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“I met him myself,” Caitey told her, smiling. “He even has a terrific Scottish accent. He’s been hanging out with the fathers for the last hour or two. Your groom picked him up at his house on a snowmobile and brought him down himself.”
“Seriously?” Jenna said, clapping a hand over her mouth. “Logan is amazing. He saved the day! A few hours ago, I thought we would have to postpone it all. But there’s only one thing that still worries me.”
“What’s that?” Caitey asked. “We canmake it happen!”
“Whereare we going to spend tonight? Our wedding night? We can’t get to our hotel!”
Mrs. Hearst and Aunt Vicki exchanged secret smiles.
“We consulted our genie bottle,” Aunt Vicki told her daughter, “And Isabella showed us aspecial guest suite on the third floor. While you showered and dressed, we were up there with Maggie preparing it for the newlyweds. You’ll have the entire floor to yourselves. And a privacy door to the stairs that lead up to it.”
Jenna’s mouth dropped open in shock, and her eyes filled with tears. “Everything is turning out perfect. Thank you, everyone, for pulling this off for me and Logan.”
“Isn’t it wonderful—” Caitey began.
Before she could finish her thought, the power in the mansion went out, and Jenna’s bedroom suite plunged into darkness.
CHAPTER 20
CAITEY
Caitey froze in place, the bedroom blacker than midnight. Jenna, Aunt Vicki, and Mrs. Hearst gasped in unison as if from the shock of sudden inky darkness.
In the next moment, she could see the faint outline of the window glass and a slow fringe of the winter moon creeping like molasses from the horizon. A few stars dotted the deep black sky.
She felt, rather than saw, Jenna crumple to the floor, her wedding gown spooling around her. “Unbelievable! The power went out! Why does this day keep getting worse?”
Outside the bedroom door, sudden footsteps pounded on the stairs—not fromupthe circular staircases but coming down from a higher floor overhead.
Maggie appeared with a glowing lantern in one hand. “Is everyone okay? Jenna, sweetheart! So sorry, love. On the happiest, most anticipated day of your life, too.”
“Where did you come from so fast?” Mrs. Hearst asked, glancing backward into the pitch-black hallway.
“I was up in the honeymoon suite, ma’am, putting the final touches to the room before the ceremony begins. What a pity about the power! But I already have a plan!”
“Candles!” Caitey burst out. “And lanterns! Oh, Jenna, you will have the most romantic wedding of the decade!”
“Oh, I agree!” Aunt Vicki said. “Thatisromantic.”
“But do we have enough candles and lanterns, Maggie?” Mrs. Hearst asked.
“Yes, ma’am! I always stock extra in the fall since we get a power outage or two during winter. I texted Gus, asking him to bring several boxes upstairs for the bedrooms, along with lighters and matches. And then we’ll go downstairs and place candles all over the drawing room, hallway, and dining room!”
Caitey hurried over to Jenna and embraced her, brushing away the day’s disappointment. Shehadto step in andbethe wedding planner! “It’s going to be so unique and lovely! A wedding you’ll never forget! Think of the stories you can tell your children!”
Her cousin stuck a hand on her hip. “Let’s not get ahead of ourselves, dear Caitey! I’m still trying to get through today! Gosh, I’ve had to rewire my brain’s expectations over and over again. But candleswillbe quite lovely, too,” sheadmitted. “Hey, Mom, can we sneak a peek at the honeymoon suite?”
“Of course, Maggie did a gorgeous job!” Aunt Vicki exclaimed. “But then we need to get downstairs forthe weddingbefore your groom and the fathers start wondering where we are.”
“True! And I’m too excited to wait any longer.”
Caitey followed her cousin up to the third floor of the mansion. There were only a couple of suites and a closed-up storage area that Jenna said led to an attic.
Jenna swung the doors wide open and halted at the entrance.
Caitey gaped, dropping her jaw. This room was the most dramatic in the entire house.
Candles of every size and color sat on antique tables and dressers. The carpet was soft and plush, and the roof pitched into a peak with chandeliers hanging from the center over a luxurious king-sized poster bed.
