Wedding Belles

by Beth Albright

  “Tamlyn Hartman, Walter Aaron’s widow, is a bar singer in Birmingham. Or at least she was a few months ago.”

  “Okay, I’ll write that down in a minute. Remind me.”

  “Okay, I’ll remind you,” I said, rolling my head from side to side, slowly becoming intoxicated in the moment. “My legs are gonna go numb if we keep this up.”

  “I have an idea,” he said as he inhaled my skin.

  “What’s that?”

  “I have a cot here in the closet for the nights I have to stay. Wanna try it out?”

  “Sure,” I said, “anytime, anywhere. Are you sure it’s safe?” I asked as if I actually cared. My blouse already unbuttoned to my waist, his hands hot on my skin. I knew we were taking a chance no matter what.

  “You locked the door when you came in and all the chiefs have left for the day. This part of the building is empty. Whatdya say?”

  I knew I should’ve been more concerned about being caught, or heard at least, but something in me just didn’t care right then. Maybe because he was removing his shirt as he spoke.

  “I say yes,” I murmured.

  Sonny walked over to the closet, his belt open and hanging loose, his shirt untucked and unbuttoned. He pulled a rolling cot from the closet and laid it out flat in the middle of his office. It was already made up with sheets and a lightweight blanket.

  “Well, it’s no Ritz-Carlton, but it’s more comfortable than the chair.”

  “It works for me,” I said, laughing as I slipped my red heels off and unzipped my skirt. After pulling off my shirt and bra, Sonny let his pants fall to the floor next to my skirt. I lay down and he crawled on top, running his hands all over me. We were just getting into heavy kissing and exploring when, from the silence of the station lobby, we heard a door slam.

  “Sonny, you here?”

  Bonita! Damn.

  We froze, face-to-face, me under Sonny, with our mouths dropped open and our eyes bugging out in shock.

  “Oh, my God, we have the worst luck! She’ll be back here any second.”

  Sonny scrambled up off of me and grabbed his pants, hopping around for his shoes, tucking his shirt in and trying to buckle his belt, all in one move.

  I was still there on the cot, lying mostly naked, wiggling like a fish out of water trying to get up when all of a sudden, the whole cot collapsed into itself with me in it.

  I was folded up like chicken in a taco, my legs flailing, one arm stuck out over my head.

  “Shit! Shit! Oh, God,” Sonny said as he was scurrying to pull the office back together. He grabbed my clothes and shoes in one hand and tried to pull me out with the other, but Bonita was knocking now, more and more insistent.

  “Sonny? You in there?” She jiggled the door handle. “I see your car out there, so I know you’re here somewhere.”

  “Oh, my God, get me outta here,” I said, wiggling all my free limbs like an animal in a trap.

  “I’m trying, baby.” Sonny was pulling me, and the bed was rolling all over the room as he pulled. “It’s jammed. I’m sorry, but bear with me. Don’t be mad!”

  With that, Sonny opened the closet door and kicked the entire cot, with me in it, back into the closet and slammed the door.

  Well, Blake, I thought, this is what you get. I was stuck in the pitch dark, half-naked and shoved into a roll-away bed in Sonny’s office closet. I held my breath as I heard Sonny open the office door.

  “Hey, Bonita, how in the hell did that damn door get locked?”

  “Am I interrupting something?” she asked.

  I could see her shadow on the floor as she entered the small office.

  “No, I was just catching up on my paperwork, had my headphones on. Guess I didn’t hear you. That stupid door has been sticking. Sorry. What’s going on?” I knew Sonny was trying to get her out as quick as he could, seeing as how I might not be breathing well from my taco in the closet.

  “Well, the results on that river drowning are back. You know, the one from that birthday party last week? That poor boy did die of drowning like we thought. But the tests show positive for alcohol poisoning. He was drunk. That will help the lawsuit, I’m sure,” she said.

  “Okay, thanks, I’ll look over the file in the morning. I appreciate you staying late to bring me these.” Sonny was walking over to the door to show her out when I saw the shadows on the floor stop.

