lobby of my office, but I feel like it’s about to go careening down a record-setting hill of a high-speed rollercoaster. Exhilaration and apprehension course through my veins.
“We’re going to make it impossible for you to work with anyone else,” I reply confidently, leading the group toward the conference room where my team is waiting.
After showing everyone to their seats, I toggle my phone to Do Not Disturb and kick off the presentation that could change my entire career.
“Anyone wanna bet how quickly they call to tell us we’ve won? I’m guessing less than a day,” Jeremy says, smirking as he watches the elevator doors close.
He’s my creative director, and one of the best in the business. Who am I kidding… He’sthebest, with an ego to prove it. All our competitors are trying to poach him; so are most of our clients. Thank God he’s loyal to me, not the company. He jokes he’ll leave when I do.
“Let’s not get cocky. Every other agency wants this as badly as we do. Plus, Sarah hasn’t been super forthcoming about whatshe’s looking for. It’s a puzzle she wants us to figure out,” I reply, heading back to the conference room to debrief with the team.
Jeremy chuckles. “You’re always the voice of reason.”
“Someone has to be. Otherwise, every client would be millions of dollars over budget, thanks to your expensive tastes.”
Jeremy’s creative concepts are brilliant but often misaligned with the client’s resources. That’s what makes us a great team. Everyone in the office says my superpower is giving Jeremy what he wants while miraculously not breaking the bank.
“Back to the contract—you’re forgetting one thing…” He opens the door with a grin. “No one has the two of us. We’re unstoppable together.”
When we walk into the room, the rest of the team is talking excitedly about how they’re certain we’ll win. They’re not wrong. We nailed it. I can feel it in my bones.
“Great job, team. Every single one of you was instrumental to this pitch. It’s some of your best work. If we win, it’s because of your efforts.” I make a mental note to send each of them a handwritten thank-you card this week. It’s an old-school gesture that will never go out of style in my opinion.
“Kate’s right. We nailed it. They would be fools to choose anyone else,” Jeremy declares, leaning back in his chair, his hands behind his head. One of these days, he’s going to fall out of his chair, and I pray I’m in the room to see it.
“Can someone write down the day and time?” I tease. “I want to remember this exact moment, because Jeremyneveracknowledges I’m right this quickly. It usually takes much longer for those words to come out of his mouth.”
The team erupts into laughter.
