Chapter 71: Leap Year!

AAAH! I can’t believe we managed to keep this secret the whole time! Today is Jon and Sam’s wedding day. I woke at my customary 7:15, and headed to the gym. I was not expecting Jon at all this morning, and he didn’t disappoint. I got through my workout, and headed back upstairs to get showered and dressed. Lucy and I were going to go pick up Cori and Nathan. We originally planned \to send a car for them, but we wanted to be able to visit, so we were going to take a cab.

I went into our suite, and David smelled that had breakfast cooking. I was shocked to say the least. “What are you doing, baby?” I asked.

“You have a busy day today, Ms. Wedding Planner,” he said smiling, “and I thought the last thing you’d need is to make breakfast. It’s just eggs…”

“I love eggs,” I said, and gave David a big kiss. “I’m stinky, I need to go shower.” I did, quickly, and was back in time to watch David plate eggs, crispy bacon, and toast. “This looks wonderful,” I said.

“Yeah, well, this is the extent of my culinary skills, so don’t get too used to it.”

“David,” I said, “I could eat eggs every day.” David laughed and rolled his eyes at me. “What time is it?” I asked.

“About quarter past eight,” David said.

“SHIT! Be right back,” I said, and grabbed the blackberry. I called down to the kitchen, to the manager’s office. “Morning, Elliot,” I said. “It’s Hath Gengras."

“What can I do for you this morning?”

“How busy are the kitchens?”

“Not too bad, why?”

“I wanted to order breakfast for Boss, and forgot to do it last night. It’d be a rush, so I don’t want to ask if the kitchens are too busy.”

He laughed at me. “Don’t you know that the customer is always right? And we expect demands from the celebrities? I’ve got to say, you and your boss, though have been quite refreshing. I’d be happy to do this for you. What and when?”

I gave him the breakfast order, asked for it to be delivered by 9 if they could manage it, and thanked him profusely. Everyone here has been really nice, and tried to bend over backwards to be accommodating. I finished my breakfast just as Lucy knocked on the door.

David answered. “Right on time!” he said, pulling Lucy into a hug. “Where’s Flash?”

Lucy laughed. “Still sleeping. Poor baby is tired. Hath ready?”

I came out of the bedroom, minimal makeup (I figured there’d be lots of crying when Sam picked the perfect dress, plus, I had a surprise of my own for the girls) and comfy jeans and flannel shirt. I grabbed my bag, complete with manicure scissors just in case, drew David down for a smacking kiss, swatted his ass, and said, “Ready! Where are the other girls?” I asked when we got out into the hall.

Lucy saluted me. “Ma’am, they will receive a phone call upon our return, and will meet us in the aforementioned location in the lobby, ma’am.”

“Bitch!” I said, and we cracked up laughing.

We crept past Jon and Sam’s room, and when we went past the service elevator, it opened and a room service cart came out. “Is this for Sinclair? I’m Hath.”

The waiter nodded. I lifted the lids to inspect everything. “Looks good, thanks,” I said, and tipped the kid. I knew Jon would probably tip him as well, but I thought it was the right thing to do.

Lucy just looked at me. “Damn, Hath, what are you going to do when you don’t have someone to take care of? I think you’ve become just as dependent on that as Jon has become on you.”

I groaned. “Tell me about it,” I said, disgusted with myself. “I swear, I hear him in my head. How the hell can I anticipate what he wants? Can you tell me that? Like breakfast. I was eating breakfast with David, and I heard a voice in my head say ‘I’m awake, Jeeves, where’s my eggs?’ and after I flipped my brain the bird, I ordered up breakfast for them.” I shook my head. “Who am I, and where is GSA?”

Lucy just laughed. “I think Slutzilla killed her.”

We giggled all the way to the valet, and asked him to get us a cab. “Good morning, George!” I said brightly, hoping he remembered me from last night. "We're off to the airport this morning."

“Hey there, Ms. Gengras,” he said back, waving for a mini-van style cab.

I shook my head at him. “George, please, call me ‘Hath’. ‘Ms. Gengras’ is way too snooty for this girl.”

He just smiled. “Yes, ma’am.”

We climbed into the cab and made it to the airport in record time. I knew we wouldn’t have long to wait, so I asked the cabbie to circle around or wait for us, and he agreed. He didn’t care; the meter was still running. We girls went to meet Cori and Nathan at arrivals. They were just staying overnight, so they just had their carry-ons. I had brought a sign that read “Brother of the Bride” and Lucy had one that said “Matron of Honor”, and we went to go meet our respective planes.

