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“We’d better get going. It’s past nine. We still have to get there and change before Jake and Rachel’s ceremony. Then ours comes right after. If we miss their wedding, we can pretty much count on Rachel never planning another wedding for us again.”
He packs up the telescope and I fold up the blanket. He slings the telescope case over his shoulder and grabs t
he blanket while I sling the guitar strap over my shoulder and pretend to play as we walk back to the car.
“You don’t remember how to play anything I taught you?”
He grabs my arm and pulls me sideways so I don’t step into a craggily bush, since I’m too busy looking at the frets, trying to position my fingers.
“I don’t know. I’m pretty sure I could play ‘I Will Follow You Into the Dark’ if you gave me a refresher course.”
Once my fingers are positioned in what I think may be the correct placement, I brush my fingers over the strings and the sound that fills the cold desert air sounds nothing like a real song.
Chris shakes his head in dismay. “That’s shameful.”
“Whatever. Where is the wedding?”
“It’s not far from here.”
When we reach the SUV, Chris throws the guitar, telescope, and blanket into the trunk and the driver sets off back toward the highway. Chris pulls a bit of brush from my hair and attempts to smooth down the wildness. I brush a bit of dirt off his cheek and he attempts to bite my hand.
Finally, the car begins to slow and my stomach drops as I see, in the middle of the desert, a collection of white tents illuminated from within with golden light. A makeshift parking lot has been cordoned off to the right where at least thirty cars are parked. Lighted pathways intersect from the parking lot and between the tents. On the far left, there appears to be a reception area enclosed with white linen and the top open to the stars.
“You did this?” I whisper.
“Rachel and I did this, with some help from Senia and my mom.”
“Senia knew!”
“Well, there’s no one, besides me, who knows you better. Leaving the reception area open was her idea, but I picked out your dress.”
I look at him, my eyes wide, unable to contain my surprise. “You picked my dress.”
“Don’t look so scared. I picked it from a selection of dresses that Rachel gave me.”
“I’m only kidding,” I say, punching him in the arm. “I know you wouldn’t pick anything bad.”
He rolls his eyes then instructs the driver to take us around the reception tent and toward a couple of tents where the silhouettes of people scurrying about inside look like agitated ghosts. We get out of the car and Chris leads me to the entrance of the nearest tent, but he doesn’t go inside. He stands just outside with his back to the entrance.
“Mom, are you in there?”
Two high-pitched squeals erupt through the glowing fabric, followed by the sound of frantic footsteps. Senia emerges from the tent first and she’s wearing a beautiful black dress that’s cut just above the knee to show off her long legs. The sleeves are made of a thin, slightly transparent material that covers her entire arm. I’m assuming that’s because it’s freezing out here, but she still looks stunning.
Senia grabs my arm. “Come on, we have to get you ready. Go away!” she shouts at Chris.
Chris reaches for my other hand before I step inside the tent. “See you later, babe.”
He kisses my hand and I sigh as Senia yanks me into the tent and around a wall of folding partitions that I suppose are meant to keep people outside from seeing the silhouettes of our naked bodies.
“There’s my girl,” Jackie says as soon as she sees me.
She gives me a loud kiss on the cheek and I don’t bother wiping off the lipstick because I know Senia is going to make me look perfect before I go out there tonight.
I look past Jackie and Rachel is standing in the corner of the boxed off changing area in front of a full-length mirror.
“Rachel,” I whisper, stunned by the sight of her. “You look beautiful.”
She turns around to face me and she’s smiling. “Do you really like it?”
The dress looks vintage with a lacy bodice and heart-shaped neckline. The skirt reaches down to her feet and is made of layers of creamy, almost transparent silk. Her ivory skin and red lips combined with her dark curls make her a picture perfect bride from a long forgotten era.
“I love it.” I try not to show the disappointment in my face as I think to myself that there is no way my dress will be that pretty.
“Oh, just wait until you see your dress, honey,” Jackie gushes.
“Yeah, your dress is way prettier,” Rachel says. “You’re going to flip when you see it.”
“Thank you for helping Chris with everything. I don’t know how I’m going to repay you. I hardly helped at all with your wedding.”
“Well, there’s not much you could have helped with, without figuring out what we were up to. And you don’t have to repay me, but if you must, you can always name your first born after me.”
It dawns on me that Chris has been asking me not to tell anyone about the pregnancy until after the wedding so I don’t ruin Rachel’s big day, but this is both my and Rachel’s wedding days. Why would he tell me to keep it a secret? I shake my head because I have a feeling Chris has yet another surprise planned for tonight.
“Come on. You need to get dressed,” Senia says, pulling me toward the other corner of the dressing area.
