16. CHAPTER SIXTEEN

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

Ivy

3 DAYS BEFORE THE RED CARPET EVENT

I wake up and the house is too quiet—pitch black. When I pull an arm out from under the blanket, I can tell it's much colder than it should be.

With a gentle shake, I wake Holland up. "I think the power went out."

He sits up, rubbing his eyes, taking in the room. "I'll go turn on the generator. Be right back."

As soon as Holland is out of his spot, Slate pads over, but this time he's trying to get under the blanket, which isn't common. I pet him, feeling the tips of his cold ears.

Grabbing my phone, I see that it's a little after four in the morning. I open the weather app to see the same warnings and calls for large amounts of snow. The only thing that's changed is that it's currently happening.

When I look at the radar, playing the projection for the next twelve hours, it's just the entire screen covered in blue. I have to watch it more than once to ensure the radar is actually moving.

It's only a few minutes before Holland is coming back up the stairs. He flicks the light on quick, probably to check all is well with the generator.

"Well, I've never seen this much snow since I've lived here," he admits while crawling back into bed .

"Really?" A pit forms in my stomach. I'm just not in the mood for record breaking blizzards or anything. "Is there anything we should be doing?" I ask, while turning towards him.

Holland picks up the blanket, confused at Slate, before getting comfortable, putting his hand on my hip. "Besides sleeping? No. Nothing to do." I stare at him and I think he feels it when he says, "They will get a hold of me if they need anything at the lodge. Bea texted saying they lost power, but the generators kicked on automatically and everything is okay there."

I was hoping the lodge would still have power but I feel better knowing everything is okay.

The wind blows and rattles the windows. I turn on rain sounds on my phone—it's still too quiet. With Slate pressed against me, his steady breathing, and Holland's heavy arm, I'm able to drift back to sleep.

It feels like the sun is in our bedroom—that's how bright it is. I squint, trying to open my eyes, and all I see from the bed is white blowing by the windows.

I peel myself from the warm bed and walk over to a window. There's not much to see besides miles and miles of white. It's still snowing and the wind blows it as it falls, making it look like it's everywhere.

"How's it looking out there?" Holland asks, voice heavy with sleep. I look over to see him stretching. Even in the winter, he doesn't sleep with a shirt on. His muscles are always a good way to wake up.

"Very white. And cold. "

I fall back into the bed and reach for my phone. My weather app tells me that it's still snowing, shocker, and that you should basically stay where you are. It's not like anyone could see a road anyways. Looking at the forecast for the next few days, the snow will continue, but the winds should die down.

A notification, from the airline, pops onto my cell phone screen: your flight has been canceled.

"No!" I borderline scream. Holland jumps because he must have been drifting in and out of sleep. Slate also pops up.

"My flight's been canceled. Not even delayed, but all the way canceled." I stand up and immediately call the customer service number.

After sitting on hold for over an hour, frantically pacing the kitchen, it's final: I'm not making it back to New York tomorrow. The storm system is massive and is impacting almost the entire United States, in some way or another. Almost all of the flights are grounded for today and tomorrow. Actually, I don't think I'll be flying out for a few more days.

I'm going to miss the event.

I immediately FaceTime Stella, setting my phone up, using a full cup of coffee.

"Ivy, what a surprise. How are you?!" she says while propping her phone up in her office.

Before I can say anything, I burst into tears. Stella, like the sweet person she is, let's me cry for a few seconds and doesn't say anything .

I press the heels of my hands in my eyes, before trying to wipe the tears away. "I'm snowed in and there are no flights, and I'm not going to be able to get back to New York," I try to take a breath so I can keep going. "Like, they won't even let me schedule a return flight at this time. I have all these things—" I pick up my notebook showing the ‘day of to-do' list.

"Ivy. Try and take a breath," Stella says.

I try but it just results in more crying.

"First, are you safe?"

"Yes. I'm safe. We have a generator." I look around the kitchen, not that I even know what I'm looking for.

"Is Holland with you?"

"Yes, he's upstairs."

"Okay, that's good. We're getting snow right now, but it's minimal. Looks like we'll get your storm in a few days, but luckily, that will be after the event." She offers me a smile.

"There were all these things I was going to do when I got back or before the event started. What do we do about them now?" I know I sound like I'm whining but I really need Stella to tell me what to do.

"Well, let's be honest, some of them may not get done, but that's okay. But, I'm sure we can find someone to help out. Do you have anyone in mind? Is there anyone who is up to speed?"

And then it turns on, a beautiful lightbulb. Vivian. She knows almost everything about this event. No idea if Stella will let this fly or not.

"Yes, but they don't work at Sparks," I test the waters.

"I mean, if they're willing to help and they know what's going on, I'll pay them under the table." Stella laughs, her voice higher, excited that we may have a possible solution.

"I have to call her first. Can I get back to you? "

"Absolutely." She claps her hands together, and then puts her hands on her desk, getting closer to the phone. "Ivy, you can't control the weather, this isn't one of your superhero movies. Don't beat yourself up."

I laugh at the superhero comment. She knows I love Spider-Man.

"I'm sad we won't get to experience this together. I know you have poured your heart into this and it's going to be amazing. We'll take lots of pictures," Stella says.

The tears come again and I put my head down, for just a second.

"Thank you, Stella," I try to get the words out but they sound jumbled with the tears. I end the video call and put my head back down on the kitchen table. The tightness in my chest doesn't let up but as soon as I can keep it together, I FaceTime Viv.

Viv answers with a, "What's wrong? Why are you crying like that?"

"I'm snowed in. There are no flights. I'm going to miss the event but I need your help with the last minute tasks. Stella said she'll pay you, if you're able to help." Tears run down my face as I look at Viv, who has her brows furrowed and face almost too close to the camera.

"Yes. Of course. I'm working at the bakery for a few hours today but I'll be free tonight, and all day tomorrow for the event." Another wave of disappointment hits me when I remember how we were going together. I gave her my plus one ticket since Holland wasn't going to make the trip.

"Ivy, I'm sorry. I know this is killing you," she says in a gentle voice that makes my heart ache for her, my best friend.

"Thanks. I know. It sucks but the best thing I can do is make sure everything goes off, perfectly, and hopefully we raise a ton of money for the charities."

"Send me your list, with notes, and I'll call you if I have any questions, okay? "

I nod in agreement, reaching for my laptop.

Being productive, or getting something done, always makes me feel better. I send Viv the list of tasks needing to be completed, as well as contact information for the vendors she'll be working with. Just to be safe, I forward her all of the emails regarding any of the tasks, in case she wants any context.

As I'm hitting send, Holland comes down the stairs, freshly showered. He stands behind me, and rubs my shoulders for a few seconds before putting a kiss on the top of my head.

"Is there anything I can do to help?" he leans down and says close to my ear. I lean back into his touch.

"Make me breakfast?" I suggest.

The panic from the last few hours is still running through my veins but it's not as loud. There's really nothing else I can do, besides support Vivian from afar. I know she'll get a hold of me if she needs anything.

"I can do that. Might be able to do one better. How do you feel about a mimosa bar this morning?" A sweet smirk pulls at his lips. "I always keep a couple bottles of champagne hidden away, for days like this." He opens a cabinet, pulling out a frying pan.

I bet it's because he knows I love champagne. This makes me want to cry even more, but I do my best to not.

"Days like this, huh?" I joke.

"I mean, any day with you is worth having champagne." He winks at me, and it's hard not to giggle. Holland's cheeks blush and I love him for it.

"Let's do it," I say.

And if I can't have champagne at the event, better have some while I'm snowed in with Holland. It only seems fair.