Ive spoken to the band, Steve replies. They want extra pay.
Look, lets talk about extra pay for the wedding after this one and all future weddings. Just not this one. Ive cut my profit a lot already just to get this wedding. Its important to me. Having this wedding is good for my resume.
Well, its not good for our pockets, Steve replies firmly.
Steve, cmon. Where is this coming from? Weve always been able to negotiate. Why the big push now?
I only have a few hours and then the offers off the table.
Well, can I ask who it is thats making this offer?
Does it matter? Its not going to change anything, Steve replies.
Sure, but Ill find out anyway.
Christine. Christine Jackson.
I feel my anger rise instantly. The woman who I idolized and held as a role model until recently. My heart tells me this is deliberate. Its not a coincidence. I almost swear but I bite my tongue.
Vi? Steve asks.
Yes. Okay, look. Ill pay you fifty percent more this weekend and from now on. Just dont do this to me again, okay?
Okay.
Promise me, Steve, I say firmly. I cant afford these kinds of problems so late before a wedding.
Okay, Steve says. Im sorry.
Do me a favor please.
Whats that? Steve asks.
Not a word of this to anyone okay? If this gets out, everyone else is going to demand more money and I cant pay it right now. Okay? Will you tell your band?
Sure. We can keep it quiet.
You better, I say.
Um, Vi, Steve says.
He wants to tell me something and seems hesitant about doing so.
What is it, Steve? I ask.
I let it slip that you use a wedding whisperer, Steve says.
What is a wedding whisperer? I ask, confused.
Ashley, Steve replies.
I hang my head. I dont know what to say. I have always thought of Ashley as a counselor. And Ive kept her a secret for so long. Everyone in my team knows about her but thats as far as it goes. It's something I dont advertise not even to my clients. No-one else in the game uses one, at least not that I know of and now the cat is out of the bag.
I want to scream at Steve but I hold back.
Vi? he asks prompting me to break my silence.
Im here, I reply.
Look, Im sorry. I didnt mean to make any problems or let your secrets slip. I was just trying to tell her how much better you are than her.
And yet, youll go and work for her because shes offering more money, I think to myself. I immediately feel guilty for the thought. I have known Steve for a long time. We have worked together for a long time too and I would have expected that he would approach me in a more professional manner about increasing their income.
I appreciate that, Steve, I say. Just dont say another word about it to her or anyone okay?
Sure. Im sorry, Steve says.
We end the call and I pace my living room angrily. I am livid. I want to call Christine and give her a piece of my mind but I resist the urge to do so. Im even angrier that she knows about the wedding whisperer. Im angry at her and Im angry at Steve.
For some reason, I have a bad feeling about the fact that Steve has told Christine about my wedding whisperer. I never advertise it to anyone as I dont think its something to advertise as something that sets me apart from other wedding planners. Sure, I charge for it but the fee is built into other fees when I provide a breakdown to clients.
Its not about the cost because Im still cheaper than people like Christine. Its about the fact that I dont think people will feel its nice to feel like theyre being pushed into a wedding if theyre having last-minute, second thoughts about getting married. The truth is that many people do have last-minute, second thoughts and its a silly thing really since they usually go ahead anyway and get married. But if they dont, just in case they dont, they stand to lose a lot of money which is non-refundable. Money paid for the caterer, the MC, the venue, the band and so much more. There is my reputation to think about too and Im not about to have a wedding canceled because someones having second thoughts. I do have a reputation to uphold. So, is it ethical? My own jurys still out on that but so far, its worked and everyones been happy.
Im sure Christine will be quick to copy the idea now that she knows about it. Especially since Ive managed to prevent Steve from leaving. Shell be pissed about that and will surely be looking for the next thing she can come at me with.
I guess shes taken a dislike to me because Im her competition. I cant imagine why though other than that I might have taken a client that she dearly wanted. A client like the one whose wedding I am doing this weekend.
Well, she can go after my band and whatever else she wants but its too late to take this client.
Better luck next time, bitch, I think to myself. I am quite amazed at how fast my view of her has gone from idol and role model to stomach twisting anger when I think of her or hear her name.
I wonder if shes going to go after my other resources as well now that she has failed with Steve. Rather than sit and fume, I decide to start finding alternate resources to step in at short notice if necessary. Thats the right thing to do.
CHRISTINE
Im angry. I failed with Steve and his band.
I take a few deep breaths and begin to relax. Getting a wedding planners band is just one part of their business. There are many other parts to go after. However, I push the thought of other parts of the business aside as I think about the concept of the wedding whisperer that Steve let slip to me.
I know theres something important in it. It hovers just beyond my mental grasp like a carrot on a stick for the time being. I have to admit its a genius idea and I should be thinking of doing it myself. But theres something else about it that I think is much more important than simply copying the idea.
I grab the brochure that I took from Violas booth and study it. Theres not a word in the brochure about a wedding whisperer. Nothing that even alludes to it as a service.
I check her website again. Nothing. Nowhere. The testimonials say nothing about it. How can she keep it secret? Surely the clients should be impressed with the added value?
Why would clients keep it secret? Its not possible. Unless
Unless what? I know its there but I just cant grasp it. Frustrated, I finally try to push it away and focus on other work I have to do.
My assistant enters my office and I decide to bounce the idea off her.
Lacy?
Yes?
I want to bounce something off you. An idea to possibly improve our service and differentiate us from other wedding planners.
Okay, Lacy says as she sits down opposite me. What is it?
A wedding whisperer.
A what? Lacy asks not understanding what Im talking about.
A wedding whisperer. A person who I employ to encourage the bride or groom to put their last-minute fears of getting married away and go through with the wedding anyway.
Why on earth would you want to do that? Lacy asks.
