A May-September Wedding (28 page)

Patty spoke
first. "Oh my that's beautiful, Felicity."

Phyl stood up
and examined her from all angles. "It's perfect for you,
Felicity."

Jeremy looked
at his father. Cal found his voice. "You look so much like your
Mom, sweetheart."

Jeremy said,
"She only remembers Mom with mostly grey hair, Dad." He turned to
Felicity. "That looks very elegant, sis."

Felicity's
eyes sparkled and she asked, "So this is okay for the formal?"

Cal looked at
Phyl who nodded. "Yes, dear beast. It's perfect. But only very
light makeup. Lip gloss and mascara. You're trying to look
beautiful not find a husband."

Felicity stuck
out her tongue and walked out of the kitchen wearing a big smile.
"Next!"

Lydia came in
wearing an emerald green knee length satin cocktail dress. It was a
halter dress with an empire waist that hugged her curves and looked
elegant rather than sexy. Her shoulders were covered with a deep
burgundy mohair shawl that she'd borrowed from Aunt Ros. She was
also wearing heels, but these were almost three and a half inches
putting her eye level with Jeremy.

Phyl was
stunned that her fourteen year old daughter could look so
beautiful. The dressmaker had done a wonderful job of preserving
the reality of the fourteen year old girl wearing the dress while
giving a glimpse of the future woman. "Twirl around for us,
Lydia."

She took a
confident step and twirled around, obviously just as practised on
her heels as Felicity had been.

Phyl took
Lydia's hands and said, "You look beautiful. I'm sorry I questioned
your judgement."

Lydia blushed.
Jeremy echoed Phyl. "You and Felicity are both turning into
beautiful young women. Just remember that men don't know how to
speak to beautiful women, so if some of your friends seem a bit
strange, well that's the effect you'll have on them."

Patty said,
"Now. I'll give you the same warning that Phyl gave the Beast. You
only need light makeup to look your best. You aren't trying to find
a husband this year." Patty looked fondly at Jeremy. "Besides I
think it's better if you wait until your man is all grown up. Like
in his late twenties."

Lydia asked,
shyly, "So I can wear this dress on Friday?"

Phyl stood on
tiptoes to kiss her suddenly very tall daughter on the cheek. "Yes,
Lydia. I want you to be beautiful for your first formal."

Lydia
carefully hugged her mother. "Thanks, Mum." Then, giddy with
excitement, she slipped off her shoes, picked them up and ran
upstairs.

Erica, who had
been sitting quietly at the table eating a cookie, said, "Auntie
Lydia looks really pretty, like my Mommy looks when she goes
dancing. But Auntie Lydia is way taller."

Phyl, who had
met Jeanine, said, "I'm sure your Mommy is really pretty when she
dresses up special."

"I'm going to
be pretty when I'm all grown up." Erica announced.

"You're
already very pretty, sweetie." Cal ruffled her hair. "But now it's
bedtime."

"Carry me,
Grampa?" Erica put up her arms.

"I guess I can
do that." He picked up Erica

"Cal, I have
some things to do if we're really getting married on Saturday. So
bring Erica over here for a kiss and I'll say goodnight to
everyone. Send Lydia home when she's ready." She kissed them both
and then headed with them to the front hall.

"'Night,
Bestemor." Erica said in her piping voice.

"Good night,
my sweethearts."

Cal leaned
over for another kiss then climbed the stairs.

Phyl looked at
the bedside clock. Two a.m. She sighed. It wasn't like her to get
cold feet but the reminders tonight were hard to take. Harry should
have been here to reassure Lydia she was beautiful. Jeremy and Cal
were both gobsmacked by how much Felicity looked like Brenda. Even
for her it was like her best friend had shown up looking like she
was headed out to Burns Night with Cal. These were bittersweet, but
her long buried doubts had resurfaced.

It was Erica's
reference to Jeanine that was worrying her. Was she marrying Cal as
an antidote to loneliness or because she needed stability or even a
father figure in her life? Was Cal actually right that he was too
old for her? For the past three hours she had lain awake in bed
wearing a rut in the circles she was thinking.

