Designed to Love (9 page)

I slip out of my bathrobe and he holds the
dress up for me to step into.

"Cat!" Elizabeth gasps, startling both of
us.

"What?" I ask hesitantly, dreading another
one of her meltdowns.

"You're standing half-naked in front of
another man?" she says accusingly, glancing sideways at Tucker.

"Oh," I say, relief washing over me. "I
forgot to tell you, he's gay. He doesn't care that I'm not wearing
clothes."

She looks at him and he shrugs his
shoulders. "It's true, I would be more turned on seeing Ronan
standing here in his underwear," he admits, turning me around to
zip up the back of the dress, which becomes difficult when we both
crack up laughing.

***

When I am finally allowed to turn around and
look in the mirror, I gasp. I look so much like my mother did on
her wedding day, that I am speechless.

"I look just like my mother," I whisper and
Alisha drapes an arm around my shoulders.

"Your mom must have been hot," she says
smiling.

"Wow," Tucker says and Elizabeth dabs the
corner of her eyes. About the same time, Claire comes bounding in
and stops dead in her tracks.

"You look like a princess," she finally
whispers breathlessly, her eyes wide with wonder. She absently
hands me a package, and plops down on the bed, still staring at
me.

I open the small package and find inside a
beautiful diamond pendant with a note from Ronan.

Cataryn Avalon Cascadia
McCullough,

The next time I see you, I will be
watching you walk down the aisle.

You could wear sweats and a
T-shirt and go for a month without shaving your legs.

It wouldn't matter to me. All I
care about is that by this time tomorrow, you will wake up in my
arms as my wife. And then I will consider myself the luckiest man
on this planet.

Forever yours,

Ronan

I don't even realize that the tears are
rolling down my cheeks, until I feel Elizabeth dabbing them with a
tissue, and cussing under her breath, Alisha heads off to get more
make-up. Tucker just shakes his head and chuckles.

"Ronan Callahan, I'm going to kill you," I
whisper as I fight to keep from losing it completely.

RONAN

Dressed in a black tuxedo with a crisp white
dress shirt and bow tie, I only slightly resemble the man that I
was yesterday, wearing my typical Levi's and a T-shirt. I've always
looked and felt much older than my true age, but now if I tried to
pass for a seventeen year old, I would likely be asked to produce
official records to prove it. Burke accuses me of aging ten years
in the past few months and Jason and Michael treat me like a
colleague instead of a kid brother.

"You look great, man," Burke says, slapping
me on the shoulder, and Jason nods his head in approval.

"Do you have the rings?" I ask Burke again.
He smiles and taps his pants pocket, obviously enjoying my abnormal
display of nervousness. I resist the urge to peek in on Cat, even
though remote travel is the easiest and sneakiest gift to abuse.
There was an overnight snow storm that dumped two feet of fresh
powder on the ground and the mile long dirt road, leading to the
church was slick when we drove over it. Brandon reminds me that my
worries are completely ridiculous given the fact that the occupants
in their car could navigate it using only their minds, if they
wanted to.

Cat was set on getting married in a church,
honoring what she felt her parents would have desired. When she
found this small country chapel, she said it was perfect and I
couldn't have agreed more. Set along the Bow River, it's the only
building within a two mile radius. It was built in the early 1900's
and has only enough room to accommodate around thirty people—the
perfect size for the ten people on our guest list. The pastor
performing our ceremony is young, not much older than Michael if I
had to guess. Claire screened him as "yellow", and he seemed to
accept the fact that we were getting married by choice and not by
necessity. I personally don't know anyone in his line of work, but
he seems much different than the pastors preaching their views on
TV.

Michael sticks his head through the door of
the small room at the back of the church and tells Burke and me
that Cat and the others have arrived. Shortly after, Pastor Nelson
gives me a fifteen minute notice until the start of the ceremony,
and Burke turns and gives me a fist bump, wishing me good luck
before joining the others.

