“What is it? What kind of emergency?” Ella asked, trying carefully to sound neutral.
“I’ll tell you when you get here. Just come quickly!” Nadia screamed into the phone and hung up.
Ella looked down at the phone in her hand, unsure what to do. She had promised herself she wouldn’t get involved in weddings anymore, especially loveless ones. But she had also told Karim and Nadia that they could call her if they needed help with the wedding planner she had referred them to. And now, here it was, the day of the wedding…
Ella let her mind conjure up images of a furious Nadia and an absent Karim as she hailed a cab and rode to the Plaza. She ran through the front doors, waving to the concierge as she made her way back to the Grand Ballroom. She peered through the open doors and saw that a huge crowd of guests had already arrived and they were milling about enjoying the open bar and appetizers. Ella moved past the ballroom and made her way to another set of doors that led to the bridal preparation suite.
She opened the door and was immediately surrounded by young Middle Eastern women in bridesmaids’ gowns. She wove her way through them until she got to the back room. There she saw Nadia, already in her wedding dress, her hair pulled tightly back and adorned with a tiara encrusted with at least a million dollars' worth of diamonds. Ella blinked at Nadia as she took in how beautiful she looked.
“Wow,” she said, as she stood there taking in the sight. “You look—“
Nadia opened her mouth and all her beauty faded. “I know how I look!” She spat the words at Ella. “But these flowers,” Nadia pointed to the bouquets lined up on the counter.
“These are anything but beautiful! I asked for peach. Remember? I ordered peach to complement the bridesmaids' dresses!” Nadia glared at Ella.
Ella held her hands up in defense. “Hold on, Nadia. I got you peach, but I'm not the person who confirmed these flowers. I only confirmed the table arrangements. Your new wedding planner—“
Nadia cut her off again. “New wedding planner?! You mean Sophia? The incompetent disaster that you pawned off on us?! She's useless!”
Ella sighed as the bridesmaids quieted down and began circling around to hear what all the commotion was all about.
“These are salmon, Ella! They are not peach! I need peach flowers! Get me peach flowers!” Nadia yelled like a spoiled child.
Ella looked at the flowers, checked her watch and then looked at Nadia. She had so many other things to do today, but she felt obligated to make this right. She was responsible for finding them the other wedding planner; she was responsible for making sure her jobs were completed professionally. And as much as she didn’t want to admit it, she was responsible for bailing on them in the first place. Ella didn’t like Nadia and she certainly didn’t like her tone, but she had dealt with worse in her time as a wedding planner.
She let out a long breath and promised herself this would be it. She would see this to the end and then never have to deal with brides like Nadia again.
“Fine,” she said as she walked over and picked up the flowers.
Nadia smiled smugly and turned to face the women waiting with make-up brushes. “Now finish,” she said, snapping her fingers at the women. They ran over and began applying make-up as Ella grabbed the bouquets and walked to another dressing area in the suite.
She called the housekeeping department and asked them to bring a few items up for her. A few minutes later, she had lotion, talcum powder and hand towels. She poured a small amount of lotion into her hands and rubbed them together, then ran her fingers over each petal of the flowers, getting them slightly moist. Next, she held each bouquet out over the counter and sprinkled the tiniest trace of talcum powder over the sticky petals, watching as the flowers turned from salmon to a light orange. She took the bouquet and held it upside down, tapping it gently to release the loose powder so that none of it would get on the girls’ dresses.
She repeated this process with each bouquet and when she was done, she stood back and surveyed her work. It was an old trick Ella had learned early on, but it worked every time. She grabbed up the bouquets and walked back into the bridal suite.
“Oh, they’re perfect,” Nadia said, smiling down at the peach bouquets. “Now, go check on the girls.”
Apparently, Nadia was under the assumption that Ella was back in the picture. Ella just shook her head and left the bridezilla to her handlers. She walked out of the suite and located the woman she had sentenced to being Nadia’s new wedding planner. She found her in the corner by the guest book, her eyes rimmed with red.