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Everything else, from music to entertainment, was included in the plans. Most of it was rough, mere suggestions awaiting my approval. Brian would make quick work of getting it all solidified and sorted out.
I handed the sheath of papers back to Brian. “Everything seems perfect to me. I just have one question.”
“Yes?” Brian pulled a pen off his shirt pocket and clicked it. He hovered the nib of the pen over the paper, preparing to write down notes on what I had to say. His efficiency impressed me, as it always did, making me glad once more that we worked together—that he worked for me was only how things looked on paper.
“How are we going to do the invitations?”
“I thought about that,” Brian told me, tapping his pen on my desk. “I think we started this too late to do any sort of giveaway. My solution is to throw aside the idea of proper invitations altogether. Let anyone in the public come if they want to.”
“Are you serious?” I gaped at him. “Anyone and everyone in the whole freaking city?”
“I know.” Brian grimaced. “It sounds like a lot at first. But hear me out. The more people come, the better chances you have of blending in and being just another guy. And so many people will already have other obligations, other parties to go to. The people you’re going to get will be the really curious ones, the ones who think they absolutely have a shot, who would rather try and spend time with you. And leaving the invitations open to the whole public means that someone can’t come along and try to rig the giveaway in their favor. And we won’t have to deal with fake copies.”
I rubbed my fingers through my beard. “When you put it like that, it almost makes sense.”
He smiled. “Does that mean you approve?”
“I can hardly believe it, but yes. That’s the plan we’re going with. What exactly are you going to be putting on the flyers?”
Brian flipped one of the papers over and started scribbling on the back. “We’ll have ‘Halloween Party’ up at the very top. And then ‘All Invited’ below that, in a bit of a smaller font. Details below that. Something like ‘Billionaire Carter Bryant will be hosting an open-to-the-public Halloween party from such-and-such time in the hopes of meeting his future wife.’ And then we’ll provide links to some social media pages we’re going to be setting up. We can also put ads in the paper if you like.”
I nodded. “Send it off to a copywriter and have them clean that line up. And mention the anonymity.”
“What if we don’t?”
“Huh?” I was confused.
“If we don’t mention you’re in disguise, no one will be trying to figure out if you’re this guy, or that guy over there by the punch bowl.” Brian’s eyes gleamed. “People who don’t see you will just assume the party is so big they haven’t run into you. Others will lie and claim they did see you and meet you. It’ll create this whole big confusing mess that you can solve later on, if and when you find the girl you’re looking for. It’ll be great.”
A slow grin formed on my lips. “Brian, you’re a mad genius. I love it. Make it happen.”
“Will do. Honestly, I’m looking forward to it, too.” Brian tucked his pen away and straightened his papers.
“Of course you are.”
“What I mean is, maybe I’ll meet someone there, too. I figure to hedge my bets, I’ll flaunt the goods.”
“Okay,” I said, holding up my hand. “You have to wearsomethingto the party. Being naked is not a costume.”
He laughed. “You’re no fun. But what I meant was, I’ll be going as Spider-Man.”
Against my will, I was forced to picture Brian in a skin-tight superhero suit. I shuddered and grimaced at him, feeling like I couldn’t quite meet his eyes. “Why Spider-Man?”
“Why not Spider-Man?”
I leaned back in my chair. “There are so many superheroes out there who wear tight, revealing costumes, and you’re going to pick the one who’s a teenage boy?”
Brian scrunched his nose and made a face. “Okay, when you put it like that, it’s awful. But how many superheroes actually have a stable girlfriend who knows what they’re up to and supports them?”
“I should have known that you would want a Mary Jane kind of girl. One who’s so obsessed they won’t see all your flaws.”
“Whether you approve or not, that’s who I’ll be going as. The benefits are that I’ll have a mask, so no one will know who I am, and I’ll have that whole movie kiss thing making me more appealing. Who doesn’t want to be kissed by Spider-Man?”
I lifted my hand.
“Besides you, who doesn’t want to be kissed by Spider-Man?”
I opened my mouth to give some answers, to name the few Spider-Man villains I knew. Brian cut me off with a scowl and a hurried question. “Who will you be going as? There’s not much time left to get a costume and all the good ones will be sold out.”