Nathan laughed when he saw me. “Hi there, Hath,” he said, giving me a hug. “Today’s the day.”

“Sure is. Jon should be telling her just about now,” I said, looking at my watch. “The plan is to bring you and Cori to Sam and Jon’s room so you can say ‘hi’, then I think you’re stuck with Jon; we girls are going dress shopping.” I handed him his room key. “You’re all checked in, and you’re down the hall from the rest of us.”

He shook his head at me and chuckled. “Taking charge again, I see,” he said.

“Hey,” I shrugged. “I’m good at it. Let’s go find the girls.”

We found Lucy and Cori and after another round of hugs, poured into the cab, and headed for the hotel. Along the way, Queen played. “Yeah, boss?” I said by way of answer.

“Just making sure they got in okay,” he said. “You were right; she’s going to marry me Hath! She’s really going to do it!”

“There was never any doubt, sweetheart. We’ve got Cori and Nathan, and should be back in about half an hour.”

“OK. Oooh, gotta go. See you then,” he said, and hung up.

“Boss?” Cori asked, and Lucy and I told then about the bet and all the stuff I’ve been doing for Jon all week, and we were all in hysterics when we got back to the hotel.

Right on time, Nathan knocked on Sam’s door. Sam answered, and the look on her face told me that Jon had left this bit for a surprise, too. Nathan pulled her into a big bear hug.

“How ya doin', Sis?" he asked, a big smile on his face.

"I'm excited," she gushed. She pulled away from her brother to hug her best friend. "I'm so glad you're here," she told them both. I shot Jon an I-told-you-so look, and he flipped me off. "Cori, we've got so much to do today!” Sam said.

"She doesn't believe me about just having to pick out a dress and show up for the wedding," Jon told them from over her shoulder.

Cori shook her head. "Men," she said, rolling her eyes.

Jon looked at me and Lucy, raising one eyebrow in an unspoken question.

God, for someone so intelligent, he’s dense as a brick. I rolled my eyes at him. "Hair and make-up, boss," I told him, laughing.

"Oh, that reminds me," Jon said, "I'll be right back."

He disappeared to the bedroom. While he was gone, Sam ushered us all into the suite, and we all sat down in the living room. When Jon came back, he handed Sam a beautifully wrapped box. I had wrapped it myself, and knew what this was. "Your wedding present, my love," he told her.

Sam tore into the gift and gasped. There were a dozen beautiful diamond studded hair pins. "Oh, Jon," she breathed, "they're beautiful."

"Not as beautiful as you," he assured her.

She stood up and flung herself in his arms. "I love you," she told him, wrapping her arms around his neck, "so very much!" She kissed him quickly, then turned to us girls. "We've gotta get going," she said.

Sam walked over to Nathan and leaned down to hug him again. "I'm guessing you're here to give me away?"

"Then you guessed correctly," he told her. "And good riddance, I've been waiting 35 years to get rid of you," he teased.

"For that, I'm going to leave you in Jon's care," she laughed.

Lucy called Ang’s and Steph’s cell phones, and told them we were heading out. They were already in the lobby waiting for us. When we got down there, Melissa, at the front desk, let me know our car was here. “Right on time,” I said, and thanked her. My glare to the others had them not talking about how I knew her name, and had the car all set already.

The stretch limo took us all to a gorgeous upscale bridal shop. I slid the scissors out of my bag and into my back pocket, in case I needed them. The owner had assured both Jon and I that they knew there were to be no tags, but hey, shit happens sometimes.

At the bridal shop, Sam looked at dress after dress, and looked a bit shell shocked. We all went to the racks, pulling out gowns and discussing (or arguing) their merits and Sam was just laughing at us. “Hey, ya’ll, who’s gonna be wearing this dress?” Chagrinned, we settled down, and watched as Sam wandered the aisles of silk, satin, taffeta, and lace, touching everything. Ang was snapping pictures, and capturing the wonder and delight on Sam’s face.

I wandered down a small aisle in the back, marked with a discreet sign that said “Maternity Gowns”. In three more months, wearing a white gown may be a little ridiculous, but I looked anyway, just to get ideas. Ang came over to me, and smiled. “So, when do we do this for you?” she asked, and I smiled.

“May, I think,” I said, “but I don’t know if I’m going to wear a white gown. I mean,” I motioned to my abdomen. “They’re gonna be showing by then.”

Ang shrugged. “So what? You’re entitled to wear a white gown on your wedding day.”

Maybe she’s right.