She snapped on
the light and prowled downstairs to make a cup of chamomile tea. On
the way downstairs she spotted Lydia's textbooks in a pile on the
dining room table. The top book was her New Testament textbook.
Shaking her head, she changed her mind about the tea, poured
herself a glass of water and found her old study Bible.

There was a
long list of references to marriage in the index and the Biblical
reasons for marrying. She prayed and studied and by half past three
she had calmed down. Then she picked up the Prayer Book and reread
the service for the Solemnization of Marriage. According to the
service, the reasons for marriage were threefold: the care and
nurture of children, the avoidance of fornication, and mutual
comfort.

She thought
back over the past eighteen months. How they had helped each other
with caring for their three, now four, children. How Cal had
promised that he would help her raise any more they might have to
the best of his ability. So they were good partners for the first
reason.

The avoidance
of fornication. Most people believed they had not avoided it but it
wasn't really anyone else's business. Not that they hadn't come
very close on a number of occasions recently but so far they had
avoided that temptation and, thank the Lord for his mercy, they
would only have to avoid it for another three nights. She looked at
the clock. Two and a half more nights.

Then the last
reason - mutual comfort. From the evening she found out about
Harry's death Cal had been there to help her. When Brenda died, she
had been there for him. They were great partners outside of the
bedroom. They had similar philosophies on life, on money, on faith
and on sex so they were able to reinforce each other when Tim or
the girls needed proper Christian guidance.

Mutual
comfort. Phyl sighed and smiled. Recently the cuddling and kissing
had gotten more intense, but it was supremely comforting to know
that she was not alone in the world, that she had a true partner
that wanted her for more than just her kisses. She had been fearful
of Cal retiring and being too much in each others' company but the
more time she spent with him the more she wanted to be with
him.

She got up to
freshen up and get another drink of water. Looking in the mirror
she squared her shoulders and said, "I am marrying Cal Richardson
for all the right reasons." Then she grinned at the bags under her
eyes and the sudden emergence of doubts. Banishing the echo of
Jeanine Humbolt and Heddy Erickson in the mirror, she closed her
eyes and prayed that the Holy Spirit would be with her during this
time of preparation.

Felicity was
used to getting attention from the boys at school. She was a petite
and perky brunette in a school full of long tall blondes but she
was the one who drew the appreciative glances from most of the
boys. She snuck a glance at Lydia who was chatting with some of
their less clueless male classmates. Lydia looked like someone had
opened a bottle of sunshine and applied it to her smile.

Cal and Phyl
worked together in the cafeteria to make sure that the refreshments
didn't run out. One of the older mothers tried to organize them but
stopped after it became apparent that they were a good team and
didn't appreciate the advice. They tried their best to keep their
displays of affection to a minimum but no one was fooled.

The principal
heard two of the other volunteers start to make a fuss about it.
"Mrs. Vokeman, Cal and Phyl are getting married tomorrow. It isn't
unusual for an engaged couple to show affection for each other or
newlyweds for that matter." There was a significant pause, "If I
remember correctly your eldest daughter Anna married shortly after
graduation. She and Case were pretty openly affectionate in their
last year here."

Mrs. Vokeman
blushed and changed the subject. Cal drew Phyl into a hug so that
she could laugh into his shoulder. They released each other before
they could draw any more negative looks. The other volunteers,
though, smiled indulgently as they came up to wish them well.

Before too
long, the dinner came to a close. Cal pointed to a group that he
assumed included Felicity because he could see a gap next to Lydia.
"The girls seem to have attracted some attention, my dear."

Phyl looked
over to see a mixed group of about a dozen young men and women
chatting amiably about something. One of the young men mimed a free
throw, so she assumed they were talking about the junior sports
teams. She pulled Cal back to the cafeteria.

"Cal, I'm so
glad you convinced me to have the girls come here." She pulled his
head down for a quick peck on the cheek.

