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Caitey grabbed Jenna’s arm. “Go hide!” Then she grabbed a paper plate, loaded it up and shoved it at her cousin. “Takethis upstairs before Logan sees you. Eat, take a nap, and then shower. Show time is in five hours!”
“Five hours!” Jenna squeaked. “You’re crazy!”
Caitey gave her a secret smile. “Just you watch me. But first, follow me!”
She took Jenna’s hand and moved toward the doors that opened into the beautiful marble foyer. She did some quick reconnaissance and spotted Logan striding back outside to get another load of chairs.
“Hurry upstairs now! Before he sees you!”
“Ay, ay, Captain Caitey!” Jenna saluted, then climbed the stairs as fast as she could.
After her bedroom door shut, Caitey waited to see Marcus come back inside the house from the rear gardens. Only Logan returned with the last couple of black chairs. He took a towel and wiped them down, then finished arranging them in rows.
“Where’s Marcus?” she asked with an innocent tone. “Wasn’t he helping you just now?”
“Yeah, of course. He, um, had to take off for a while,” Logan said vaguely. “But the chairs look good here in the drawing room. We’ll have Reginald build a roaring fire, and it’ll be nice and warm. Now, I’ll set up the arbor for the ceremony—right after I bring a load of firewood inside.”
“Well . . .” Caitey drawled slowly, wondering where in the world Marcus would have gone. The man was an enigma. A phantom at times.
“Yeah?” Logan said, turningtoward her with a smile.
“Oh, um,” Caitey promptly said. “I’m just rethinking the arbor. It will look so plain and empty without the flowers that were supposed to be here.”
“Maybe my mother has some garland and ribbons from her stash of Christmas decorations.”
Caitey gave him a wan smile with a brief nod. Jenna did not want a Christmas theme. She wanted autumn with splashes of color, fresh but elegant sprays of flowers, and ribbon and tulle in warm golds and browns.
While Logan returned to the back door to retrieve the aforementioned Christmas decorations, Caitey sighed. Somehow, she had to pull this thing off. She promised Jenna that it would be spectacular. There was nothing to do but haul all the boxes of wedding decorations she’d brought with her that were stored in Mrs. Hearst’s study and start decorating.
Aftershe ate a quick sandwich. Because her stomach was growling obnoxiously.
But mostly, she was left wondering and perplexed about where Marcus Stirling had gotten himself off to. She needed both him and Logan to help her hang and pin.
Maybe he was doing his twice daily rounds of security camera checks.
But with all the multiple feet of snow that had fallen,nobodywould be lurking about the Hearst mansion today.
But where did he watch the live feed to see if any potential property breaches were filmed on those cameras? Was hein some secret room in the house? In an office in one of the garages?
She was silly to think about that man. Or was her reckless heart betraying her senses? Every time she was near him, Caitey thought she might swoon. Like a character from a gothic romance.
Too many questions to ponder now. She had a wedding to get ready for—pronto!
CHAPTER 16
MARCUS
The gardens were shoveled and swept of snow, as were the front porches and open-air vestibule that graced the entrance of the Hearst mansion before the imposing double front doors.
He’d helped Logan dry the chairs, and they’d set them up for the ceremony. In the dining room, he could hear Caitey, Jenna, both mothers, and Mr. Hearst talking.
Jenna slipped past, bounding for her room. At least Logan hadn’t spotted her when he dropped a load of firewood into a box by the fireplace.
When Jenna spied Marcus, her eyes grew large and panicky. She motioned to Marcus to stay quiet, then put a hand to her throat and sliced across it in a simulated fatal gesture. She didn’t want him blurting out her name, so Logan spun around to see her.
Her soft footsteps turned into tiptoes while the bride disappeared to the second floor, and Marcus kept her secret.
Marcus desperately wanted a shower, but he refrained for now. He had two more errands to run. Secret errands. He left a note for Logan and hauled on his coat, hat, heavy gloves, and boots—thankful he’d packed a pair of long johns, too.