Because clients fork out a lot of money on a wedding. Money they lose if the bride or groom decides to stand the other up at the altar. This person would help them get through their fear and walk down the aisle anyway.
Lacy shakes her head. Shes conservative and I know Ive done the right thing asking her. If anyone will have a negative objection its her. As much as her objections are negative, they do make sense most of the time.
No way. Thats asking for trouble.
Trouble? From who?
Chris, she says using the shortened version of my name. Its dangerous. A good idea but dangerous. Too dangerous.
Why do you say its dangerous?
She leans forward, crosses her legs, and rests her elbow on her knee. In turn, she rests her chin on her hand as she always does when shes about to make a very important point. What happens if this wedding whisperer talks the bride or groom into getting married and a few months or years later, they get divorced?
Im not sure I follow you, Lacy.
Well, people get pretty bitter when they get divorced. They need people to blame. They need to put their anger on someone else and if they can say they got married because they felt pressured to do so by a wedding whisperer, Id say youre going to have lawyers kicking down your door very quickly.
I absorb what Lacy has just told me. I know shes right and in my mind, the donkey finally gets the carrot on the stick.
I nod my understanding. Thanks, Lacy. That makes sense. I can always count on you.
Thats what Im here for, she smiles.
Thats all for now.
Lacy gets up and leaves my office.
I almost jump for joy. I cant believe I didnt see the possibilities of what she just told me. I look at the brochure again. Nothing. Not a word about a wedding whisperer.
And now I know why. Its a bomb looking for a detonator and a place to be set off. Any wedding could be the place and the detonator.
I laugh with joy.
I know what I need to do.
VIOLA
Cold feet.
No, I dont mean cold feet as in the kind you get from being out in the cold or swimming in water thats too cold or simply not dressing warm enough.
I mean the other kind of cold feet.
The worst kind.
The kind that some women, and to a lesser extent, some men get just before their wedding. Yes, that kind.
My biggest pet hate. Why? Because in my line of work, they can ruin everything.
What is my line of work?
Im a wedding planner. Any wedding planner hates and fears cold feet. They can derail everything. The whole day. Ruin you financially and possibly your reputation too.
Ive been in this game a long time though and Ive learned the hard way. When youve had enough cancellations because of cold feet you become hard. It becomes a matter of survival as well as doing what you love.
I now insist on non-refundable deposits from clients. They sign a contract when they hire me and they accept that they will lose their hard-earned money if they dare cancel. The deposit covers the location rental, decorations, cakes, caterers, furniture and marquee, photographer, band, and absolutely everything I need to cover.
Ive gone a step further with my service. I include a counselor who provides last-minute counseling if the bride or the groom gets cold feet. They dont know the person theyre speaking to is a counselor if I send them in. The counselor works the magic they need to, to keep the show on the road.
Im the best. Not just as far as clients are concerned but also as far as my suppliers are concerned. They know theyll get paid even if the show doesnt go on.
Im inundated with clients and they even delay their weddings just so I can be the wedding planner. Im not boasting, just saying how it is.
For me, its not about the business aspect. Theres something about seeing a couple walk down the aisle to that moment in time when they will commit to each other before God and everyone present. Seeing the love and caring in their eyes and their kiss and the celebrations that follow. I love it. I love to see a couple in love and happy. Thats why I do it. I help couples make a dream come true with their wedding day.
But right now, Im waiting with bated breath. Its early Saturday afternoon.
The groom is waiting in church and the bride hasnt even left her home yet. The counselor is doing her best but this one is her hardest to date.
Im beginning to think that Im about to lose the first wedding Ive lost in ages. I am seeing my record run of talking brides and grooms out of cold feet threatening to end here and now. The groom is restless as are the people in the church.
I wait with bated breath for the message to update me.
My phone pings. The bride is on her way.
I say a silent prayer of thanks and heave a sigh of relief. I key the walkie-talkie and speak to my team. Brides on the way. Positions please.
I receive crackled confirmations from the team and head inside to tell the groom the bride is on the way. I lie and tell him that there was a traffic jam because of an accident. Thats usually the story I give them. The bride, or groom, whichever one of them had cold feet is always told what to say beforehand. As far as possible, no-one wants to admit they had cold feet on their wedding day. Its not the way to start a marriage. They can sort it out later if the bride or groom wants to give their new spouse the real reason why they were late.
The drive to the church isnt far and thankfully the brides car arrives soon enough. The bride steps out and the organ starts playing as she enters the church with the flower girls and maid of honor trailing behind her.
The groom watches her and his face lights up with joy. He cant see her face that well because of the veil. I hope the bride is giving none of her fear away. My counselor climbed out of the car when they arrived. It must have been bad if the counselor had to drive with her to the church.
It worries me that she might still at this stage back out but thankfully she doesnt. I say another prayer of thanks when she says I do and kisses her husband.
I wait outside as the newly married couple exit the church. Guests and well-wishers sprinkle confetti and smile as the couple walks down the church steps and climbs into the waiting carriage.
We made it this far, I think with relief. Now its on to the reception which I expect will go off without a hitch. The couple will do their photos just before the reception so there is time for me to have lunch and regroup with the team.
As I turn to reenter the church, I notice him for the first time. I pause as I take him in.
He is slim and muscular. Not too muscular but he clearly spends time in the gym. His hair is jet black and short but not military style. His blue eyes sparkle and his strong jaw is perfectly proportioned. White teeth sparkle with his smile and everything about him says I am in charge.
He can be in charge of me any day, I think as I take him in. Hes looking at the newly married couple but must feel my eyes on him because he turns and our eyes meet for the briefest of moments. I blush and look away quickly as I soak my panties.
I didnt see that he was with someone and I wonder where his partner is. Surely, he cant be at this wedding alone? Not someone as gorgeous as him!