Chapter 6

I had almost let her tears break down my defenses as she sobbed over the phone.

Then came the email attachment sent directly from Ivy's wedding planning account.

It wasn't an invitation to a wedding-dress fitting. It wasn't a mother-daughter dinner request.

It was a spreadsheet attached as a PDF titled Urgent Vendor Adjustment & Shortfall Summary.

Attached was a hasty note from Ivy: Mom, Sloane covered the primary venue reservation, but the vendors are charging massive extra fees for the garden setup, photography lighting, and catering logistics. Can you look over this list?

I opened the document.

That venue…