Chapter Fourteen #2
Gracie stiffened her back and wiped her cheeks on the bottom of her shirt. Her chin still quivered and her voice trembled, but she was determined not to cry anymore. “Thank you for being here.”
“Always,” Tina assured her. “Why don’t you tell me everything?”
“I didn’t expect that it would be okay, but a part of me wanted something better than I got. Daddy won’t even”—she tried to swallow down the grapefruit-sized lump in her throat—“walk me down the aisle. I’m sorry that I’m such a mess.”
Tina slipped an arm around her shoulders and mixed her tears with Gracie’s. “You don’t have to be sorry, and you know that I never could let you cry alone—not any more than you could let me.”
“Friends double joy and . . .” Gracie couldn’t finish the sentence.
“Halve the sorrow,” Tina said.
“Will you and Walker go to the courthouse with us?” Gracie asked.
“No, we will not. You are going to have a wedding. A real one,” Tina declared. “Walker will escort you down the aisle. Cleo and Mae will give you away. You can get married in the backyard.”
Gracie got a case of giggles mixed with sobs. “You know Iris will cause a scene if we do that. Can’t you just see her and Sabrina over there across the fence yelling and screaming at us?”
“We’ll have it inside the greenhouse, if you want. We could have it rebuilt in only a week or maybe two,” Tina answered. “We’ll serve special brownies instead of a cake, and rum punch. Everyone will leave happy.”
“What’s this about special brownies?” Walker pushed his way through the leaves and wiggled in between them. “Why are y’all both crying?”
“We’re planning Gracie’s wedding, and you may have to be her father,” Tina told him.
“I’m to be what?” he asked.
“Daddy says if I don’t get married in the church, he won’t walk me down the aisle. I want a wedding ceremony, but . . .” The giggles stopped and Gracie’s voice broke.
“I’d be honored to do that. Just don’t ask me to wear a pink dress and carry a bouquet,” he teased.
“How about purple? You’d look good in that color,” Tina asked.
“Honey, I look good in any color, but if I’m going to have that job, I will wear something to make Gracie proud.”
Gracie held up both palms and attempted to dry her tears. “What if Dakota’s parents make him see things through their eyes?”
“You don’t believe that for a minute,” Tina scolded. “If you did, you would have never talked to your own folks.”
Gracie pulled herself together. She was in love. She had her family supporting her. “Why should I have found the most wonderful man in the world? Do I deserve him? Can I ask him to give up his family if it comes to that? Will he resent me five years down the road?”
“Turn those questions around to ask about yourself,” Walker answered. “Evidently, Dakota thinks you are the one, or he wouldn’t be confronting his parents this evening. Does he deserve you? Can he ask you to give up your family? Will you resent him five years down the road?”
Tina leaned around Walker and met Gracie’s eyes in a direct stare. “What it all boils down to is this: Do you trust him enough to commit to him for the rest of your life, and give up everything for him? Will he do the same if it’s necessary?”
Grace thought about what they said for several minutes before she said anything. “I . . . ,” was the only word she got out before her phone rang.
She was so nervous that she fumbled the phone, and it fell on the ground and slid up under the broken limb. All three of them dived for it at the same time, crawling around in the damp earth on their knees and pushing leaves and branches back with their hands.
“I got it!” Tina finally yelled when it rang for the sixth time. She tossed it to Gracie, who saw Dakota’s picture and hurriedly touched the FaceTime button.
“Hello,” she panted.
“Hello, darlin’. Did you just run a marathon?”
“Almost, and did it on my knees,” she answered, and explained what had happened.
“We’re going to step away while you talk to him,” Tina whispered and gave her a quick hug. “Everything is going to be all right. I can tell by his expression.”
“Thank you,” Gracie said.
“For what?” Dakota asked.
Gracie hadn’t bitten her nails since she was a little girl, but she sure wanted to chew on one right then. “I was talking to Tina. She and Walker have been here with me, but they’re leaving.”
“What happened with your folks?” Dakota asked.
“They offered me their house to live in rent-free, but not with you. When I told them I was in love with you and that we are planning a wedding, Mama even took away the cookies she made special for me,” Gracie answered.
“We can live without cookies,” Dakota chuckled.
“Daddy refused to walk me down the aisle,” she said. “Now it’s your turn.”
“My folks said that they would have preferred I keep the bloodline pure, but they said the important thing was for me to be happy and at peace,” he answered.
Gracie heaved a long sigh of relief. “Does that mean . . . ?”
“Yes, they want to meet you. I thought we could come back through Tucumcari on our way home from the interviews. Would you mind getting married at the church on the reservation where they live? It could be a mix of my culture and yours—”
“No, I would not mind. That would make me very happy,” she said before he could finish, and then added, “But let’s keep it simple. Nothing huge.”
He chuckled again. “Do you know how many relatives and friends live here? We can’t leave anyone out, or feelings will be hurt. Invite your family. It will be their choice to join us or not, but it will be our day. I won’t know who is there or who isn’t. I’ll only have eyes for you.”
