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“Well, I’ll get lunch, where do you want to go?” I asked. “I’d like a nice big salad.”
“Somewhere nicer than fast food,” Lila said. “We get burgers and dogs so much on the ranch.”
“Right, and at Disney, it’s sort of the same,” Bliss added.
There were a lot of food choices at the parks, but the kids never wanted to waste time eating, and the rest of us in our early twenties liked the rides, too. We had some fun days and Rory was taken on many rides by all of us taking turns going with her. Dylan and I had her most of the time, but there were times when Bliss, Lila and Lilly took her or when the grandparents took her. She was basically the star of the show. Everyone wanted to be with her.
“The dinners at the hotel were good, though,” Lilly put in.
“Well, wherever we decide, I’m paying, Remi!” Missy was adamant.
We decided on a healthy place, called Freshi, that wasn’t far from the hotel. I knew that Bliss and my cousins wanted to meet up with the boys at Universal and if they wanted to take Rory, I’d use the time to take a long bath and maybe a nap. The weeks of studying for exams had left me a bit run down. It was fun being here, but an afternoon off would be nice.
The restaurant was casual, but the fare was healthy and light, and quick, considering we needed a table for fourteen. When we were leaving and ready to pile into three cabs, my Aunt Kat put her arms around my shoulders. “I’m so proud of you, Remi. You’ve taken on so much for one so young and you still managed to graduate with honors.”
I smiled, but it wasn’t as well as I had hoped to do, but then I was a full-time student and a full-time mother. “I’m lucky. I had so much help. Bethy, Josie and Bill were close by and they were fantastic. And Dylan. If I didn’t have him, I wouldn’t have been able to do it all.”
She nodded; her short bob cut swishing around her face. “You and Dylan make an amazing team. We were always hoping you two would get together. I just wish we could have been at your wedding.”
“Me, too, but at the time the most important thing was to be a family so we could get Rory. We’ll have a wedding, but the most important thing is that we’re together.”
I glanced down at the thin white gold band on my left ring finger with the beautiful engagement ring that Rory and Dylan had picked out. It had small diamonds all around the band and a large round diamond in the center. It was so pretty. The style band of my engagement ring was the same style as the diamond bracelet Dylan had gotten for Rory, designed so he could add more links as she grew. When she was an adult, she’d have a tennis bracelet. He’d given it to her at the same time as he gave me the ring, because he told us we were both his girls. It was such a sweet gesture and it made me cry. He was so special, and I was elated that he was my husband.
“As long as I have him, the showy stuff doesn’t matter.”
“You always were so down to earth.”
“Bliss!” I called. “Take care of her!” My younger sister was carrying Rory and walking to another of the cabs with our cousins, Lily and Lila. She rolled her eyes. “I will! Jeesh!”
“Be good, Rory!”
“I will mommy! See you at the surprise!”
I was perplexed. “What surprise,” I wondered aloud.
My mother was in the cab with me, and my dad’s sister, Kat, and Dylan’s mom. Rory went in another cab with Bliss, Lila, Lilly. I figured Bliss would text Dylan, Mace or Josh and all of them would meet up at Universal.
I closed my eyes and leaned my head back and looped my arm with my mother’s. She kissed my forehead.
“Remi… what would you say if I told you that Dylan had arranged for you to get married at Cinderella’s castle, like we did?”
My mother’s voice permeated the haze of my relaxation. My eyes snapped open, and my head popped up. I blinked. “What?”
Missy, Kat, and my mom were all smiling. “It’s all been set up… but if you don’t want to, we can make other plans.”
My eyes welled with tears at his thoughtfulness. “But… how? I don’t have a dress.” I’d always imagined being in a beautiful dress and walking down the aisle toward the love of my life. Since I was a little girl, I always knew it would be Dylan. Or hoped it would be.
My mother’s eyes filled with tears, and she patted my hand. “I brought mine. When you were small you told me you wanted to wear it. It’s been cleaned and it’s ready for you.”
Tears started to fall, and I looked at my Aunt Kat, and Missy, who was in the front seat with the driver turned to look at the scene in the back seat. They were all bawling.
“Really?” My voice cracked.
They all nodded in unison. “So, coming down here with everyone was planned for this reason?”
“It was,” Aunt Kat confirmed, triumphantly.
“Dylan didn’t want to distract you from your finals, but he is so anxious to have a real wedding. And Rory is so excited,” Missy added.
