Chapter 17
***RYAN***
Ryan had faced a lot of difficult situations in his life, including sugared-up elementary school students, his mother in one of her moods, and even a few angry girlfriends, but nothing had prepared him for the look he got when he walked into the living room.
Reminding himself how he would feel if Paula was his daughter, he took a deep breath and promised himself that he’d be calm.
This meeting was too important to let his emotions get out of control, but he sensed that he had a fight on his hands.
“So, this is him,” Paula’s dad said, giving him a dirty look. “At least you didn’t leave Paula here to face us alone. You get some credit for that.”
“Dad…” Paula started to intervene.
“It’s okay, sweetheart, your dad has every reason to be angry,” he said, guiding her over to the couch. “Let’s sit down and talk about this. I hope I can reassure you that I only want to make your daughter happy. She means a lot to me.”
“Then why the rush? Don’t you young people like to take your time these days?” her father asked, then waved his hand in the air. “You know, live together and all that, not that I’m saying I approve of that either.”
“Well, sir, that might be okay under normal circumstances,” he said, choosing his words carefully.
“But in this case, time is important. We need to be married by the end of the year. It’s a family thing.
I wish I could give you a better explanation than that, but it’s a closely guarded secret.
Paula knows everything, though. I’m not hiding anything from her; there are no secrets between us. ”
“Just between us,” Paula’s father said. “Is that supposed to make me feel better?”
“No, sir, I guess it wouldn’t,” he said, feeling like he was losing him. “I wish I could make this easier, but I promise you, I’ll take good care of Paula. She means the world to me. There’s no one else I want in the world but her, and that is never going to change no matter how much time passes.”
“Dad, we belong together. You always told me that you knew Mom was the right one for you the first time you met,” Paula said, a wistful smile on her face. “I never thought I would be that lucky, but Ryan showed up in my life and I’ve never been happier.”
He could see the man finally beginning to soften.
“Sir, you raised an amazing woman. She’s smart and beautiful, a little stubborn sometimes, but that’s one of the things I love most about her,” he said.
“She’s not afraid to speak her mind when the occasion calls for it, and someday she’s going to be an amazing journalist because that’s what she wants to do.
I will be the luckiest man alive to be able to spend my life with her, and I will spend every day thanking the universe for bringing her to me. ”
“And what about your parents?” Paula’s father asked. “How do they feel about this marriage?”
He hesitated for a second, then realized that honesty was the best approach.
“Well, sir, they won’t be happy about it when they find out, but not for the same reasons that you have.
In my family, marriage is a business deal.
A good marriage is more about what the couples bring with them, wealth, an important family name, business contracts, things like that.
Until I met Paula, I was willing to go along with my mother’s choice, it was a battle I didn’t think about fighting, not really, but now I understand that marriage is about so much more,” he said, then reached out and took Paula’s hand in his, needing to touch her.
“I don’t want to spend my life with someone I don’t love.
I want it all, I guess, the career, the real marriage, a family that means more to me than money or status.
I’m willing to give up everything to have that.
The money means nothing to me, and I have no doubt that my mother will cut me off as soon as she finds out about Paula. ”
Paula’s father studied him for a second. “That’s a big sacrifice to make, and there might come a time when you regret it,” he said. “Where will that leave Paula?”
“Sir, I’ve never cared about the money, it causes more problems than it’s worth,” he said.
“When I chose to go into education, my mother refused to help me in any way. I found a scholarship to pay for my education and I’ve made it just fine without her money.
I have to no reason to think that will change. ”
This time it was just that intense stare that made him want to squirm, but he sat there as calmly as he could, aware that his future depended on what Paula’s father had to say next.
The silence lasted for so long, he began to think nothing that he’d said had made any difference, then Mr. Tucker began to shake his head and a smile spread across his face.
“You’ve talked me into it, son,” he finally said. “It looks like we’re planning a wedding.”
There was another short silence, then Paula jumped to her feet, ran over to her dad, and gave him a big hug.
“I’m so relieved, I was afraid you weren’t going to give us your blessing,” she said, then stepped back.
“We’re going to need your help, we only have a day to plan this wedding, and we have to do it on a tiny budget. ”
Paula’s father looked over at her mother, then back at them. “We might be able to help with that,” he said. “Your mother and I have been putting a little bit of money away for your wedding. It’s not much, but I think it should be enough to get by.”
“Thank you, sir, that’s very generous,” he said. “We don’t want anything fancy, just a few friends and family, maybe a nice meal.”
“That sounds doable,” Mr. Tucker said. “But I think you should call me Paul, we’re going to be family after all.”
***Paula***
When Hattie heard the good news, she called an emergency meeting for the next morning, and they all crowded into the kitchen at the fraternity house for breakfast and a planning session.
They chatted while they ate and it wasn’t long before Hattie and her parents were talking shop, but she was happy to see them getting along.
When everyone was fed and the kitchen put back together, they met back at the table to figure out how to pull a wedding together in just a couple of hours.
“Let’s hit the highlights to start with,” she said, consulting the list she’d made the night before. “We need a place to have the wedding, food, clothes, a cake, and maybe some decorations.”
“I think I can help with the place,” Hattie said. “I made a call to Dean Proctor, and he said we could use one of the reception rooms in the administration building for nothing. He’s going to get back to me today with the details.”