A dress covered in multiple layers of plastic hangs on a hook next to another full-length mirror. Senia and Jackie begin peeling off the layers of plastic until they unveil what can only be described as the most beautiful wedding dress I have ever seen.
The fitted bodice has a straight neckline that curves down to the waistline. Layers of silky chiffon gather at the waist then tumble quietly to the floor, looking almost dreamlike in their softness. The entire bodice is covered in a delicate lacy pattern, but it’s not actually lace. When I run my fingers over the bodice, it feels smooth and cool under my fingertips.
“Do you like it?” Rachel asks nervously.
“I love it.”
“All right. You make her look beautiful and I’m going to go see if the wedding planner needs anything,” Jackie says as she steps out of the changing area.
After I change into my dress, Senia drapes a smock over me so she can do my hair and makeup. She smiles as she works quietly.
“Wow…. This is it. I’m getting married to Chris.”
“Are you having second thoughts?” Senia says, cocking an eyebrow as she shades in my eyebrows.
I laugh at this. “What a cliché? Of course, I’m not having second thoughts, but I’m definitely having a moment. This feels surreal. Just six months ago I was… Well, I was convinced that Chris and I were over, and so was my life.”
Rachel grabs my shoulders as she stands behind me so I can see her in the mirror. “Sometimes you don’t know how much you love someone until you lose them. Jake and I broke up for a couple of months while you and Chris were broken up.”
“You didn’t tell me that.”
“Well, it’s not something I like to talk about. But he was on tour with Chris. Tristan was still being an ass and refusing to talk to them. And… I know Jake would never cheat on me, but I had never been away from him for longer than a couple of weeks. It drove me a little crazy and I broke up with him.” She sighs as she stares off into the distance at whatever memory she’s recalling. “He texted me every single day and sent me a postcard from every city they went to. He talked about Chris in some of those texts and, man, he was not doing well after you changed your number.”
I grit my teeth together to keep my eyes from tearing up. I don’t know why Rachel feels the need to tell me this right before the wedding. I guess it’s just her need to always be honest.
Senia winks at me as she begins dusting a fine translucent powder all over my face and neckline. “This is to make your skin ‘glow.’ Not that you need it.”
Finally, she applies my lipstick in a sheer nude color, just a shade darker than my lips. I rise carefully from the stool and scoot over a few feet to stand in front of the full-length mirror. In the reflection, I see the moment Jackie walks in and her eyes lock on my face. I turn around and she presses her lips together, but this does nothing to stop the tears.
&
nbsp; “See you later, Mrs. Knight,” Senia whispers to me before she and Rachel make a hasty exit.
Jackie tilts her head as she looks at me. “Could you be any more beautiful?”
“You’re not allowed to make me cry. I just had my makeup done.”
“I don’t want to make you cry. I just want to look at you.” She walks around to examine me from all angles with a wistful expression. “I need you to promise me something.” She grabs both my hands and looks me in the eye. “When you go out there and promise to love Chris for the rest of your life, look him in the eye. He is no longer mine, so please take care of him.”
“I will.”
“I know.”
She blows me a kiss so she doesn’t mess up my makeup then she leaves me alone in the tent with no idea when I’m supposed to make my big entrance. I turn back to the mirror to make sure everything is in place and my heart jumps when I see Chris.
Chapter Thirty-Seven
Chris
“Wow,” I whisper breathlessly as I attempt to take in the sight of her, but I don’t think beauty this exquisite can ever be fully appreciated. “If your beauty were a song, you’d sell out a million stadiums.”
The left side of her mouth curls up in a bashful half-smile as she looks at the floor. I walk slowly toward her so I can take in every inch of her. Her face is serious now as she watches me come closer.
“You look incredible,” she says. “I love the dark gray shirt with the black suit and tie. I hate tuxedos.”
“Don’t forget my makeup. I think Senia did a pretty good job.” She smiles then suddenly her lips quivers as if she’s going to cry. “Are you okay?”
She snatches a tissue off the vanity and dabs her eyes to catch the tears before they fall. “I’m just happy. And…. I wish Abigail were here with us.”
I want to take her in my arms and tell her I wished the same thing about twenty minutes ago, but I don’t want to upset her even more or ruin her dress. We’ll have plenty of time to talk about Abigail over the next seventy years, or until she turns eighteen and decides to meet us after she gets all the pictures we’ll be sending the Jensens. Right now, I need to give her the one thing I know will get her out from under this dark cloud of grief.
“Claire, when I first met Abby in the hospital, I sang to her. I sang a lullaby as she lay sleeping under the heavy sedation.” I grab another tissue for her and continue. “She never so much as twitched when I sang her the lullaby, but
