Page 88 of The Sweet Spot
“Really?” His good humor is contagious, and I can’t stop smiling.
He nods. “Yes, really.”
Tammy, the host at the podium, escorts us to the head of a very long table. The tables and chairs have been rearranged so that everyone is seated together. Granny is seated beside me, and Dawn is on her other side.
Servers bring out menus for everyone. They fill everyone’s water glass. Bottles of wine and champagne are passed around.
“Gabrielle, you’ve outdone yourself,” I tell her as she comes up to give me a hug. “The menu is amazing.”
There are four entrées to choose from, as well as multiple sides and salads. And the icing on the cake, as they say, is a three-tier wedding cake that was made by a caterer in Estes Park. The icing is ivory, and the cake is decorated with ivory and pink roses.
Dinner passes in a whirlwind, with lots of conversations floating around the table. It’s impossible to keep up with it all,so instead Chris and I eat holding hands and staring into each other’s eyes.
“So,” Maggie asks, interrupting our love fest. “Have you decided where you’re going for your honeymoon?”
“They’re going to Hawaii,” Granny says before she takes a sip of her champagne.
Maggie looks at me for confirmation.
I nod. “Our flight leaves in two days.”
Chris raises his champagne glass to me, and we toast. “To Hawaii!” he says.
“I told you so,” Granny says with a decisive nod.
* * *
Chris
As soon as everyone’s done eating, the DJ strikes up the music. A large section of the restaurant has been cleared out to make room for dancing. I escort Jennie to the center of the floor as our chosen song starts—Ordinaryby Alex Warren.
Every time I hear this song, I get choked up thinking about Jennie and what she means to me. I don’t care if it sounds sappy, but she’s everything to me. She always has been. I feel like my entire life has built up to this moment—when I can say to the world she’smine. She choseme.
After our dance ends, Jennie dances with Jack, and I dance with Granny.
“You take good care of my girl,” Rosie says. “You hear me?”
“Yes, ma’am,” I say with the conviction of a man who’s finally found his place in the world. When I carefully twirl her on the dance floor, she blushes like a bride.
We all dance for a while, and then Jennie performs the bouquet toss. Maya catches it, and the look of sheer horror on her face makes the entire room burst into laughter.
We cut the cake—strawberry on the inside—and Jennie and I feed each other small bites.
Everything has been perfect today—the wedding, the reception, cutting the cake and all the pomp and circumstance that’s expected at these kinds of events. It’s all good, but honestly, I just want to be alone with my bride.
As the reception comes to an end, Dawn takes Granny back to the house. She’s going to stay with us and take care of Granny for the ten days we’ll be gone, and we thought it would ease the transition for Granny if Dawn started staying at our house a couple of days before we depart.
We say goodnight to Granny and Dawn as they prepare to leave.
Granny hugs us both goodbye. “You two are going to be very happy together,” she says. “I just know it.”
After they leave, Jennie and I head to our suite, where our overnight luggage awaits us. When we walk inside, she gasps when she sees the pink and white rose petals sprinkled on the king size bed. Little clusters of lit candles are arranged throughout the room.
“Oh, my God, it’s beautiful!” she says as she takes it all in. “Who did this?”
“A little birdy told me your friends decorated the room especially for us.”
“It’s perfect.” She walks up to me and turns, giving me her back. “Would you mind helping me out of this dress?”
