Page 9 of Love in the Details

Kassidy hadn’t noticed the laptop on the counter in front of her mother, and when it was turned toward her, she saw the Coldwater Creek page pulled up.

“Mom, you know I’m horrible at spelling. Working for the town paper or the town announcement page is just a bad idea all around.” Kassidy leaned both elbows on the counter, the exhaustion from the morning already wearing on her.

“No, that’s not what this is about,” her mother said, glancing back at the screen. “Oh, I thought I’d clicked on it.” She leaned in and clicked a box in the lower corner, allowing it to zoom in so it was readable.

“Wanted: Event Planner.”

Kassidy paused, trying to figure out if she was excited about that idea or not. She really did love planning parties. Reading on, she saw that it was for the Christmas Gala on Christmas Eve at Wakefield Mansion.

“They don’t have someone for it already? Mrs. Wakefield is usually on top of it before Halloween decorations appear. And why would they be having the gala if they’re shutting down our plant? Isn’t that like a slap in the face to our town?”

Her mother glared at her, shaking her head. “Kass, we don’t know for sure that’s what’s going to happen. Maybe it was just time for him to come home. We don’t know that closing the plant is on his agenda. And why are you all ornery about it?”

Kassidy leaned her hand on the counter with a sigh. As she thought over her mother’s question, she thought about her aunt’s words at the baby shower. She loved this little town, and to think of it going the way of a ghost town tugged at her chest, making it hard to breathe. She glanced back at the screen and read all the details.“The gala is three and a half weeks away.”

“All you have to do is apply for it. If you don’t get it, then you tried. But if you do, can you imagine decorating that place? That would be amazing.” Her mother was starry-eyed, and Kassidy could understand why.

Wakefield Mansion was one of the coolest places when she was younger. She’d only been inside twice, and that was just because the grandmother had invited her in when she’d ventured up there to sell some kind of fundraiser to help pay for barrel racing. The place was massive, making her parents’ spacious house look like a shoebox.

Kassidy reached over and clicked on the link in the box, which took her to a form. She scrolled down without filling in anything, just to check and see if it was even worth it to start. Decorating the mansion would be surreal, if she even got to that part.

She scrolled through question after question, shocked that the form was nearly twenty-five questions long. And there was the kicker at the end:How many years of experience do you have?

“I’m not filling this out, Mom. If I get to interview for this, he’ll know I have no experience.”

“Why? You’ll be perfect for this. I can’t think of anyone in town who’d be better for the position.” Her mother smiled at her, reaching over and tucking back a section of hair that had escaped Kassidy’s messy ponytail from all the work and wind that morning.

“What am I going to put? ‘Planned a baby shower for thirty people. Oh, and by the way, how did you like the way I stormed out at the bank after I quit?’” Kassidy dropped her face into her hands. Not to mention the way she’d treated him at the grocery store. “A place like Wakefield Mansion is going to need a whole crew of people to set up and get ready.”

Her mother wrapped an arm around her shoulders and pulled her in, surrounding Kassidy with the smell of cinnamon and fresh bread.

“But you might as well apply. You never know. And then you can apply for a few more. Maybe even make a website and just get started.”

Kassidy bit the inside of her cheek, looking at her mom with the most vulnerable look she’d ever let anyone see. “What if it fails, Mom?”

“Then we find something else. We never let you give up when you fell off the horse. This is one of those things. You try it until you’re sure it’s not working and then move on. But I have a feeling you won’t need to move on from this one.”

Her mom patted her back. “I’ve got to run to the store to get some things for dinner. Let me know if you need anything.”

Kassidy sat on a stool and brought the computer toward her. She’d never been this nervous about anything, and the level of self-doubt and excitement at the prospect caused her fingers to stop midair above the keyboard. Usually she had a little swagger and confidence, but that seemed to be hiding ever since she’d stood up to her boss at the bank.

Blowing out a breath, she set her fingers on the keys and started typing. What did she have to lose?

Chapter 6

Where did all these people come from?

Dustin checked the number of responses he’d gotten around midday on Monday. Forty-six applications.

No one had been able to point him in the direction of a real event planner since he’d arrived a few days ago. And now forty-six people were claiming to know enough to decorate a mansion?

He took a shower, trying to figure out how to narrow that number down faster than interviewing each one. He didn’t have a ton of experience in the actual organization of events, but he’d been to enough to understand the general process.

He grabbed a soda and sat next to his computer in the empty dining room, ready to get this detail taken care of. His grandmother and Margritte had gone to Jackson for the day for doctor’s appointments and a shopping excursion, leaving him some peace while he figured the party out. As the days continued to tick by, he felt more and more pressure to hire someone, knowing the reputation of the gala was on the line.

Several of the applications didn’t include any pictures of former events they’d designed, making his life a little easier. He added all those to one folder, cutting it down to fifteen applications. If someone couldn’t respond to a direct request on a form, chances were they wouldn’t be able to listen to him when he hired them. Birthday parties, baby showers, a wedding reception that was an explosion of flowers. Not all interested him, but he needed someone and fast.

After another perusal of the remaining applications, he was able to cut another four for living more than an hour away. Sure, he was being picky, but he didn’t want to pay for someone to live at a hotel while managing all this, and having someone stay in the mansion with them was out of the question. He had to have time to get work done, even if it was in the early morning hours. If the planner stayed at the mansion, he’d never have a moment’s peace.

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