Waterfront Weddings (28 page)

“Have you seen the weather?” Summer asked as soon as Ashley walked in the door.

Ashley nodded. “Yes. But according to my e-mail, the wedding is still a go in spite of the hurricane watch.”

Summer’s stomach churned. “Do they realize that our ability to pull off this wedding totally hinges on the weather? Because if this thing hits, we won’t be able to have a catered dinner and flowers brought in from a flower shop. We’ll be lucky to keep a roof over our heads and maintain electricity.”

Ashley shrugged. “It was all very clear on the site, and they sent me an e-mail last night that stated everything was a go.”

“Okay.” Summer tapped her pencil against her desk. She flipped through her planner and penciled in a couple more items on her to-do list. “You know what? This wedding is the same day as my anniversary.” She frowned.

“Do y’all have plans?”

Summer shook her head. “Not exactly. Luke came over yesterday to mow the yard. We ended up talking for a while. I came super close to asking him to move back in the house.” She sighed. “But I’m a little scared. I’m afraid if he moves in, we’ll never actually deal with any of the problems. I don’t want to sweep them under the rug. I want to face them together and then move on.”

Ashley smiled. “I think you’ll get there.”

“I hope so.” Summer lifted her hair off her neck. It was so miserably hot outside today. “He moved off the boat and moved in with Justin. And Colton.”

“Whoa. I’ll bet that’s an interesting household.”

Summer chuckled. “Luke said Justin and Colton are like two peas in a pod. He says that considering Colton isn’t Justin’s biological child, it’s uncanny how alike they are.”

“I hope the situation is working out.”

“Seems to be.” Summer glanced over at Ashley. “Except that Justin is still really sad. I ran into him at the grocery store a couple of days ago. I can tell he’s happy to have Colton with him, but he asked about you right off.”

“He did?” Ashley asked. “I figured I’d sabotaged any chance I had because I was so scared.”

Summer shrugged. “You’ll never know until you try.”

F
riday afternoon, Summer looked out the window from her room at the resort. The clouds were rolling so fast they looked like they were from a time-lapse video. If the TV weather guys were right, things didn’t bode well for tomorrow’s wedding.

“You worried?” Ashley asked. She was perched on the sofa, tapping away on the keys of her laptop.

She let out a breath. “A little bit. It’s not a good sign when the Weather Channel has someone stationed at your hotel, is it?”

“I guess not. But they probably have people stationed all over the coast. Just because we’re in the cone of uncertainty doesn’t mean we’re going to get hit.”

“My whole life is a cone of uncertainty.” Summer managed a smile at Ashley’s amused expression. “What? It is.”

Ashley rolled her eyes. “Haven’t you figured it out yet? Life is uncertain. Thankfully we can be certain of what comes after that.”

“Has anyone ever told you that you have a good perspective on things?”

“A time or two.” Ashley twisted her mouth into a smile. “Or maybe it’s that wisdom comes with age.”

“Speaking of age… I meant to tell you that Justin’s birthday is coming up in August. His thirtieth birthday.” Summer raised her eyebrows. “Does that push him over your mysterious threshold and make it appropriate for you guys to see each other again?”

Ashley sighed. “I don’t know.”

“If it’s honestly that you don’t see the possibility of a future with him, that’s one thing. But if it’s because you’re scared of taking a chance, that’s another.”

“I never thought I’d be in this position, you know?” Ashley tucked a stray hair behind her ear. “Starting over with someone new. Trusting that this time love will work out for me.” She sighed. “It’s a lot harder than I expected it to be. So yes, I’m scared.”

“I wish I could give you a guarantee,” Summer said. She sat down on the plush king-sized bed and toyed with her wedding ring. “But obviously I can’t. I will say that some things are worth the risk. Worth the hurt.”

Ashley nodded. “I know. And I believe that, too. I have to find that courage to take a leap of faith.”

Summer smiled. “I used to have trouble with that. You know what a perfectionist I am.”

“You, a perfectionist?” Ashley giggled. “No way.”

“I’m serious.” Summer sighed. “It’s hard for me to do things that I might fail at. Whether it’s planting a garden or expanding the business. But a few years ago, I realized that in the end I’d rather regret something I did than something I didn’t do.” She shrugged. “It’s that simple. I don’t want to look back and have to wish I’d taken a chance or wish I’d told someone how I felt. So I started living that way.”

“That’s actually really good advice.” Ashley looked up from her laptop with wide eyes.

Summer grinned. “Sometimes I do have good ideas.”

Ashley closed her laptop and looked seriously at Summer. “Okay then. In light of that, I have something I’ve wanted to talk to you about for a few months.” She took a deep breath.

Ashley willed the words to come out of her mouth. She tried to remember all the points she’d planned to make if she ever got the nerve to make this little speech. But for the most part, they eluded her. “I’ve put in a lot of hours over the past six months,” she said finally.

Summer nodded. “And I’m so appreciative.”

“And with the new website launch, we’re only going to get busier. I even have some ideas on ways we can expand from weddings to parties and general events.” Ashley met Summer’s curious gaze. “You know I’m a good employee. I’m dependable and responsible, and I get along well with our clients.”

“I know. Finding you has been such a blessing to me and the business.”

“Well, I’ve been thinking lately that I’d like to play a bigger role in the business side of things.” Her heart beat faster, but she plunged ahead. “I’d like for you to consider making me a full partner.”

