Music, Laughter, and Conversation

Well, I lied in my little author's note.  I got it finished after all :)  If you didn't see my note about the future plans, make sure you scroll down to catch it.  The next post will either come tomorrow or Saturday.
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"You're freaking out," Lauren observed, once Brody was inside.

"Yep," I agreed.  "Completely.  So many people...and they're all going to be watching me."

Lauren slid her arm around my waist, a rare show of affection for her, and squeezed gently.  She left her arm there and said, "On the plus side, you're the bride, so you can do pretty much whatever you want to today, and no one is going to say a word to you about it!"

I laughed.  "True. Too bad the craziest thing I'll probably do is cry through my wedding ceremony."

"Where did that come from?" Lauren asked suddenly, pointing to my bracelet.

"Where do you think?" I asked, rolling my eyes.  But I couldn't fight the smile on my face as I lifted my wrist for Lauren to take a closer look.

Lauren narrowed her eyes in much the same expression I'd made when Brody had told me he had something for me.  "I thought you guys had agreed no gifts."

"Yeah, well, he doesn't always follow directions well," I said, laughing.  "But I love it."

"He's the worst," she replied, smirking.

Just then, Lauren's phone lit up.  She looked down at it, then looked up at me.  "Ready to go in?"  I took a deep breath, nodded, and we walked inside.  I drew more than a couple looks as she and I walked past the dining room towards the narrow stairs that led up.  Once we got to the top of the stairs, I saw Leigh, who appeared to be directing traffic.  She guided me over to the side where my dad was waiting.  Lauren walked over to Alex and handed him her phone, which he slipped into his pocket.  Alex flashed me a thumbs up, which made me roll my eyes and laugh a little.

My dad was watching me, and I felt tears prick the back of my eyes when he held out his arm to me.  I could faintly hear the music, and Lynn and Jack were now disappearing into the banquet room, which meant I was next.  "Holy shit," I breathed.

"Olivia Renee," my dad scolded me, and I burst out laughing, earning a disapproving look from Leigh.

"I'm getting married, and you're concerned about my language?" I asked him.

"You'll always be my little girl," he said stoically.  "But I guess at least you don't have a mouth like Lauren."

I laughed again, clapping my hand over my mouth to muffle it.  Leigh walked over and handed me my bouquet.  "When you hear the song change, it's all you," she said with a broad smile.  "You look absolutely stunning, but don't forget to smile."

Laughing immediately before I started to walk down the aisle proved to be a positive thing.  I smiled, I didn't cry, I didn't trip.  And as soon as I saw Brody waiting for me, I did forget about everyone else.

I had never questioned wanting to see Brody and take photos before the ceremony, but I did worry that walking down the aisle towards him wouldn't be nearly as special as it could have been if we wouldn't have seen each other.  I was wrong.  He was still looking at me as though it was his first time seeing me, and it was perfect.  Halfway down, I got a little emotional and a couple tears escaped, but I managed to mostly keep it together.  When my dad handed me off to Brody, Brody paused and brushed the tears off my cheeks before taking my hand.  The simple gesture made several people in the crowd say, "Awwww," which drew my attention back to the fact that there were indeed over 50 other people in the room.  But at this point, I didn't care as much.

Our ceremony was short and simple, with just two brief readings done by Jen and Kinsley and our vows.  When it came time to exchange the rings, I felt a brief moment of panic.  I had no idea if Lauren had Brody's ring or not.  Luckily, when I turned, she handed it to me.  When I watched Brody put my wedding band on my finger, I did a double take.  I looked up at him, and he was watching me and grinning.  I looked back down, because the ring he'd just slid onto my left hand was not the plain band I'd picked out and purchased.  In fact, it looked suspiciously like the drawing Don had made of the potential custom band.  I looked back up at Brody, and mouthed, "What is this?"  He just shrugged and mouthed back, "Your ring."

"Olivia?"  I looked up, realizing that the officiant was waiting for me to repeat her words and put Brody's ring on.  I blushed, and she repeated the words that went along with the ring ceremony.  I got them out without tangling them and slid the ring onto his finger.

I barely heard the officiant tell us we could kiss, because I was entranced by her saying we're now husband and wife.  I smiled shyly at Brody and he stepped forward, tugging me towards him by my hands.  Then he slid his hands around my waist and kissed me.  Everyone clapped, but I didn't care  about them anymore.  When our kiss ended, he leaned his forehead against mine and whispered, "I love you, Olivia."

"I love you too," I replied, and he kissed me again.


We met our officiant in a smaller room down the hall from the banquet room.  We all signed the marriage license, and she congratulated us both.  As she collected the document and stepped out, Brody looked at me with concern.  "Are you okay?" he asked, not for the first time today.

I thought I was keeping it together pretty well, but I should have known that I couldn't hide it from him.  "I am," I said, smiling at him.  "Just a little overwhelmed."

"Let's take a few minutes?" he suggested.  I nodded.  He kicked the door to the room shut, then walked back over to me and hugged me.  I leaned into him, breathing in his scent.  Soap, cologne, and mountains.  The familiar scent comforted me.

There was a plush, overstuffed couch in the room, and he sat and pulled me into his lap.  I leaned down to kiss him, and he smiled against my lips.  When we broke apart, he kept his hand on my face, lightly brushing his thumb across my cheekbone.  "You're easily the most beautiful woman I've ever seen," he said softly and sincerely.

The look on his face made me melt, and I shifted so I could (carefully) lay my head on his shoulder.  "Thank you," I said.  "I love you."

"I love you too, Liv," he replied, stroking my back between my shoulder blades.  "I can't believe how wonderfully everything came together.  You did a great job."

"We did a great job," I corrected him.

He chuckled.  "Well, okay, but you did more than I did.  Especially the little details."

"You want to talk about little details?" I asked, looking at him.  "What is this?" I held up my left hand and waved it around a little.

He laughed.  "That's the ring that Don designed for you.  If you don't like it, we can't take it back, because it's a custom piece.  So you're stuck with it."

"I love it," I said, smiling while I looked at.  "But I would have been okay with the plain band.  It's not about the ring."

"I want you to have something that you love, not something that you're just okay with, even if it's not about the ring," he said, shaking his head.  Then he grinned.  "Don said he could tell you really liked the sketch, and he couldn't figure out why you didn't want it.  I knew exactly why you didn't want it, and I decided to disrespect your wishes and have him make it anyway.  Are you mad at me?"

"No," I said smiling.  "But don't make a habit out of disrespecting my wishes."

"I only did this time because it seemed like you really did like this one better," he assured me.  "I hoped it would be a nice surprise."

"It was," I said, turning my head to kiss him again.

We sat together in the small room, chatting for a couple minutes, then just silently enjoying each other's company for a few more.  Finally, I stood and said, "I'm ready when you are."

"Kiss me again, then I'm ready," he said, smiling.  I happily obliged him, hooking my arms around his neck and kissing him deeply.  "Mmm," he groaned, pulling away and then resting his forehead against mine.  "Can we just skip the reception and go back to the hotel?"

I laughed and stood, tugging on his hand.  "No way, I'm starving.  You need to feed me first."


I barely made it past dinner before I was irritated with my hair.  Even though it was cool outside, it was warm in the restaurant, and even lighter wedding dresses are heavy and hot.  The back of my neck was damp with sweat and my hair was sticking to it, leaving sticky hairspray remnants behind.  Kinsley saw me pulling at my hair and swatted at my hand.  "You're going to make all the curls fall," she scolded me.

"I want it off my neck," I said, frowning.  "Can you fix it?"

She pulled me into the bathroom and dumped the contents of her clutch on the counter.  She fished out a plastic bag full of bobby pins.  "In case of emergency," she said, grinning.  She started pinning pieces up, and within 10 minutes she had my curls all pinned loosely to my head in a cute, makeshift updo.  "Will that work?" she asked.  She held out a compact mirror and I looked at the back.

"I like it!" I said.  "Thank you."  I looked down and saw that what had been a half-full snack sized ziploc bag of bobby pins now only held a handful.  That was going to be fun to get out at the end of the night.

We left the bathroom and made it back to the banquet room, where I wandered around until I found a few people at a table that I hadn't gotten much of a chance to chat with yet.  I sat down and was there for about 15 minutes before Brody walked up.

"Dance with me?" he asked, holding his hand out to me.

I smiled and set my wine down on the table.  "Of course," I replied, standing and taking his hand.   We had split up for a little while to chat with our guests and I felt like it had been hours since I had seen him last.  He pulled me close to him on the dance floor and I sagged against him.  I was tired already; it had been a long day.  I laid my head on his shoulder and closed my eyes as we danced, enjoying the couple minutes that I could shut everyone else out and be close to my new husband.

"Are you having fun?" he asked me.

I opened my eyes and nodded.  "Are you?"

"I am," he replied.  "I'm getting tired though."

"Me too," I agreed.  "What time is it?"

I felt one of Brody's hands move from my waist, and his head moved as he looked at his watch.  "11:40," he replied.

I laughed.  "It's not even late.  I feel so old."

"Well, you are an old married woman now, so I guess it makes sense," he joked.  I shook my head, then nestled it back against Brody's shoulder, closing my eyes again.

When the song was over, we made our way to the table where Lynn, Lauren, Alex, and Jen were sitting.  We were only there for one song before James approached the table.  When we'd been making the guest list, I hadn't even mentioned James.  I figured Brody would be firmly against it.  He was the one who brought him up and we decided to invite him.  He smiled as he walked up.  Looking between me and Brody, he asked, "May I dance with the bride?"

Brody laughed and said, "If you think I have any say at all in who my wife dances with, you don't know her very well."

