After determining the style and price point, she sat down and waited for Joan to return with a selection of available dresses to try on. She tried not to think about what she was going to do if she couldn't find anything that fit properly, that she liked, and wanted to wear walking down the aisle.
Joan showed her four dresses to get a sense of the type of style she preferred and then took her into a change room.
"If you want to go down to your underwear, I will help you slip into these," the saleswoman said, as she discreetly looked away.
"So, is this the busy season for you?" she asked, trying to make small talk.
"This is Las Vegas, every season is the busy season for weddings," Joan laughed. "Now, I'm taking a chance here and getting you to try on this dress. I think it will look beautiful on you."
"Why is that taking a chance?" she asked.
"Because, many brides who try on their favorite dress first don't realize it until they have tried on a handful or two more," Joan said. "Then they come back to the first one. But you strike me as a woman who knows her own mind."
"You're right about that!" she answered with a laugh.
"You said you like a more classic style with character, not too over the top sexy, but definitely womanly, yes?" Joan asked.
"Yes, I'm not a 23-year old, but I don't want to look like the mother of the bride, either," she responded.
"Perfect! This one I'm helping you into is a throw-back to the roaring twenties, and is a classic Gemy Maalouf sheath gown." Joan explained.
As she turned to look in the mirror, her breath caught. The dress had delicate beadwork and beautiful embroidery around a contoured waist. The neckline was plunging, but with intricate lace that softened the line.
The beadwork and embroidery give a vintage twist to the modern plunging neckline, and the back was bare except for a string of faux buttons that met at the top with embroidery.
"The back is called an illusion back," Joan explained.
"It is amazing," she whispered.
"You have the perfect body to carry this off too," the saleslady smiled. "I knew the minute you walked in you that this dress was made for you."
"And it's in my budget?" she asked, afraid to hear the answer.
"Absolutely," Joan said with a smile. "I wouldn't do that to you. Now mind you, it is near the top of what you wanted to pay, but I think it's worth it, don't you?"
"Yes, it is," she said, as she continued to admire the dress in the multitude of mirrors provided. Truth be told, she didn't want to get out of the dress. After all her worrying about finding the right dress, it felt anti-climactic to be done already. But she knew this was the dress. It made her feel like a princess while not being a puffy A-line with layers upon layers of material. She felt like a full-grown woman, not a girl.
After taking the gown off, choosing a pair of low-heeled shoes to go with it, and paying at the large, teal-colored counter, she jumped into the taxi Joan had called for her. Hands full of bags, she was pleased with her purchases and felt the excitement building within her at the idea of getting married tomorrow. Trying on the dress had made it seem so much more real, somehow. Now all she needed was to check on the booking for the chapel, make arrangements for an intimate dinner for two, and everything was ready.
~~~
When she returned to the hotel, she hauled her new purchases up to their hotel room, and went in search of her husband-to-be. When she found him, he was sitting at a Blackjack table, one hand holding his cards, and the other a drink.
"Hi honey," she murmured in his ear as she looked over his shoulders at the hand he was holding.
"Ssshhh! I'm concentrating."
She smiled to herself and thought about how in the past he had told her that gambling was for fools and he just didn't see the attraction. Apparently, he felt differently now. Half an hour later, her amusement at his change of mind began to seem less endearing when he was sipping on another drink, still playing Blackjack and still losing. The only time he had looked up from his game was when the waitress came by with a new drink for him.
"Look, I'm going to book a chapel for us," she finally said. "Do you have any preference or thought about where you'd like to have the ceremony?"
He still didn't raise his eyes from the game when he answered her.
"Doesn't matter," he answered.
"Doesn't matter?" she probed.
He must have heard something in her tone of voice because he finally lifted his eyes and looked in her direction.
"Look, I trust your decision," he reassured her. "I'm a guy, whatever you pick is fine with me."
"Are you sure?" she asked.
"Yes, I'm sure!" he insisted, his attention already drawn back to the card game unraveling in front of him.
She left the gaming area, a frown marring her forehead. Whatever happened to showing up and planning it together? While she understood that he wouldn't have been interested in dress shopping, surely he had some opinions on the rest of the planning? If he didn't, couldn't he at least humor her and come along to help?
Despite her annoyance, choosing the location and the details ended up being fairly straightforward. Because it was only the two of them, she chose the Gold Chapel, and a special package called the "Elope" - which seemed only appropriate. After she had chosen her flowers, and his boutonniere, and two songs from the hotel's songbook, she found herself at loose ends. Wandering back to the Blackjack tables, she noticed he had switched tables but was just as engrossed as he was when she left. She let him know she would be up in their room, resting before dinner.
As she flopped down on the king-size bed, she smiled as she looked over at her wedding dress, hanging from its hanger. While she was disappointed that she had done almost all the planning herself, yet she was consoled at the thought that she would have her fiancé's undivided attention once they were at dinner. It was already nearly five, and she felt the day catching up to her. The excitement of the day and her worry over finding the right dress had taken more out of her than she'd realized, and she was soon asleep.
She awoke with a start and the sense of a lot of time passing. At first, she wasn't sure where she was, and it took a few rubs of her eyes to orientate herself to her surroundings. Once she was aware enough to remember where she was, she reached for her phone on the bedside table. She was shocked to discover it was after eleven pm.
Where was he? Had she slept so deeply that he had returned, and she hadn't heard him? Her heart rapidly thumping in her chest, she slipped into her shoes, grabbed the room key, and headed for the hotel's casino.
She found him exactly where she had left him more than six hours ago, except this time he was slumped over his drink, his cards held loosely in his other hand.
"What are you doing?" she asked, incredulous.
He looked up at her through bleary, unfocused eyes.
"Wha?" he asked.
"What are you doing? It's after eleven, and we were supposed to go for dinner!" she exclaimed.
"I've been playin'," he said, barely able to stop from slurring his words. "Where were you, huh?"
"I fell asleep!" she stated.
"So ya didn't miss me," The tone of his voice seemed to imply there was no harm no foul.