When Wynter got out of the bathtub, she felt somewhat better. Her mom only wanted her to be happy, and she wanted to honor her mother's legacy by doing exactly that. After getting dressed, she finished organizing and packing up the photos she was keeping. She took them into the studio and reviewed her mother's works. She took pictures of all her mother's drafts and how the studio was before dividing everything into donations and keep-piles. She finally crashed around 2 am and was woken up the next morning around 8 am by pounding at the front door. Wynter groaned, climbing out of bed before hurriedly rushing to the door.
She checked the side window before opening the door for Aunt Amira and her best friend Samantha.
"Good morning niece!" Aunt Amira chirped, sweetly, and Wynter inwardly winced. She already knew when Amira referred to her as "niece", she needed something. "We bought coffee and donuts."
Unsolicited gifts were another indicator that she expected some reciprocation.
"Good morning Auntie. Mrs. Davidson. Thank you, you didn't have to come this way to bring breakfast." Wynter led them into the living room.
"Sure we did. I haven't seen you in days and you haven't been to town. I figured you needed food." Amira replied as they got comfortable on the couches before digging into the food.
"Mmhmm," Wynter responded, not mentioning all the food Jackson dropped off for her. She stirred cream into her coffee, waiting for her Aunt to get to what she wanted.
"Wynter dear, I was wondering if you had any plans for New Year's Eve?" Samantha asked.
"Yes, I'm going to your party at the lodge," Wynter answered. "Jackson is going with his family and invited me."
"Oh, that's fantastic!" Samantha beamed. "I've been trying to get younger generations to attend. The website is getting more visitors thanks to you- I was hoping maybe you could bring your camera, and take some photos so we can advertise better for next year. What do you think?" She explained.
Wynter nodded, recalling how Liberty called the ball for old people. "Of course, I can take pictures, but it may not be too late for this year. How did you advertise?"
"Well, anyone staying at the lodge gets tickets to the ball and we made up flyers and posted them at a few local businesses," Samantha told her.
"And word of mouth. Everyone knows about the party. It's been around as long as the Lodge." Amira added.
"We also did a theme this year and hired a live band to generate some excitement, but I'm afraid it's going to be the same crowd of people," Samantha confessed.
"Can I see the flyer?" Wynter asked. Samantha pulled it out of her purse while Wynter sipped her coffee. She tried her best to conceal her disapproval of the dated flyer, but Amira caught her.
"What's wrong with it?!?" Amira demanded.
"Nothing! It's a little old-fashioned, but I can work with it. Who manages the social media accounts?"
"My son-in-law Bryan. He oversees all the reviews and any notifications we need to send out." Samantha explained.
"Ok, I'm going to send him a new flier to post online. He needs to upload it to all the accounts. I can take photos, but I think a photo booth is great too if it's not too late to rent one. That way, guests can share photos in real-time and advertise for you" Wynter instructed her.
"I'll look into this. Thank you, Wynter. I've been doing things my way for so long, I didn't realize how much we can improve until you showed me." Samantha gushed.
"It's truly my pleasure." Wynter smiled.
Once they left, Wynter checked her phone as she had a text from Jackson.
Jackson: Good Morning, how are you feeling?
Wynter: I'm great. The food and the bath were exactly what I needed. Thank you again, Jackson.
Jackson: Glad to hear that. You still up for going shopping for the ball?
Wynter sighed, remembering Liberty's accusation that she obsesses over men and changed her plans for Jackson. She shook those thoughts out of her head, thinking about what would make her happy.
Wynter: Yes! My aunt recruited me to do some advertising for the ball, but I should be done in a couple of hours.
Jackson: Ok, I'll head over in a few hours
Wynter put her phone away and got to work on updating the flyer. Once it was done, she looked into the band that was performing. It was a cover band that was based out of Dallas and appeared to have regular gigs all over the South. One of the vocalists was a gorgeous young woman named Cashmere with a ton of followers. As Wynter examined her page, she quickly saw she was from Lucky and decided to reach out to her to see if she could post the updated flyer. Wynter laid it on thick, introducing herself as the photographer for the ball and complimenting her voice and style. She also asked her to support her hometown business by posting about the party at the Lodge. Cashmere responded back right away, asking if Wynter remembered her. Wynter went through her page again, looking for older pictures, but she didn't recall until the singer messaged her government name and a photo of them together as children. Lindsay was one of her best friends in Kindergarten. They were inseparable until Wynter moved to Houston. They made promises of keeping in touch, but Wynter eventually separated her life into two- life in Lucky and life in Houston. She kept in touch with her family in Lucky, but that was it.