I rolled my eyes and smacked him playfully in the arm.  "That's enough out of you," I said, laughing.

"See?" Brody asked pointedly.

James laughed as I stood.  He held a hand out to me and I took it.  "I'll be back," I said to Brody.

"This is the easiest way to talk to you," James said, as we made our way onto the dance floor.  "You're a popular woman tonight."

"Yeah," I said, smiling.  "I guess that's what happens when you wear a long white dress to a wedding!"

James chuckled.  "Well, congratulations.  I can't believe how happy you look.  Beautiful too, of course.  Can I say that?  Your husband isn't going to break my face for saying that, right?"

"Not unless I tell him to," I said, smiling sweetly at him.  He laughed and shook his head.

"Where are you guys going for your honeymoon?" he asked.

I shrugged.  "I actually have no idea," I said.  "All I know is we're leaving Monday and we're gone for 12 days.  And that it's tropical."

"Well, I'm sure it won't disappoint."

"I'd be shocked if it did," I answered.  "So, no Haley?"

James snorted.  "No.  No Haley," he confirmed.  "That was over before we even made it back into town after camping.  Some day I'll find someone who isn't crazy and won't leave me abruptly for their future husband.  Maybe."

I laughed.  "Maybe," I agreed.

When the song was over, James walked with me back to the table we'd left, and sat down next to Lynn.  I sat in the chair next to Brody, and he took his eyes off Jen to smile at me.  He slid his arm around my shoulders and I leaned into him, trying to figure out what he and Jen had been talking about.  She was telling a story and I had clearly missed the important information, so I just relaxed against Brody and listened quietly to the sounds around me.  Music, laughter, and conversation were coming from all directions, and it made me smile.  That was exactly what I had wanted our wedding day to be like.

Just You and Me

I had barely knocked on the door when Lynn threw it open and shrieked.  "It's about time!  I'm so excited!"

"Where have you been?" Lauren asked, frowning at me.

"Having breakfast with my soon-to-be-husband, Mother," I replied, rolling my eyes.

"Speaking of your mother, she came here looking for you about 20 minutes ago," Lynn said.  "You should call her and let her know you're here."   I fished my phone out of my purse and did exactly that.  While I was on the phone, someone knocked at the door.  It was the stylists that were coming to do our hair and makeup, and I was pleased that we had decided to spend the extra to have them come here.  I didn't really feel like trekking out anywhere right now.  I let my mom know that I was here and she said she'd be around in a little while.  I also sent a text to Jen, who texted back immediately that she and Thalia would be there in a few minutes.  I'd invited them both to get ready with us and they had happily agreed.

Erin, the stylist that would be doing my hair, directed me to a chair and got started on my hair.  Everyone else was getting their makeup done as well, but I'd be doing my own.  I never liked it when I got it done, and it was one thing I could have full control over today, which eased my nerves slightly.  I showed Erin the picture of what I wanted for my hair, and she seemed a little disappointed that I wanted something so simple.  But it fit my requirements: down, out of my face, and would work perfectly with the beautiful jeweled combs my mom had given me.  When it came to my hair, my usual style was relatively simple, and I didn't want to do anything too drastically different.  Erin quickly hid her disappointment and got to work curling my hair.  

Jen, Thalia, and my mom all arrived shortly after, and we all sat around chatting while Lauren and I got our hair done.  Lynn and my mom would be next, then Jen and Thalia.  While Erin was working on getting my curls just right, there was another knock at the door.  I gave Lynn a weird look, because she was the only person in my current line of sight, and Jen jumped up to answer the door.

"Ken?" I heard her say.  "What's this?"

"Special delivery courtesy of the groom," came Ken's voice.  Jen laughed, and my mom got up and walked over to the door as well.

"Whatever it is, thank you, Ken!" I called.  "I can't move my head or I'd come say hi."

"You're welcome, Olivia," he called back.  "I won't interrupt, I'm just the errand boy.  Enjoy your day!"

I thanked him again and then saw what Jen and my mom were carrying in.  Several to-go cups from the nearby coffee shop, a bottle of champagne, plastic champagne flutes, and orange juice.  Jen handed me an envelope, grinning.  "Did you know about this?" I asked her.

"Yes," she replied.  "Someone had to make sure all the coffee orders were right!"

I laughed as Lauren said, "You guys are already thinking alike."  I had sent a bottle of nice Scotch with Alex for him to give to Brody for them to enjoy.

I carefully took the cup Jen offered me.  "Large dirty chai for you," she said.  She handed out the rest of the coffee as I sipped mine, then set it to the side and opened the envelope.

Inside was a card, and on the inside of the card, in Brody's crooked, boyish handwriting, was written, "I figured you could all use some caffeine to get you through your marathon of getting even more beautiful than you already are.  Then I thought that the caffeine might make you even more jittery than you probably already are, so I threw in some champagne to help you with that.  I've been looking forward to this day since I first met you, and I can't wait to see you.  I'm sure you'll be even more beautiful than I can imagine, and I'm already the luckiest man in the world.  I love you."  

I bit my lip, this time a little overwhelmed by his thoughtfulness.  Lynn said, "If you're going to cry, do it now before you have makeup on!"

"Like that will stop her from doing it later," Lauren quipped.

"Shut up!" I said, laughing.  At least laughing stopped me from crying.  The rest of the morning and early afternoon passed quickly, and it wasn't long before my mom was handing me a sandwich and insisting that I eat something.  I did as she asked, chewing mechanically, barely tasting anything.  We opened the champagne and drank mimosas with our lunch.  The champagne did little to calm my nerves, which were now in full force.  I was looking forward to seeing Brody in a couple hours when we did our first look, because I knew seeing him would help a little.

When it was time to put on my dress, shoes, and jewelry, I got oddly calm.  That lasted all the way until my dad knocked and came into the room.  When he saw me, his face lit up, but then he blinked hard a couple times.  "Don't you dare," I warned him, feeling my own emotion bubbling up in my throat.  "I just finished my makeup and I have to go take pictures."  Lauren, Lynn, Thalia, and Jen excused themselves, leaving just me, my mom, and my dad in the room.

"Sweetheart, you look beautiful," my dad said, smiling at me, his face filled with emotion.

"Thank you," I said shyly.  "I feel...nervous."

"You don't look it," my mom said helpfully.  I smiled gratefully at her.  My dad pulled me into a careful hug, conscious of my hair and makeup.  "Here," my mom said, handing me a champagne flute.  "Finish it up."  I laughed.  I knew I could count on her to not be too sappy.  She was just like me--a hopeless romantic failure.  I sipped the delicious champagne as my mom and dad chatted for a couple minutes, then when Lauren texted me that the coast was clear and Brody was where we were meeting for our first look, we walked to the elevator.

Much to our photographer's disappointment, we didn't want him in the room for our "first look".  We wanted the time together to be intimate and without an audience.  The hotel had allowed us to use one of their smaller conference rooms that wasn't being used for another event, so it could be completely private, but so we could still check out of our rooms.  One of the hotel staff directed me to the right room while my parents joined Lauren and Lynn, who were waiting in the lobby.

I pushed the door open, and Brody--who had been looking out the window--turned as I came in.  I wish I could describe the look on his face, but I think the most obvious indication of his feelings was that he had absolutely nothing to say for several seconds.  He just stared at me.  "Hi," I said softly, feeling a little self-conscious.

"Liv," he replied, closing the space between us with three steps.  "You're absolutely gorgeous."  He placed his hands on my upper arms, holding me at arm's length while his eyes traveled up and down.  He reached out and gently touched my necklace--the one his mom had given me.  "Wow."

"You look pretty damn good yourself," I replied, laying on my hands on the lapels of his jacket and smoothing invisible wrinkles away.  I bit my lip, trying not to get emotional.  "Thanks for the coffee and the champagne," I said to distract myself.

"You're welcome," he said, pulling me closer  "And thank you for the Scotch."  He kept his hands on my arms but leaned down and kissed me softly.  "Can I hug you?  Or will I ruin your hair and makeup and dress and day and life?"  I laughed and hugged him, feeling much calmer.  He hugged me back carefully.  "I have to admit I was little nervous," he said, his arms still around me.

"About what?"

"I was nervous you wouldn't look like you," he said.  "I always see people's wedding photos, and I think, 'Nope, that's not you.'  It's weird when people don't look like themselves on their wedding day.  You look like you, and you look beautiful."  He very gently touched a curl of hair, then grinned and said, "I have something for you."

I narrowed my eyes.  "We weren't going to do gifts," I protested.

"It's not a gift," he replied.  "It's something you need.  And anyway, what do you call that expensive Scotch you supplied us with?"  He had me there, and I shrugged.  He turned and grabbed a small flat wrapped box from the table behind him.  I hadn't even noticed it.  He handed it to me and I carefully removed the ribbon and the paper, then opened the box.

I gasped as the gorgeous diamond and pearl bracelet was revealed.  "Brody..." I said softly.

"You have a necklace and earrings, I didn't want your wrists to feel left out," he said, smiling at me.  He lifted the bracelet--which coordinated amazingly well with the jewelry his mom had given me--out of the box and then gently took the box from my hand.  I held out my right wrist and let him clasp the bracelet around it.

"It's beautiful," I murmured, turning my hand this way and that so the diamonds caught the light and the slightly iridescent pearls shimmered.  I raised my eyes to his.  He was watching me, a small smile tugging at the corners of his lips.  "Thank you," I said, stepping towards him and reaching for his hands.  I tugged him closer and kissed him.

"You're welcome," he replied, his lips moving against mine.

