For several turns, we focused on the game, getting into the rhythm of it, before my curiosity about the handsome stranger sitting so close got the better of me.
“So, tell me about yourself, Toren. I really don’t know much.” I let out a soft huff. “Which should have kept my butt in Parker’s Landing, but, well, my brother will tell you I tend to jump into things with both feet.” A smile played with my lips. “It helped, though, that his fiancée, Mina, recommended you.”
Toren laid down a three, four, and five of spades. “Mina’s nice. She makes great coffee.” He looked up. “What do you want to know?”
I shrugged and picked up a card from the draw pile. “Are you from Alaska?”
“Yeah, but I grew up around Fairbanks. I’ve been running guided hunting tours, though, all over the state for over a decade.”
“Oh? How did you get into that?”
“My dad was a guide.”
I caught the past tense he used. “Was? Did he retire and turn the reins over to you?”
Toren’s expression closed off. “No. He died eight years ago. Pancreatic cancer.”
Way to stick your foot in your mouth, Lana.“I’m sorry.” I tucked the card I drew into my hand and discarded another.
“It’s fine. It was a long time ago.” He picked up a card.
“Still, you sound like you were close. I didn’t mean to dredge up bad memories.” Quickly, I changed the subject. “So, what brought you to Parker’s Landing, then, if you’re from the Fairbanks area? That’s a long way away.”
Toren’s expression tightened even more. “I needed a change of scenery.”
I rolled my lips in. Apparently, I was still putting my foot in my mouth. “Well, it’s definitely different down here,” I replied, deliberately misunderstanding him. “Do you like it?”
Some of the pinch to his features eased. “I do. It’s quiet. The people are nice. The weather’s definitely better.”
I chuckled. “With rare exceptions.” I spun a finger, indicating our current situation.
He smiled as he took his turn. “At least it’s not forty below zero.”
“That’s true.”
“So,” Toren said, laying down a string of hearts, then discarding a card. “Why a wedding planner? That’s an interesting career choice.”
“Actually, I’m an event planner. You just happened to meet me while I was wearing my new wedding planner hat.”
“New hat?”
“Tina and Dustin are my first wedding. Well, other than my brother’s. It’s not that different from other large parties, though.”
“So, you do other things? Like birthday parties and such?”
I nodded, drawing a card. It was a three of clubs, matching the other two threes I had in my hand. I laid them out, then discarded a card. “I do business events too. And anniversary parties. Baby showers, bridal showers. Basically, if you need a party planner, I’ll do it.”
“You and your brother bought the Myers Mansion, right?”
“We did.” I smiled. “Once it opens, I’ll probably restrict most of my events to that space. It’ll keep me busy, that’s for sure. We’re already booked through October, and we’re not even open yet.”
“That’s great.”
“Yeah, we’re pretty excited.” My dream had always been to own an event company. Having my own dedicated location, though, had been just a pipe dream until Luke proposed buying the Myers house.
“Why event planning?” He reached for the draw pile.
“I like planning things, and I like people. I worked with a caterer for years but decided to branch out on my own recently. It’s been great. I stay busy.”
