Mywife.
I’m in a daze of euphoria as I sit beside my grandfather’s bed, staringinto space.
“Hi.” Pop’s voice comes out in a whisper, his gravelly tone getting softer and softer with the passing of each day.
“Hey.” I give him my undivided attention and hold his hand. “How are you feeling this morning?”
He opens his mouth but gives up saying anything, his strength depleted.
“Ralph had a rough night,” the nurse on duty explains as she reenters the bedroom with a refilled water bottle. “I just gave him his morphine, so hopefully, he’ll get some rest this morning.”
I know I don’t have much time before my grandfather dozes off. I lean closer to him and smile. I’m excited to tell him the news.
“I did it, Pop. I asked Madison to marry me.”
His eyebrows raise, and his lips turn into a half smile. “Atta boy.”
I lick my lips, my eyes filling with more happy tears. What is it about proposals and wedding planning that has me so emotional? I know that what I’m about to ask him might be impossible, but I decide to ask anyway. I asked Madison to marry me, didn’t I? And that seemed impossible too, but I did it.
“Will you be my best man?”
The nurse nearly spills the water as she jerks her head and looks at me with confusion. I ignore her and continue my explanation to Pop.
“I already talked it over with Madison. We want you to be a part of our wedding. We’ll do it right here in your bedroom. Tomorrow. Do you think you can hang on until then? So you can see us get married?” I hold my breath as a deluge of tears sluices down my cheeks into my beard.
He closes his eyes and sighs. There is no mistaking the happy smile on his face now.
“Yes,” he whispers. “I wouldn’t miss it… for the world.”
***
The subsequent twenty-four hours are a whirlwind of activity. Madison and I decided to marry at three o’clock the next day. We know time is not on our side, and we throw ourselves into planning a simple ceremony with only a few invited guests.
Come to find out, Jenny’s sister, Janie from the Tipsy Daisy, has been ordained and agreed to facilitate our bedroom wedding ceremony. The twins also insisted on catering a small spread for an intimate reception afterward, including celebratory champagne and a wedding cake—strawberry—in honor of Pop.
We quietly cleared a few pieces of antique furniture and medical supplies from his room and set up several folding chairswe borrowed from the Wild Daisy Inn. We moved the hospital bed that was brought in a few weeks earlier against the wall, opening up the space to make room for a small seating area with a better vantage point for Pop.
Standing in my grandfather’s closet, I look for his black suit. I’ve never owned a suit. When my Grandma Rosie died, I borrowed his black jacket for her funeral.
I know I should wear a black suit on my wedding day. It’s formal and what all the grooms wear, don’t they? But I’m confused as to why men wear them at funerals too. I suppose the bottom line is a suit makes a man look dapper, and it’s important to look your best on a special occasion, even when it’s sad. A wedding is definitely an important event, and I don’t want to blow it with what I’m wearing. I don’t think Madison would appreciate overalls and boots on our special day.
As I’m standing there drinking in the scent of cedar and my grandfather’s unmistakable musky cologne, I smile when I feel Madison’s arms wrap around my waist from behind.
“Did you find anything?” she whispers. Pop is sleeping steps away, and she keeps her voice low.
“I think so.” I bring her fingers up to my lips and kiss her skin. “I’ll have to wear my own black pants because I’m a lot taller than Pop. But these two jackets might work. I think I borrowed this one for Grandma Rosie’s funeral. What do you think?”
I turn around and show her the suit jackets I’d pulled from the hanging bar.
“Hmmm. I do like the black one. But will it be weird to wear it again on your wedding day after you wore it to your grandmother’s funeral?”
“No. It’s just a jacket.”
I slip it on over my shirt. She palms the lapels and looks up at me, her makeup-free face the most beautiful face I’ve ever laid eyes on.
“You look handsome. It suits you.”
“Thank you.”
