Chapter 13 #2
“Good man,” JJ said, also grinning. “I mean, I buy all the longhorns and horses I want, so I can’t really tell Ruby no about anything.”
“Her dress is incredible,” Savannah said, and she took a few steps away from the men to gush over Ruby’s dress.
“She realizes she’s wearing the same dress, right?” Link whispered, and that caused everyone in the group to laugh.
“Incoming,” Conrad said, and Wilder found him watching as his cousin, Trap, approached with a pretty blonde.
“Howdy, fellas,” Trap said, and he wore an air of nervousness about him. “This here is Fiona Colwood.” He indicated the woman at his side. “She’s a barista at The Coffee Cart.”
“Howdy, Fiona,” Conrad practically bellowed, and Wilder looked at him with wide eyes. “Wow, your dress is stunning.”
“I didn’t get the wedding color memo.” She shot a look at Trap.
“It’s only for family anyway,” Wilder said. “I’m Wilder Glover.” He stepped forward and shook the woman’s hand. “See? Look—Ty’s date isn’t wearing silver or green either.”
Tyson arrived at the edge of the group, and he’d found Colt and Fawn—who was wearing a dark green dress with the silver chainmail shawl. Wilder grinned at them too, noting that Fawn held hands with Colt’s son, Jonas.
Colt was about five years older than Wilder, and Fawn was younger than him and had no romantic interest in the apple orchard owner. But she was great with kids, and she’d wanted a date to the wedding. Wilder had been the one to suggest Colt ask Fawn to go with him, and that had worked out nicely.
He’d also suggested Winnie to Ty, and he looked through the crowd to find the usually quiet, reserved, grumpy cowboy leaning in close to Winnie, whispering.
Oh, ho, and they were holding hands in a very more-than-friends gesture everyone in town could see.
Brave, Wilder thought as a chime sounded through the ballroom.
“You know that that means, guys,” he said.
“What does it mean?” Trap asked.
“We got an extensive text with instructions,” Link said. “And that chime means you have five minutes to find your seat.”
“We’ll be closing the doors in five minutes,” a cool female voice said. “Please take your seats, remembering that the first five rows on either side are reserved for family of the bride and groom.”
“My family needs about fifty rows,” Wilder said, and he happily went to collect Savannah and lead her over to the end of the row where his parents sat with the twins.
Light, twinkling music filled the room, and the chatter died down. When the music stopped, Wilder looked over his shoulder and quickly got to his feet, for no less than two dozen police officers had just entered the room.
Uncle Brady had been named the Chief of Police about a year ago now, and he stood at the front of the formation, dressed to the nines in his full uniform, with every button, pin, and flag in precisely the right spot.
He wore snowy white gloves as he lifted one hand to his mouth, and the shrill, shocking peal of a whistle filled the air. All conversation cut off then, and every eye riveted on the brigade about to march down the aisle.
“Is there a Trooper Wellington here?” Uncle Brady yelled in his most authoritative tone. As a child, Wilder had been a little bit afraid of his uncle, but the older he’d gotten, the more he realized Uncle Brady was only tough when he had to be.
“Yes, sir,” a man called.
Wilder swung his attention up a couple of rows and across the aisle, where Trooper’s father stood. The rest of Trooper’s family had stayed seated, which only made the older man more obvious.
“Right here, Chief.” He pointed to his son, who got to his feet in a seemingly reluctant, sheepish way.
“I didn’t do anything wrong,” Trooper called, his shoulders coming up and turning boxy.
All eyes flew back to Wilder’s uncle, including his. Uncle Brady stood there unyielding, every officer behind him wearing a mighty frown.
“Being totally in love with your daughter isn’t a crime,” Trooper yelled next, and Wilder relaxed, realizing what this was. “I asked you for her hand in marriage and everything.”
One of Uncle Brady’s deputies stepped forward, put his own white-gloved hand on Brady’s shoulder, and leaned in to say something. Uncle Brady’s frown only deepened.
“I don’t know—” he yelled.
“I’m going to love her with everything I have until the day I die,” Trooper said, moving out into the aisle.
He took a microphone from someone, and his voice reverberated through the ballroom as he continued with, “I’m going to take good care of her, sir.
In hard times, and easy times, and all the time.
I will protect her, and I will support her, and I will do everything I can to be the man she deserves. ”
He stood tall and proud at the end of the aisle, his gaze unwavering as he met his soon-to-be father-in-law’s gaze.
“What is the hold-up here?” Aunt Ida came bustling through the line of officers. “Brady, what are you doing?” She reached her husband and mock-glared up at him. “We have a whole line of people waiting.”
She leaned in closer, but she was clearly miked, because Wilder could hear every word she said loud and clear, though she whispered, “Did you forget the first step? Remember, you lead with your right—”
“I didn’t forget the step,” he hissed back at her.
“This young man loves our daughter,” she said. “And we have hungry people here. I don’t think you know what you’ll be dealing with if you make Bear wait a moment past six to eat.”
Laughter filled the hall, and Wilder sought out his uncle Bear. He grinned and grinned, and even started to clap.