We took a couple more minutes to ourselves, then emerged from our little room into the world.  We had picked out a pretty park to take some pre-wedding family and wedding party photos at, and we all got in vehicles to go there.  We had a shuttle running from the hotel to the wedding venue, and everyone else would head back there after pictures to get the shuttle, while Brody drove the two of us there.

By the time we were almost finished taking photos, I was starting to get crabby.  It was a combination of nerves and just being over being told to smile and look this way and sit like that.  Brody, picking up on my crabbiness, asked the photographer for a break.  He focused on taking some pictures of our small wedding party, my parents, and Brody's family.  Brody, meanwhile, was making stupid faces at me behind the photographer's back.  He soon had me cracking up, and our photographer managed to snap a few quick, candid pictures of me laughing my ass off and Brody making ridiculous faces at me.  Those are probably getting framed.

Before I knew it, it was time to head towards the venue.  The photographer was following us there because there were a few pictures we wanted to take in a spot closer to the venue.  We got there just in time to get the sunset pictures that I wanted, then headed to the restaurant.  I jiggled my leg nervously as we drove until Brody reached across the center console and laid his hand gently on top of it.

Lauren was waiting outside the restaurant when we got there, and she walked up to the car. "I'm supposed to wait with you, Liv," she said.  "And you," she looked at Brody, "Are supposed to go inside right away."

Brody must have seen the anxiousness in my eyes at that, because he squeezed my leg reassuringly.  We both got out and I walked around to his side of the car and let him pull me into a tight hug.  "I can't wait to marry you," he said, smiling at me.  I smiled back.  He laid his hands lightly on either side of my face, just like he had that morning.  "Don't be nervous," he said softly.  "Just you and me, remember?"  I nodded and closed my eyes as he kissed my forehead, then pressed his lips to mine.  "See you soon," he said, grinning at me. "I love you."

"I love you too," I replied.  I took a deep breath and watched him walk toward the restaurant.

Tomorrow's Going to Hurt

Brody made it home shortly after I went to bed around 11:30.  I was still awake, and I rolled over and said hi to him.  He jumped a little, not expecting me to be awake.  "Hi," he said softly.  "Did I wake you up?"

"No, I wasn't asleep yet, I just went to bed," I assured him.  I reached over and flipped on the lamp next to the bed so he could see.  He changed quickly, went into the bathroom to brush his teeth, and was in bed with me in 5 minutes.

"You don't have to tell me where we're going," I said, "But can you tell me how to pack?  For real, not 'as little as possible.'"

He chuckled and kissed my shoulder.  "Pack like you packed for Mexico," he said.

"Thank you, I can handle that."  We chatted for a few more minutes, then our conversation dropped off as we both got sleepy.

Brody was, once again, gone when I woke up.  That was the pattern for the rest of the week, as well.  With my mom's help, we finished up all the last minute tasks we could do from afar by lunch on Wednesday.  My parents declined the opportunity to ride with me to the airport to pick up Jen, electing instead to hang out on the deck, which they both loved.

I pulled up outside the airport and spotted Jen right away.  I got out and waved, and she ran over, pulling her suitcase behind her.  "Hi, almost-sister-in-law!" she squealed, letting go of her suitcase to throw her arms around me.  "Thank you so much for coming to get me!"

"Hi!" I greeted her cheerfully.  "And it's no problem at all."  We got her suitcase into my car and took off towards home.  We chatted excitedly the whole way.  I really wish that Jen lived closer, because I adored her.

"So, am I going to get to see my brother at all before Friday?" she asked as we got closer to home.

I snorted.  "I wouldn't count on it," I informed her.  "He's been getting home between 11 and midnight and is gone before I get up in the morning.  He's trying to get as much done as possible before Friday."

"I had a feeling that would be the case," she admitted.  "Oh well, I'd rather hang out with you anyway!"  I laughed and we continued talking until I pulled in the driveway.  I showed Jen to her room and then took her out on the deck to say hi to my parents.  Just like Brody, Jen could talk to anyone, and easily engaged in conversation with my parents, even though she'd only met then once at our surprise engagement party.

My dad grilled pork chops and we ate on the lower level of the deck and hung out with glasses of wine until long after it got dark.  Jen helped me clean up and do the dishes, then went to bed, pleading exhaustion after a long day.  My parents followed shortly after, and I decided to also go to bed.

I was brushing my teeth when I heard the garage door opening.  By the time I was out of the bathroom, Brody was in our room, taking off his tie.  "My sister make it?" he asked.

"She did.  She went to bed about 45 minutes ago."

He frowned.  "I came home a little earlier hoping I'd catch her before she went to bed.  That sucks."

"I'm sure I could cheer you up if you wanted," I said, cocking an eyebrow suggestively at him.

He smiled sadly.  "I love your brand of cheering up, but I am just exhausted," he said.  "I'm sorry."

"Don't be sorry," I said.  I smiled as I closed the distance between us and stood on my tiptoes to kiss him.  "I understand completely."

I got in bed while Brody finished getting ready for bed.  He came out of the bathroom, turned off the light, and got into bed, snuggling up to me.  "I changed my mind," he said, kissing the back of my neck.  We had the laziest sex possible, then both fell asleep almost immediately after.

I woke up fairly early the next morning and heard voices downstairs.  I made my way down there and found my parents, Brody, and Jen sitting at the kitchen table, eating breakfast.  "You guys are loud," I complained grumpily.

"Have some coffee, honey," my mom and Brody said simultaneously.  The table erupted in laughter at this while I rolled my eyes and walked over to the Keurig.

"There's a Cafe Vanilla in there waiting for you," Brody said, turning to watch me.

"You are way too nice to her," my mom informed him.

"You know, Brody, I think we should have made my parents stay in a hotel after all," I grumbled as I grabbed the clean mug sitting next to the Keurig.

"Too late for that," he said.  He was next to me, putting his plate in the sink.  "I'll wash these tonight," he said.

"I'll get them," my mom replied.  "Don't you worry about that."

"Thanks, Karen," he said, grinning at her.  He slid an arm around my waist and kissed my cheek.  "I've got to go, baby.  I'll probably beat you home tonight, if Jen has her way."  I heard Jen giggle from behind me.

"Okay," I replied, still not fully awake.

"Have fun tonight, I love you," he said.

"I love you, too," I replied.  I turned my head so he could kiss me and Jen said, "awwwwww" from the table.

"Can it, little sister," Brody said.  He stopped to ruffle her hair like she was a little kid and she shrieked angrily at him.  He laughed, said goodbye to my parents, and headed out.

Once I was fed, caffeinated, and awake, I took my parents on a brief tour of some of town.  We were meeting Lynn and her parents for lunch after their flight, and in the meantime, I showed them around a bit.  My parents had never been to Denver, and I made them promise to come back sometime when I wasn't getting married in a matter of days so they could be proper tourists.

I was so excited to see Lynn when we met at 1 that I absolutely shrieked and hugged her on the sidewalk like an over-excited child.  "I am so excited you're here!" I yelped, my arms still around her.

"I'm so excited I'm here!" she replied.  When we finally pulled away from each other, I hugged her parents in turn as Lynn hugged mine.  Then I ushered everyone inside because I was starving.  Breakfast was really early, and it was past my normal lunchtime.

The restaurant employees probably hated us, because thanks to Lynn and I, we were the most obnoxious table in the restaurant.  After lunch, I asked Lynn if she wanted to come home with me for the afternoon before we went out.  She happily agreed, and I followed them to their hotel so she could get a change of clothes.

My parents let her sit in the front seat so had more room for her legs, which she still (and maybe never would be able to) couldn't keep bent for long periods of time without pain.  We chatted excitedly the entire way home, while my parents laughed at us from the back seat.

When we got home, Jen greeted Lynn like an old friend and we grabbed a bottle of wine and went out onto the deck.  This was something we'd been doing every day this week and I was happy to soak up the warm sun for as long as possible before winter happened.

Jen wanted us to go out tonight, and had roped Kinsley, Kendra, and Lauren into joining us too.  We were meeting for dinner and then having a few drinks.  Meanwhile, my parents, Lynn's parents, and Lauren's mom were doing the same thing, somewhere else.  Brody had taken my car to work today and left his 4Runner so we had a little more space in the car, since Jen had offered to drive us and my parents into town.

So, while Jen nursed her single glass of wine, Lynn and I quickly finished the rest of the bottle and opened another.  By the time we needed to leave for dinner, I was reasonably drunk, which was hilarious to Lynn.  Probably because she wasn't much better off than I was.

We managed to change and Jen and Lynn admired my expertly applied liquid liner.  "It's impressive for a sober person, and unbelievable for a drunk person," Jen said, ushering us towards the door.

"I'm not drunk," I protested.  Jen and Lynn exchanged looks and burst into laughter.  "Okay, well I'm not a lot drunk," I amended.

"You're the drunkest person in this house," my very not-drunk father informed me.  They were waiting by the door, watching Jen try to gently herd us in that direction.

"And I'm done for the night, because the last thing I need is to get myself hurt," Lynn said.  Accident aside, Lynn had a terrible track record for injuring herself while drinking.  In college she'd actually broken her ankle stepping off a curb funny very late one Saturday night.

"Yeah, we all need to be able to walk on Saturday," I replied.

"And right now we need to move out the door," Jen said.  "Go.  We have reservations."

So out the door we went, finally.  We were only 10 minutes late, which was pretty impressive with how slowly we were moving before we left.  Dinner helped me become more reasonable, but the night quickly got out of hand after that.

"This is like a sort-of bachelorette party," I declared drunkenly as we left one bar that was way too crowded and moved to the next.

"It is now that you're drunk and fun," Lauren joked.

I stopped walking, trying to decide if I wanted to be offended or not.  "It's okay that you think I'm boring," I said finally, starting to walk again.  "I'm okay with that."

