Our evening flies by in a flurry of hugging, dancing, and food in no particular order. Juliette warned me it would indeed fly by, and that I’d want to take a moment to pause and soak in everything around me: the atmosphere, the people, and the love around me because in a blink of an eye the night would be over. That’s hard to do when you’re in the middle of it, but I have no doubts that I will remember this night forever. It was perfect.
I wouldn’t have changed a thing.
Juliette arranged for the deejay to play a set of nineties radio hits, which turned out to be the highlight of the evening. Everyone including many of the older guests from my old neighborhood in Penn-Washington jumped up on the dance floor and were jamming to old TLC and Britney Spears songs. I even think I saw old Miss Dorothy breaking a sweat.
“Do you see Miss Dorothy over there trying to do the running man right now?” I say while dancing next to my mom.
“I didn’t know her knees could move like that.”
“Me either. I thought her knees were why she never pulls any weeds out front?”
“Yeah, I guess that’s been her excuse for fifteen years.”
We both roar with laughter.
“Everyone is having a good time, Bitsy. You and Roman throw a splendid party. I hope you’re enjoying it.”
“I am, Mom.”
I truly am.
“Look at your father over there with Knox. Those two are becoming thick as thieves. Remember how he was afraid to hold him when he was first born? It was just a matter of time before Knox won him over. There’s something absolutely magnetic about that boy. He’s going to be a heartbreaker, just like his daddy.”
“What do you mean by that?” I take offense, “Roman’s no heartbreaker.”
“Look at poor Trisha and Marie over there.”
I glance over at a table of some of my younger cousins. Trisha and Marie are both fourteen years old and they’re staring at Roman in the way that half of the female gender drools over Chris Hemsworth.
“Are they crushing on my husband?” I giggle.
“That they are.”
I’ve danced half the night away and gorged myself on wedding cake when it’s time for Roman to pull the garter down my leg and toss it into a sea of single men. The deejay plays some cheesy instrumental song as the crowd cheers when Roman gets on his knees in front of me.
I lick the corner of my lips as my sexy husband slowly inches his hand up my dress, and then blush knowing that there are people watching him basically seduce me in the middle of the dance floor. He maintains my modesty by holding my dress down as he reaches his hand farther and farther up to do something immodest. There’s a crooked smile across his mouth as he brushes a few of his fingertips against the damp fabric of my silk thong. Once he has the garter in hand, he holds it high for the guests to see.
“Let me find out that you get turned on when people watch, Duchess,” he practically growls in my ear.
One of the more touching moments of the evening is when the deejay calls for couples only on the dance floor. Since all of our babysitters are dancing, we decide to include Knox in on our dance together. All the favorite couples in our lives dance around us to “Marry You” by Bruno Mars, and Knox bounces up and down in Roman’s arms between us.
His happiness is infectious, or maybe it’s mine that is, because I dance joyfully to the music as I hold my dress up and twirl in my bare feet.
“You are the most beautiful woman in this room,” he says loud enough for me to hear over the music.
“I should be. I’m the bride.”
“What else do we have to do tonight, baby? We took the photos, we cut the cake, we threw the garter and flowers at our friends.”
“Jade didn’t look too thrilled that she caught the bouquet. She ruined a perfectly good bunch of sunflowers.”
“And Camden was a little ticked off that he didn’t catch the garter. Your neighbor’s son might need an escort out of the club tonight. I think Cam is going to kill him for sliding the garter up Jade’s leg like that.”
“That was kind of funny.”
“I’m ready for it to be just the two of us, Duchess.”
“Stop rushing this wonderful evening, husband.”
“Say it again.”
“Husband.” I smile.
“Louder.”
“Husband!”
Roman leans over for another kiss with the baby between us.
“Come here.”
Knox babbles a string of words as he gently touches our chins with his small, sticky hands.
“I think he just said Dada!” Roman says excitedly.
“You’re hearing things, baby. He can’t talk yet.”
Frances and Peter walk over to us with their eyes focused right on Knox. They haven’t really had an opportunity to spend any time with him because we’ve both been too busy for another Las Vegas visit before the wedding.
“Would it be okay if I held him for a while?” Frances asks.
I give Roman a moment to answer his mother and when he stands there hesitating; I answer for him.
“Sure,” I agree. “Here you go.”
The deejay throws on a series of line dancing songs, one right after another, and Sloan and Tiny pull me away from my new husband to dance together.
“Sorry, dark knight, but the wobble is our song. Gotta go!”
As I party with my friends, Roman moves from table to table taking pictures and shaking hands. I watch him work the wedding guests with an ease and comfort I’ve never seen him exhibit before. He is genuinely happy and it feels good that I played a major part in putting that look on his face.
That in itself is worth every bit of pain that has brought us to this day.
This wonderful day.
26
ELIZABETH
It’s my wedding night. A night I have contemplated many times this past year. I don’t know exactly why I feel so incredibly nervous at this moment, but I do. Our love is battle worn and has been tested countless times, and I know without a doubt that man loves me with every fiber of his being, so that’s not the issue. I have slept with Roman a bazillion times and we’ve done some raunchy stuff together (at least by my standards) so that’s not the issue either.
I think the actual source of my trepidation is that I’ve put an enormous amount of pressure on myself to have the best sex of my life tonight because that’s what you do on your wedding night, right? I wonder if Roman is feeling anything similar.
We leave our friends and family to enjoy the rest of the wedding reception and take a car to Penn’s Landing where Roman’s yacht is waiting. Our honeymoon plan is to take a two-week-long cruise alone down the East Coast making stops in Miami, The Bahamas, and Puerto Rico and then turn back around. I didn’t plan any tours or activities for our time in the Caribbean. We’re just going to veg out on the beaches and on the deck of this ship, although it will be a genuine challenge to my workaholic tendencies and his controlling ones.
We’re greeted by the captain and a crew of staff that Roman hires when he makes plans to take the yacht out. Two staffers handle our luggage as another guides us to the top deck. The deck is elegantly decorated similarly to our reception space, with strings of white lights along the banisters, oversized modern furniture with deep white cushions, and bouquets of sunflowers. Soft music plays from the speakers and there’s a table full of mini-sized desserts.