Page 10 of Bumping into You

We aren’t going to miss the cruise. We didn’t mean to make you nervous. I was just telling you so you wouldn’t freak out when we weren’t there as early as you thought we’d be.

Too late for not making me nervous.Ugh, if they don’t make it, I just . . . nope, no, not going there. Mom and Dad will make it. They have to.

gwen

I know mom, sorry. I’ll see you in a few hours. Love you!

Mom

Love you two honey.

I shake my head and roll my shoulders back. Right.Focus, Gwen. I take some deep breaths, in for four, hold, out for four.Ok, find Courtney and go over the plan. Nothing can go wrong when you plan for everything.And I am a pro at planning.

It doesn’t take me very long to find Courtney at our designated meeting place next to the clock tower on the Grand Promenade.

“Hi, Courtney?” I ask, glancing at her name badge.

“You must be Gwen. So lovely to meet you face-to-face,” says Courtney.

“Same,” I say. I’ve spent the last five months coordinating with Courtney over the phone about aspects of the wedding that involved the cruise ship. As annoying as it’s been to have to work with another wedding planner, it has been useful to talk to someone who knows the ins and outs of the cruise. And at least she hasn’t had to be told things twice. But now that I am here, I can take over the cruise details and not have to rely so heavily on Courtney. “Right, so let’s go over the itinerary,” I tell Courtney.

“If you don’t mind, I’d like to go over the guest list. I’m a bit confused about who will be participating in which event.”

“Okay, sure. Holly and Greg will be participating in everything, except for the port at Curaçao night when I’ve planned a special dinner for them at the hibachi grill. Then, obviously after the wedding, they’ll be on the start of their honeymoon and doing their own thing.”

“Great,” says Courtney, checking a box on her tablet. “Then I have Mr. and Mrs. Palmer and Mr. and Mrs. Kenton.”

“Right, the bride’s and groom’s parents.”

“Now, I don’t see them on many of the activities at all. Is that correct?” asks Courtney.

I nod. “Yes, they said they’d not be doing many of the activities because they, and I quote them on this, ‘don’t want to slow us down and keep us from any fun.’”

Courtney laughs at that. “Sounds just like something my parents would say.”

“As part of the wedding party, there’s myself, Trent, and Margot, Holly’s younger sister.”

“And we have one other guest in the wedding party, a Mr. O’Sullivan.”

“Yes, Sully, as my brother calls him. He’s the othergroomsman,” I confirm. “Holly’s other sister, Vivian, will be joining us too. She has a friend, Tammy, joining her who is not part of the wedding party. Vivian and Tammy will be participating in most of the events but not all.”

“Right, I see Vivian is only in a few of the items. Okay, then we have Gillian and Miles, with a five-year-old Magnolia, who is to be the flower girl, correct?”

“Yes,” I sigh heavily. I have a million things I need to look over and want to get this guest list over with. “You don’t really need to worry too much about all this, Courtney. I can handle the itinerary and who is supposed to be where and when.”

Courtney types on her tablet, then looks up at me. “I’m sure you’re more than capable of handling everything, but I’d love to be filled in just in case.”

“Right, just in case,” I say.

“So, the flower girl?” continues Courtney.

“Maggie, as she prefers to be called, is the sweetest girl. I have her signed up for the kid’s club as well. Gillian is Greg and my sister. She and Miles, her husband, are treating this trip as a babymoon before they welcome baby number two in a few months. They will mostly be spending time together as a family.”

“How perfect! I’m sure Maggie will have a wonderful time at kid’s club. Let your sister and brother-in-law know that there is an adult-only pool up at the front of the boat if they want some quiet time.”

“Of course,” I nod. “And that should be everyone.”

“Actually, there is one more,” says Courtney.

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