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“Mom, look.” Wyn pointed to the left, and Bessie had to lean to look across the SUV. The sky held the puffy clouds she’d been hoping and praying for. “Clouds.” Wyn smiled at her, and Bessie reached over and covered her daughter’s hand.
Because she was getting married at sunset, she’d hoped for clouds to hold all the pinks, violets, tangerines, and sapphires as the day ended.
“You’ll be okay next week while Oliver and I are gone?” Bessie reached up and wiped the corner of her eye, where a tiny teardrop had gathered.
“Yes,” Wyn said. “We’re going to pick the menu for the wedding.” She glanced over to Bessie. “Thank you for increasing the budget.”
“I hope you only get married once,” Bessie said, smiling at her daughter. “It’s not that much.”
It actually was a lot, but she’d discussed it with Oliver, and for a couple thousand more, Wyn and Douglas could offer a beef dish for their guests. Wyn didn’t have a lot of people on her invite-list either, but Douglas had grown up here on Hilton Head.
But their venue had cost almost nothing—Wyn wanted to be married in a church—and she and Douglas had decided to host the wedding luncheon in his parents’ backyard. They apparently lived in one of the wealthier neighborhoods here on the island, and they had room to host the hundred-guest limit both she and his parents had approved.
The radio warbled between them as Wyn finished the drive to the south side of the island, where the bridal room at The Oaks Overlook waited. Bessie got checked in and assigned a place to park. Two men accompanied her outside, and they started taking the coolers and trays of bread.
“It’ll all be set up?” Bessie asked, her nerves worrying at her like crazy. She wanted her wedding to count too. She wanted it to be as special as Joy’s, though she didn’t have a custom-made dress with pastel chalk on it.
She wanted it to be as spectacular as Lauren’s, though Bessie knew that was literally impossible. She wanted it to be as classy and sophisticated as Cass’s, which had run without a hitch. And she wanted it to be as joyful as Bea’s had been, with two families joining together to celebrate the love of their loved ones.
When the men had emptied the car, she collected her garment bag, her makeup kit, and her hat box and faced her daughter. “We’re in the Magnolia Bridal Suite.”
“Wow,” Wyn said with a grin. “A whole suite, huh?”
Bessie smiled at her and re-entered the building. She followed the signs to the Magnolia Bridal Suite, which sat at the very back of the building. There, she found a woman wearing a navy skirt suit and holding a clipboard waiting for her.
“You must be Bessie,” she said cheerfully. She had to be close to Bessie’s age, with a cute, shoulder-length haircut which curled up at the ends. She shone with sunlight as she shook Bessie’s hand. “I’m Linda. This whole room is yours, including all the changing rooms over here on the right.”
Linda led her around the suite, which had a minibar in the back next to the door that led outside. She pushed it open and said, “When you’re ready, you can go to the staging area right there under the tent. Then you walk down the aisle.”
Several people were setting up chairs for her wedding, with one tying on the yellow bows Bessie had requested, and two working on filling the altar with flowers.
Everything suddenly became real, and Bessie’s breath caught in her throat. She turned back to find Wyn hanging up their bags and Linda already heading over to the far wall. She made it through the rest of the tour—a bathroom and a button Bessie could push to summon Linda back to the Magnolia Bridal Suite should she have any questions or concerns.
She smiled as Linda left, and then she stood there for a moment, basking in the feelings running through her. She smiled, her mouth barely moving upward, but the gesture filling her whole body.
“Mom,” Wyn said. She arrived in front of her, concern on her face. “Why are you just standing there? Bea’s on the phone, and everyone needs to know where to go.”
Bessie sucked in a breath through her nose and took her phone. “Thanks, baby.” She put the device to her ear. “Hey, Bea.” Her emotions vibrated through her body. “It’s the Magnolia Bridal Suite.”
She walked away from her daughter. “It’s all the way at the back of the building, and Bea, it’s just gorgeous.” Her voice shook, along with her hands, and she pulled in another breath to try to steady herself.
“I can’t wait to see it,” Bea said. “We’re on the way down the hall. Sage forgot her toasters, so she’s a bit behind us, but otherwise, we’re good to go.”
Bessie nodded, though she was on the phone. “Thanks, Bea. See you in a minute.”
Sure enough, most of her friends arrived in the Magnolia Bridal Suite only a minute later, and all the hooks got filled with garment bags containing dresses, shoes, and pantyhose.
Bessie couldn’t stop the tears, and she gripped Cass tightly. “Thank you,” she said through a narrow throat. These women knew her, and Bessie didn’t have to explain her emotions. She simply moved over to Joy and hugged her tightly.
Lauren gripped her, and Bessie marveled at the baby bump between them. She put her hand there and smiled at Lauren. “I love this for you,” she whispered.
“You’re getting married today, Bessie.”
She smiled at Lauren, who smiled softly back at her. There was nothing quite like a baby to bring pure joy and softness to anyone, hardened as they may be.
Bea hugged her, and Bessie said, “Okay, I’ll hug Sage when she gets here, but I better start getting ready.” She found her makeup bag and went to sit at the counter that ran along the front wall, the one with lighted mirrors.
Her friends joined her, and Bessie listened to them talk and laugh as she painted on her eyeliner, eyeshadow, and lipstick. She didn’t want to become a completely different person, and she didn’t wear a lot of makeup to begin with.
