Savior

Chapter 66

-xx-

Cate pulled her legs up underneath her as she adjusted in the salon chair. Jackie slid off the gloves on her hands after checking to see how the color was setting in Cate's hair.

"So, come on," Jackie began as she rested back against the counter. "Spill the details."

Cate shrugged. "I'm struggling, Jacks," she replied honestly. "For some reason, I really want fall colors but obviously I can't do that in June."

Jackie nodded as she pursed her lips together. "Quite frankly, it's your wedding and you can do whatever you want."

"I guess so," Cate answered.

"Or just move the date," Jackie offered. "You haven't sent out invites or anything. If you want fall, move it to the fall."

Cate laughed. "I don't want to wait any longer, Jackie," she admitted. "So I'll make do with what I'm working with. Derek only asked that I don't make him wear pink."

Jackie chuckled as she reached for her coffee cup. "That's a pretty legit request."

Cate grinned as she pulled her cell phone out from under the cape. "I'm seriously digging this blue," she said as she pulled up her photo albums on her phone. She turned the phone to show Jackie the color she was thinking of. "Pink is such a staple for spring, that I think I can get away with including it in flowers or something?"

"I like the blue," Jackie agreed. "And a dusty pink would look amazing with it. I can't believe it," the brunette said as she took a sip of her coffee. "My little sister is growing up!"

Cate rolled her eyes. "I'm sixteen months younger than you. Let's not make it that big of a deal."

Jackie shrugged as she stepped away from the counter of her booth to check something at the front desk.

Cate sighed as she went back to browsing websites on her cell phone, hoping for inspiration to strike. She had to laugh; this was why she wanted to have something extremely small and intimate – the stress was already getting to her, and they had only booked their venue a few days before.

June 22nd seemed like a lifetime away. "We're waiting longer to get married than it took me to muster the courage to ask you to marry me," Derek had joked as they drove home from the vineyard.

Why did she have to fall in love with that location? Surely, if she had just gotten over her initial reaction to the vineyard, they could have found somewhere that had availability before the end of 2018.

But watching Derek's face light up at the options to add on to their package was enough for her to hand over her credit card for the down payment. "This is where I finally get to call you my wife," he muttered as they toured the ceremony area. They had Shelby, the wedding coordinator, take a photo of them under the arbor used in most of their ceremonies. Cate made sure to send it out to their families with their date.

She sighed contently as her mind wandered back to their visit. He had dipped her under the arbor before kissing her. "We'll need a re-do in June," she added with a laugh.

"Jackie," she called out as she turned towards the front desk. "Do you think I can hire a wedding planner?"

The older brunette laughed. "Don't they have one there?"

"Shelby is responsible for every event there," she replied. "I need someone who'll answer the phone at 3am when a random idea hits me."

Jackie rolled her eyes as she started to walk back towards her sister. "Isn't that why you have me?" The two laughed.

-xx-

Cate grinned as she scrolled through her text messages. She had them coming in left and right; her mother and sister were ready to plan everything right then. Derek's sisters were offering their help from Chicago, and his mother could not gush enough about how happy she was for her three kids.

And then there were the texts from Derek; between him comparing JJ's driving to Cate's and critiquing every photo that she sent him, she could not keep her grin at bay. Every time she admitted how stressed she already was, he told her to step away. "Everything will work out how it's supposed to, Catie," he had texted her back.

"Cate? Is that you?" The brunette looked up from her laptop to the direction of where she heard her name from.

She bit the inside of her lip as she offered a simple smile. "Jade, how are you?"

Cate fought every emotion as Cole Hanson's younger sister stood across from her. The blonde was one of Cate's best friends when she dated her brother. Jade had always been her closest confidante when it came to Cole's actions. But Jade would be the first to remind her of how much her brother loved her and never meant to hurt her.

"May I?" the blonde asked as she pointed to the chair across from Cate and her laptop.

Cate pursed her lips and nodded. "Sure," she replied softly. Every ounce of her body fought her words but she placed a polite smile across her lips. "How have you been?"

Jade smiled as she took a seat across from her brother's ex. "I can't complain," she replied with a laugh. "Aaron and I finally got married."

Cate could not help the smile crossing her face. Jade would always be like a little sister to her. "That's awesome news, Jade."

The blonde fought the blush rising in her cheeks. "Our son will be one in January, too," the blonde added as she reached for her cell phone. She brought up a photo of the baby to show Cate. "Colby."

Cate fought to keep her composure when she said the name. "He's adorable. Congratulations," she said as she released a deep breath.

"Thank you," Jade replied as she scrolled through photos to show Cate. "Oh," she began as she noticed she stopped on a photo of Cole with the infant. "I'm sorry, Cate."

Cate pursed her lips together and forced herself to take another deep breath. "No worries, Jade. He's an uncle, huh," she said, letting the words linger between the pair. Cate reached for her coffee cup on the table next to her laptop and swallowed the growing lump in her throat.

"Oh wow," she heard as she lifted her cup to her lips. Cate closed her eyes as she realized she used her left hand. "I guess congratulations are in order for you as well. Who's the lucky guy?"

Cate blushed as she placed the mug back on the table. "His name is Derek," she began. "We're really happy." Keep it short and sweet, Cate, she reminded herself.

"That's great, Cate," the blonde answered. Her smile seemed genuine, too. The buzzer in Jade's hand went off, signally her order was ready. "Hey, it was great to see you. I'd love to catch up some more."

Cate nodded. "Yeah, that sounds like a great idea." She tried her best to shrug thoughts of the Hanson family from her mind – Jade was always so different from them. Cate reached into her purse and pulled out a business card before sliding it across the table to the blonde. "Shoot me a text, and we'll figure something out."

Jade smiled as she picked up the card. "I'll do that," she replied as she stood from the table. "It was really great running in to you."

Cate pursed her lips into a smile. "Always good to see you, Jade."

Cate let the smile slowly leave her face as she watched the blonde saunter across the restaurant to pick up her lunch order. She waited until she saw her walk through the front doors before releasing a deep sigh.

She let her shoulders shrug as she rested back in her seat. The brunette tried her best to shake all thoughts from her mind; Jade was always the most level headed one in the family. She was always on Cate's side whenever Cole acted out of line to her.

She tapped her nails across the table before forcing herself to sit up straight at the table and get back to work. An e-mail popped up in her inbox; why was Shelby already e-mailing her?

Hey Cate,

I absolutely loved meeting you and Derek this past weekend! I cannot wait for you to start your lives together at Potomac Point Winery! We are delighted you have chosen us to host your wedding!

I wanted to reach out – I got the vibe that you two were hoping for something a little sooner than next June! I know this is last minute, but we just had a cancellation for October of this year. I was curious if you wanted to take that date? I know it is super quick – just over two months away – but we would love to work with you to put together your dream wedding!

Let me know what you think! I can't wait to hear from you!

-Shelby

-xx-