My Sunshine (34 page)

“Can I have a hint?”

John considered it for a moment. “Pack warm.”

“Pack warm,” she muttered as she pulled herself out of the
bed. “When are we coming back?”

“Sunday night. Pack quick. Our plane leaves in two hours.”

Two hours later, John and Chloe had boarded a small charter plane heading north into the Blue Ridge Mountains.

“Look at the snow,”
John said, peering out of the window.

“I feel like Buddy Holly,”
Chloe said, nervously clutching the armrest.

He laughed. “Don’t worry, sweetie. Everything is going to
be fine.”

They landed at the small airport without incident, and a car
was waiting to take them to the inn John had reserved for the weekend.

Chloe
climbed out of the car and followed John through the front door. The innkeeper came out from behind the front desk. “Ms. Boston, Mr. Bernett, I’m so happy you have arrived. Here are you keys.” He handed a set of keys to John.

Chloe
looked around. “Nice place, very char…” Her voice trailed off when she saw the large Christmas tree behind her. “What kind of place is this?” She whispered. “They still have their Christmas decorations up.”

John
chuckled. “No, I had them decorate the place like this.

This is how I wanted it for you. Everyone is here: Mike and
Jane, Dennis and Shannon, Josh and Dana, Tyler and Christine, even Daniel and Rebecca. There’s a violinist and everything. I wanted it to be perfect.” “Wanted what to be perfect?”

“Our wedding.”

“What’s going on, John?”

“If you say no, that will be okay, too, because I know we’re
going to get married soon. If you want, we’ll just go out there and have a big party. There’s lots of food and I’ve got the whole lodge for the weekend.”

“Are you serious? Get married this weekend?”

“Tonight.”

“Do I have a dress?”

John nodded. “It’s upstairs.”

“Rings?”

“They’re beautiful. Christine approved.”

“She’s really here?”

“Yeah,” John said. “She’s upstairs.”

Chloe
took a deep breath. “Okay, I’ll marry you.

Tonight. Yes. We’ll get married tonight.”

A smile overtook John’s face. “Thank you.”

“So what do I need to do?”
Chloe asked. “How long do I have?”

John
held the room key out to her. “Room #3 at the top of the stairs. Christine’s up there. She’s waiting for you. She knows what to do.”

Chloe
took the key from him. “You’re crazy, you know that?”

He nodded and leaned in to kiss her. “I know.” He looked
at his watch. “Okay, it’s about two hours until show time. I’ll see you in the parlor after while. I gotta go. I’ve got things to do.” He started up the stairs.

“Hey!”
Chloe called after him. “What about a preacher?”

John
stopped. “Reverend Jim is here.”

“Here?”

“Yeah, just for the ceremony. Cool, huh?”

“Totally. You were pretty darn sure this was going to

happen, weren’t you?”

“I really wanted it to.” He disappeared up the stairs.

Chloe wandered into the parlor. The small room was overwhelmed with Christmas trees and sparking lights. If she hadn’t known better she would have thought it was Christmas instead of almost spring. There was an aisle of red carpet leading to a platform that she was sure had been built just for this occasion. A dozen chairs flanked both sides of the aisle.

Candles were everywhere, ready to be lit.

On the right side of the parlor, double doors opened into a formal dining room. The table was set with thirteen place settings, decorated in gold trimmed china and poinsettias as centerpieces. She could smell the meal cooking from the kitchen.

She turned and ran up the stairs
.
I'm getting married
!
She flung open the door to room #3 and squealed with delight to see Christine sitting on the bed buffing her nails while she waited for her friend’s arrival.

Christine
jumped up. “Can you believe this?” She grabbed Chloe’s arms and the two women jumped up and down.

“What are you doing here?”
Chloe asked when they calmed down some. “What about your tour? Didn’t you have a show tonight?”

Christine
shook her head. “Not anymore.”

“You canceled a show for me?”

“Rescheduled, and of course I did. I wouldn’t miss this for the world. Two of my best friends are getting married and come hell or high water I was going to be there.”

“How did you know I would say yes?”

“Come on, girl. I know you’re not crazy!”

Chloe
laughed. “Not that crazy anyway.” She looked around the room and spotted a dress bag hanging on the back of the door. “So, is that my dress? Have you seen it?”

“Oh yeah.”
Christine crossed the room and unzipped the bag. Out tumbled yards and yards of white fabric.

Chloe
reached out and touched the delicate lace and beading that adorned the strapless gown. “Beautiful,” she breathed.

“Go hop in the shower,”
Christine directed. “I’ve already showered. I’m going to do my hair and makeup while you’re in there, and I’ll do yours when you get out. Then we’ll get dressed. That should leave us with plenty of time.”

“You’re going to do our hair?”

Christine put her hands on her hips. “What you don’t trust me?”

“Is there going to be a photographer here?”
Chloe joked.

Christine
gave her a push toward the bathroom. “Ha ha, very funny.”

Once inside the bathroom, she quickly undressed and
stepped inside the steaming shower. She washed herself quickly, shampooed her hair, and took her time shaving her legs.

She wrapped herself in a large bath towel and left the bathroom.

“Your panties and bustier are on the bed,” Christine said.

Chloe
dropped the towel and pulled the lacy panties on. “I don’t think I’ve ever worn one of these,” she said as laid the bustier against her chest. “How am I supposed to do this? It fastens in the back.”

