I handed her a cup of coffee and sat on the other end of the couch.
She sipped on it and we sat in silence for a moment.
“You know,” I said, “you don’t have to come with me today. I know I’ve been taking up a lot of your days off lately.”
Her eyebrows drew together with a look of “yeah, right.” “It’s fine. I just need to finish my coffee. Thanks for this, by the way.”
“You’re welcome,” I said with a smile. Sienna was always good to me. Probably more than I deserved, but I was happy to have her in my life.
“What are some places you are considering?” she asked.
I whipped my phone out of my pocket. “I have a list of three that have availability on the date we chose. They are literally the only ones in the area, so I’m hoping one of them will suit our needs.”
“You have a good shot at finding something.”
I nodded. I liked all three of the places, but Rachel had really wanted the one we’d chosen previously. When I told her we could wait the two years, Rachel acted like I was insane for even suggesting it.
“This wedding business is no joke,” I said. “The venues seemed rather appalled that I wanted to plan something within two months.”
“Well, a lot of people like to have a drawn-out process to get everything in place before the date. But it’s not necessary,” she quickly added. “Everyone is different.”
I regarded her as she sipped her coffee. She seemed more agreeable than she had the night before. I didn’t want to start the day off on a bad note, so I tried to avoid talking about Rachel.
“Well, there also isn’t a budget for this, so I’ll pay whoever whatever they want to make it happen.”
Sienna nodded. “I’m sure that will help you get the place you want.”
We sipped our coffee as I went over the places we were going to see. Sienna listened and reacted appropriately, but I could tell something was on her mind. Or maybe she didn’t get enough sleep the night before. Lying on the couch wasn’t going to help her mood if she didn’t get moving.
“How about we get going? We can stop for lunch after the first two.”
Sienna chugged the rest of her coffee and handed me the cup. She gathered the blankets around her and stood up, scooting off to her bedroom. “I’ll be out i
n a minute.”
Sienna was ready in ten minutes. Getting ready quickly was one of the traits that I loved in her. I usually had to give Rachel an extra hour to get ready for anything.
She’d put on a pair of short shorts and a black tank top and had her hair pulled back. In all the years I knew Sienna, she’d never changed her style.
“Let’s go,” she said and led the way out of the house.
The first venue we looked at was very formal and required a large head count. The ballroom was a little too big for our needs, so I had to pass. Even if I had spent the money to cover the cost of the room, there was way too much space. Our party would look ridiculous in a room that big. If the wedding planner had been put out, she didn’t show it. She’d given Sienna a look of disgust when we entered the place, which rubbed me the wrong way.
Sienna didn’t appear to notice and was kind to the woman. My instinct to protect her was overwhelming. I had to leave so that I wouldn’t say something to the woman I’d regret.
When we got to the car, I texted Rachel and let her know that option was out. I waited for a few seconds for her response, knowing how close she was with her phone.
“I hope Rachel isn’t too disappointed,” Sienna said.
I shoved the phone in my pocket. “I’m sure the next place will be better.”
Rachel still hadn’t contacted me at all, even though I’d called and left voice mails and text messages. The only way I knew she was doing okay was from her pictures on Instagram. The combination of her leaving me to do all the planning myself and not answering my calls annoyed me to no end. I spent most of the ride to the next venue thinking of what I’d say to her if she ever contacted me while she was away.
“I wish that place had a smaller ballroom,” Sienna noted.
Her voice broke through my thoughts. “It was nice, but I think this is the place with the overlook.” We drove up a steep, winding hill toward the next place. I didn’t want anyone to kill themselves on this hill, so I made a mental note to hire a private shuttle from the hotel to the reception.
Sienna turned in her seat to look down at the ocean below us. “This already looks cool.”