Lauren looked at me strangely and Kinsley, who was also pretty drunk, said, "What the fuck are you even talking about?  Did Lauren call you boring?"

Lynn quickly steered the conversation into more neutral territory, and to be honest my memories for the rest of that part of the night are a little patchy.  I do remember that everyone was facilitating my excessive drinking.  I constantly had a drink in my hand, and half the time I didn't even know where they came from.  My glass would be empty, and one of them would pluck it from my hands and replace it with a full one.

Eventually we had to leave and pick up my parents.  I slept through the entire ride home.  "Liv, you have to get up and go to bed," Jen said when we parked.  I felt her gently shaking my shoulder.  "Come on, Liv."

I groaned and turned my head.  I was comfortable.  "I'll sleep here," I slurred.

"Brody will kill me if I let you sleep here.  You should come in and drink some water."

"Jesus, what did you do to her?" Brody's voice sounded really far away as he joined Jen in the garage.  "I've never seen her this drunk."

"Don't look at me," Jen replied, holding her hands up.

"Come on, Liv," Brody said gently.  "Up.  I am not carrying you."  I opened my eyes, glared at him, and then sat up.  Everything spun as I sat up and I groaned.  Brody helped me out of the car and into the house, then sat me down at the kitchen table.  He brought me a glass of water and sat down across from me.

"I want to go to bed," I said.

"You'll thank me tomorrow if you drink that water first," he replied.  I drank half the glass of water, then decided I was hungry.  Brody made me a sandwich, which I ate happily.  Things weren't spinning any longer, though my head was still fuzzy.

"I can't feel my lips," I said, poking at my bottom lip.

Brody laughed and shook his head.  "You are ridiculous when you're really drunk, do you know that?"  I narrowed my eyes, then quickly popped them open all the way because doing that made me dizzy.  Brody laughed again at my expression.

"Fine, you just sit there and laugh.  That's fine.  I'll just eat my sandwich and go to bed."

"That would be great," he said.

By the time my sandwich and water were gone, I was at least able to walk up the stairs without Brody's help, which was an improvement from when we left the bar and Jen had to basically shove me into the car.

Brody sat on the bed while I washed my face and brushed my teeth, talking to me.  "You know, you're a pretty tame drunk," he commented.  "You didn't yell, or cry, or do anything really stupid."

"How do you know I didn't do anything stupid while we were out?" I mumbled around my toothbrush.

"Because Jen texted me that you're the weirdest drunk ever.  She said you just got really cheerful and happy about everything, then got super quiet as you went past the point of reasonably drunk."

"I talk a lot when I'm drunk," I replied after I spit out my mouthful of toothpaste.  I walked out of the bathroom, tugged my shift dress over my head and dropped it on the floor, and got into bed.  "But I don't get drunk much and I already regret it."

"Why?" Brody asked, switching off the light.

"Because tomorrow's going to hurt," I answered, right before I fell asleep.

4th of July

The next morning found my family (plus Brody) falling easily into the 4th of July routine that we'd had for so many years.  My mom, an early riser, got up early and went to the local parade route to find us a spot.  I slept in, because I was useless and crabby in the morning and everyone had a better day if I slept a little longer.  When I got up, Brody was already up and helping my dad get some snacks and drinks into a cooler.

I busied myself getting chairs together for us and loading them into my dad's car.  Brody came out in time to help me shove the last one in.  "So this parade is a big deal, huh?" he asked.

"It's a huge deal," I replied with a laugh.  "It's probably the biggest event of the year here."  Brody smirked, and started to say something, but I silenced him by kissing him.  "You should just keep that thought to yourself," I advised him.  "Don't want to piss off the locals."

"Definitely don't want to do that," he agreed, chuckling.  "Here, watch out."  He nudged my fingers away from the trunk of the car and shut it firmly.

We followed my mom's texted directions and found her along the parade route easily.  We set down the cooler and chairs and I pulled a bottle of hard cider out of the cooler.  "4th of July parades...the best excuse for day drinking that exists!" I said in response to Brody's raised eyebrow.

"So what time does this parade start?" Brody asked.

I pulled out my phone and checked the time.  "About 45 minutes," I replied.

Brody gave me a weird look.  "You guys really are serious about your parades."  I laughed.

"That's why we drink," I responded, reaching in the cooler and handing him a beer.  About halfway through the parade, we got up to wander down the street to find a local business that would let us use the bathroom.  After we found one, we headed back but only made it half a block before I heard someone call my name.  I paused and looked around.  It took a moment, but John made his way through the people and appeared in front of us.

"Hi," he said.  He looked at Brody and nodded.  Brody nodded back.  Such men.

"Hi, John," I replied.  We stood there awkwardly for a second before he went for a delayed, awkward hug.  I hugged him back and then asked, "How are you?"

"Good," he replied smoothly, quickly recovering his charm.  "You look good."  He looked from me to Brody, then back to me, and said, "I heard you guys are getting married soon.  Really soon."

"Good news travels fast," I said with a nervous laugh.  "Yeah, October 3rd."

He nodded.  "Cool.  Well, it was good to see you."  He looked at Brody and added, "You too."

"Yeah," Brody replied.  "Good to see you."

John lifted a hand in a half-hearted wave and then walked away.  "Well," I said, once we were on our way back to where my parents were sitting, "that was weird."

"Yeah, it was," Brody agreed.

We made it back to our spots and relaxed for the rest of the parade.  We went straight from the parade to the spot we'd arranged to meet Ken for lunch, taking my mom's car again.  I grew nervous as we parked and walked towards the restaurant.  Brody could tell, and he slipped an arm around my shoulders and said, "Don't worry.  If he's anything but perfectly well-behaved, we'll leave.  If you're uncomfortable, we'll leave.  I think it will be okay, though."

I nodded and smiled, trying to relax a little.  We were a little early, and Brody's phone rang as we waited outside.  He pulled out it, reaching to silence it, but then frowned.  "It's my mom," he said.  He held up a finger and I nodded.  "Hi, Mom."  He chatted for a few minutes, but I wasn't able to figure out what they were talking about.  When he hung up, he smiled.  "She just wanted to say she was sorry she couldn't come to our party, but that she's looking forward to meeting your parents at some point."

"Did she say why she couldn't come?" I asked curiously.

Brody shook his head.  "No, she didn't, but I'm guessing she just didn't want to travel.  She did so much of it when she married to my dad, she tries to avoid it if she can now."

"That makes sense."

Then he grinned.  "I also think that she's been spending a lot of time with the mysterious man she's been seeing.  I hope so.  I want her to be happy."

Before I could respond, someone spoke behind me.  "I have to admit, I was a little worried you guys wouldn't show up."  I jumped and spun around, startled because I hadn't heard Ken approaching from behind us.

"Sorry," he said, grinning sheepishly.  "I didn't mean to scare you."

"It's okay," I replied.  "I'm jumpy sometimes."  I regarded him carefully.  I could see the similarity to Brody in his features, but Ken looked much more like their father than Brody did.

Brody put a hand lightly on my lower back.  "Should we go in?" he asked.  Ken nodded.  Brody motioned to me to go first, and they followed me in.  We were seated quickly.

Once we'd placed our orders, Ken looked at Brody, then me.  "So, I should start with an apology.  I owe one to both of you, but especially you, Olivia."  He looked at me, and I nodded.  He sure did.  "The way I acted at Thanksgiving was completely inappropriate and out of line.  I'm sorry.  And I don't expect you to accept that apology, nor do I really even want you to.  You don't know me, and my apology should mean nothing to you.  But I intend to show you."  I nodded again, not sure what to say.

He turned to Brody, and the two of them regarded each other for several seconds before Ken spoke again.  "I feel like you and I have a lot of things to talk about, and this probably isn't the time or place.  But I'd like to be back in your life."  Brody nodded.  We both were apparently perfectly content to let Ken do most of the talking today.  "Actually, I want to be back in everyone's lives.  I'm moving to Denver.  Well, to Boulder, actually.  My job offered me an opportunity to transfer, and I'm taking it."

"Wow," Brody said.  He sounded uncertain, but he was smiling.  "That's...that's really great, Ken.  It'll be nice having you around.  At least, as long as you keep your shit together and you're nice to my future wife."

Ken laughed.  "I plan to do both," he assured Brody.  "But I don't expect you to take my word for it."

The rest of lunch was uneventful.  I invited Ken back to my parents' house for their cookout, but his flight left in a few hours so he was heading back to his hotel and getting ready to go.  We thanked him for flying in for our party and then he was on his way.

"That was kind of weird," I said, after we were back in my mom's car and on our way back to my parents' house.

"It was definitely unexpected," Brody agreed.  "It seems like he wants things to be different."  Brody didn't sound convinced and I didn't blame him.  This would definitely be an interesting situation to watch play out.  I had to admit that I was relieved Brody wasn't jumping right back on board with Ken.  I was willing to give him a chance, but I was still wary.

We got to my parents' house in time to help them do the last minute setting up, and then sit down and relax for a little bit.  I curled up next to Brody on my parents' outdoor glider/rocker bench and took a sip of my mom's "famous" (at least amongst 4th of July cookout attendees!) sangria.  I handed the glass to Brody to try, and he took a sip and wrinkled his nose, which made me laugh.  "Too sweet," he said, shaking his head and handing the glass back.

"More for me!" I said cheerfully.  "This hasn't exactly been the most relaxing weekend, has it?"

"No," he agreed.  "But I think it's been good.  It's certainly been interesting!"  We stayed parked there until guests started arriving.  I got up to help my parents with food but they shooed me back to the party, saying I should spend time with my friends and family since I didn't get home very often.  Jen, Jack, and Alyssa all came, as well as Lauren and Alex, and I watched them mingle with my friends and family happily.  Jen and Amy especially seemed to really hit it off.

