"I could hold you in my arms, Ohhh, I could hold you forever..." -- Ray LaMontagne 'Hold You In My Arms'
21
- Six Months Later -
"You're driving to Austin to get Jake's present, right?" Emma asked me as we ran through another one of her many wedding check lists. The wedding was two weeks away, but she was acting as if it was tomorrow.
"Yes, Emma. I got this, ok?" I laughed and shook my head as I made a face at Justin from the kitchen. "In fact, its so easy a job, I just might let Justin do it, that way I can do a final fitting on my bridesmaid dress."
"No! No! Justin will not pick up the present, and I know for a fact you did your final fitting yesterday." I knew she knew this, but I was just trying to push her buttons.
"Here's an idea, Em..." Justin said as he strolled into the kitchen with an empty beer bottle. "Why don't you pick it up?"
"Because I am going to pay Mrs. Jones a visit to make sure she remembers she's still making my cake."
"And that's going to take longer than fifteen minutes?" He asked and we both gave him a look. Anyone that had ever met Mrs. Jones knew the two most important things about her within the first five minutes of meet her. Number one, she makes great cakes; And number two, she's slower than Christmas and scatterbrained. "Ok. Ok, I know. Stupid question. I'll just be back here in my own world. Call me if you need me."
"I will go now," I told her. "Justin! You're coming with me!"
"Why?" He yelled back from his seat.
"Because I hate driving to Austin alone... Its just boring."
"Ok. Call me if they don't have it in, because I will be giving them a piece of my mind."
"I'm sure you will, hun," I gave her a hug before grabbing my keys and Justin.
- - - -
"Have you talked to Ted lately?" Justin asked curiously as we merged onto the interstate.
"Yes I have," I told him. "He said he should be in around the middle of next week for the wedding."
Teddy and I had started our relationship a little on the slow side. He'd come to visit for a few days, and then either fly home to be with his family in New York or drive to his apartment in Austin. Teddy, Jake, and Justin had actually become good friends, once the awkwardness wore off.
"That's good." Justin nodded as he rubbed his hands on the tops of his legs.
"You nervous about something?" I asked.
"Huh? No. Why?"
"You do that when you're nervous... Or cold. But seeing as how its October and still seventy degrees outside... I'll choose nervous."
"It's nothing," he said.
"What is it?" He didn't want to tell me, I could see it in his face. I knew him too well. "Justin... What is it?"
"I met this girl." He told me.
"Oh. What's her name?" I was curious, because he deserved someone who could love him more than I ever could, even without Teddy in the picture.
"Tara," he told me. "She's new in town and her car was messed up and she brought it to our garage."
"I think I've seen her before," I said.
"I don't think so. She kind of keeps to herself since she doesn't know anybody."
"Doesn't she have like, a little brother or something?" I asked.
"No, its her son."
"Oh." I didn't know what to say.
"That's kind of why she moved here," he told me. "Apparently it was a pretty big deal because she was dating this guy for a long time before they did anything, and he told her he loved her and blah, blah, blah... He has nothing to do with Tyler."
"Tyler?"
"The kid."
"Oh, right." I said. I never thought that Justin would fall for a girl who already had a kid. He was great with them, though.
"He's totally into football," he laughed. "He's awesome."
"Its perfect for you," I smiled as I looked at him. "I'm glad you're happy."
"Thanks, Mads."
- - - -
"What's wrong now?" I yawned into my cell phone. It was midnight, and Emma was calling me for the hundredth time to tell me something else had gone wrong. First it was Mrs. Jones and the cake, then she couldn't find anyone to make her a cake on such short notice, then she found out that there was a very slim chance of rain that day, then the band quit, then the ring bearer (my nephew) broke his leg... There was no telling what was going to happen now.
"Its not the orange I wanted!" She began to sob. In just one week she had gone from frustrated to completely hysterical.
"Emma, calm down, ok?" I sighed as I turned my lamp on, hoping not to wake Teddy up. He rubbed his messy brown hair out of his face before rolling over to face the other way. "What do you mean its the wrong orange."
"The place mats were supposed to be yellow-orange, right?" It was rhetorical, I'd learned after a whole previous day of nothing but rhetorical questions directed at cake makers, invitation designers, and even myself. "Well, now they're burnt orange! And so are the napkins! What am I going to do with fifty burnt orange place mats and a thousand burnt orange napkins?!"