With both her and my parents deceased, Cat
had nobody else's expectations to consider when planning our
wedding. I would have agreed to whatever she wanted, but wasn't
surprised when she chose to keep it intimate and authentic. Even
Alisha and Liz couldn't persuade her into a more extravagant
venue.

The small room behind the altar is sparsely
furnished with two shabby club chairs against one wall and a large
mirror on the opposite. There is one small window near the ceiling
that provides the only source for natural lighting. I wonder how
many grooms have sat in the very chair that I'm in now, waiting for
their turn, and then I wonder how many were as certain of their
choice as I am of mine.

At almost the exact time, the harpist begins
playing the prelude music, summoning me to the altar, the clouds
part and a brilliant beam of sunlight streams through the window,
lighting the previously dingy room. In that brief moment, I have
what I believe to be a spiritual moment where I am overcome with
awe and gratitude. In any other circumstance, I may have fallen to
my knees and wept, but instead I fight back the tears and quietly
whisper, "Thank you," while exiting the room to wait for my bride
at the altar.

***

The moment the processional music begins;
Claire and Burke enter the church and slowly make their way down
the aisle as everyone else stands and turns in their direction. The
others honor my wishes and avoid communicating with me
telepathically, with the exception of Claire. The minute she sees
me, she grins,
"Wow Ronan, you're actually
glowing like an angel,"
she says, looking astonished as
she screens the energy field surrounding me.

"You look beautiful
too,"
I reply, winking at her. As far as I was
concerned, there would only be a few instances where I would truly
block her from speaking to me mentally.

Claire always has a certain angelic quality
about her, but today she seems to be "floating" next to Burke, as
they walk down the aisle. She is dressed in a long pale, pink gown
with tiny embroidered rose petals and her normally long wavy hair
is curled into soft ringlets. She has a flower crown on her head
with miniature pink and white roses that match the bouquet she's
carrying in her hand. As soon as they take their assigned places at
the altar with me, the harpist is joined by a person playing the
flute in a non-traditional version of the Wedding March.

When I look up and see Cataryn entering the
church with Tucker at her side, time stands still. It could have
taken her a year to walk down the aisle and I wouldn't have budged
from where I stood. Seeing her for the first time in her wedding
attire, I'm glad I resisted the urge to peek. The white silk gown
is form fitting to the floor and perfectly accentuates every
flawless curve of her body. The tastefully low cut bodice is a
departure from her normal, cleavage sparing tops and she is wearing
the diamond pendant that I gifted to her earlier. Of course the
thing that stands out to me the most is her smile— big, beautiful
and genuine. Her dark eyes are brimming with tears and seem to
sparkle like the diamond on her neck. When Tucker places her hand
in mine, I immediately bring it to my lips. All of my senses are
tuned into Cat; the feel of her skin, the faint sound of her
breathing, the movement of her chest as it rises and falls, even
her scent. I barely perceive the words of Pastor Nelson, but when
she speaks, I detect each syllable and even the slightest
fluctuation in her voice. I memorize everything about her today and
safely store the details in my brain where it will remain for the
rest of my life.

Pastor Nelson finally says, "I now pronounce
you man and wife. You may kiss the bride," and I am more than
ready. Apparently, she is too, as she unabashedly wraps her arms
around my neck and presses her body close to mine as we take our
time experiencing our first kiss as husband and wife. Afterwards, I
contemplate trying to talk her out of going to our reception and
heading straight for the hotel room.

***

The Kensington Riverside Inn, is located
just a short drive from the church and we are transported there by
a horse drawn sleigh, naturally Claire's idea. The owner of the
19-room boutique inn readily obliged to rent us the entire
building, including the restaurant when he found out how much I was
willing to pay. Cat just about choked when she discovered the price
tag for the night and commented that she and Claire lived off less
than that for almost an entire year. I certainly didn't want to
give her the impression that I was careless with my money, but I
also didn't want her to worry about money either. From a young age,
I knew that I would always have the ability to attract and retain
as much wealth as I desired. So, I've never fretted over how I
would make or keep my money. And I certainly have never feared
losing it. She made a funny face, when I whispered in her ear, "Get
used to me spending it on you."