Summer’s eyes widened. “I guess that should have occurred to me already, huh?” She shook her head. “I’ll need to talk to my accountant and to Luke, but I don’t see any reason why we can’t make that happen.”

“Are you sure? Because I don’t want you to feel like you have to say yes just because we’re friends.”

Summer smiled. “I’m positive. I’m sorry you had to ask though. I should’ve thought of it myself. I know how hard you’ve worked over the past months, and I know how good you are at what you do.” She sighed. “Honestly, I think it will be a relief to share responsibilities with someone. The business is at the point where we’re either going to have to expand or start turning down work. There’s only so much two of us can do without literally working around the clock.”

“Thanks.” Ashley couldn’t hide her surprise. She’d fully expected Summer to be upset at the very idea of being partners.

“It might be the answer to a prayer actually. I’m hopeful that Luke and I will have things back on track soon. And honestly, I don’t want work to be my primary focus all the time. But if we restructure some things and hire some support help, I think you and I can both have real lives outside of work.”

Ashley nodded. “That sounds perfect.” A real life. She knew that’s what she’d have with Justin. The kind of partnership she’d always wanted. Everything she knew about him told her that he’d be committed to her and to their future.

The only thing holding her back now was her own insecurity.

L
uke stopped at the front desk of the resort. “Could you tell me if Summer Nelson from Summer Weddings is on site?”

The receptionist gave him a shaky smile. “I think so. She was in the east ballroom earlier. The flowers didn’t get delivered, and she was pretty upset.” She glanced around and leaned forward conspiratorially. “To tell you the truth, I feel sorry for her. What kind of people insist on having their wedding during a hurricane? I mean, honestly.” She sighed. “I wouldn’t be here except that I figure this building is safer than my house, plus I’m making overtime. I don’t even normally work the desk here, but everyone else headed out of town. My boyfriend loaded up our dog and is driving west.”

He nodded. “I’m sure it will be fine. It’s not supposed to hit for several hours, and maybe by then it will have weakened.”

“You sound just like my daddy. He refuses to evacuate. I guess I’m a big old chicken.”

Luke’s daddy had the same philosophy. His only concession to a potential tropical storm had been to put the plastic lawn chairs in the garage. “About Summer. Do you know where she might be now?”

“She has a suite reserved. You want me to ring it?”

He thought for a minute. “Actually, can I make a reservation? But not on the same floor as her.”

The girl narrowed her eyes. “You’re not some kind of stalker are you? Because I don’t want any drama.” She smiled. “I’m hoping that if I do a good job, they’ll offer me a position at the desk permanently. And if I end up letting a psycho in the building, that’ll never happen.”

“I’m her husband,” he said quietly. “I’m trying to surprise her for our anniversary. That’s all.” He raised his hands in surrender. “I promise.”

She seemed satisfied by his answer. “Well, okay. We do have a lot of rooms available. Just a few guests are riding out the hurricane. And that crew from the Weather Channel.” She sighed.

He paid for a two-night stay and went outside to his truck. He needed to call Ashley and see if everything was in place.

And he didn’t want to risk running into Summer before it was time.

Justin lifted Colton from his car seat and carried the sleeping child into his parents’ house.

“Just put him in your old room,” Mom whispered.

He gently put Colton on the bed, and the little boy curled up in a ball. He was such a good sleeper. He smoothed Colton’s blond curls, covered him up, and shut the door behind him. He took two steps and turned around. What if Colton got scared and Mom couldn’t hear him? He opened the door a crack and made his way to the living room.

“Thanks for letting me bring him by. I appreciate it so much.” Justin leaned down and kissed his mom on the cheek.

She looked up with a smile. “Anytime. But I wish you’d stay. They’re saying it’s only a matter of hours before the storm rolls in.” She nodded at the weather coverage on TV. “Your daddy has gone to get gas for the generator in case we need it.”

He shook his head. “Thanks. I’m hoping it’s going to miss us completely. I’m glad you’re going to be with Colton though.” He sighed. “Luke has concocted some crazy plan to win Summer back. He won’t let go of it. I’m headed down to Folly Beach to help him. I have to go by their house and pick up their dog and take him down there.”

“Can’t you tell him you don’t want to be out in a tropical storm? It could turn into a hurricane, Justin. That’s not anything to play around with.”

“I know. But I’ll get there in plenty of time to hunker down. You know that after the last one came through here, most of the buildings were built to withstand high winds.”

“Okay. You need to go on then. I don’t want you out when it hits.” She stood and gave him a hug. “And don’t worry about Colton. He’ll be fine.”

“Thanks, Mom.” He headed out the door and climbed in his truck. The sky looked ominous. Not at all the kind of weather he wanted to be out in.

The only upside to the situation was that Ashley was with Summer at the resort. And even though things hadn’t worked out the way Justin wanted them to, he still held out hope that she would have a change of heart.

A
knock at the door startled Summer. She wasn’t expecting anyone. After Ashley rushed off to take a phone call, Summer had tried to get some e-mails answered. But she kept a wary eye on the sky.

Even though she’d been a little girl when Hurricane Hugo hit, she still remembered the destruction. It had taken days for them to get power back and years for the area to return to normal.

The pounding continued, and she peeked through the peep hole.
You’ve got to be kidding me
. She opened the door. “What are you doing here?”