They exchanged numbers and Lindsay called her right away. They chatted for an hour about their lives presently. Wynter was so happy to hear Lindsay was living her childhood dreams of being a pop star. The party band, as she called them, recently just started to tour outside of Texas and was getting gigs at bars and venues, not just weddings and private parties. Lindsay was shocked to hear Wynter was in Lucky, but was glad to hear she was still into photography even after getting a degree in graphic design. Wynter explained how photography and design were merging for her as she helped out the Lodge and her cousin with branding and advertising for her restaurant, hence why she was asking her to post the new flyers on her page. Lindsay said she would post it right after they got off the phone. She also told Wynter she was in the Dallas/Fort Worth area for a gig that night and invited her to come to the show. Wynter promised she would let her know if she could make it.
When they got off the phone, Wynter sent a group text to her cousins with the updated flyer for the ball.
Wynter: Hey cuzzos! I know y'all have plans, but Aunt Amira and Mrs. Davidson recruited me to help target younger guests for the New Year's Eve Gala. I don't know if y'all remember Lindsay, but she's a singer in the band that's performing at the ball. She invited me to a show in the city tonight. Let me know if y'all wanna go to either one.
Grace: I'll come to both! I'm sure I can talk Grandpa into giving the ranch hands tickets to the ball.
Valentina: I'm down, gotta find a dress though 🤔
Wynter: We can go shopping or you can look at some of my mom's dresses if you want. She has a Betsy Johnson dress I think you'll look amazing in.
Valentina: You don't want to wear it?
Wynter: I would love to, but I'm too short and I don't have time to get it tailored 🙃
Valentina: Ok, I'll be over in a bit
Wynter waited for Liberty to respond, but Liberty only reacted to the text with a thumbs-up emoji. Amira called to let her know Samantha did rent a photo booth. Wynter got to work designing a sign for the photo booth that instructed everyone to tag their photos with the Lodge's social media accounts.
When Val arrived at the cabin, they went into her mom's closet and examined the choices while critiquing 90's fashion.
"I kinda love this," Valentina said when Wynter showed her the Betsy Johnson velvet multi-colored dress.
Wynter grinned. "That was her prom dress. I have the picture."
Wynter quickly pulled the solo glam picture of her mom out of her "kept" pile.
"See?" Wynter showed her.
Valentina chuckled when she saw it. "That shawl is a lot, but your mom looks so good. She's so beautiful."
"You can skip the shawl, but you should wear your hair up and I have the jewelry she wore." Wynter offered.
"Are you sure?"
"Of course. Mama would have loved you wearing it. You're going to look beautiful in it." Wynter assured her, honestly. Her mother told her numerous times in her letters how happy she was she was so close to her cousins. She wanted her always to maintain that bond. Wynter thought the same, even if Liberty wasn't too happy with her at the moment.
She was searching for the jewelry in her room when there was a knocking at the door. Wynter knew it was probably Jackson as Valentina went to open the door. Wynter found the matching necklace and earrings before joining them in the living room.
"... There's an indoor go-kart and arcade. I'm sure your brother and his friends will like it there." Jackson was telling Valentina.
"What are y'all talking about?" Wynter asked, smiling at Jackson.
"Grandscape, where Lindsay's band is performing tonight. I'm going to see if Miguel and his friends want to tag along as a thank-you for the help at the restaurant. Jackson says the area is teenager friendly." Valentina informed her.
"Oh, so you know where the teenagers like to hang out?" Wynter teased him.
"I know where I like to hang out. My company has an office not far from Grandscape." Jackson elaborated.
Valentina smiled as Wynter handed her the jewelry set. "Thanks, Wynter. If Miguel wants to go, I'll meet y'all there."
"Y'all?" Wynter said, jokingly. "Who invited him?"
"I did. Apparently, there's a great Mexican food place that we have to try. I want Jackson there so I can tell him if he's wrong in person." Valentina smirked.
"Wow... Between the both of you, I really don't feel welcomed. I might pass." Jackson quipped.
Valentina and Wynter laughed before they hugged goodbye. After Valentina left, Wynter turned to Jackson. "You're coming. I know you can't say no to get-out-of-Lucky fun."
"True, I might just avoid y'all," Jackson stated before they left.
He drove her car instead of the truck to a shopping center in Frisco. There were plenty of stores and a mall in the area and it wasn't far from Grandscape where Lindsay's band was performing. Wynter had a great time shopping with Jackson. He was very much like her in that they both appreciated unique, high-quality items, no matter the price. They have both been called spoiled or high maintenance, but Jackson explained how he treated himself, so why not spoil himself? Wynter admitted that her dad's credit card and neglect fueled her expensive taste, but it was a ball and appropriate to splurge for the occasion. They tried on numerous pieces of clothing, formal and random items they both liked. Wynter loved the designer leather overalls he bought and Jackson encouraged her to buy a Chanel heel she found on sale that matched the vintage pearl brooch that Liberty got her for Christmas.