Lynn made her way slowly over to where Brody and I were standing with Jen, Jack, Alyssa, Amy, Lauren, and Alex, and said, "I feel like I've spent so much time with you but haven't really gotten to talk to you."

"I know," I agreed, frowning.

Her face lit up and I cocked an eyebrow, waiting for her to tell me what she was so excited about.  "I talked to my doctor after we talked about your wedding date, and she said we'd make some goals around getting me out there."

I grinned and hugged her.  "That's so awesome!" I replied excitedly.  "You should probably tell her you're going to need to be able to walk down the aisle, because I'm expecting you to be a bridesmaid."

"I'd be really terribly offended if I wasn't," she retorted.  "Plan on me walking down and standing for the ceremony."

"I'll plan on a short ceremony," I teased her.

She glared at me in mock anger, and then laughed.  "That's probably a good plan."

"What are you guys talking about?" Lauren asked, walking over.

"About the wedding you're going to be in in October," I replied.

"Oh," she replied.  "Wait, that I'm going to be in?  Did you just ask me to be a bridesmaid?"

I laughed.  "Yes, that's what I was going for."

"Well I'm glad you haven't completely lost your mind," she said.  "Who else?"

"I think just you two," I answered. "It's such a small wedding, you guys are the only people that I really want."

"Well, I'm just glad you didn't do something dumb to ask us, like make us cakes that say 'Will you be my bridesmaid?'"

"Not all of those things are dumb!" Lynn protested.  "I've seen some cute stuff.  But I'm also glad, because I don't want to eat any cakes that Liv baked."

"Hey!" I exclaimed.

Lauren and Lynn both laughed.  "No, she's right," Lauren agreed.  "You're a great cook, and you do cookies well, but you should stay away from other baked goods.  Baking is not your strength."  I pouted briefly until I realized that they were absolutely right.

My parents' house has the advantage of being within viewing distance of a couple different fireworks displays.  It was always so nice to not have to go anywhere at the end of the night.  It was a big part of the reason my parents did this every year.  Of course, it wasn't quite the same as being directly under them, but it was worth avoiding the crowds and the parking disasters that went along with going to the fireworks spots.

We ended the evening all piled onto two blankets on the lawn, looking around at the various fireworks being shot off.  When we planned this trip, I hadn't planned on being engaged or in the process of planning a wedding that was happening in three months (minus a day now, yikes), but I couldn't think of a better way to celebrate our engagement than with family and friends on one of my favorite holidays.

Surprise!

Thank you guys again for your patience and kind comments this past week.  Also, a reader just pointed out to me that today is my one year blogiversary!  I'm surprised, it snuck up on me.  In honor of that, I will do my damnedest to get you guys some bonus posts this week to thank you for your loyal readership and making a year of Olivia's story possible!  I'd love to post every day this week but it's not practical.  I will post as much as I can, though!  Most of the posts will probably come more towards the end of the week/next weekend.  Thank you all so much for reading, commenting, and helping me keep this story going!
____________________________________   

After we paid for the dress and made arrangements to have it shipped out to me in Denver, because that seemed easiest, I hugged Amy and Lynn, promising to see them tomorrow, and my mom and I headed home.  Brody and my dad were still gone when we got there.

I was exhausted after the long day of trying on dress after dress.  I took a quick shower, because I was sweaty and gross after all the hot, heavy dresses, then laid down to take a quick nap.  Who knows how long after, I woke up to someone pushing the hair out of my face and rubbing my arm.  I rolled over and blinked sleepily, completely disoriented.  Hell of a nap.

"Good morning, beautiful."  Brody's voice.  I sighed and rolled back onto my side; I wanted to go back to sleep.  "Or, evening, rather."  He squeezed my arm and leaned down, kissing my forehead.  "Come on, your parents sent me in to wake you up.  They want to take us out to dinner."

I yawned and stretched, then curled into a ball.  "Not hungry," I replied.  Brody laughed and climbed carefully over my body, settling himself in bed with me.  It was relatively dark in the room, and when I squinted at the clock, I realized I had been sleeping for almost 3 hours.  No wonder I was having such a hard time waking up.  Brody wrapped an arm around me and I snuggled back against him, letting my eyelids droop shut again.

He stroked my arm gently, his fingertips running from my elbow to wrist, then wrist to elbow, over and over.  "I heard you found a dress," he said softly.  I nodded.  "I had a feeling you might.  Do you love it as much as your mom does?"

"I do," I answered.  "I can't wait for you to see it."

"Luckily for both of us, we won't have to wait too long."

I nodded again, slowly waking up.  "How was kayaking?"

"It was fun," he replied.  "I'm glad we went."

I smiled to myself.  "I am too.  Thanks for hanging out with my dad."

Brody threaded his fingers through mine and said, "He's a pretty cool guy."  I smiled again.

We laid there for awhile longer until I was finally awake enough to get up.  My hair was a disaster from my nap and I fought with it for about 10 minutes before I just threw it up in a high, messy bun.  I changed into a light summer sundress and decided to have some fun with my makeup.  I smoothed my favorite BB cream over my skin, used just a hint of a coral cheek stain, and set it with a light dusting of a perfecting finishing powder.  Then I pulled out my eye makeup.  I did a subtle smoky eye with a variety of matte gray shadows, then lined my top lash line with a navy blue liquid liner, and the bottom with a sparkly teal shadow.  Two coats of mascara finished it off.

"You look beautiful," Brody said when I walked back into my room from the bathroom.  He was rolling up the sleeves on his casual button down and I walked over to help.  He let me take over, and I felt his eyes traveling my body.  "It's not fair for you to look so good when there's nothing I can do about it."

I smirked up at him.  "Just imagine how much fun we'll have when we get home then," I replied, before I turned and walked out, knowing his eyes were following me right out the door.

When we got out to the living room, only my dad was there.  "Your mom went ahead to try to get a table," he explained.  I gave him a weird look.  That didn't make any sense.  We could have just called.  "Brody and I had a great time kayaking today," he continued, as the three of us walked out the door.  "I hear you had a successful day dress shopping, too."

"We did," I agreed.  I tried to sit in the backseat so Brody could be comfortable in the front, but he insisted on me sitting in the front.  We drove into Madison and parked near one of my favorite restaurants.

"Mom texted that she got a table," my dad said as we walked inside. "She said she's towards the back."  We wove our way through, looking around for her, but didn't see her anywhere.  "Maybe she's downstairs," he said.

"She's not downstairs," I replied, shaking my head.  "The only thing down there is their private party room."

"Well, I think we should check," he insisted.  I started to argue, but he started down the stairs anyway, leaving us now choice but to follow.

When we got downstairs, I continued to argue with him as he headed towards the door to the private party room.  "You can't just go in there!" I said.  "What if there's a party in there?"

"There is," he replied.  I looked at him in confusion, but when he swung the door open, my mouth dropped open.  There certainly was a party in there.  The room was full of my family and friends, plus Jack, his girlfriend, and Jen.

"Holy shit!" I exclaimed, looking around.  Next to me, Brody looked just as surprised.

Amy came skittering out of the crowd and hugged me, with Lynn following behind her.  "It's a surprise engagement party!" she said excitedly.

"I see that," I replied, still in awe.  I turned to Brody.  "Did you know about this?"  He shook his head, then squeezed my hand before walking over to Jack, Alyssa, and Jen.  Lauren and Alex appeared and my eyes widened.  "What are you doing here?" I squealed, throwing my arms around Lauren.  She hugged me back quickly and then disentangled herself.

"Get a grip," she said, shaking her head.  Then she laughed.  "When your mom called, we changed our plane tickets so we could be here to help surprise you."  She shrugged, like it had been the easiest thing ever.  We'd only been engaged for two weeks, I was completely overwhelmed by all the people that had made last minute plans--including buying plane tickets!--to be here for this.

"We helped your mom get a hold of Jack and Jen, because she didn't want it to only be your friends and family," Alex chimed in, hugging me.  "And Jen got a hold of Ken."

"Whoa, what?" I asked.  "Is he here?"  I looked around, but there were too many people in the room.

"Yeah, somewhere," Alex replied.  "I saw him earlier.  Jen introduced me to him."  I was both shocked that he had come, and nervous about how he'd act.

I didn't have much time to think about it.  My mom came up next to me and put her arm around my shoulders.  "Mom!" I exclaimed.  "This is amazing."  I hugged her.

She grinned at me.  "I'm glad you think so, because it was quite the scramble to make it happen."

"I'm sure.  I had no idea."  She kissed the top of my head, and I looked up at her.  "And thank you for making sure to get a few of Brody's people here too, that was really thoughtful."

"Thank Lauren for it.  She and her boyfriend tracked them all down.  He's a nice guy too."

"Alex?  Yeah, he is," I agreed.

I started to say more, but my cousin Celeste came screeching through the people and almost ran me over.  "Oliviaaaaa!" she shrieked.  "You didn't tell me!"

I hugged her back and then eased away.  "Sorry, Celeste.  We haven't been engaged very long and I haven't done a great job of telling people."

"Clearly," she retorted.  Then she grinned and hugged me again.  "I don't even care, I'm so excited!"  I laughed.

I made the rounds, saying hi to family members and friends.  We'd been there almost 45 minutes before I finally made my way over to Brody, Jen, Jack, and Alyssa.  I saw Ken had joined them, as well.  Jen threw her arms around me, and then I hugged Jack as well.  I had lost track of how many people I'd hugged at this point.  "I can't believe your parents did this," Brody said, slipping an arm around my waist and pulling me in close to him.

