Page 71 of Goodbye Paradise
Caleb arranged that with his boss, and so the two of them went for it.
Maggie, though eager to help plan for her sister’s arrival, had to work. The preparation of a wedding reception for two hundred and fifty people could not be put off. It was a big wedding for a small catering company, and they’d been planning it for weeks.
That meant Chloe and I spent some quality time together while Maggie and Cecilia prepped for the wedding. “Thank the Lord this event happens before Miriam comes. I can’t wait to take care of her,” she said.
“I’ll bet,” I agreed.
“Hey, Josh? I want you to work this wedding with me tomorrow night.”
“What? You mean babysit?”
Maggie shook her head. “Cecilia and I need an extra set of hands. And I choose you.”
“But what about Chloe?” I asked.
“She’s too young to carry passed hors d’hoeuvres,” Maggie quipped. “Daniel can take her for the evening. He and Caleb can’t workallnight long on the apartment.”
“Okay,” I said. Once in a while I helped Maggie with a catering gig, usually when she was short-staffed.
“Wear those black pants I got you and a white shirt, okay? Be ready at six.”
“Sure,” I promised. “Now, Chloe. Are you ready to say ‘Josh’ this morning?”
“Dada” she said.
Right.
At six o’clock, I was waiting for Maggie in black trousers and a white shirt. I was wearing a pair of Daniel’s shoes, because I didn’t own anything more formal than work boots. Caleb and I still lived incredibly frugally, owning almost nothing. We were just sousedto owning nothing. Shopping wasn’t a habit of ours. I had everything I needed, anyway. Being with people who loved me were all that I really cared about.
After a long day of food prep, Maggie came home to change. Then we sped off together in her Prius. I was happy to be buzzing along with Maggie in her car, watching the quiet country roads pass us by. Maybe she’d chosen me to help tonight because I didn’t get out much. If that was the reason, then I appreciated it.
“Here’s the schedule,” she said. “We’re doing passed appetizers from seven until seven-thirty. You’ll carry a tray, okay? After that, we’ll move the guests into the dining room for dinner, which is served buffet style. At that point, I’ll need you to fill water glasses and then pass out flutes of champagne for the toast.”
“Got it,” I said. Weddings were strangely fancy in the outside world. They went on for hours, and everybody wore what I thought was outlandish finery. The girls from the Compound would die of shock to see the wedding dresses at these affairs. At least the big white puffy thing made the bride easy to spot in a crowd.
This wedding reception was held in a converted barn, and I loved the place immediately. It had high ceilings with thick, pine beams and giant old doors. In the roomy kitchen, I helped set up the trays for cocktail hour.
“Josh? This is Trey,” Maggie said, grabbing my arm and introducing me to another man. “Trey, this is my cousin, Josh.”
I shook his hand, trying hard not to notice his giant green eyes. “Wow,” he said in a sing-song voice. “Aren’tyoupretty.”
“Trey,” Maggie chided. “Save it for the bar tonight, okay?”
“I just call ‘em like I see ‘em,” Trey said, giving me a wink.
“Ignore him,” Maggie said. “Trey is a huge flirt. Sometimes the guests want to chat him up. But when he’s not distracted, he’s one of our best servers.”
“Oneof?” Trey yelped.
Maggie flashed him a smile and walked away.
All the while, my chest squeezed in discomfort. It wasn’t because I didn’t find Trey fascinating. In fact, I had to make a big effort to turn back to the tiny quiches I was loading onto a tray. But men weren’t supposed to call each other pretty. Not that I had even a lick of experience guessing these things, but my gut said that Trey was gay.
Did Maggie know?
Gay Trey. My stomach spasmed with the urge to laugh at my own joke.Easy, I cautioned myself. It was going to be a lot of work to ignore him tonight, when what I wanted to do was study him. But if I paid too much attention, Maggie would notice.
Not worth it.
