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needing to take a breather after my crazy day.  I’d gotten two new requests for event planning this afternoon —a conference that was scheduled for early next year and a wedding in the fall.  Apparently one of the vendors I’d been working with for Morgan’s wedding had informed another client that I was a wedding planner.  Although I might have considered branching out if I wasn’t so busy, there was no way I could take on planning weddings on top of my already full schedule.
    The waitress set our drinks down, and I picked up my margarita, taking a long sip.
    “Delicious,” Morgan said with a grin, taking a sip of her own rum and coke .   “I needed something to take the edge off.”
    “Wedding day jitters?” I teased.
    “More like wedding week jitters at this point,” she said with a laugh.  “I’m just waiting for something to go wrong.  Thank God the snowstorm was this past weekend.  Can you imagine if my own relatives hadn’t been able to fly in this week for the wedding?”
    “That would have been a nightmare,” I agreed.  “But don’t worry; you don’t need to worry about a thing.  That’s why I’m getting paid the big bucks.”  Morgan laughed, knowing I wasn’t getting paid a thing for my honorary role as wedding planner.  I wouldn’t have had it any other way though.
    “So anyway,” I said, deciding to broach a new subject .  “ What made you tell Julia about Ryan? ”
    “ Oh, i t just came up,” Morgan said with a shrug.
    I gave her a look.  “There ’ s no way it just came up .  What, my assistant just happened to ask if I met anyone over the weekend?”
    “Okay, okay.  Maybe it didn’t just come up.  But I was talking to Julia about the wedding and how you ended up missing the bachelorette party.  She sounded bummed that you couldn’t make it after all the hard work you’d put in planning it, so I just said something about how I didn’t think you were too lonely during your time in San Francisco.  I’m sorry,” she added, once again meeting my gaze.
    “It’s fine,” I said with a sigh.  “It’s not like I care that she knows.  I’m just having a tough time today.”
    “You really like him, huh?”
    “It doesn’t matter ,” I said, shaking my head.   “ He was just with me because he can never have the woman he really wants.”  I’d told Morgan the whole story yesterday about finding Ryan’s letter and realizing that our night together meant something different to Ryan than to me .   Sure I was attracted to him, but I’d thought we had an amazing connection and something that you didn’t find just anywhere.   He may have been attracted to me, too, but he was also secretly pining away for someone he could never have.   “Anyway, enough about me.   Are you getting excited ?  Five more days!”
    “I know ; I can hardly believe it.  It feels like we’ve been engaged forever, and now all of a sudden the wedding is here.  By this time next week I’ll be a Mrs.!”
    “And in Hawaii,” I added with a grin.  “I could really go for a vacation right about now.”
    “I hear California is nice this time of year,” she said casually.  If looks could kill, Morgan would never have stood a chance against my scorching gaze.
    “Or not,” she said with a giggle.   She glanced down at my empty glass.  “Come on; let’s have another drink.  Next round’s on me.”

Chapter 5
     
    Morgan’s dad finished his toast at the rehearsal dinner on Friday night, and I happily raised my wine glass with the others, congratulating the happy couple.  The rehearsal had gone off without a hitch, and the dinner was spectacular, with an amazing spread of appetizers, a main course of lobster and filet mignon, and a delicious assortment of bite-size desserts.  I’d help ed Morgan’s parents select the location for the dinner and was happy that everything had worked out as planned .   Morgan’s brother Chris leaned closer to me, giving me a big