Page 17 of The Ex Effect
Frankie approached them, and even though I couldn’t hear everything being said, it was obvious Frankie was in charge. Even Frankie’s normal fidgets were muted and her body calm. The photo session wasn’t part of my job description, but I always felt a deep sense of obligation that every aspect of the weddings I planned had to be perfect. The weight of this pushed on my shoulders, often waking me up at night in a sweat, but evened out as I checked items off the task list. But now, watching Frankie be in control, was…liberating. I inhaled a deep, pine-scented breath.
Whoa.Olivia and Tommy must both be professional squatters because the position Frankie had them in looked awkwardas hell as their butts hovered over the seat and fingers gripped the rope. How Frankie would translate that into a good photo, I had no idea. But after spending time here today, no doubt Frankie could pull it off.
“Damn. Feel the burn.” Tommy laughed as he stood. He grabbed Olivia, gave her a quick peck on the cheek, and whispered something in her ear that had Olivia beaming.
After spending an hour with Tommy, I came to a few conclusions. One, he was a nice-enough guy. Two, he really loved Olivia. Three, he could give an absolute shit less about any wedding details.
“Little break time. I need to set up a few things.” Frankie crouched and dug through a tote.
Perfect. My turn.I stepped towards the couple, fingers crossed.Please give me something. “Are we any closer on the headcount? We really need a ballpark figure to help narrow down the already limited options for venues.”
Olivia grimaced and glanced at Tommy. “Less than three hundred. I hope?” She tucked a long dark lock behind her ear. “If it were up to me, I’d say thirty.”
“Itisup to you.” But sadly, I knew what Olivia meant. A decade in this business and one thing was consistent—the day wasrarelyabout the individuals getting married. Everyone lobbed their opinions, from attendees to food. “You’re the ones getting married.”
Tommy chuckled and wrapped an arm around Olivia’s waist. “You don’t know our parents. We’ve both gotten the ‘it would mean a lot to us if you’d invite…’ and they rattle off some random names that we’ve never heard of. Just today my mom asked me to invite her former co-worker. I’ve never even met the person.”
“I don’t care, honestly.” Olivia leaned her head on Tommy’s broad shoulder. “One, two, a thousand. I just want to marry my love.”
I swallowed back a surprising blip of emotion.Love.What a concept. All these years, after Frankie, the only things I loved were my family and my job. I’d dated enough, but never had that spark, that zing, that fire, I had with Frankie. Maybe I didn’t give the other women enough of a try. Maybe I didn’t give myself enough of a try. But now, watching these two… the looks, the natural support, the clear respect and adoration… would that ever be me?
Before I got emotional—and even worse, unprofessional—I cleared my throat. “Have you thought any more about colors?”
“I like green.” Tommy dug the toe of his boot into the gravel.
Olivia groaned and gave me an overexaggerated eye roll. “I showed him sage, kelly, forest, seafoam… nothing.”
“Greens is green. We can do hot pink for all I care.” His smile dropped and he raised his hands. “Wait, that sounds awful. I care. I promise I do. Just…not about the shade of green.”
If I had more time, this would be kind of funny. The color indifference from one member of the couples I helped was almost a tradition. But I had zero time, and every decision held up another.Ninety freaking days.
Frankie crossed back towards us. “You guys ready for the next round?”
For the next hour, she guided the couple everywhere from the shed, to sitting on top of the gate, to leaning against trees. After another half hour passed, Frankie looked energized, and the couple fatigued. Frankie seemed happy to snap photos for hours, but if she didn’t pick up on the obvious social cues, I might need to butt in and set the couple free.
Finally, Frankie pulled out the champagne—the last shot of the day. Tommy and Olivia shook the bottle and popped the top to squeals and laughter. Bubbly liquid blasted in the air like a fire hydrant, and even though I caught unexpected liquid shrapnel, Ilaughed.
“You guys did amazing.” Frankie scrolled through a few photos on the camera. “These are gonna be beautiful. Give me at least a week or two to edit, and I’ll send them your way.”
As Tommy helped Frankie carry things back to the car, I strolled next to Olivia, kicking small rocks out of the way.
“It’s so quiet out here.” Olivia pulled in a deep breath as they approached Frankie and Tommy loading at the truck. “I love Duluth, but I can hear the traffic from our apartment. But out here…it’s just so peaceful.”
“It really is.” The pinecone scent was rejuvenating. And past all the junk littering the ground, the budding trees and swaying tall grasswerebeautiful. Acres and acres of beauty…
The idea had crossed my mind when we arrived but firmed when Frankie was shooting pictures.We can do this. At the truck, I tugged Frankie out of earshot of the couple. “What if we had the wedding here?”
Frankie looked at me like I had just sprouted fresh alien ears. “Here?As in funky smelling, broken windows, probably wild animals burrowed in places I don’t want to think about,here?”
Absolutely. The overflowing piles of broken junk shifted from daunting to manageable. The trees looked alive, green, welcoming. This could work. “Do you think your aunt and uncle would be open to it?”
“Christ, I don’t know.” Frankie blew out a slow breath. “Maybe? But…how would that even work? I mean…look at this place.”
Ihadlooked at this place. For the last two hours, I scoured the property. With each glance, the place transformed from “broken” to “opportunity.” Would it be a hell of a lift? Yes. Did I have a million things to do besides help fix up the venue? Double yes. But could it be done? I was pretty sure. “Leave the details to me. I want to see what Olivia thinks.”
“And Tommy,” Frankie said.
I withheld a chuckle. “Yes, and him.” I raced back to the couple.Please, please, please go for this.I tried to calm my breath before reaching them to not seem too overexcited, but I almost couldn’t help it. This place wasthe place. “I have an idea. If we can make it work, what do you think about having the wedding here?” I tried to gauge their thoughts with the glances they shared. “Obviously, we’d need a crew. It’d take a ton of work, and probably a chunk of money, but you have a pretty hefty budget. We could swap the cost of fixing up this place and a small stipend in place of a larger rental. And, you know, the golf course you originally wanted to rent would probably cost about the same.”