"Hey, hey! Calm down, ok? Thats the only place you were using that color, so its not going to be a big deal." I said. "First thing tomorrow morning, we'll play with it, ok? It's going to be ok."
Teddy sat up in bed and gave me the evil eye. "Look, I'm going to hang up now. Get some sleep." I turned my phone off, along with the lamp and laid back down.
"She's still nuts, huh?" Teddy laughed and I giggled and nodded.
He gave me a soft kiss on the lips before turning over. "Goodnight, love you."
"Love you." I smiled to myself before finally closing my eyes.
- - - -
After finally convincing Emma that her burnt orange place mats and napkins would look just fine with the fall weather and flower arrangements, Teddy and I had the house to ourselves.
"Hey you," he said as he wrapped his arms around me. "I haven't seen you much."
"I know, I'm sorry."
"Its ok. Your best friend is a slave driver when it comes to that wedding," he said and I laughed as I rested my head on his chest.
"I'm ready for it all to be over," I said as we started swaying there in the kitchen together. He was humming something that was so soothing I almost fell asleep right there.
"So after the wedding is over, I was wondering if maybe you would come to New York with me," he said and we stopped swaying. "I was hoping we could spend some time there. You've been working so much that I'm sure you could ask off. It would be nice."
I nodded and smiled. "Sure."
He kissed my forehead and we started swaying again to whatever it was he kept humming. It was beautiful whatever it was. And it just felt right standing there in his arms. I could stay like that forever.
- - - -
In my knee-length, dark teal dress, I ran barefoot from table to table, making sure each place was perfect for the reception afterward. The grass was still a bright shade of green, despite the time of year, and the sky was a beautiful blue, darkening as the sun moved farther and farther west. And Emma looked beautiful in her white lace dress. It was perfect. Everything was perfect.
I ran across the white gravel driveway, still barefoot, to the other side of the orchard, where the banquet hall stood, serving as plan b, just in case it started to rain, as well as everyone's dressing rooms.
"Are you ready?" I asked as I burst through the doors, slightly red faced.
"You are going to wash your feet first, right?" She asked as she looked at my feet. They were covered in grass clippings. She started laughing, which caused me and my sister both to start laughing as we stood there in the last few minutes just before the wedding.
We all stopped after we saw the flash of the photographer's camera as she captured the moment. "I better hurry and get all this off. You look beautiful, by the way."
"Thanks," she smiled as she turned to the mirror once more.
Even though it was Emma's day, I couldn't stop thinking about Teddy and our plans. This was the first big thing we had ever done together. I was flying (for the first time) to New York, where I was going to meet his parents. I couldn't help the nervous butterflies in my stomach every time I thought about it.
"You look like you need to dance," Teddy whispered in my ear. I had been sitting at our table for over an hour with a plate of half eaten wedding cake as I just watched everyone dancing and enjoying themselves in the night, lit by elegant little twinkle lights and candles.
"Do I have to put my shoes on?" I laughed as he shook his head and took my hand.
He kicked his shoes off and laughed, "Now we match."
"You've had too much wine."
"Maybe, but I'm sober enough to dance," he said as we walked to the spot where Emma and Jake were slow dancing around in circles to the music. Jake's back up band had finally agreed to fill in at the last minute, and they promised nothing but good love songs and dance music.
"Its about time you two got out here," Emma laughed.
"My feet are killing me," I laughed. "Plus I was admiring the newlyweds."
"Oh, well, as long as you were doing something worthwhile," we both laughed as we swayed with our men. "I think this next one will be the last song," she said. "Have fun in New York."
"Have fun in Hawaii," I told her and she smiled as the band announced they were playing the last song.
Just a few minutes after the last note, we all lined up along the gravel driveway, leading up to the car that would take them to the airport. Since it was dark outside, we all lit sparklers instead of throwing rice or blowing bubbles, which I thought looked pretty neat as they walked past almost every resident of Dillon, Texas. Emma turned and blew one last kiss before getting into the car and riding off to her honeymoon.
"You ready for our trip?" Teddy asked after we had gathered all of the gifts and cards addressed to Emma and Jake.
"Just as soon as I get out of this dress and into something a lot more comfortable," I laughed.
And before I knew it, I was sitting by the window on a flight to New York, in the most comfortable clothes I owned: Justin's Dillon Panthers football t-shirt from his freshman year, and a pair of soft sweat pants.
"Relax." Teddy laughed, as if he knew I wasn't as nervous about the flight as I was about meeting his parents. "They're going to love you."