"I can't either," I said.

I caught Ken watching us, and I blushed and smiled shyly at him.  "Congratulations," he said sincerely.

"Thank you," I replied.  "And thank you for coming."

"Yeah, well I owed you guys one," he said.

I was about to reply when my stomach growled loudly.  Brody and Jen both laughed.  "Let's get something to eat," Brody said.  He pointed to a buffet table that was set up along the wall.  I hadn't even noticed it.  He kept his arm tightly around me as we walked over there.  "This is crazy," he said, as we grabbed plates.  "Your parents are amazing."

"I had no idea they were planning something," I replied, shaking my head.

"It was really great of them to invite my family and Jack."

I smiled at him as we filled our plates with food, and sat down at the table where Lynn had parked herself.  Within a few minutes, we were once again surrounded by family and friends.  We chatted with them, spreading the word about our October 3rd wedding date.  Luckily, everyone that was at the party was also on the tentative guest list we'd made.  Most people were surprised, and more than a couple glanced suspiciously at my glass of wine.  I wanted to hang a sign around my neck that said, "No, I'm not pregnant."  Even so, it sounded like most people wanted to try to attend.

Ken approached us as the crowd of people around us began to dwindle.  He sat down and said, "I know you guys probably have plans tomorrow for the 4th, but if you have some time, I'd love to take you both out to breakfast or lunch before I fly back, if there's somewhere that's open."

Brody looked at me.  "What's on the agenda for tomorrow?"  I read in the look he gave me that this was my out.  If I didn't want to, all I had to do was say we were booked all day.

I nodded.  "There will definitely be some places open.  We'll go to the parade in the morning, and my parents have their annual cookout that starts at about 2, but we should have time for lunch if that works for you."  Under the table, Brody squeezed my knee, a silent "thank you."

Ken agreed to lunch and we settled on a time and place.  Brody turned to say something to me after Ken had said goodbye and walked away, but we were interrupted by some of my family members coming to say goodbye.

We stayed and tried to help my parents clean up, but they shooed us away.  My mom gave us the keys to her car and told us to stay as long as we wanted.  We ended up heading up to the bar area of the main restaurant with Jen, Lauren, Alex, Amy, Jack, and his girlfriend Alyssa.  Lynn had headed home a little earlier.  We found a table to cram into in the bar and ordered drinks.

"I just can't believe you guys came," Brody said to Jack, Jen, and Alyssa.  I agreed and immediately extended the invitation to my parents' cookout to all of them.  Jen promptly informed me that my parents had already invited them all.  They really did think of everything.

We stayed until Brody started yawning.  Since he was driving, seemed like a good time to leave.  We thanked everyone again for coming and walked out to my mom's car.  Once we were settled in the car and on the way back to my parents' house, Brody said, "Thank you for agreeing to go to lunch with my brother.  You have no reason to like him, and I don't know what's going to happen with my relationship with him, but I'm really happy you're willing to give him a shot."

I shrugged, though Brody probably couldn't see.  "It says something to me that he was willing to come all the way here, especially on such short notice.  It's really cool that Jack and Jen came too."

"Yeah, it is," Brody agreed, glancing over at me and smiling.  We made the rest of the drive in comfortable silence.

We came in quietly, so as not to wake my parents.  We got ready for bed quickly and settled next to each other under the blankets.  "Are we going to have a wedding party?" I asked, realizing that this was one thing we hadn't talked about.

"I'd like to," Brody replied.  "It seems silly to have a big wedding party with such a small wedding, though."

"Well, who would you want?" I asked.

He answered instantly, without any hesitation.  "Jack and Alex."

"Lauren and Lynn," I replied.  "Looks like we're set.  Two and two."

Brody pressed a kiss to my shoulder and then tightened his arm around me.  "Looks like it," he agreed.

Wedding Barbie

We spent another hour with Leigh, talking through some of our options and some of the things we knew we wanted.  Since we only had about three months, and this place was not in town, we decided to take advantage of being here and work out a few of the details we were sure of.

When we finally walked out, almost three hours after we'd arrived, Brody slid his arm around my shoulders and asked, "Well, how are you feeling about all this?"

"I'm really excited," I replied sincerely.  "I was a little worried we'd get pressured into doing something bigger, and I'm happy that we booked something because it means we're going to do it the way we want to."

Brody chuckled as we reached his SUV.  He walked over to the passenger side with me and pulled open my door.  "I'm just relieved you don't want a huge wedding," he admitted.  "Don't get me wrong--if you wanted it, we'd do it, but that just doesn't sound like fun to me."

"Don't worry, it doesn't sound fun to me either," I assured him, climbing in and settling into the passenger seat.   Brody walked around and got in the driver's seat and we headed back.  We had asked his mom if she wanted to have dinner with us but we already had plans, so we headed straight back to Denver.

When we got back to town, we ran a few errands, including picking up some things for a light dinner.  We'd eaten so much early this afternoon that we didn't need a full meal, but I knew I'd be hungry eventually.  The rest of the evening was low key.  We went for a walk in our neighborhood to fight the hours we'd spent in the car, and ate our dinner on the couch with a couple glasses of wine.

The short week went quickly, and on Thursday morning I waited impatiently for Brody to finish packing so we could head to the airport.  "Brody, come on!" I called upstairs.

"I'm almost done!" he yelled back, his voice muffled.  He had the worst habit of insisting upon packing the morning we were traveling, instead of the day before like a normal person.  But, to be fair, he didn't get home from work until 10 last night.  I guess I wouldn't have wanted to pack either.  I took a deep breath and told myself to be patient.  We really should have left 10 minutes ago, but we'd make it.

My commitment to being patient lasted about 5 minutes.  "Seriously, Brody, we need to go!" I snapped, walking upstairs and into the bedroom.  He was always on time for everything else, why he couldn't get out of the house in time to catch a plane with more than 5 minutes to spare was beyond me.

"I know, Liv," he replied, emerging from his closet, a frown on his handsome face.  "I can't find my black shoes though."

"These black shoes?" I asked, impatiently kicking at one of the shoes that was half under his dresser.

"Yes, those black shoes," he answered.  Despite my grumpiness, he smiled and kissed me on the cheek when he came over to grab them.  "Thanks."

"You're welcome," I grumbled before I turned and walked back downstairs.  Once there, I took another deep breath.  I walked to the kitchen and made some coffee, filling two travel mugs.  Caffeine might help.

Luckily, Brody came down the stairs just seconds later, carrying his small carryon suitcase.  "Ready?" he asked me.  He laughed when I gave him a dirty look.  "Sorry," he apologized.  "Let's go."  He grabbed my suitcase and headed towards the door.  I trailed behind him, wrestling my crossbody purse strap over my head while carrying both mugs of coffee.

When we were both settled in the car, I handed him a mug of coffee.  "Thank you," he said cheerfully. "You must not be too mad at me."

I glared at him and took a sip of my coffee.  "Ask me after my coffee is gone," I advised him.

He chuckled, and ignoring my advice, said, "You're anxious about something."

I frowned.  "No I'm not."

"You are," he insisted.  "You always get crabby when you're anxious."

I snorted.  "I also always get crabby when it takes 20 minutes longer to leave than it should."

He sighed, finally getting frustrated with my attitude.  "I'm sorry, Liv.  I really was going to pack last night, but I was exhausted by the time I got home.  You were there, you know I went almost straight to bed.  It's not like I was up dicking around and not doing it just to piss you off today."

That was true, and I was being a brat.  He was also right about me being anxious.  "I'm sorry," I apologized sincerely.  "And you're right.  My mom has been so weird about this whole thing and I'm nervous about what she's going to say or do.  I'm worried she's more upset than she's letting on about us not wanting a big wedding.  And I think she truly does think I'm pregnant!"

Brody reached over the center console and found my hand, twisting his fingers through mine.  "Will it bother you if she's upset by it?" he asked curiously.

"Yes, kind of," I admitted.  "But mostly because I know she won't let me forget it."

I changed the subject, not wanting to worry about it too much now.  We chatted idly for the rest of the drive to the airport.  By the time we made it through security, they were boarding the final zone of our flight, but I bit back the "I told you so" and was thankful that we had made it on time.  We settled into our seats and I pulled out my Kindle.

The flight was quick and comfortable, and we navigated the tiny Madison airport quickly.  We picked up our rental car and I directed Brody to my parents' house.  He hardly needed my directions though, and I was impressed at his memory of the route.

It was midafternoon by the time we made it to my parents' house and they were both still at work. "When will your parents get home?" Brody asked me as I collapsed onto my bed.

I looked at the clock and shrugged.  "Probably not for at least an hour."

"Oh really?" he asked, climbing onto the bed next to me.  He scooted over and knelt above me, looking down at me.  "I feel like we should take advantage of that, since you're morally opposed to having sex while they're here."

"I don't understand how you're not opposed to it!" I replied indignantly, but I laughed as he leaned down, planted his hands on either side of my head, and kissed me.

"Don't tell me you've never had sex in this house," he challenged, moving his lips away from mine.  He trailed them across my jaw and onto my neck, sucking gently before making me gasp with a quick nip at my throat.

"I haven't," I answered truthfully.  "This is a wholesome, unsullied bed you're having the privilege of kissing me on."

"Not for long," he growled, gently biting my earlobe.  I exhaled and slid my hands under his shirt and around to his back, pressing my fingertips into the taut muscles there.  He leaned away slightly and looked at me, raising an eyebrow in question, silently asking if it was okay to continue.  In response, I moved my hands to his shoulders and tugged him back down so I could kiss him.

