Page 65 of That Wedding (That Boy 2)
Amy is getting the photographer all set up. After this, we're going to take pictures at our fountain and a few other places around the Plaza, and then we'll come back and do more photos with the wedding party.
Amy says, "Okay, we're ready."
I glide through the door. There is something about this wedding dress. I've never felt so beautiful, or so graceful, or even anything so close to perfect in my life.
I pause at the top of the stairs. Phillip turns around to face me. I've been so focused on how I would look for him, I hadn't thought about what he'd look like.
Oh. my. gosh.
He looks perfect.
Seriously.
He looks so incredibly handsome. His freshly shaven face, his perfectly styled hair, his big brown eyes, and that gorgeous smile. His black tuxedo drapes exquisitely across his tall, muscular frame. I love the way his shoulders are broad and then taper down to his lean waist. Phillip is perfect all the way down to his custom black Nikes with their purple swoosh.
I'm looking at my dream. My prince.
Our eyes meet. He looks at me so adoringly, and I can't believe I ever doubted this. All the worrying I did. All the should I marry hims. All the will we work outs. All the tears.
They all come down to this very moment.
This moment when I know I'm exactly where I belong.
He holds my eyes the whole time I'm slowing descending the staircase. When I'm about to the middle, he starts walking up toward me. Like he can't help it, like he can't wait any longer to touch me.
Three stairs from the bottom, he touches my face and says, "You look like my dream come true."
I get tears in my eyes because that's exactly how I hoped I'd look. He continues. "You look amazing, gorgeous, beautiful. I don't even have the right words."
"Those sound like pretty good words to me. So do you like the dress?" I ask as he leads me down the final three stairs.
"I love the dress. My mom cut out all those mermaid dresses. I really thought that's what you were getting. This is so much better." He grins and tilts his head at me. "You kinda look like a princess."
I grab the skirt of my dress and twirl it a bit. "I know. I think that's why I loved this dress so much. But even if I would've got the dress all wrong, I know I did one thing right."
"What's that? Your shoes?"
"No, silly. You. I can't believe I'm marrying you today. You're everything I've ever wanted and more. And you're looking pretty damn fine yourself. I even like the tennis shoes."
He holds his pant leg up, so I can see them better. "I love the shoes. Everyone loves the shoes. So turn around. Let me see this dress."
I do a slow spin. He looks me up and down and tilts his head. "I think you're missing something."
I look down at myself. "I don't think I'm missing anything."
"Yeah, you are. Let's see, do you have something old?"
"Yeah, on my bouquet." I show him the fabric.
"How bout something new?"
"Pretty much everything is new."
He scrunches up his nose at me, like he's evaluating me. "Something borrowed?"
I hold out my wrist. "Your mom let me borrow the bracelet both she and her mother wore at their weddings. It was her grandma's."
"I don't see anything blue."
"You don't get to see what's blue until later," I smirk.
He gives me the kind of sexy grin that makes me want to drag him up to my room.
"What about something from the groom?"
"Um, I'm wearing my engagement ring." I hold my right hand up and show him.
"No, that doesn't count." He pulls a little wrapped box from behind his back and holds it in his palm in front of me.
"Phillip, you already bought my wedding band. You didn't need to get me anything else."
"Oh, so you don't want it?" He snatches the box away from me.
I put my hands on the sides of his waist and pull my body close to his. "Oh, I want it."
"You're bad. Be good and open this."
He puts the box back out in front of me. I gently untie the ribbon, pull the small velvet jewelry box out of it, and open the lid.
Inside is a breathtaking pear-shaped diamond pendant. The larger center stone is surrounded by different sized smaller diamonds set in platinum. It's funky, yet classic.
"Phillip, it's beautiful! And it's pear-shaped just like my mom's ring."
"It is your mom's ring. I took the diamonds out of your parents' wedding rings and had them made into this."
"My parents' rings?" It feels like all the air just got sucked out of the room. I clutch my arm to my stomach like I just got punched, cover my mouth with my hand, and start to cry. I can't pry my eyes away from it. Their diamonds are together now, and they look so happy.