When I wandered back to the others, I saw that Sam had pulled a bunch of gowns from the rack for us to look at, and we all narrowed it down to two. Cori went with her into the dressing room to help her, and when they came out, Sam had a little frown on her face. "I'm not sure I like the way this one fits," she told us, sweeping one hand down her belly to indicate she meant the way it hugged her baby bump.

"Go try on the other one, then," Ang suggested.

"I'll be right back," Sam told them, and hurried out of the room; Cori trailing close behind.

A few minutes later, Sam appeared again. Oh, we almost died. Sam held the train up with one hand and twirled, showing us the whole dress. She looked like a fairy princess: a glowing, gorgeous, fairy princess. I could tell by the look on her face that she knew this was The Dress. I looked at Lucy and Steph –- Ang was snapping more pictures. They all knew it too.

The dress was striking. A wide band of white satin rested on her upper arms, leaving her shoulders bare. The bodice clung, but fell loosely from just below her bust in an empire waistline. The skirt of the dress had a line of big white roses and vines embroidered across it diagonally from left to right, and wrapped around to edge the short train that would follow Sam as she walked.

Sam let the train fall, and reached up to wrap her pony tail up in a bun. "So what do ya'll think?"

I thought I was going to have to murder someone. There, dangling under her armpit was a delicate little tag. A price tag. I shot a murderous glance at the shop owner who paled under her expertly applied makeup. Apparently she remembered my threat to take our business elsewhere, but I knew we would never do that. Not with the look on Sam’s face when she watched her reflection in the mirror. Still, the woman at least had the good grace to look upset and apologetic. I think I’ll keep this little tidbit to myself when Jon asks how it went; and I’m sure he’ll ask.

I jumped up, sliding the scissors out of my pocket, rushed forward, and unobtrusively clipped the tag while pulling Sam into a hug. If I do say so myself, it was a pretty slick move and Sam is none the wiser. "Oh, Sam it's beautiful. You're beautiful," I said softly. "Jon will swallow his tongue," I laughed. Cori had tears in her eyes. And so starts the blubbering. We’ll be crying the rest of the day now.

"That's the one," Lucy exclaimed.

“Absolutely,” Steph agreed.

“Perfect,” Ang said.

"We'll take this one," Sam told the attendant.

"I'll box it right up for you, miss," the woman gushed.

While Sam went to change back into her street clothes, I had a quick and stilted conversation with Mari about the price tag. She was mortified and properly chastised, and offered to include Sam’s veil and headdress in the cost of the gown. We didn’t know what she was doing with her hair, because of the gorgeous pins Jon had given her, but I thanked her and said I’d have to check with my bride to see if she wanted a veil.

Sam didn’t, and I don’t blame her. I wouldn’t want anything covering up those exquisite hair pins, either. So, the woman, crumbling under my glare (she’d make an excellent minion) included a white bustier, white lacy panties, flimsy white stockings, garter belt and garters, and ballerina style slippers – just one more little surprise for Sam.

Sam gasped when she saw the time. It was nearly noon, and on cue, Ang announced she was hungry.

“We have time to get a bite before our next appointment, Sam,” I said, smiling.

"What appointment?" Sam asked, "Jon only mentioned this one."

"That's because I knew he wouldn't think of it, so I made this one myself," I explained. I mean, he is a guy after all. "It's a day spa. I made appointments for all of us. The full treatment. Hair, nails, facials, make-up...everything."

"Wow," Sam breathed.

"Sounds great," Lucy agreed.

Ang shrugged. "Count me in, then."

"Me too," Steph threw in.

"I don't know," Cori said, shaking her head slightly.

"Oh come on, Cor," I said. "It's all on Jonny. Why would you let it go to waste?" Not for nothing did I keep his AmEx number. Want it? ha ha ha.

"Ok, I guess I could go with a little spoiling," she finally agreed.

"Who wouldn't?" Steph laughed, and they all joined in.

We had a quiet but quick lunch at a place not too far from the spa. We made one brief stop at a florist, and Sam and I ran in to get a few flowers for Sam’s hair. Instead of a veil, she wanted white daisies to go along with the hair pins Jon had bought her, which would just make her look more like she stepped out of the pages of a storybook. We barely just made it to the spa on time. Not that they would have given our spots away, but we’re big believers in respecting other people’s time, and didn’t want to piss off the people who were going to be making us more beautiful.

We were all sitting around having various things plucked, painted, colored and sanded, when Lucy mused, “I wonder what the guys are doing."

"Nothing this fun," Sam answered, giggling.