Then, the loudest music Wilder had ever heard filled the hall, and he actually ducked as if the roof might be coming down. He grabbed onto Savannah and moved toward Sequoia too.
Then the beat dropped, and reality caught up to his reflexes. His gaze flew to the doors where the officers had gathered, and to his great astonishment, Uncle Brady took the first step with his right foot.
He did a double-bounce there, then took another step forward.
On his next step, the two officers flanking him moved forward with him.
By the fourth measure, they’d added hand and arm motions, and the crowd whooped and cheered as every man in the Three Rivers Police Department danced their way down the aisle.
They all hugged Trooper, and when he finally stood at the altar alone, he wore a badge someone had pinned to his tuxedo.
“Him is a policeman now too, Mister Wilder.”
Wilder scooped Sequoia into his arms. “Yeah, sweetie, he’s going to the Police Academy right now. He’ll be done in a few months.”
And then Trooper really would be a police officer, just like Uncle Brady.
The ladies came down the aisle next, the music calming to something less nightclub and more frilly, and Judy had wanted every one of her female cousins in the wedding party.
They came alone, so Judy hadn’t had to pair them up with an escort, and Wilder took Savannah’s hand in his free one while he watched the people he loved best walk down the aisle.
When they reached Trooper, they each gave him a flower, and when they all finally finished, he held an assembled bouquet that Aunt Etta quickly swept a ribbon around to hold it in place.
The wedding march started then, with an extra beat or two thrown in to jazz it up. Judy and her twin brother Johnny appeared in the double-wide doorway, and he looked at her, and she beamed up at him.
As long as Wilder had known her, Judy had loved girly things. Big ballgowns, and makeup, and false eyelashes. She loved getting her hair and nails done, and she loved taking vintage clothes and making them into new pieces.
He should’ve expected her dress to fit her personality, because it did. She wore a stunning gown with a fitted bodice gleaming with gems, and a skirt that ballooned out at her hips and had to be at least six feet across.
“Wow,” Savannah breathed.
“She is so pretty,” Gal said right out loud. “Momma, I want a dress like that.”
“Shh, baby,” Momma whispered, and she bent to pick up Gal. “Look, you can see better now, but just whisper.”
The dress shimmered the way gasoline did in sunlight, and when Johnny offered his sister his arm, she tucked her hand in the crook of his elbow, and they finally stepped into the room.
The song changed again, the march becoming even more like a rock song. Judy and Johnny took a few more steps, definitely adding more bounce to their feet—and their shoulders.
Then Judy came to a complete stop. She waved both hands above her head, and yelled, “Stop the music.”
It came to a grinding halt, that awful record-scratching noise screeching through the ballroom.
“I think I’m a little over-dressed for this party.” She grinned around at everyone, and while Wilder had known his cousin to be theatrical, this wedding sure wasn’t what he’d expected.
She reached down and grabbed her burgeoning ballgown skirt on both sides—and pulled.
A gasp flew from Wilder’s throat, along with everyone else’s. Fine, some people actually yelped as Judy’s dress ripped—right—in—half.
She flung the skirt aside and cocked one hip as Johnny kicked the rest of the now-mangled dress out of the way. “Better?”
Judy now wore a slinky skirt made of pure silver, the kind that shone in the sunlight and changed colors on a fish’s scales. “I mean, this is more of the party vibe I wanted this wedding to be.”
Johnny reached up and took off his tie, flinging it away too. “So can I unbutton a couple of these? Because holy horses and figs, it’s hot in here.”
They grinned at one another, and then Johnny—with a couple of his shirt buttons undone—and Judy in her new, sleek wedding-slash-party-dress linked arms and walked the rest of the way to Trooper.
He laughed with every step she took, and Johnny took something from his father before passing Judy to her almost-husband.
Wilder basked in the glow that reached all the way back to the second row, even over on the side, that emanated from Judy gazing up at Trooper.
Then Johnny jumped at least four feet straight up into the air, shrieked, and landed in a crouch. He straightened, put on a pair of sunglasses, and yelled, “It’s time to say I-do!”
The crowd responded to the energy that the police officers had first brought, then from the bride and her brother jiving down the aisle. Wilder laughed right out loud, and he loved the way Savannah snuggled into his side, both of her hands wrapped around his forearm.
“This is the best wedding I’ve ever been to,” she said.
“We’re fun sometimes,” he said as the congregation started to settle down and sit.
“Yeah, but I don’t want a wedding like this,” she said.
Wilder swung his attention to his fiancée, his smile fading. “No, I know. We’re doing simple, farm-themed, with ducks as ring-bearers.”
“And you’re okay with that?” She actually wore worry in her expression, which only made Wilder want to burst out laughing again.
“Savvy, I would go anywhere and do anything to have you say ‘I do.’ Whatever you want is fine with me.” He ducked his head as his uncle Judge started to speak.
“Okay?” he whispered.
“Yeah, okay,” she whispered back, and then Wilder tuned into his uncle, because he always heard good things when a Glover got married.