Christine
came over to help her. “Sexy,” she said with a smile. She fastened it, then handed Chloe a pair of thigh-high white stockings.

Chloe
pulled them on. “Oh, I feel like a tramp.”

Christine
laughed. She picked up another garment off the bed. “Here, maybe this will help.”

Chloe
slipped on the crinoline underskirt. “Better,” she said.

“Okay, come sit here,”
Christine said, pulling out a chair and picking up a hair dryer. “We’ve got a lot of work to do.” An hour later, hair and make-up completed, each woman helped the other into her dress.

Chloe
stepped into her shoes. “I feel like Cinderella.”

Christine
looked at her and gave a satisfactory nod. “Yes, I did a good job.” She spun around. “How do I look?

“Beautiful as always.”

There was a knock at the door. Christine pulled it open.

“Y’all ready?”
Chloe heard Daniel ask. “It’s time.”

“Yeah, we’re ready.”
Christine turned back to Chloe.

“You look perfect. You’re bouquet’s on the bed.” She left as
Daniel came in.

“You ready, sis?”
Daniel asked.

Chloe
turned away from the mirror and faced him. “Yes.”

She smiled broadly. “Isn’t this amazing? Can you believe this
is happening to me?”

Daniel
shook his head slightly. “Nope.” He leaned over and gave her a light kiss on the cheek. “You do look beautiful. I’m very happy for you.”

“Thank you.”

He held out his arm and she took it. She grabbed her bouquet off the bed as he led her out of the room. “So how soon am I going to be Uncle Daniel?”

“There are no
shotguns here,” Chloe said. They

approached the stairs leading down to the parlor.

He nodded. They stopped at the top of the stairs and waited for their cue. “I’m so proud of you, Chloe.”

She turned to him and hugged him, not caring if it messed
up her hair or makeup or smashed her dress. “You’ve been so good to me, Daniel. Thank you for bringing me this far.”

He squeezed her tight. “You know it wasn’t just me. You

make me proud to be your brother. I love you, Chloe.”

“I love you, too,
Daniel.”

Chloe
glanced down the stairs. The lobby was just as she had pictured it in her fantasy; John had gotten it perfect. Daniel gave her arm a small tug and, and they began their walk down the stairs and toward the makeshift altar where Reverend Jim, Tyler, and Christine were standing with John. When they reached the end of the aisle, Reverend Jim began speaking.

“Dearly beloved, we are gathered together here in the sight
of God, to join together this man and this woman in holy matrimony; which is an honorable estate, instituted of God, signifying the union between Christ and His Church: and therefore is not by any to be entered into unadvisedly or lightly; but reverently, discreetly, advisedly, soberly, and in the fear of God. Into this holy estate these two persons present come now to be joined. If any man can show just cause, why they may not lawfully be joined together, let him now speak, or else hereafter forever hold his peace.”

He looked up and smiled, his eyes twinkling, knowing that
no one was going to object. “Who gives this woman to be married to this man?”

“I do,”
Daniel said. He kissed her on the cheek and stepped away. John stepped up into his place beside Chloe.

Reverend Jim
began again. “Friends, we have been invited here today to share with John and Chloe the most important few moments of their lives. In the past few months we have seen how their love and understanding of each other has grown and matured. Today is the day they will join their lives together as husband and wife.”

“We have been invited to witness
John and Chloe as they promise to face the future together, accepting whatever may lie ahead as they have bravely faced the trials in their past. God, in his never-ending grace, has given them the strength and the peace to continue on this journey and never look back. It is by God’s grace and mercy that John and Chloe are able to stand before us today.”

“
John and Chloe, nothing is easier than saying words and nothing harder than living them day after day. What you promise today must be renewed and redecided tomorrow. At the end of this ceremony legally you will be man and wife, but you still must decide each day that stretches out before you, that you want to be married.

“The Bible says that when married, man and woman

become one flesh, but marriage is not total absorption in each other; it is two people looking out in the same direction --together. Love makes burdens lighter, because you divide them. It makes joys more intense because you share them. It makes you stronger so you can reach out and become involved with life in ways you dared not risk alone.”

“In the past few months, I have come to know both of you
very well on a personal basis; I have had the opportunity to be your pastor, your counselor, and your friend. I know that the love the two of you share is real, and I am confidant that theLord is going to bless your marriage as long as you remember to always put Christ first. Choosing who you will take as your spouse, you helpmeet, is one of the biggest decisions you will ever make, and I believe that you both have chosen well.” He looked down at John. “John, you have something you wanted to say?”

John
nodded and looked into Chloe’s eyes. “I know I was taking a big chance arranging all this, and I am so glad you said yes. It was the right decision. I promise you, it was the right decision. I know we haven’t been together for very long in a lot of people’s eyes, but we have gone though a lifetime of

drama in these past few months. I never thought I would fall so
hard and so fast for someone. And I never thought my life would be so totally different from where I was this time last year.”

“I love you. I could say it a billion times and it would still
never express just how I feel. You will never regret making the decision to marry me. I am making this promise right now to you that I will always treat you with all the respect and dignity and admiration that you deserve.” He turned his eyes back to

Reverend Jim
signaling that he was finished.

“
John, will you…”