"Because they don't know what fun is," I called over. Though, just the thought of the guys sitting around getting haircuts and manicures together made me laugh.

“What’s so funny?” Ang asked.

“Can you imagine the guys sitting around a salon or barber shop together, shooting the shit while they get cut, colored, and manicured?” I snorted with laughter.

“I’d lo-o-o-ove to get pictures of THAT,” she said.

I saw Sam hand the package of pins to her stylist, and Stephanie remembered the flowers, and brought them over.
The woman worked on Sam's hair for over an hour, and I could see the updo taking shape. God, the woman was good with hair. When she was done, we all stared. Sam’s hair was pinned up to the crown of her head, with curls tumbling down. She had a crown of daisies, and the diamonds sparkled as Sam turned her head under the lights.

“Ohhh, Sam, you look like a fairy princess. Just gorgeous,” I said, and air kissed her cheek. The other girls agreed.

My hair was down, and the stylist made big fat curls in it. They kissed my shoulders, which would be bare in my dress, and were deliciously touchable. She had used copper to highlight my already highlighted hair, and it looked wonderful. We all looked good, but Sam was a true vision.

We were stunned when it was nearly 5 o'clock and we were just pulling up in front of the hotel. I sent a quick text to Jon. Getting dressed, be there soon! We zipped up to Sam’s suite, stopping off at our own rooms to grab our dresses first, and Nathan was in there, pacing.

"Ya'll better hurry up," he called out. "The sun's gonna be setting soon."

We were quick. Ultra-quick. I mean, our hair and stuff was already done; all we had to do was not mess it up. Sam got her lingerie on while we all slipped our dresses on. I had planned to wear red, but before I left Boston, I found this absolutely gorgeous navy silk dress. It had a floor-length straight skirt, slit nearly to the waist on one side. It was strapless, with a sweetheart neckline. Matching navy over-the-elbow gloves and shawl would keep me from getting too cold. I had high-heeled pumps dyed to match, and I was pretty sure my feet would be blue by the end of the night, but I didn’t care.

We helped Sam into her gown, and Cori had the honor of zipping her up. When we all came out of the bedroom, Nathan crossed to his sister. “You are beautiful,” he said, and kissed her cheek gently.

I led the parade into the elevator and down through the lobby. We turned quite a few heads. Outside, the two limos waited. We girls got into one car, the one that’d been catering to us all day, and Nathan and Sam got into the vintage Bentley Jon and I picked out. Our bouquets were waiting for us in the car; the Bentley driver had picked them up. Sam had a gorgeous cascading bouquet of white daisies and yellow roses, and we all had a single rose bundled with baby’s breath and tied with white ribbons. Matt had the guys’ boutonnieres already , and I think we were all set.

“Relax,” Ang said to me. She could see me ticking off things in my head. “It’s done, and it’s perfect. Let’s just enjoy it now.”

Our car pulled up to the curb first, and we all piled out and headed for the group by the railing. Cori hung back with Sam’s flowers, and waited on Nathan and Sam. The guys all looked gorgeous. I mean more gorgeous than usual. There’s something about a man in a well-cut suit that just turns me to mush. And six of them, well I was really close to swooning. When I passed Jon, I put a hand on his arm and smiled. When I got to David, he touched my arm, and mouthed “I love you” to me, springing tears to my eyes. I continued over to the other side of the JP, and turned expectantly.

Mother Nature had cooperated, and provided a glorious sunset. The sky was a canvas of colors: purples, pinks and oranges swirling together beautifully. Some of the cherry blossoms were starting to come out, and the metaphor it showed – new beginnings – was perfect. Everything was perfect, as it should be on this day.

Cori nodded at Richie, and he began to play the wedding march on his 12-string. It was beautiful, and I decided then that I want David to ask him to play at our wedding, too. Sam was looking around her, and the joy on her face was unmistakable – Jon’s too. They were just perfect for each other.

As Sam made her way toward us, my heart melted. The love pouring off of her was a physical thing. Nathan brought her to Jon and said something to him that I couldn’t hear. Jon answered the same way. The ceremony was short and sweet, as Sam wanted it, but no less heartfelt. Even the simple, “With this ring, I promise my unending love and devotion” had my heart squeezing in my chest. They couldn’t take their eyes off each other.

When the JP said, “You may now kiss the bride” Jon muttered something I couldn’t quite catch, then slowly lowered his lips to Sam’s. They lingered over a kiss that took my breath away.

This is what ‘forever’ looks like.

I’m a Goddess. I know these things.