We had just gotten ourselves dressed and wandered out to the kitchen when I heard a key in the lock.  The door swung open and I heard my mom call "Olivia?" before she realized we were right there on the other side of the door.  "Hi, sweetheart!" she exclaimed.  Brody grabbed the grocery bags out of her hands and set them on the counter while my mom dropped her purse and hugged me tightly.  She turned to Brody next and hugged him.

"I'm so glad you guys made it here safely," she said, turning to the groceries and starting to put them away.  She shooed Brody away, turning down his offer of help, but immediately plopped a watermelon into my hands.  She motioned towards the other side of the counter and said, "Cut this up, would you?"  Brody took it from me and set it carefully on the counter while I got out a cutting board, knife, and large bowl.

"I can do it," Brody insisted, taking the knife from me.  He busied himself cutting up the watermelon while I helped my mom put away the rest of the groceries.  My dad arrived not long after and after he changed, he went outside the light his trusty old Weber charcoal grill.

"I keep trying to get him to upgrade, but he loves that stupid old thing," my mom said as we chopped veggies for a salad.  Once we finished that, she, Brody, and I took a bottle of wine and 4 glasses out to the patio and relaxed with my dad while the grill heated up.  "So, October 3rd," she said, as we sat there.

"October 3rd," I confirmed nervously.

"We should go dress shopping while you're here then," my mom said, matter-of-factly.

"I don't know, Mom," I replied hesitantly.  I had actually been planning on going dress shopping by myself, or maybe with Brody.  My mom never would have gone for that idea (nor would anyone else in the entire world, probably), but there were very few traditions I was interested in sticking to.

"Oh, humor me here, Olivia, you're my only daughter.  I don't care if we don't get one but I want to see you try on some dresses.  And who knows, maybe you'll find something."  Under her flippant words, I detected how important this was to her.

"I'm actually your only child, unless I have more siblings I don't know about," I pointed out.  My mom sighed, and I quickly said, "We can go, but I'm not trying on anything with tulle."  My mom smiled.  "And no veils!"

Her smile faltered a little, but then she nodded.  "Fair compromise.  Call Lynn, I bet she'd love to come.  Amy too?  Go on, dinner will probably be ready soon."

I went to my room to call, and Brody trailed after me.  Much to my chagrin, both of them were thrilled to come.  I hung up the phone and frowned at Brody before I flopped backwards on the bed.  "You don't have to if you don't want to," he said softly, rubbing my arm.

I grimaced.  "I know, but I already feel like I'm robbing her of seeing her only child get married in a big, traditional wedding.  I'll get less grief about everything else if I let her spend a couple of hours pretending I'm Wedding Barbie."

He laughed and picked up a strand of my long, blonde hair.  "You've got the hair right, but you're a little short to be Barbie," he teased me.

My dad's voice, yelling that dinner was ready, saved him from my response.  The rest of the evening was nice.  My parents didn't say anything negative about our wedding, our short engagement, or anything else.  I did notice my mom raise an eyebrow when I went for a third glass of wine.  "Not pregnant," I said, purposely filling the glass generously and taking a long drink.  Other than that, though, it was a pleasant evening and my parents seemed excited about wedding plans.

The next morning, my mom took me out to breakfast before we met Amy and Lynn at the bridal shop we were going to in Madison.  Brody was going to go kayaking with my dad, and I was not sorry that they were doing it without me.  I was really happy that Brody seemed perfectly comfortable hanging out with my dad by himself though.  Though my parents never said a negative word about John, he avoided seeing them as much as possible and I always got the vibe that they weren't his biggest fans.

After an obnoxious reunion on the sidewalk outside the bridal shop, my mom, Amy, Lynn, and I walked in.  I browsed the racks and told the sales associate what I didn't want.  I wasn't sure what to say when she asked what I did want, because I was pretty sure what I wanted couldn't be found here.  I shrugged helplessly as Amy made a few suggestions.

At least 20 awful dresses and 3 or 4 barely decent dresses later, I was seriously regretting letting them talk me into this.  I was hot, tired, and hungry.  And I hadn't found a single thing I liked.  Everything was too big and it was hard to imagine how it would actually fit when the dress was 3 sizes too big and clipped and pulled tight.

I shook my head when the sales person held up a frilly ballgown.  "No, I think I'm done," I said.  I turned and headed to the dressing room to get changed back into my own clothes.

"Olivia, what about this one?" my mom asked.  I turned, ready to say no, but the look on her face when she said, "It's even in your size," was enough to get me to agree.

"Okay, but this is the last one," I said.  She nodded and held the dress out to me.  I took it without looking at it and headed to the changing room.  I stood still while the sales associate unclipped the dress I was wearing and helped me step out of it.  She had given up on chatting with me 7 dresses ago, so I wasn't surprised when she silently twisted her finger in the air to prompt me to turn around.  I did, and then I raised my arms for her to settle the dress over my head.

As soon as it was on, I knew it was different than the rest of the dresses I'd been trying on.  For one thing, it probably weighed about 15 pounds less than most of them.  And it did actually fit.  "Oh," the sales person said as I turned back around after she finished fastening me into it.  She smiled.  "I think you're going to like this one."  There was no mirror in the dressing room so I had no choice but to follow her out to the mirrors in the middle of the store.  My mom and Amy had their backs to me, but Lynn's eyes got wide.  She poked my mom in the arm and motioned to me.

When my mom turned around, the look on her face was enough to make actually eager to see this dress on me.  When I looked in the mirror, I was stunned.  There was not a hint of tulle, poof, or lace on this dress.  In fact, it was the opposite of everything I hated about all the dresses I'd been pressured to try on today.  All I could do was stare at my reflection.

"Olivia," my mom breathed.  She was definitely having one of those mother of the bride moments.  "What do you think?"  I didn't answer.  I was too busy staring at myself.  "Olivia?"

"It's perfect," I said simply.  I turned and craned my head to look at the back of the dress in the mirror.  "I love it."

My mom smiled and I could see the tears shining in her eyes even in the mirror.  "Oh, don't do that," I said, feeling my own tears prickling my eyes.  I heard a muffled sniffle next to me and turned to see Amy quickly wipe at her cheek.  "Oh god, not you too!" I exclaimed, furiously blinking back tears.  "Get me out of this thing before we all lose it," I said, turning back to the sales person.  She was beaming at me.

My mom stepped over to me and lightly fingered the crystals on the strap of the dress.  "Are we buying you a wedding dress today, Liv?"  She looked up at me hopefully.

"Yeah," I replied, looking down at her and smiling broadly.  "I guess we're buying me a wedding dress today."

It's Official

"Hi Mom," I said when she picked up the phone.  It was Tuesday, and I was calling to check on her October plans.

"Hi, honey," she replied.  "Is everything okay?"

"Yes," I said.  I guess I don't usually call during the week.  "I was just wondering if you have plans in October, like the weekend of the 3rd?"

"Why would I have plans then?  What's happening the 3rd of October?"  She sounded really confused, and I didn't blame her.

"Well, maybe our wedding."

"I'm sorry, your what?  Because I thought you said 'our wedding,' but October 3rd is barely over three months away!" my mom exclaimed.

"I did say our wedding," I replied calmly.  I had expected this reaction.

"This October 3rd?"  When I confirmed, she continued, "Olivia, you know if you're pregnant, you can tell me."

"Mom!" I snapped.  "I'm not pregnant.  We just want a fall wedding and we don't want a long engagement, and October 3rd happens to be what's available at the venue we're going to look at."  I stopped, realizing that I had just let slip that we wanted to get married here.  But my mom didn't even bat an eye at that.

"Well, as far as I know, we don't have any plans that weekend, so if getting married that soon is what you really want, then we'll keep the date open.  I'll also plan to keep the week before open, if you'd like us to come out and help with last minute things."

I was surprised.  She'd gone from accusing me (again) of being pregnant to offering to come out to help.  "Thank you," I said.  "We don't have anything set in stone, but since it's so soon we wanted to make sure the important people would be able to make it before we decided anything for sure."

"Well, we appreciate that.  You know, honey, we are so happy for you, and we're looking forward to spending some more time with Brody when you guys come visit."  I thanked her and we chatted for a few more minutes before we hung up.

I called Lynn next.  After my parents, she was the one who would make or break this.  She greeted me cheerfully when she answered the phone.  I greeted her in return, and then said, "So, have you made any progress at talking your doctor into letting you come out to visit this fall?"

"She is a tough one to crack," Lynn grumbled, "but I'm getting there.  She's refusing to say anything either way, but at my appointment yesterday she said, 'if you keep this up, we can definitely talk about your trip this fall.'  So that seems promising."

"That does seem promising," I agreed.  "I'm asking because Brody and I want to get married this fall and--"

"This fall?" she interrupted.  "Like, the fall that is a mere couple of months away?"

"That very same one," I responded drily.  We had been engaged for less than a week and I was already sick and tired of defending our potential choice to get married rather quickly.

"Here, or there?" she asked.

"Here, in Colorado," I replied nervously.

"Wow," she replied.  She didn't say anything for a couple seconds, then she said, "Well, if you're getting married out there this fall, I'll be taking a trip whether my doctor okays it or not!"

"But--"

"No."  She silenced me with her quick response.  "But nothing.  If you're getting married, I will be there.  That's all there is to it.  I mean, it's not like I'll be busy working or anything."

"I don't want to do it this fall if there's even a chance you won't be able to make it," I insisted.  "It's so important to me that you're there that I will plan my wedding around when you can get here."

"I love you, Liv.  I want you to have the wedding you want, when you want it.  I'm confident that I'll be able to make it out there.  Did you have a date in mind?"

"October 3rd, maybe," I replied.

