A Convenient Arrangement(62)

“I’m sorry you feel that way.” Gwen straightened her spine and lifted her purse from the couch. “You have plenty of time before the wedding. I’ll send you a list of planners I know will do an amazing job for you.”

Milan whipped her head up. Her eyes widened and her mouth dropped open. “What?”

Of course, the Vanderpelk cherub had never been cut loose before. Who would ever do such a thing? Certainly not any party planner that Gwen knew…oh, right…Gwen was doing just that right now.

“You’re leaving?” Milan spat. “You’re quitting?”

Gwen picked up her computer from the table. “I think resigning is the appropriate term. I know you’ll be much happier with someone who specializes in weddings. It’s obvious you need a planner who can give you all their focus.” And probably their first-born.

“Mother,” Milan screeched, “stop her.” Her brows knit in a furious furrow. “You can’t do this, you can’t leave. What will people say? What will they think?”

“I suppose nothing if you don’t mention it.” And frankly, Gwen couldn’t care less about what anybody had to say. She was done being worried or concerned about everyone else’s opinion of her and her life.

“If you leave, you won’t have any more business once I tell people you abandoned us.” Her smirk sickened Gwen. Once upon a time a threat like that might have made her stop, turn, and suffer through working for this harpy for the next fourteen months, but not now, no way. Just no. Her business, her life, her mental well-being meant too much to her to waste one more minute of her precious life on this thankless she-devil.

“I’m sorry you feel that way.” Gwen glanced at Mrs. Vanderpelk.The corners of her mouth turned up ever so slightly, as if to say, you go, girl. Gwen returned her attention to Milan. “I wish you every success, and I’m certain you and Andrew will have many blessed years together.” She nodded to Mrs. Vanderpelk and turned toward the door. “Best wishes and again, I’ll send you some names.”

With that, Gwen scurried down the hall toward the front door, making a break for freedom while she could. The shrieking began just as the housekeeper met Gwen at the door.

“Good job,” she whispered, opening the door. “Smart girl to leave this behind.”

Yes, Gwen felt like she was getting smarter and quicker at leaving things that didn’t suit her. Too bad there was one person who didn’t suit her that she still couldn’t quite leave behind.





Chapter 18




“Where should I stick the glow tubes?”

Gwen turned from speaking to one of the bartenders. They had been over the “Hard Core Exec” (bourbon neat with a slice of ginger), the “One-Nighter” (a concoction of Jameson and apple juice), and finally the “Mr. Convenient” (champagne over raspberries). Ben, her new assistant, stood behind her with a dozen long plastic tubes sticking out of one hand, all glowing different shades of neon. He held an entire case of the same tubes in his arms. Gwen knew exactly where she’d like to stick those tubes, but Leo wasn’t here yet. In less than twenty-four hours—okay, twenty-four hours plus two weeks—her emotions had ricocheted from weepy about their breakup to irritated with both Leo and herself, but a glow tube anal exam? Leo didn’t really deserve that…

“They go in the center of the tables, next to the neon wigs.”

Todd and Ilko had been very specific with their decoration requests for the launch party and Leo had been clear: whatever Todd and Ilko wanted for decor, Gwen should get. That included the Romanian aerial silk artist who hung ten feet above the crowd with a leg draped around a piece of fabric doing acrobatic tricks in a sequined thong bikini.

Ben looked up at the silk apparatus. “I hope she doesn’t fall.”

“If she does, the whole party will go splat.”

Ben cocked an eyebrow.

“Sorry, unintended pun. Don’t forget the neon ice cubes. Bar number two needs green and blue. There are more in the kitchen.”

“What is this anyway, an eighties retro-fest?” Ben mumbled. He walked from table to table dropping off bundles of the long slender glow sticks.

A voice sounded in Gwen’s ear. “Eagle one? Come in, eagle one.” It was Amanda, the newly hired PR exec for Travati Financial.

Gwen pressed her fingers to her earpiece, sighing. “Please do not refer to me as a bird. What is it?”

“The Lion has landed.”

“Lion?”

“You know, like Leo the lion? He’s in the building.”

Gwen’s heartbeat kicked upward into the panic zone. She wiped her hands down the front of her black dress, flattening imaginary wrinkles. Calm. Cool. Collected. Leo was simply a client now. A corporate client, and she was doing the launch party for his newest business venture. She skirted around the edge of bar number four toward the red carpet entrance. She needed to speak to Leo (for the first time in sixteen days, but who was counting?) to make certain he knew the timing for the evening. The room was already filling. Clusters of guests stood along the edges of the room and milled near the bars.