  “Sonny, there’s an earring on your floor,” she said. I immediately tried to move my hand to check if it was mine. Shit, my earring was missing—well, not missing, found is the better word. Found by Bonita.

  “Oh, I’ll take that,” Sonny said. “Maybe it belongs to the woman I was interviewing on that murder case this morning.”

  “I could swear I saw Blake wearing those earrings the other night at Vivi’s dinner. Hmm, wonder how they could’ve gotten here?”

  Damn! Didn’t she ever take that investigator hat off? Ever?

  “Must be a popular style. Thanks again for the file, Bonita. You go on home for the night. I gotta get finished up and get home myself.” Sonny gave a fake laugh.

  “Okay, if you say so, Sonny. I’ll see you tomorrow. Get a good night’s sleep now. You look like you need it.”

  “You, too, Bonita. G’night.” I heard the door to Sonny’s office shut and click locked, and he ran over and opened the closet.

  I sat, still topless in the taco cot. I knew for certain Kitty would tell me this was not the definition of careful.

  “Oh, baby, I am so sorry.” He pulled me by my one hand that was caught outside the cot, and when he did the entire bed rolled out at such a speed it nearly knocked him over. He went back in the closet and grabbed my blouse and bra, my skirt and shoes, and then pried open the bed like a superman, freeing me from its grip.

  He helped me up and I dressed in a hurry, laughing as I zipped up my skirt.

  “I am so sorry, Blake. I tried to get her outta here as fast as I could.”

  “This was way too close. What were we thinking?”

  “I know what I was thinking. I couldn’t wait another second to have you,” Sonny said, kissing me softly and pulling me into him for a tight embrace.

  “What are we gonna do?” I whispered in his ear. “At this rate we’re never gonna make it to November without being discovered.”

  “I’m sorry,” he said again as I reached for my purse. “I just can’t stop thinking about being with you.” A little smile crept across his lips. “You did look funny in that cot.”

  I straightened my skirt and smoothed my hair. I knew I needed to go. Vivi probably had news about what color the nursery would be. And I knew if I didn’t start being sensible, it might be me that needed a nursery.

  22

  Finally, I was back at Vivi’s. I had changed into my cotton navy shorts and white tank top and was sitting at the kitchen table. Arthur was out back, working with some contractors on the finishing touches of the Moonwinx.

  I was exhausted. It had been quite a day, starting with that meeting with Coco and Jean-Pierre, which now seemed to have taken place ages ago. I had to laugh. Even Vivi would not believe the things that happened to me today.

  She breezed in a minute later and ran upstairs, saying she’d be right down. I got up and filled two big glasses with ice and poured us some tea from the fridge. Vivi had a saucer of sliced lemons covered in plastic wrap on the second shelf, so I grabbed it, along with the Ziploc bag of fresh mint, which she grew in pots on the big wraparound front porch. I set everything alongside a plate of chocolate chip cookies on her huge wooden table.

  I was ready for some serious girl time.

  Vivi waddled into the room, having changed into a comfortable pair of cute pink shorts with little white polka dots. “Honey, I am so hot I felt like a firecracker lit on both ends.” />
  “Sit down and tell me everything,” I said, leaning toward her with excitement. “I can’t wait.”

  Vivi pushed a small picture of her sonogram across the table to me.

  I tried to decipher the little blob in the picture, and Vivi helped by pointing out the tiny features of her baby. My eyes welled up. For some reason, this photo made everything more real, and it brought a lump to my throat. I looked up and smiled. “Oh, Vivi, I am so happy for you.”

  “I’m so happy, too.” Her eyes glistened.

  “Do we know what it is yet? Is five months too early?”

  “Blake, can’t you tell? Look at the picture. Do you see a little penis?”

  I looked closely. I turned the little picture around and around. “No.”

  “Exactly!” Vivi said. “That’s because there isn’t one.”

  We both burst out laughing.

  “Oh, my gosh, Vivi, you’re having a girl! We are gonna have so much fun.” I ran around the table and hugged her.