"I'll write it down.  Keep me posted!"

When I hung up, I was relieved.  I called Lauren next and she wasn't even surprised.  I confirmed the place for Thursday's happy hour with her, and asked if she'd seen much of Kinsley lately.  Kinsley had been spending so much time with Damien that we didn't see nearly as much of her as we used to.  "Not really," Lauren said.  "I mean, she was at brunch last weekend, but the last time I saw her before that was when you both came over two weeks ago.  She told me she was coming to happy hour though."

"Well that's good, I miss her," I replied.

Brody came home while I was still on the phone with Lauren.  He leaned over the back of the couch and kissed the top of my head before heading upstairs to change.  When Lauren and I hung up, I wandered into the kitchen and found the take out he'd brought home for dinner.  I grabbed plates and napkins and had everything ready by the time Brody came back downstairs in a pair of shorts and an old t-shirt.  "Thank you," he said, surveying the table where dinner was arranged neatly.  "I was going to do it when I got back down."

"Now you don't have to," I replied.  He pulled me to him for a hug and then kissed me.  After our kiss, I leaned back against his chest, pressing my face into his shirt and breathing in the faint, lingering smell of his cologne.  He stroked my hair and I stayed there for several seconds before I pulled away and smiled up at him.  "Thanks for picking up dinner."

"You're welcome," he replied as we sat down.  "How did your phone calls go?"

"Good!  Everyone is on board, though my mom was a bit reluctant."

"I'm not surprised.  Mine were good too.  Jen is freaking out but she'll get over it.  My mom told me to just tell her when and where.  Jack and Alex both said to just let them know what we need from them.  So I guess we're good."

"I guess we are," I agreed.  Now that the phone calls were over, I was feeling significantly less overwhelmed with the process.  After we ate, Brody and I enjoyed a quiet night of cuddling on the couch and watching a movie.

Kinsley ended up bailing from Thursday's happy hour.  We texted her, trying to make plans for Saturday, but she reported back that she already had plans with Damien's family.  She did agree to join us for our weekly Monday night dinner.  "We need an intervention, I think," Lauren said quietly to me.  I agreed, and we spent a few minutes strategizing how to tell Kinsley we missed her and wanted to see her more without making her feel bad.

Sunday was here before I knew it, and Brody and I left in the late morning to get to the potential venue by our appointment time.  I was nervous as we drove, and I wasn't quite sure why.  I had, over the course of the past few days, gotten more and more comfortable with the idea of getting married in 3 months.  Or rather, of planning a wedding in 3 months.  The getting married part was never a question.  Maybe I was worried that now that I was convinced that this was a good idea, it wouldn't work out and we'd have to figure something else out.  I kind of hated planning things.

Even with my nerves, the nearly two hour drive went quickly.  From the front, the building was fairly nondescript.  My high hopes deflated a little bit, and sensing this, Brody urged me to give it a chance.  "I will," I promised.

We walked in the door and were barely acknowledged by a bored looking hostess, which did nothing to increase my confidence.  "We have an appointment with Leigh," I informed her.  She blinked placidly at me before turning and picking up the phone behind her.  She didn't say a word to me, just spoke quietly into the phone. I wrinkled my nose at her back and Brody chuckled softly.

When she turned around, she said, "She'll be right out," and then went back to staring into space.

"Thanks," I muttered sarcastically, taking a few steps away.  Brody slid his arm around my shoulders and I relaxed slightly.

We were waiting for less than two minutes when a tall brunette strode towards us.  "Hi," she said warmly.  "Olivia?  I'm Leigh."  I nodded and took her outstretched hand.  Then she turned to Brody.  "I take it that makes you Brody?"

"Wait, who's Brody?" he asked, feigning confusion.  I rolled my eyes and shook my head as he and Leigh both laughed.  "Sorry, that was a terrible joke.  Yes, I'm Brody, nice to meet you."  He kissed me on the cheek and I laughed a little too, finally loosening up a bit.

"Come on this way," she said, motioning for us to follow her.  As we walked, she said, "This is the boring side of the building.  I've been trying to talk the owner into a bit of a facelift for years, but he's not having it."  I made a mental note that she'd been here for years, which seemed like a good thing to me.  We got to a narrow staircase and she said, "One of the unfortunate downfalls to the property is this staircase.  It is a little narrow, and the banquet facilities are on the second floor.  We do have a service elevator that guests who might have a hard time with the stairs can use and I'll show you that on the way down."  With that, she started up the stairs.  Brody motioned for me to follow her, and he came after me.

When we got to the top of the stairs, I forgot about my disappointment over the front of the building. Smooth, worn wood floors stretched out in front of me throughout a medium sized banquet room.  The room had no decorations, save the simple wood and copper chandeliers that hung between the exposed rafters.  Decorations would have been lost in the room, and it certainly didn't need any.  The high, vaulted ceiling made the area feel much larger and more open than it actually was.  The two exterior walls were both made almost completely of 4-paned windows.  Where one of those walls met the interior wall that would be facing the front of the building, an elaborate, gigantic stone fireplace sat, cutting the corner on a perfect diagonal.   A large, sturdy barnboard mantle held a row tall, thick round candles.

I didn't even realize that Leigh was talking as I walked away from her and Brody and towards the wall of windows.  "Maybe you'd better wait on the spiel," Brody suggested to Leigh lightly, realizing I wasn't paying any attention to them.  I was too busy staring out at the mountains rising up around the restaurant.  I didn't notice Brody walk up behind me until he put his hands on my shoulders.  "What do you think?" he asked softly.

"I love it," I replied simply.  "It's perfect."  I peeled myself away from the windows and turned to take in the rest of the room.  "It looks a lot bigger than I was expecting for a 74 person capacity."

Hearing this, Leigh piped up, "Fire code capacity is actually 122, but that is with tables on the dance floor and seriously packing people in.  We try to cap events at 74 because that's what we found is most people we can put in the room while still making sure everyone has elbow room and you can actually walk between the tables when people are seated there."  I nodded.  That made sense.  "Can I walk you through?" she asked, when I returned my eyes to her.

She took us through the room, showing us the bar, the bathrooms, the area where they set up appetizers and cake, then telling us about different table configurations and mentioning some of the linen options.  "We don't allow outside catering, except for cake.  Should you choose to do something in addition to cake, we do customized dessert buffet options, or tableside dessert ordering.  We do have a list of 5 preferred DJs that we work with, and I can give you some suggestions on other services, such as photographers."  I felt like a bobblehead, nodding along with everything she said.

After giving us a couple more minutes to look around and ask a couple questions, she said, "Your tasting should be ready, if you'd like to have a seat."  She motioned to the only table currently set up in the room.  "I'm going to head down to my office so you can eat in peace, but the staff will let me know when you're finished, and I'll come back up.  If you're interested at that point, we can talk a little bit more specifically about what you'd like and costs."  We thanked her and sat down.  She disappeared through a door she'd mentioned went to the service elevator.

Brody looked at me and smiled.  "You look overwhelmed again," he said gently.

"No, not at all," I disagreed.  "I wasn't expecting to love it so much, that's all.  I mean, I kind of want to just live here, in this room."

"Well, after my bank account recovers from buying you a resort in Mexico, I'll see what I can do about buying you this restaurant," he joked.  I rolled my eyes and laughed.

Someone appeared with a tray full of appetizers and set them down in front of us.  He also brought water glasses and asked us if we wanted drinks.  Before I could open my mouth to say water was fine, Brody asked for two glasses of wine.  Why not?

We'd gone over the menu this week and picked appetizers, salads, entrees, and desserts to try the small sample portions of.  There was just one appetizer and one dessert that I wasn't a big fan of.  Brody liked everything except one of the salads.

"Well?" Brody asked, as our server cleared away our dessert plates.  I was pretty sure I wasn't going to be able to leave my seat and walk out of here, I'd eaten so much food.  "Do we want to do it?"

"I want to know what you think first," I replied.  "I don't want my answer to influence yours."

He smirked.  "I'm pretty sure I already know what you think, and I love it too.  We'll need to talk it all through with Leigh, but as long as she doesn't tell us that it costs $50,000 to rent the room and that the food is $600 a plate, I'd be good with putting a deposit down today."

"You don't want to look at anything else first?" I asked.

"We can if you want to," he replied, "But I don't think we'll find a place that's more perfect than this one."

I grinned.  "I don't want to.  Let's do it!"

"Let's do what?" Leigh asked, striding back into the room.  She had a folder and an iPad in her hands, and she looked curious as she sat down at the table with us.

"Let's get some more information about what it'll take to have a wedding here," Brody replied smoothly.

Leigh smiled.  "I take it you enjoyed the food?"

"It was excellent, thank you," I answered.  Brody nodded his agreement.

Leigh opened the folder and pulled out some papers.  She told us about the rental price, the food and beverage minimum, and our dinner options.  They did order ahead plated dinners and tableside ordering.  Tableside ordering was more expensive, but it allowed us to provide more options and we quickly agreed that with how many guests we'd have traveling, and on short notice, it would be nice to give people more options.  Leigh did some quick addition for food and beverage costs, the room rental, the additional fee they charged to have the ceremony there, and the other taxes and fees, and gave us an estimate.  The price would vary, of course, based on how many guests and what entrees they chose, but she'd estimated high to take that into account.  Brody didn't even bat an eye as he agreed.  I had to admit that the number was lower than I expected, which I imagine was due to the slightly off-the-beaten-path location.

Brody looked at me and raised his eyebrows in question.  I nodded without hesitating, and he turned back to Leigh, pulled out his checkbook, and wrote a check for the 10% deposit.  When he handed it over, it was official.  We were getting married on October third.