We are met by half a dozen hotel staff
members, the minute we walk into the hotel lobby and our luggage is
whisked away to our pre-assigned rooms by the eager concierges. Our
wedding photographer requested that we stay in our formal wear for
additional photos at the reception, so we allow ourselves to be
escorted directly to the banquet room where we will share our first
dinner, dance, and bite of cake, as husband and wife.

Midway through dinner, I stand and raise my
glass, and a hush falls upon the room. I look down at Cat and
smile, then turn to address our guests. "If someone would had told
me six months ago, I would soon meet the most beautiful woman I
have ever laid eyes on, I might have believed them. And if they
told me she was: fearless, intelligent, caring, talented and funny,
I might have expressed interest in meeting her. But, if they went
on to say that I would fall so deeply in love with her that it
would hurt to be apart from her, I would have laughed them out of
the room." I pause and Elizabeth dabs her eyes. "And if that same
person told me that I would follow this woman to the end of the
earth and forfeit my own life for hers without a moment's
hesitation, I would have told them they were crazy, such a woman
doesn't exist." I reach down and take Cat's hand to pull her up
beside me, and looking directly in her eyes, finish with, "I am
here to tell you that she does exist, because today I married
her."

She starts crying and the lights dim as I
lead her to the dance floor.

Tucker plays the guitar while Claire sings
"Butterfly Fly Away," dedicating it to Cat, for our first
dance.

The evening transpires perfectly. Even
Elizabeth seems to be in better spirits, and I suspect that the
stress of helping with our wedding really did have an impact on
her. To conclude the evening, we make our final rounds. Cat has one
last talk with Claire about behaving for Alisha and Elizabeth for
the next two weeks and I receive a warning from Bernie, to be
prepared to go to work when I return from my honeymoon. The Harolds
hug us both and make us promise to visit in the spring and Tucker
reinforces the invitation.

***

Cat doesn't object when I prematurely scoop
her in my arms on the elevator ride up to our floor, than carry her
down the hall to the penthouse suite at the end. I set her down,
only after we are on the other side of the threshold and I've hung
the "Do Not Disturb" sign on the door.

To some, waiting until your wedding night to
experience a first sexual encounter might seem somewhat risky.
Burke said, "Don't you think you should give it a test run? You
would never buy a car without test driving it first would you?"
Comparing Cat to a car, almost cost him another broken nose, but
his swift apology and my preoccupation with the upcoming wedding
averted the altercation. Now, as I stand across the room from my
beautiful new bride, watching her slowly undress in a sensual,
playful fashion, teasing me with each piece of clothing flung on
the floor, I am at complete ease with our decision. She
deliberately pivots in a slow 360 degree turn, smiling
provocatively, allowing me views from every angle, and any
lingering uncertainty about our compatibility vanishes completely.
I slowly walk over and help her out of the last remaining clothes
items, before carrying her over to the oversized king bed. Neither
of us is bashful or inhibited. We are in complete harmony as we
take and give without fear. Minutes turn into hours and when we're
finished, I conclude that it really is possible to love her even
more than I did when I woke up this morning. The only time I
question the experience, is when I feel her tears on my chest and
only then do I suffer from a moment of panic.

"Cat, are you okay? Did I hurt you?" I ask
anxiously. As if on cue, she responds to the next question on my
mind.

"It was perfect. From start to finish, it
was absolutely perfect," she whispers dreamily, and I feel the side
of her face turn up in a smile.

"Perfect, really?" I ask, relief flooding
over me.

"Yes, you exceeded every expectation I had,
and um,... even some expectations that I didn't know I could have,"
she giggles.

It's only then, that I realize the meaning
behind her tears and I fight to keep from shedding a few of my
own.