  “I know,” she said, squeezing me back. “That’s why I’m wearing pink. I stopped by Belk and bought as many pink things as I could find. I wanted to call you so bad, but I knew you were finishing up at the rally. I ran by the radio station to surprise Lewis, though.”

  “How did it go?”

  “He had wanted to come with me, but I told him I didn’t think we’d know today. I wanted to tell him myself so it would be special. I took two long, wide satin ribbons with me to the doctor. After I found out, I was so excited I drove straight to the station. I tied the pink satin ribbon around my waist, like a big ol’ present, then draped my purse in front of me and walked in, looking for Lewis.

  “Well, I finally found him in the new studio among a bunch of construction workers. He led me out to the veranda, away from all the noise, and asked if we knew anything about the sex. I opened my arms, revealing the pink bow on my belly and smiled my biggest smile, and do you know what he said?”

  “What?”

  “He goes, ‘I’ll have to buy me a shotgun to keep all those boys away from my little princess.’” Vivi laughed and I could just picture Lewis being the doting and protective father.

  “Blake, he had tears rolling down his face. I have never seen him so emotional. He literally lifted my pregnant ass off the floor, and that’s not easy these days.”

  I reached across the table and squeezed her hands. “Oh, Vivi, your fairy tale is all coming together.”

  “I know! I have to pinch myself to make sure I’m not dreaming.” She pulled off her necklace, which held her daddy’s wedding ring, and held it out. “I got it sized for Lewis. I can’t wait to slip it on his finger on our wedding day.” It was an heirloom ring in the Celtic design of love never ending. It was part of her Irish heritage and had been in Vivi’s family forever. She’d been wearing it on that chain around her neck ever since her father had passed away.

  Just then, Harry The Humper came wandering into the kitchen. Vivi put the necklace down and reached over to a clear glass jar on the table. He jumped up on her, licking her face as she handed him a dog biscuit. “I have to keep his mouth busy at all times. He chews on anything that doesn’t move.”

  Once she had Harry busy with his treat, she turned to me with a serious expression. “Okay, what happened at the rally? You sounded out of breath with excitement.”

  “Vivi, wait till you hear this. Dallas was kissin’ on Dan The Man!”

  “You’ve gotta be kiddin’ me! That is unreal! What’s the man thinking of?”

  “Her double-Ds?”

  Vivi cracked up. “Oh, my God, that has to be the incentive!”

  It was times like this I would always remember. Our girl time. I wondered if these moments would continue after Vivi had Lewis and the baby to care for every day. Her priorities were rearranging, her new life blossoming right before my eyes. There had been so much change this summer, and I had no control over any of it, but I sat back and let it wash over me. We giggled and gossiped like old times, and I savored every minute.

  Still laughing, Vivi got up and went to the sink to wash her hands after petting Harry and sending him outside with another treat. The sun was slipping lower in the sky and dusk was settling in, a welcome respite from the unbearable heat. I felt a cool breeze as she opened the screened door off the back porch. Rain was in the air.

  “I love it just before the rain. It smells so good,” Vivi said.

  The hot day had melted into a cool evening, but the humidity was still hovering over us like a wet blanket on a clothesline. Since it was such a peaceful summer night, the window over the kitchen sink was left open and the damp air drifted in along with the music of summer; an orchestra of frogs and crickets hummed as we sat laughing and remembering. I was fully engulfed in this special moment. When I became friends with Vivi on the first day of third grade, I knew she was special. I always knew we would grow old together.

  We used to daydream and talk for hours about our weddings. Vivi always wanted a huge magical affair. I did, too, but I’m more of a romantic. When we were thirteen, we drew up our plans for the perfect fairy-tale wedding day. I think Vivi actually wanted to arrive in a pumpkin-shaped stagecoach, just like Cinderella, then walk through a tunnel of palace soldiers holding their swords over their heads.

  I loved the stagecoach idea, but I wanted my prince to ride in on horseback. Maybe both of us would get our fairy tales one way or another. For now, I was working hard at making all of Vivi’s fairy-tale dreams come true.

  The rain was moving in and Arthur came through the back door just as the skies began to darken.

