Indelible Love - Emily's Story (47 page)

“I think Gram is taking all of us to
the spa today as my bachelorette party/bridal shower. I’m probably
going to go use the shower there after my treatments.”

“Oh, well if that’s the case, I guess
I’ll do the same. Can I hang out here with you for a
while?”

“Of course.” I was only too happy to
get to know more family members.

Laney sat on the couch and proceeded
to tell me a fascinating story.

“Did you know that you and I were in
Japan at the same time?”

“No way!” I answered, coming off the
bed and sitting on the couch with her. “When were you
there?”

“All last year. I participated in a
student exchange program and did my sophomore year at Tokyo
University.”

“Oh, I wish we had met earlier, Laney.
We could’ve been friends in Japan. It was lonely living there
without a friend. I took the bullet train many times into the city.
What fun that was.” Memories of Tokyo flooded my mind.

“Jake was so frantic when
you left for Japan. He was such a mess. He flew to Japan and we
looked for you, but it was too difficult to figure out where you
were staying. Eventually, he went back home, but called me daily
asking me to help him find you. It makes me want to cry when I
think about him searching for you. He was
really
devastated.” Her pretty face
turned dour.

It made me want to cry as well. Those
were not the happiest days, but I guess it solidified our feelings
for each other. Those days also made me a stronger person knowing
that I could live alone—lonely, but alone.

“So where exactly were you staying? I
tried to help, but it was too random looking for you in every
village.” Laney’s shoulders slightly shrugged and she looked
apologetic.

We talked about where we lived in
Japan and all the fun places we had visited. Not surprisingly, our
paths crossed many times even in such a big country. Laney had even
visited our village after I had left. I enjoyed my talk with
her.

Spa time provided more revelations
about Jake during our separation. Gram treated all the ladies to a
full day at the spa. Because of the enormity of our group, the spa
separated us into three groups of six. Mom and the aunts chaperoned
Gram through all of their treatments. Jane, Sarah, Laney, and I
hung with Uncle Billy’s two daughters. We started with a body wrap
in the mud room, and ended with a Shiatsu massage before meeting up
with our group for lunch.

We sat in our private patio and Aunt
Barbara asked Gram the question that apparently was on everyone’s
mind.

“Estelle,” Barbara spoke. It never
occurred to me that Gram had a name. “What finally convinced you to
give up your most treasured ring? I thought you weren’t going to
let go of it till you passed away. We were all curious as to who it
would be passed down to, although we figured it would be
Sandy.”

I never realized the importance of
this ring to the family. Envy was not the motive for their
curiosity, as each aunt could purchase one for herself if she so
desired.

“This ring does mean a lot to me. My
father bought it for my mother as a present after she had me, her
firstborn. My dad loved my mother more than all nine of us
combined. All I remember from my youth till the day my parents died
was how they put each other high above everything and everyone
else. When Jakey first told me about Emily, I thought it was a
passing phase. He spoke so ardently about a girl he’d just met.
Then when Emily left for Japan, I’d never seen Jake so distraught.
I had dinner with him in Paris in February and he grieved for this
girl who was alone in the world. He believed it was entirely his
fault that she had left. There was nothing anyone could do to
comfort him. That was when I knew he truly loved her and would do
anything to be with her again.”

Sandy put her hand over mine, knowing
how sad I was hearing about Jake’s pain.

“Eventually, he found her, and she
breathed life back into my grandson. He came to see me before
proposing to Emily in Paris, and he told me about every date they’d
ever had. More than any of my own children, Jakey’s love for Emily
reminded me of my dad and my beloved husband. His love for a girl
he’s known less than a year was more passionate than any I have
seen. He didn’t ask me for the ring. I offered the ring to him. His
passion earned him the ring, not his pleading.”

Gram looked at me and lovingly
encouraged, “You and Jake are perfect for each other. You
complement each other well. Love him as much as he loves you, and
you two will live a happy life together.”

“Thank you, Gram. We will work hard to
live up to your parents’ legacy.”

After ordering every treatment on the
menu, we all had a light dinner and went home. I was sure there
were many missed calls from Jake, but my phone got confiscated by
Aunt Deborah early in the day, so I had no way of communicating
with my groom. As soon as I got to our room, I texted Jake, hoping
he could get away to call me.

Just got home. If you are
able, call directly to our room. Missed you very much. Can’t wait
to become Mrs. Reid. Love you even more.

As soon as I pushed the send button,
the phone rang immediately.

“Hi, Honey. How was your
day?”

“Hi, Beautiful. I had a fun but
lonesome day today without you.”

“Where are you and what did you do all
day?” I too felt alone.

“We’re about an hour north of home and
we’re up at someone’s ranch, pheasant, quail, and chukar hunting. I
shot a Reid record ten, beating the chief’s old record by two.”
Haughty was not a word I associated with Jake, but he always
enjoyed beating Uncle Henry.

“That’s great but what’s a
chukar?”

“It’s a type of bird in the pheasant
family. What did you do all day, my love?”

“We went to the spa and enjoyed every
treatment thanks to Gram, but I really missed you.”

“I missed you too.”

As soon as he let these words out, I
heard many unfamiliar voices making fun of my fiancé.

“Who are all those people in the
background?”

“My college and med school buddies
along with the rest of the family. You’ll meet them
tomorrow.”

“When do you get back
home?”

“I think we’re spending the night up
here and then we have appointments at the spa tomorrow. I don’t
exactly know. No one will give me a clear answer for fear that I
may bolt on them. They’re all seeking revenge because I gave you
diamonds for your wedding present.”

“Oh, I see. What would they do if I
came to see you?” It was a tempting thought to drive over and see
my soon to be husband.

