Back on Blossom Street (Blossom Street #4)(29)
Afterward, Alix was reluctant to change back into her T-shirt, jeans and combat boots. Wearing this wedding gown, she could believe that her wedding was going to be as perfect as the dress itself. She reminded herself that all the stress and worry associated with the ceremony—and the reception—would soon fade. It was just one day, as Jordan kept saying.
“Did I ever tell you about my cousin Savannah O’Brien-Jones?” Tammie Lee asked unexpectedly when Alix emerged from the dressing room.
“I can’t remember if you did or not,” Alix said. Tammie Lee was famous for her stories. Whenever she wanted to make a point, she did so in the form of a story.
“She’s my aunt Frieda’s youngest sister’s girl. She grew up in New Orleans and was about as cherished as an only child can be. Then she went away to college and fell in love with a boy from Knoxville. It was as if her mother, my aunt Freida’s—well, I already told you how we’re related. Anyway, it was as if my aunt Dorothea had been waiting her whole life for this wedding.”
Alix figured that sooner or later Tammie Lee would get to the reason for this particular story. She slipped her arms into her leather jacket and zipped it up.
“Big wedding, was it?” she asked.
“Oh, my goodness, Mama told me it cost as much as a new car and we’re not talking a Ford, either.” Tammie Lee paused to catch her breath. “Savannah had ten—count ’em, ten—wedding showers.” She shuddered extravagantly. “Just think about writing all those thank-you notes! Her mama spent weeks planning every detail of that wedding, and I mean every single detail. She ordered orchids from Hawaii. She went to the city’s top caterer for the reception dinner. She even chose the six bridesmaids.”
“Six?”
“She wanted eight but Savannah put her foot down.”
Alix and Tammie Lee left the bridal store. Shivering in the dreary March weather, they walked toward the parking garage. The wind was cold and the dark sky once again threatened rain.
“In my opinion, things would’ve gone better if Savannah had spoken up sooner.”
“About what?” Alix was getting lost. “You mean the bridesmaids?”
“Uh-uh.” She shook her head. “The wedding. It seems all she really wanted was a small wedding, and it was her mother who insisted on this huge affair that cost the earth. And her daddy. He wanted to show off his little girl.” Tammie Lee paused for another breath. “The funny part is that while her parents were arranging an extravagant event, Savannah and Charlie, her fiancé, flew to Vegas and got married.”
Alix gasped, and Tammie Lee broke into giggles. “I’d love to have been a fly on the wall when my aunt Dorothea got that phone call.”
Tammie Lee wrapped her arm around Alix’s. “Her daddy was fit to be tied. Her mama didn’t know what to do. Eventually they went ahead with the big reception, and I have to say it was absolutely lovely. Savannah and Charlie were there greeting their guests as husband and wife, and they were so happy. Oh, I get goose bumps just remembering the way they looked at each other. They were so much in love.”
“I know why she ran off to Vegas,” Alix muttered. “Everyone was taking control of her wedding.” And she couldn’t blame Tammie Lee’s cousin for eloping, either.
“Fortunately, no one was angry with Savannah for very long,” Tammie Lee went on. “Everyone knew her mother had ridden roughshod over her. Of course, it helped that Savannah had her first child exactly nine months after the wedding.”
“And they’re still happy and everything?” Alix asked.
“Oh, yes. Savannah’s had three children in the last five years and no one even remembers how her mother tried to take over her wedding.”
Alix nodded slowly. Much as she appreciated Jacqueline’s help, Jacqueline and Susan Turner had done exactly the same thing to her. It was as if her opinion no longer mattered and conferring with her was merely an afterthought. The wedding invitations were a good example. The order had been placed before Alix and Jordan had approved Jacqueline and Susan’s decision. Granted, that might be a formality at this stage, but Alix would’ve appreciated seeing their final choice.
Alix grinned at her friend. “Are you in the mood for one of those thick, juicy burgers we had the first time we went shopping?”
“You bet,” Tammie Lee said enthusiastically and they drove to a fast-food restaurant. Sitting across from her friend and wolfing down a cheeseburger, Alix suddenly understood the point Tammie Lee was trying to make.
“Do you think I should be saying something to Jacqueline and Susan Turner?” she asked anxiously.
“Well,” Tammie Lee drawled. “That’s up to you. Do you feel they’ve taken over your wedding? Like Savannah’s mama did?”
“Yes, they have and even though I don’t like it, I haven’t stopped it, either.” Being on good terms with Jordan’s mother was vital; arguing over the wedding could damage their future relationship. And Jacqueline and Reese had done so much for her already, how could she complain? Alix felt trapped, stuck in a quicksand of glittery invitations and unwieldy guest lists filled with strangers.
“Oh, Alix, I probably shouldn’t have said a word…. But I was thinking about Savannah and Charlie and how happy they were after they got back from their Vegas wedding. Oh,” she sighed. “I guess my mouth gets ahead of my brain sometimes. Jacqueline enjoys being part of this and she really believes she’s doing a good thing. She just can’t resist taking control. It’s the way she is.”