"I was
thinking that when I was in grade nine, if I was talking to the
girls it was because I wanted to see if I could get one of them
into a dark corner."

"And I would
have been at the front of the line hoping you'd ask."

"This is much
healthier." Cal tucked Phyl's arm in his as the stood by the window
waiting for the girls to be ready to go home.

"We were very
lucky, both of us. Brenda showed you the way to Jesus and Harry
showed me the way."

"And now we
get to show the kids." He gazed longingly into Phyl's eyes. "So far
so good."

The principal
came to stand with them and offered his congratulations on their
marriage. "Your daughters are fitting in well."

"I think
Felicity was getting a lot of attention tonight." Cal offered.

The principal
laughed. "She's the only student in the school under five foot, but
her personality is big enough to fill the gym. She's very popular."
He turned to Phyl. "I heard a story that she and Lydia were born at
the exact same time."

Phyl laughed
and began to tell the story to another appreciative audience.

"Mum, you look
so beautiful and so happy."

Phyl gathered
her daughter into a hug. "It's almost time to go. You look pretty
happy, too."

"Felicity and
I have been hoping for this day since we saw the way you and Dad
looked at each other at family camp the year Papa died."

"I didn't
realize how much we loved each other until much later. Did we
embarrass you very much?"

"Well, you
were pretty blatant at family camp this year."

Phyl smiled.
"Yes, I was. It was fun, though. You might have to get used to it.
I like the way Cal reacts when I flirt with him."

"He is pretty
sweet. Will I ever find a guy like him?"

"No, Lydia,
you won't. But you will find the right guy for Lydia, and if you're
unlucky enough to lose the first one, like I did, you'll find
another one when you need him."

They entered
the church hall and hung up their coats. Then she spotted Cal. He
offered his arm and the two of them went to wait in the vestry.
"There's a lot less ceremony the second time around." Phyl
whispered.

"You are your
own woman this time. You don't need anyone to give you away." Cal
whispered back.

"I can hardly
wait to give myself to you."

"And I still
can't believe that you want to."

She pulled his
head down for a quick reassuring kiss and said, "Never doubt
it."

Father Gary
came into the vestry from the church hall and poked his head out
the door to the nave. "It looks like everyone else is in place. Do
you have the rings?"

Cal patted his
sporran. Gary snickered and said, "I'll go put them on the service
book."

Phyl
snickered, too, and said, "Good idea."

Gary came back
into the vestry and said, "Are you both ready?"

Cal offered
his arm and led his bride into their new life together.

Cal watched
with amusement as Felicity flirted with the university aged canoe
instructor, knowing that the young man was trying to fend her off.
Phyl was napping in the shade next to him with their sleeping
newborn daughter Grace gathered close. Tim was with the gang of
louts lined up to use the diving board at the end of the dock and
Lydia and Brenda were teaching Erica how to swim. Life was very
good.

A grey haired
couple being towed by a five year old boy came close and the woman
stopped. "Mind if I set up next to you?"

Cal looked up
and said, "Not at all."

The woman
spread out her blanket and piled all of the sandals neatly then sat
down. "First time here?" Cal asked.

"Oh, no. We
used to take our kids here when they were younger. Now that we have
Thomas to spoil we decided to give our number two and her husband
some time to themselves." She glanced at Cal and said, "I'm
forgetting my manners. I'm Theresa Walker and that's my husband
John. Are you here with your daughter and grandchildren?"

"Yes,
actually, but it's not quite what it looks like. I'm Cal Richardson
and two of those four girls are my granddaughters, Erica who lives
with us and Brenda her half-sister who doesn't, one is my daughter,
Felicity, and the other is my stepdaughter, Lydia. The lovely
ladies by my side are my wife Phyl and our daughter Grace, and that
screaming lout that just hit the water is my stepson Tim."

Theresa looked
at all of the active children and shook her head. "I don't know how
you have the energy."

Cal laughed
and said, "It good that we have three teenagers to help us out. It
took Phyl a long time to convince me to take a chance with
her."