Page 34 (1/2)
"I don’t know I guess I’m really busy Why don’t you take soo with"
"Really?" Annoyance turned to anger She folded her arive you a word of advice, David When you’re engaged, it’s a really stupid idea to take another girl to a club and then spend the entire night trying to suck out her tonsils People talk Word gets around It gets back to me"
David flushed but didn’t retreat "I don’t knohat you’re talking about There’s no other girl"
"So this Julie person is just a close friend?"
"We hang out"
He was so lying, she couldn’t believe it "Just get out of here I don’t want to talk to you right now"
His face paled "Mia, no We have to talk I love you"
She could feel the war As she turned it and squeezed her hand closed, the small diamond cut into her palm
"This isn’tti about me I love youto harden her heart to theh he’d acted like an ass, she still cared about hi able to were two different things
He walked out of the kitchen Seconds later the front door opened, then closed Mia dropped her head and told herself to let it go for now She would take some tiain Together they would coood, but didn’t do a thing for the knot in her stomach and the ache in her heart First Jeff had cheated on Brenna and now David had cheated on her Were all s?
Fifty hours until show tih the main ballroom of the hotel The tables were in place, but not set The tents were up, as were the gaardens, which were in perfect shape The ive the area a once-over, tidying any ard bushes, sweeping the paths and raking the leaves
She coraht, she thought when she finished The decorations were in place, the lighting had been fixed so that no one had to suffer with a spotlight in his or her eyes The stage had been pushed into the corner and the various bands and roups had been confirmed Check, check, and triple check
She walked toward the kitchens to go over the food onedouble doors and found e workstations All the head chefs were there, as were their assistants
Jeroht "Always coh" He pressed his hands to his chest "Worry shortens the life"
"I worry so my clients don’t have to In h means ‘wildly successful’"
He nodded to one of the other chefs and h the food with you before you even askher arm "How’s that?"
"Very nice of you Most brilliant chefs are far oodness is a curse People take advantage ofknife" She glanced back at the crowd of kitchen workers "What’s going on here? You haven’t booked another big event, have you? Jerome, there’s not room for--"
He plucked a perfect strawberry from a tray and pressed it between her lips
"Eat," he commanded "And don’t worry There are no other parties scheduled until Sunday afternoon, and by then you’ll be long gone This tonight"--he athered around the work tables--"is oursoet opinions fro the final decision"
"Okay"
"More than okay We’ll be so inspired by our tasting that for the next forty-eight hours, we’ll work feverishly toa little deep in here, Jerohed, took her free hand in his, and kissed her fingers
She followed hi her trays ofon skewers Two etables, as well as fruits for chocolate dipping Against the far wall, seven-foot dollies held trays to deliver the various courses In the pantry the chocolates fro to be cut into chunks suitable for , while several hundred fondue pots were stacked on more dollies
"The wine has been pulled from the cellar," he said "The hard liquor will be delivered in the " He cupped her chin, squeezed, then released her "Fear not, bright angel Nothing will go wrong I promise to make your party perfect"
"I appreciate that," she told hi events, but this one is downright huge I want to make it a success"
"We both have a lot on the line I won’t let you down, rinned "Now, is there any way I can convince you to join us for the tasting? I pro"
"No, thanks" She tapped her clipboard "I have four et some sleep in the next couple of days You want to be beautiful for your client"
"I’ll do "
"You’re welcooodbye as she headed back for the kitchen Shethere was a whole new to-do list, phone calls, and the beginning of the countdown In theit would be less than thirty-six hours until show time
Francesca entered the popular West Side eatery shortly after seven in the evening In honor of herwith Jeff, she’d pulled out one of the only two nice outfits she owned, a sleeveless su short jacket Forty-fiveconversation with a man named Earl at a survivalist-spy store in the San Fernando Valley had steered her toward the lightweight personal recorder she’d tucked into her purse She’d pinned the tiny, voice-activated remote microphone to the neck of her dress, where it was concealed by the edge of the jacket