In bloom, p.26
In Bloom, page 26
“I should have been in on all this,” Monica said with a smile.
“We got it done, darlin’ girl.” Dotty made it a three-way hug. “And we enjoyed every minute of it.”
Winnie joined in the embrace. “We loved doing this for our grandkids, and besides, y’all had to work through yesterday in order to get days off for your honeymoon in the Colorado mountains.”
“But we expect less skiing and more baby making while you’re up there.” Dotty patted her on the back.
“Nana, you’ve got to learn some patience.” Monica smiled.
“Honey, I’m eighty-six years old and staring eighty-seven right in the eyeballs. Patience is not in my basket of fruits of the spirit at this age,” Dotty said.
“Hmmph,” Winnie snorted. “When they were passing out patience to all the little baby girls that was born in the year we were, you told them, ‘I don’t want any of that crap. Just give me a double dose of sass.’ ”
“And it’s done me a lot more good than all that other stuff,” Dotty shot back at her, and tugged on Monica’s hand. “Now, let’s get on to the sanctuary for a quick peek, and then you’ve got to get dressed. You’re getting married in two hours, and Ginger swears it will take an hour of that to get your hair fixed so the veil will fit just right.”
“Oh, Mama,” Monica said as they made a slow walk down the center aisle. “This is my dream wedding. Fluffy white pew bows with red poinsettias, candles everywhere, and a Christmas tree instead of an arch.”
“I couldn’t have done it without these two.” Ginger waved to include Winnie and Dotty.
Tears dammed up in Monica’s eyes, but she refused to let them spill out. No way was she going to ruin her makeup. “All right, let’s go get dressed before I start crying.”
Monica’s white velvet dress, with its train that trailed over the floor, hung on a tall hook. Even looking at it, she couldn’t believe that her day had come. She and Tyler would spend their first night together as a married couple in a cabin in Colorado.
But there are more nights to a marriage than just the ones in a honeymoon, and I want to be married to Tyler, not just have a wedding, she thought.
“Okay, sweetheart,” Ginger said. “Sit down right here, and let’s get those rollers out of your hair while Winnie and Dotty get dressed.”
Monica sat down on a velvet stool in front of the vanity and watched her mother take the rollers out of her hair. “You’ve been doing this for as long as I can remember.”
“With the same pink curlers,” Ginger said, laughing, “just like the ones my mama used on my hair.”
Monica realized for the first time how much she and her Latina mother looked alike. Ginger was a little taller than her daughter, and her eyes were the color of Yoohoo chocolate drinks, whereas Monica’s were as dark as coal. But their skin tones were the same, and so was their facial structure. Monica hoped that, if she had a daughter, she would be blessed with thick black hair and blue eyes like Tyler’s.
Ten minutes before it was time to walk down the aisle, her father, Kent, stuck his head in the door. “Is everyone ready?” he asked. “They’re playing the music for your mother and Tyler’s mama to walk down the aisle together.”
“Almost,” Monica said. “Just a couple more finishing touches.” She brought out two tiaras that she had hidden in her duffle bag. “Nana and Winnie, you didn’t get the Mother’s Day crown at the center, but I want you to wear these today. They go with your pretty red dresses, and today I’m crowning you Grandmothers of the Year.” She nestled the tiaras down into their freshly styled hair. “They are to thank you both for agreeing to be my bridesmaids.”
“Now you’re going to make me cry.” Winnie grabbed a tissue and dabbed her eyes.
“Not me,” Dotty said. “I’m going to wear this thing with pride and then put it on the shelf in my living room. Gladys and Minnie ain’t got a thing on us. They might have Mother’s Day crowns, but our grandkids are getting married, and we’re going to get great-grands someday.”
Ginger kissed Kent on the cheek. “I remember our wedding day,” she said.
“Best day of my life. Then the next best day was when we had this gorgeous daughter,” Kent said.
“You got that right.” Ginger smiled at Monica and disappeared out into the hallway.
“Thank you for our crowns.” Dotty picked up her bouquet.
“Thank you for being you and for forgiving my grandson,” Winnie said as she straightened her back and adjusted her bouquet.
Monica blinked back tears as she took her father’s arm. “I can truthfully say that this is the best day of my life, too, Daddy, but I think there are more even better ones in store.”
“I can guarantee it,” Kent said.
When the two ushers opened the doors into the sanctuary, the church was packed. Monica locked eyes with Tyler, and everyone and everything else disappeared. He met her in front of the altar and took her hand in his.
“You are stunning,” he whispered.
“You clean up pretty good yourself,” she said, and the two of them turned to face the preacher.
“Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today . . .” The preacher began the ceremony. “Who gives this bride?”
“No one,” Kent answered, “but her family is willing to share her with Tyler, just as his family is willing to share him with ours.”
“Family,” Monica whispered as she handed off her bouquet to Dotty. “It’s a beautiful thing.”
“Yes, it is, and we are so lucky,” Tyler said.
Vows and rings were exchanged, and then the preacher pronounced them man and wife. “You may now kiss your bride, Tyler.”
Tyler bent her so far backward that her veil dragged on the floor behind her, and then he sealed the marriage with a true Hollywood kiss. When he brought her back to a standing position, he said, “I love you, Mrs. Magee.”
“I love you,” she told him, and they walked down the aisle as a married couple to the melody of “Love Can Build a Bridge.”
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Fern Michaels, In Bloom