“Oh, Hattie, that’s perfect,” she said, marking it off the list. “That brings us to the food. I was thinking we could keep it simple, maybe some finger food, that kind of thing.”
“My daughter is not having finger food at her wedding,” her father said. “We’re going to have a real meal, even if I have to rent a kitchen and cook the food myself.”
“That won’t be necessary, we have a perfectly good kitchen right here,” Hattie said, then looked over at her. “I agree with your dad, Paula. Let us cook for the wedding. Between the three of us, it will be no problem.”
“I just didn’t want to make this too difficult,” she said, then looked over at her mom. “What do you think?”
“Your father is right, we need a real meal,” her mom said. “I’ll be making the cake, of course.”
“Then I’ll leave it up to you. I trust your judgement,” she said, then looked down at her list. “That leaves my dress and decorations.”
“Leave the decorations up to us,” Stephanie said. “The girls and I will see to everything.”
“Oh, that would be perfect, thank you,” she said, smiling at her new friends.
“I’ve been thinking about who is going to be in the wedding with us.
I wish I could have you all stand up there with us, but if we do, there won’t be anyone else there.
I hope no one will be insulted if I ask just Connie to stand up with me. ”
“We understand, there’s a lot of us,” Abby said, smiling at her. “We’ll all be happy to watch as long as you let us help you get ready.”
“That’s a deal,” she said, relieved. “Okay, then that just leaves my dress. The bridal shop opens in an hour, and I’m going to be their first customer of the day. Hopefully I can find something that doesn’t have to be altered.”
“That won’t be necessary. I called our neighbor last night, and she boxed up my wedding dress and sent it overnight,” her mother said. “It should be here later this morning. We just have to go over to the hotel and pick it up.”
Tears sprang to her eyes; they’d always talked about her wearing her mom’s dress, but she’d given up on the idea. “Oh, Mom, that’s wonderful, I didn’t think…” She had to stop to take a breath. “This is turning out better than I thought it would.”
“It’s going to be a wonderful wedding,” her mother said. “We wouldn’t let you and Ryan have anything else.”
“Thank you all,” Ryan said. “This means so much to both of us, this really is going to be a special day.”
For the second time in less than a week, Paula stood in front of the mirror, looking at herself, stunned by the woman looking back at her, but this time it felt much different.
She was about to marry the man of her dreams, and if there were a few doubts, she knew that was perfectly normal, especially considering how quickly they’d gone from enemies to friends, well, more than friends.
The smile on her face broadened a little more, and then thoughts of the night to come popped into her head, making her suddenly nervous.
She wasn't sure if she was ready to spend the night with Ryan.
Reminding herself that he’d promised not to push her, she let out the breath she’d been holding and brought herself back to the present. “Oh, honey, you look beautiful,” her mom said, walking up behind her. “That dress is perfect for you. I’m so glad I saved it.”
“I love it, Mom. I’m glad you saved it too,” she said, turning and giving her mom a hug. “Maybe someday I’ll have a daughter who can wear it too.”
“That would be wonderful,” her mom said, smiling at her. “I’m going to go join your father now. I’ll see you in there.”
Her mom slipped out the door, but Abby already had her attention.
“We wanted to do something special for you, a welcome to the family,” she said, then waited for the others to join her.
“Each of us contributed something for you to take in there with you, a little piece of us to remind you that we’re sisters now. ”
“We wanted to stick as close to tradition as we could, so I brought you something old,” Stephanie said, stepping forward. “I found these earrings in a little shop downtown. They’re from the late 1800s. I hope they’ll bring you good luck.”
Rose stepped forward next. “We haven’t had a chance to get to know each other yet, but I’m sure we’ll get along famously when we do,” she said, a confident smile on her face. “I’ve brought you something new, the prettiest veil to go with that gorgeous dress.”
When she unwrapped it, Paula gasped, “Oh, Rose, it’s beautiful,” she said, turning around so as to let the other woman put it on her head. “It’s a perfect match.”
“I think that brings us to something borrowed,” Maddie said, taking Rose’s place and holding up a gold chain. “This was my grandmother’s. She was a wonderful woman and the only one who ever truly loved me. I want you to wear it tonight.”
“And to complete things, we needed something blue,” Emily said, a big grin on her face as she pulled out a little box wrapped with a satin ribbon. “Every bride needs a garter under her dress, a little teaser for what comes later.”
They all laughed as Paula popped the lid off the box, sighing when she saw the silk and lace creation. “Oh, it’s beautiful. I’ll need help putting it on,” she said, almost overwhelmed by all the attention. “I don’t know what to say, I’m so grateful.”
“We just wanted the day to be special,” Abby said, holding out a bouquet of flowers. “This is the last thing you need to complete the picture and just in time, the wedding is supposed to start in a few minutes.”
She hugged her new friends, then watched them all disappear through the door, leaving just her and Connie in the room. “You look beautiful, Paula. I’m so happy for you,” she said, walking over and giving her a hug. “Are you ready?”
“I think so, this is all just so…emotional, I wasn’t expecting that,” she said, hugging Connie back. “I’m excited for this new chapter of my life, but I’m going to miss you.”
“We’ll keep in touch, I wouldn’t have it any other way,” Connie said. “Now come on, let’s go get you married.”