Page 53 of Lorna's Savior
“Miss Lorna, thank god you’re here. Direct my people while I go out back and check things out.”
“Got you,” Lorna said, and looked up when someone called her name. She waved the woman over.
“Silver, this is my best friend, Ronnie, and Finn’s fiancée.”
“But I thought her name was Veronica.”
“It is, but I prefer Ronnie, Finn is the only one that calls me Veronica.” Ronnie shook her hand. “And you are?”
“My assistant,” Lorna grinned. “Silver Roundtree.”
Silver laughed. “I look nothing like my name. I’m about eighty percent Native American and mom always liked the name Silver. After six boys, when she had me, she jumped on the chance to call me that.” The three women shared a laugh and in no time, Silver took charge of the setting up, especially when Lorna was called away by Mr. Jones. She left Silver and Ronnie to the job, and followed the director back to the original location.
“What’s up?”
“What do you think?” He pointed to the poster boards and Lorna walked around and studied them. She stepped back and nodded, then frowned.
“What’s up?” Andy asked as he joined her.
“These are informational boards with what the aquarium either wants or needs to do with the money from the fundraiser. I like them, they’re perfect. However, I think once everyone is in here, no one will be able to see them.”
Andy looked around, then whistled to Finn. After he and Patch joined him, he explained the situation. In no time, a ladder, hammer, and nails were produced. In less than an hour, they hung so everyone could see them, but not so high that people would break their necks to read them. After Andy rejoined them, Lorna brushed some dirt off his shirt, and handed him his jacket back. “Thank you.” She leaned up and kissed him quickly. The four of them set up the back end, and when Lorna went out to check on the front, she paused when someone ran into the back of her. She looked at Patch and gave him a shove.
Laughing, she asked, “What the hell is your problem? You about ran me over.”
“Who’s that out there with Ronnie?”
“Silver?”
“The brunette.”
“Silver Roundtree, she’s my assistant. Why?”
“She’s beautiful,” Patch said, and stood there staring. Lorna shook her head and continued walking, ignoring the man. It wouldn’t be until later that she realized the attraction between her two friends was mutual.
Chapter 21
“Breathe,” Andy whispered to Lorna as the tour had begun. It was shortly after seven and the patrons had arrived. Because of the number of the attendees, they had quickly decided that they would need four tours instead of just the one or two they had planned on. This way, everyone would be able to hear what was being said about the aquarium. Thankfully, she had planned for this. “You okay?”
“Yeah.” Lorna laughed as she put her hand over the butterflies in her stomach. “Never in a million years did I expect this many people. I was hoping for at least fifty. I have no clue how many have come.”
“Is there any way to find out?”
“I could count the invitations I sent out. Though there was no need to RSVP, I sent out seven hundred invitations.”
“I’ll count them,” Silver said as she joined them. The third group had started on the tour, so they only had themselves and the last group.
“I don’t want you to miss the tour.”
“Don’t worry about it.” Silver waved her hand. “I saw things when we walked it with Chef Vincent. I’ll be good.” When she saw Lorna still hesitated, she laughed. “It’ll only take five minutes, ten tops. I’ll catch up with you.” Silver made it over to the table at the entrance where the invitations had been placed when the people entered. By the time Lorna and Andy walked into the tunnel with the last tour group, Silver had joined them.
“All seven hundred invitations are there, but that’s not counting if someone bought a plus one. We can assume half of them did, so I’d say, roughly around a thousand people.”
“Damn.” Lorna stared at Andy in wide-eyed shock. He grabbed her hand and smiled. “You got this. I have trust in you.”
“Thank you.” Lorna released a deep sigh, straightened her shoulders, and nodded her head. “You’re right, I’ve got this.” With her head held high, and her shoulders back, she pasted a smile on her face, and enjoyed the tour. By the time it ended, it amazed her how much she had learned, so that when they entered the vast hall at the end of the tour, she was filled with several ideas for another fundraiser, if this one turned out to be a bust. The first thing they did after entering the room, was make a beeline to the bar. Instead of standing in line together, Andy said he’d get them each a drink, while Lorna mingled. After giving each other a quick kiss, they went their separate ways.
Lorna walked around the room and talked to the patrons, with a huge smile on her face when each and every person told her how much they had enjoyed the tour. At one point, she passed a group of men standing around, talking and drinking when one of them waylaid her.
