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Chapter Twenty-One
Josephine
From our suite, I stare out the bay of windows overlooking the patio below, decorated for the ceremony. Both sides of the party have had pictures done as we wait for the clock to strike three.
Our guests are already seated and excitedly talking with each other. The sun is out and it’s a beautiful autumn day—perfect for an outdoor wedding under heaven’s sky. Everything looks lovely and sophisticated…it’s magical.
A blessing from above came in the form of my florist getting some of her flowers in. She ran around and mixed in the real flowers with the fake arrangements I was forced to make. The extra flora adds to the overall elegant theme, making everything look lush and smell lovely.
Rich emerald, pale pink, hints of gold, and dovetail gray create the perfect pallet for the event.
The strings we hired from the CSU music department play a Mumford & Sons’ song—mixing my love for British punk and Maceo’s love for folk. Kind of like us in a funny way.
Jared comes to stand beside me and takes my hand. “You okay, Jo?”
I couldn’t hide my smile if I tried. “More than okay. I’m awesome.”
Jared runs his thumb under his eye and sniffs. “I’m happy for you, babe. You deserve all of this, including that man hung like a horse.”
I burst out laughing, wiping away a rogue tear on his cheek. “You’re still stuck on that, huh?”
“It will forever be burned into my mind,” he leans in and whispers. “Seriously, though, how does it fit?”
“Like a fucking glove,” I gloat.
“Lucky bitch,” he teases. “And speaking of bitch, here comes the Queen-B.”
“I heard that.” Simone saunters up to us in the mother-approved bridal gown. It hugs her hourglass curves, the emerald color making her gray eyes shine like silver coins.
“It’s not fair to look better than the bride on her wedding day,” I chide playfully.
“Whatever,” Simone says dismissively. “No one is going to even notice anyone but you today.”
“Yeah, and it fucking sucks,” Ebony gripes as she adjusts her boobs in her dress. No matter how much she tugs the neckline down, there’s simply not enough cleavage showing for her liking. Tony is going to be one happy guy, having her wrapped in yards of material to hide her assets.
Opal skips to my other side. “Oh, my goodness, Jo! You’re the most beautiful bride. Atlas is going to sprint up the aisle to fetch you himself.”
“Don’t joke,” I warn. “It’s a legit fear of mine. I can totally see him motioning for Tony to speed things along to the ‘I dos.’ The man has no patience.”
Opal giggles. “It’s only because he’s a man who knows what he wants, and it’s you.”
“Oh, Jo!” I turn and see my mom smiling with moisture in her eyes. “You look radiant.”
I raise my hand. “Nope. Stop. If you start crying, I’m going to start crying.”
“And if you and Jo start crying, I’m going to start crying too,” Opal says, even though she’s already shedding tears.
Simone starts sniffling and she steals Jared’s pocket square.
“Brat, that was mine,” he hisses. He runs to the nearest tissue box and starts handing them out to everyone. “Enough, ladies. Makeup is done, for crying out loud.”
I start laughing, unable to control my flooding emotions—feeling way too much to handle it appropriately.
Simone turns toward Maceo’s dresser. She takes a velvet box from the top and brings it over to me. “A little something old and new from your groom. He said you didn’t need anything blue, since there’s nothing as blue as your eyes. And he says he lent you his heart ‘till he sees you at the altar, meaning you don’t need anything borrowed.”
Everyone awes in unison.
A smile stretches across my face when I open the large velvet jewelry box. Nestled in the black velvet is a gold necklace with a single teardrop black diamond and two clear round diamonds bookending the bigger stone. A pair of gold earring showcasing black teardrop diamonds complements the set.