“I wouldn’t be surprised if Jane is
guarding your door right now.” We both laughed. “I guess I’ll see
you at the wedding.”

“Yes, you will, Dr. Reid.”

“Good night, my love. Sweet
dreams.”

“I love you. Good night.”

Chapter 22 Our Happily Ever
After

Sunday was the most beautiful day of
the year. The weather was a perfect eighty degrees, and everyone
arrived at the crack of dawn. Because of the perfect weather, Sandy
and Barbara decided to hold the wedding outside, so it was chaotic
for a while getting everything moved out of the ballroom and into
the backyard.

I woke up and watched all the hustle
and bustle outside, but decided not to leave my room. I liked being
alone, giving myself some time to think about the magnitude of
today and the joy that awaited us. Surprisingly, my nerves didn’t
rattle me. I only reveled in the happiness of becoming Mrs. Reid by
the end of the day. My face couldn’t keep from smiling as I watched
all the workers transform the backyard into my dream.

Though it was early, I called Jake to
see what he was up to. With so many men in one place, there would
be no way he would still be sleeping.

My groom answered the phone on the
first ring.

“Good morning, Handsome.” I sounded
even sappier than usual.

“Hello, my beautiful bride. You’re up
early. Did you sleep well last night?”

“No. I can’t wait to have you in bed
with me.” It was my wedding day. I figured I could sound as brazen
as I liked.

“Aw, Sis! I don’t need to hear this
kind of stuff so early in the morning. It’s making me
nauseous.”

Normally I would have died of
embarrassment at Nick having heard our conversation but today,
nothing bothered me.

“Nick, go find something else to do.
Don’t listen in on a soon-to-be newlywed’s conversation. What did
you expect?”

“We’re driving and you’re on speaker
so we’re going to have to keep this conversation G rated, although
I like the way you’re thinking.” Jake grinned through the
phone.

“Where are you off to so early in the
morning?”

“We’re coming home briefly to pick up
our tuxes, and then we have to meet everyone at the spa for
haircuts and grooming.”

I jumped out of bed excited that I
might spend the morning with my groom.

“Does that mean we can see each other
this morning?” I sounded much too hopeful.

“I will try to sneak into our room,
but Nick is supposed to be my guard. He promised the chief to keep
me away from you.”

Quickly, a suitable bribe for Nick
popped into my head.

“Nick, if you give me thirty minutes
with your brother, I promise you a meal at Masa when we get back
from our honeymoon. What do you think?”

Nick wouldn’t budge.

“Sis, if I let Jake see you, the chief
promised to torture me on my wedding day. He threatened many
times.”

“Nick, we won’t tell him. I
promise!”

“They’ll read it on Jake’s face. He’ll
have a stupid grin instead of this scowl he’s had since Friday
night.”

We both pleaded and bribed, but to no
avail. Jake took me off speaker phone and promised to try to come
see me when he got home.

Aunt Barbara sent Laney to tell me to
shower, but to stay in my robe. The esthetician would be arriving
within half an hour and I would be the first one to receive
treatment. After all the treatments yesterday it seemed
unnecessary, but obviously Aunt Barbara thought otherwise. They
converted Nick’s room into the facial / makeup area, and Jane’s
room became the hair salon. We were all on a tight schedule, and we
were warned not to miss our appointments. Jane was in charge of
getting all of us to the right place at the right time.

I continued to watch the workers
outside, while waiting for Jake and the esthetician to arrive. I
saw that the rental company placed two rectangular rows of chairs
on both sides of the grassy aisle. Over the chairs they draped
white tulle, loosely pinned together with yellow and off-white
roses in the back. They then set up thin trellises all along the
outside of the ceremony area. Initially it looked like the
trellises made a bracket on either side of the chairs without
enclosing the walkway, or where we would stand.

The florists feverishly worked to
cover all the trellises with mossy vines and every flower that
bloomed in July. I recognized various lilies, jasmine, daisies,
dahlias and freesias. There were many beautiful flowers that I
didn’t recognize, but enjoyed my leisurely gazing. By the end of
their labor, they had created a huge flower tent loosely covering
our ceremony. I had never seen such a sight. Then, I saw the
florist cover the aisle with hundreds, maybe thousands of white
rose petals. What the florist created looked prettier than any
picture in a wedding magazine. Once again, I felt a surge of
emotions—happy, blessed, and thankful to name a few.

While continuing to look out the
window, I heard much commotion right outside my door and knew that
Jake was trying to come see me. Laney frantically called for her
mom and both Aunt Barbara and Gram came to stop him from walking
into our room. Lane slightly opened the door and squeezed in to
grab Jake’s tux and quickly shut the door before we could see each
other.

Jake was begging both ladies to allow
him to see his bride, but neither budged. Jake hollered through the
door. “Emi, I’m off to the barber. I’ll see you tonight,
Sweetheart. I love you.”

“I love you too. I feel like a
prisoner in my own house,” I yelled back.

The esthetician began work on my face
while I followed Jane’s every instruction. Facial first, then a
light breakfast, then sit and watch a movie, while all the cousins
and aunts got both their hair and makeup done. My makeup session
would be the last one.

Two more tents went up during the
tedious hours of waiting. The first tent resembled a night club.
The rental company set up a sleek lounge for what I assumed would
be the cocktail and drink hour. Maybe we would dance in there as
well, since a wooden dance floor was placed before the tent went
up. Stark white lounge chairs and sofas with tons of white pillows
were carried in one by one. Some sofas looked like shortened
sectionals, and some were large round ottomans. Old chandeliers
dimly lit the tent. The only dark furniture pieces in the tent were
bar tables and an eight-foot table where probably a DJ would be
spinning his tunes.