She almost swooned. “Are you always going to feel like that?”
“Like the old country song says about loving you forever.”
“I love you, Dakota Chatto. When are you going to propose so we can set a date?”
“I love you, too,” he said, “but I’ve got to get a ring before I can get down on one knee.”
“I don’t want an engagement ring. A plain gold band is enough, and you can put it on my finger when we get married.”
“Then the date is up to you. Let’s talk about that tomorrow on the way to the interview, but I suppose that if we get the jobs, then it better be before we move. They might frown on us living together,” he answered. “Which reminds me, am I picking you up at the house?”
The rock in her chest crumbled into dust, and her heart felt light and happy. “Yes, you are. I can hardly wait for you to meet Cleo and Mae.”
“Same here. My family is planning a get-together to meet you when we get back from the interviews.”
“I can’t believe that they aren’t putting up a fuss,” Gracie said.
“I went into the meeting with them prepared for it to go either way, but I’m glad we have one set of folks that is supportive,” Dakota told her.
“Two sets. Your biological family and my chosen one.” Gracie finally smiled. “Cleo and Mae are going to be ecstatic. They’ll only be disappointed that we are moving away from the area.”
“I’m so sorry that your folks didn’t have a good reaction,” he said with a serious expression. “I was hoping for the best.”
“Me too, but I’m glad yours are different than mine,” Gracie told him. “I miss you.”
“Me too,” he said, and blew her a kiss. “Call me before you go to sleep.”
“I promise I will.”
Tina could feel Gracie’s angst when they all gathered around the supper table that evening. If possible, she would have sent calmness across the table to her friend by osmosis.
“We’ve got news,” Cleo said after she had offered up a short prayer. “We took our kittens to the vet, and she says that my babies are boys and Mae’s are girls. Mine are named Elvis and Louie.”
“I’ve got news, too,” Gracie said. “I’ve been seeing someone.”
“We know that,” Mae said.
“How?” Gracie asked.
“Ever since you got back from your trip a week ago, you’ve either been moping around or else you are higher than the clouds.
That can only mean one thing. You are pining for a man some of the time and happy because he called you at others,” Mae answered.
“So, who is he? Where did you meet him? When is he coming around here for us to pass judgment on?”
“I told you they know everything,” Walker chuckled.
“How long have you been seeing him?” Cleo asked.
“His name is Dakota Chatto. I met him a year ago at a teachers conference. You will meet him tomorrow morning . . .” She took a deep breath and delivered the rest of the news about the interview and where it was.
Cleo laid her hand over her chest and rolled her eyes toward the ceiling. “Sweet Lord! I should take a switch to you for keeping this from us all this time.”
“Just when we have our family all back under one roof,” Mae groaned.
Tina could feel Cleo and Mae’s pain, but she pushed it aside. “But there’s more. Tell them, Gracie.”
“I’m getting married, and I’ll need your help planning the wedding.”
Cleo clasped her hands together and made an O with her mouth, but nothing came out.
“Close your mouth before a fly gets in there and you choke to death before our girl’s wedding,” Mae scolded. “We’ve been waiting for this day since you were a baby, Gracie. What do we need to do?”
Cleo finally found her voice. “I’m so happy for you. We want to help, and plan, and cook, and go shopping for a dress.”
“Chatto. That’s a Navajo name, isn’t it?” Mae frowned. “How are your parents . . . What church . . . Have you told them?”
“Dakota is Navajo, and we probably will be getting married on the reservation. My parents did not take the news well—Daddy even refused to walk me down the aisle,” Gracie answered.
Tina had never thought about her father walking her down the aisle. She’d always figured if she got married, the ceremony would take place in a Las Vegas chapel, maybe with an Elvis impersonator.
“But,” Tina filled in the moment of silence, “Walker can do that for her.”
Cleo laid her hand on Walker’s shoulder. “You are stepping up, son, to help your friend. I’m proud of you. Now, when is all this taking place? Mae and I will take care of everything. We’ll need to get a caterer and florist lined up, and go see this chapel.”
Mae raised a finger. “We have to meet Mr. Chatto first and decide if he is good enough for our Gracie. How about a Christmas wedding? That would be beautiful . . .”
Tina covered a giggle with her hand. “Think much earlier.”
“Fall?” Mae asked.
Walker shook his head. “Earlier than that. Think about next month.”
Mae laid a hand on her chest. “Oh. My. Goodness!”
“Keep it simple. Maybe a potluck for the reception. Dakota says he has a really big family. I’ll invite all my family, but I won’t hold my breath until they show up.”
Tina stood up, rounded the table, and hugged Gracie. “Of course they will be there. They might not agree with the choice you’ve made, but they love you. Your brothers and their families will come, and think of all your friends at the school and all your former students.”
Gracie nodded. “I had a nightmare that my side of the chapel was empty.”
“That was just a silly dream,” Cleo declared. “They better have a big space roped off for parking. Half the town of Benson will be there.”
Gracie finally smiled. “Y’all . . .”
Tina finished the sentence for her. “We are your chosen family.”