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I blink. What? Coffee? For me? I close my eyes and open them, but the white cup is still there.
“Thanks,” I say sheepishly. I never know what to say when people do nice things for me.
“Don’t mention it,” he says, bringing his own cup to his lips and taking a sip. He squints toward my flowers, now tossed in a mess on the floor. “What are you working on?”
My gaze drifts to the floor. “I, uh, was working on a flower arch.”
“I thought you had a florist?” he questions, no judgment in his tone, just curiosity.
“We do. They are providing the centerpieces and a few other pieces, but I like to add my own floral touches and decorations to the room.”
“Well, you are good at it.”
My traitorous cheeks blush at the compliment. “Thanks,” I mumble. “Although, not sure how you can tell now.” I wave my hand toward the half-crumpled lilies on the floor.
“Here, let me lend you a hand.” Calvin bends down and then takes a seat on the carpeted floor beside me. “Put me to work.”
I share a few tips on how best to place the lilies on the foam arch, but he’s a natural. We work in silence for twenty minutes until the project is complete.
Chapter Ten
Calvin
Ilift an oversized box of event favors and walk towards the table near the entrance of the ballroom when I’m stopped by a familiar voice.
“Hey, man, I didn’t know you were already here.”
I walk two more feet and drop the box down, and then step forward to greet Sebastian, who’s wearing athletic shorts and an old T-shirt.
I reach my hand out for a half handshake, half hug.
“Yeah, just got here a few minutes ago,” I fib for whatever reason.
I was the second person to arrive to help set up, almost two hours before Sebastian and Olivia. I have no idea why. I like to help Scarlett. All right?
She asked volunteers to arrive between nine and ten for the gala setup, but I knew she was going to arrive earlier. Each year, I arrive a little earlier than the previous year, and she’s always knee-deep into setup. I was curious to see what time she actually arrived, still not finding out the answer, even though I arrived two hours before call time.
I smile to myself, thinking of her carefree state when I first discovered her in the ballroom this morning, dancing to the beat of the music. I have never witnessed Scarlett so uninhibited before. She’s so beautiful in her element, and also pretty cute frazzled. I laugh at her over-the-top reaction to me interrupting her alone time, spewing the flower like a cartoon character. I’m not going to lie and say that I’m sorry for doing so. It afforded me quality time with her while fixing the arch.
“Thanks again for helping. I appreciate it,” Sebastian says, patting me on the back.
“No problem,” I respond, not deserving the thanks, especially if he knew I wasn’t here to specifically help only him.
Sebastian hands me a few marching orders, which I’m sure were passed down from Scarlett, but I get to work on my new tasks.
I’m extremely busy for the next hour as more vendors and volunteers fill the ballroom. I somehow become the event runner, doing the most random things for a large variety of people.
Although my job mirrors Scarlett’s, we don’t speak directly, both running around in opposite directions. However, whenever she enters the room, my eyes always land on hers. I tend to have a rough idea of where she is—until now.
I exit the ballroom and head toward the hotel loading dock to see if the florist has finally arrived, but as I round the corner, my eyes find Scarlett with a man in an unrecognizable work uniform.
“You Scar?” the man asks her, and my gaze skips over to Scarlett, who simply nods. The man thrusts a box in her hand and disappears.
Scarlett, however, doesn’t move. She’s still, as if frozen in time. Her pupils are enlarged, and her face is pale as a ghost.
“Scarlett, are you all right?” I try to stay calm, which is getting harder to do as she barely reacts to my question.
I step closer to her, only a few inches away from touching her. “Hey,” I say in a soft voice. She looks up at me with wide hazel eyes as I ask, “Are you okay?”