  “Hey there, ladies,” said Arthur as he made his way into the kitchen. I could hear the contractors’ trucks pulling out of the driveway. “It’s a comin’ up a cloud out there I see. I’ll get us some pork chops frying for dinner. Won’t take a few minutes.” He picked something up off the floor. “This yours?” He held up a dangling broken chain.

  “Yes, but where is Lewis’s ring?” Vivi asked. “It should be on there.”

  We looked under the table and all around.

  “Oh, no! I can’t get married without that ring. It’s an heirloom.”

  “Miss Vivi, I’m sure the ring will turn up. We’ll tear the place apart if we have to. After all, it’s not like it could up and walk away.”

  Vivi slumped at the table, her brows furrowed. “I can’t believe this happened. I was having such a good day.”

  “Don’t worry, honey,” I said. “We’ll keep looking.”

  The rain had started with a light sprinkle, and Lewis came running up the steps with a bouquet in hand. Vivi turned to him just as he entered the kitchen and she gasped at the sight of the flowers he carried.

  He must have had it custom-made because it had all of her favorites: peach roses, orange gerber daisies, sunflowers, pink and white hydrangea, and of course, pale pink peonies, the most prized of all. It was gorgeous, bright and colorful, just like Vivi.

  “Thank you, baby. They’re beautiful.” She took them from him and pulled out the card, reading it out loud.

  “For Vivi and Tallulah, I love you both so much. I am the luckiest man in the world. Love, Daddy.”

  Vivi now had tears running down her cheeks.

  “Miss Vivi, you’re having a girl?” Arthur asked. “That’s wonderful.”

  “Yes, I just found out today. I was gonna tell you, but I got distracted.”

  “Tallulah,” he said. “That’s a good name.”

  “I picked it because of Tallulah Bankhead, the silent-film star. She was from Alabama, too.”

  “It’s perfect.”

  Just as we all sat down, Harry came in and did a big doggy shake and splattered us all with muddy water. His sopping feet pranced all through the room, leaving wet brown paw prints everywhere.


  Vivi grabbed a rag and wiped down the dog’s paws. “Go on now, Harry. Get outta here.” Vivi shooed him to his bed in the corner. “I can’t believe I left him out digging in the rain. Oh, what a mess. I guess we still have some training to work on.”

  I grabbed a dishcloth and started wiping up the floor with my foot. Arthur and Lewis were laughing and washing off all the spots they could see.

  Finally, we all sat down together to eat, all of us talking about the new nursery. The thunder was loud and the rain was pouring by the time we finished the cobbler. We had the kitchen window open, and the lullaby of the sudden summer thunderstorm was like a sedative on this overly stimulating day. The storm continued through the night, lightning ripping flashes of light across the wood floor, the blustery heavy downfall eventually dissolving into a gentle, steady rain.

  I snuggled down into my bed at Vivi’s. I would call the Fru Fru boys first thing in the morning to get them going on everything pink. Coco and Jean-Pierre would love this news.

  In between visions of pink tulle, thoughts about tracking down Tressa kept me on edge. That was our big task for tomorrow, and there was no telling how it would play out. I rode an emotional roller coaster all night long and barely slept. What if Tressa refused to sign? What if she made things even more difficult for Vivi and Lewis? And worse, why did I have this nagging feeling that there was some connection between Tressa and Mrs. Tamlyn Hartman Aaron?

  23

  The next morning, I shoved the last of my makeup in my bag while sandwiching the phone between my ear and my shoulder. “Hey, Wanda Jo. I’ll be up in Birmingham all day with Vivi, trying to track down this Tressa girl, so I’m not going to be in the office. I need a quick letter drafted to the Historical Society. I left the file on your desk.”

  “Got it. Now, y’all be careful, okay? We don’t know this Tressa.”

  “I promise, we’ll be okay. How’s that new preacher of yours doin’ these days?” I asked. “Still seeing him?”

  “You better believe it,” Wanda Jo gushed. “Can you believe he don’t seem to mind my cussin’ every now and then.”