Phillip looks worried. "Oh, Princess, I'm sorry. I thought, well, you said it was sad they just sit there in your jewelry box. I wanted you to have them with you. I saved the settings. I didn't ruin them. We can put them back. I can fix it."
I poke my fingers into the corners of my eyes in an attempt to stop the tears from ruining my makeup.
I can't speak. I can't mutter out words. My heart feels like it's in my throat.
"It's beautiful," is all I manage to say again.
I lean my head back and fan my face, trying to stop the tears. Phillip leans in and kisses my cheek which makes me smile.
I reach out and touch his face. "Phillip, I'm so touched. I adore it. I'm trying really hard not to cry here, but...." I lose the tear battle. Phillip pulls a hankie out of his pocket and hands it to me. I dab my eyes with it. Then I look at it and laugh. "Your hankie has our wedding monogram on it!"
"Amy seriously thinks of everything."
We both laugh.
I clutch my chest. "This necklace, I never would've thought of doing something like this. Thank you. And to get to wear their wedding diamonds, like today, on my wedding day, it's amazing. You're amazing. I think I'm the luckiest girl in the world."
"I thought it was the universe," he teases.
I laugh and dab away the rest of the tears while he puts the necklace on me.
We went all over the Plaza with the photographer and took a bunch of great photos in front of all the fountains and the cool old buildings. We're in the limo heading back to the hotel. "Hey, we just passed the hotel," I say.
"Amy and I have a little surprise," Phillip says. "We thought it might make for some cool photos."
The driver pulls up to a park. Phillip pulls me out of the limo and leads me down a snowy path. We round the corner, and I cover my mouth. "Oh my gosh, Phillip. Swings!"
And
not just any swings. Amy had these swings decorated. The chains have garlands running down them, and there are purple ribbons hanging from the snow covered trees. It's beautiful.
"Come on!" I grab Phillip's hand like I used to when we were little and drag him across the snow.
I can't wait to see these pictures. I even changed out of the purple Uggs I've been wearing out in the snow. The photographer took photos of Phillip pushing me on the swing, so that you could see the i do! I wrote on the bottom of my shoes. I'm pretty sure it will be my favorite picture ever.
It's almost time!!!
The girls just left to get lined up for the walk down the aisle. I'm getting my makeup touched up when Danny strolls in.
He always looks so handsome in a suit. "You look handsome, Danny."
"I had to come tell you how beautiful you look. Really, Jay, you look amazing. Hard to believe the raggedy little girl who punched me in the face could grow up to look like this."
He gives me a big hug and gets misty-eyed. "I love you."
My eyes tear up too. "I love you too."
The makeup artist says, "Don't cry. We just got your makeup all fixed."
Danny gives the makeup artist his dazzling grin, probably because he knows any girl will let him do anything he wants in hopes of seeing that grin just one more time. Then he says to her, "Mind if we have some privacy?"
The makeup artist flashes me an irritated look. Like it's my fault. She probably thinks I'm getting ready to have a pre-wedding romp with him. Or at least I know that's what she's fantasizing about. Only she'd be the bride.
Danny shuts the door, raises his eyebrows up and down at me, and gives me his Devil Danny grin.
"What? What'd you do?"
"Nothing." He points his thumb toward the door. "You know, she probably thinks we're having sex."
I giggle. "Well, you are the best man."
"Come on, baby, just one last time? He'll never know," he says loudly to the door. The makeup artist probably has her ear up to it.
He whispers in my ear. "Maybe you should make some appropriate noises, then we'll walk back out, and I'll be zipping up my pants."
I laugh and smack his shoulder. "You're so bad."
He laughs with me, but then his face gets serious. "So, I have something to give you." His voice gets that aw shucks sound to it. The sound that has drawn so many people to adore him. That slight southern twang he can't seem to get rid of. "I want you to have good luck today. Anyone else would laugh me out of the room if I gave them this, but I know you'll understand."
