by Anne Stone
“Something wrong?” she asked.
“No, I was just sitting here thinking about us, about next year at this time. We’ll be married and starting our own traditions.”
“We most certainly will.” She walked over and sat beside him with her packages. Reaching over, she gave him a quick kiss and said, “Come on. Let’s open our gifts.”
“Are you like the kid in the candy store?”
“Of course! Especially today.”
They took their time as they exchanged gifts. Angelina gave Alejandro several dress shirts and complementary ties, along with an Irish knit sweater. She also bought him a new tie-tack with the engraving “With love, A.”
He loved his gifts. He gave her a new coffee mug that he’d purchased from the Botanical Gardens. It had pictures of the various gardens they’d toured the day he asked her to marry him. The Herb Gardens were proudly showcased on it with the intricate labyrinth that surrounded it. He wanted her to put it on her desk at school, so she could store her pens neatly. And, whenever she looked at it, she could relive their special day when he asked her to marry him.
“I love this, and every day I’ll think of the magical day and your proposal. That day is never far from my thoughts.” She gave him a quick kiss and moved on to her next gift. It was a beautiful silk scarf that she could wear in her hair or around her neck. He also gave her a bottle of her favorite perfume. The last gift he’d hid under the sofa cushion. While she was cleaning up the wrapping paper, he reached for it.
“One last gift for my lady,” he said and handed her a beautifully wrapped package.
“Alejandro, you’ve already given me so much.”
“Stop talking and just open it.”
She nodded and carefully began to open the gift, not wanting to tear the paper.
“Just open it already!”
“Well, I don’t want to tear the paper. I love it and want to save it as a reminder of our first real Christmas as a couple. Now, just let me be…”
He watched her with a broad smile on his face. She removed the paper and slowly opened the box. Inside sat a velvet jeweler’s box. He couldn’t wait to see her face when she opened the box. She glanced up at him and said, “What’s this?”
“Open it.”
She lifted the lid and was taken aback. Inside laid the most gorgeous pair of emerald and diamond earrings that she’d ever seen in her entire life. A huge emerald was the focal point of each earring, and they were surrounded by diamonds; then, there was a drop that contained a smaller version of the main earring. She’d never seen anything like them. As she stared in awe, the diamonds winked back at her. She was speechless.
“Do you like them?”
She looked up at him with tears in her eyes. “They’re beautiful. I’m speechless…”
She reached over and kissed him. She placed both hands on either side of his face and said, “I can’t believe you did this for me. I can’t wait to put them on.” In her rush to get to Alejandro’s for their gift opening, she’d forgotten to put on earrings. She removed the earrings from the box while Alejandro watched her put them in. She jumped off the couch and ran to a nearby mirror. “They’re absolutely beautiful.”
Alejandro approached her from behind and placed his hands around her waist. “No, you’re the one that’s beautiful. I’m so lucky to have you in my life. I love you.”
“I love you, too.” They stood in front of the mirror, relishing the moment. He turned her in his arms and said, “I wish we were getting married right this very moment. I can’t wait to call you my wife.”
She smiled at him.
“You’re the light of my life. Our wedding day can’t come soon enough.”
They shared a beautiful moment in one another’s arms when Angelina noticed the time. She couldn’t believe how quickly the afternoon had flown by. Hurriedly, they cleaned up their mess and headed over to his mother’s house for dinner.
She and Alejandro had shopped together for his family’s gifts. One evening they had a marathon wrapping session while enjoying takeout pizza. She didn’t realize how much they’d purchased on their shopping excursion with Colleen until she had to wrap all of the gifts. Angelina had met him at home after work. She’d used her key for the first time. It was an exciting moment for her, but it also felt strange entering his house alone without him by her side.
She expected Alejandro home within the hour, so she ordered pizza and pulled out all of the presents from the hall closet where he’d stored them.
She wanted to be organized when he got home, but what he found brought tears to his eyes. He hadn’t laughed so hard in a long, long time. Presents were scattered about the room. Piles that had been neatly stacked were laying on their sides. Wrapping paper lay in various states: Some packages half wrapped, other’s had paper cut and lying beside them, yet others rolls of paper were unfurled from their roll lying beside the package to wrap. Additional rolls of paper stood on their end against the wall. And the ribbon…
He looked at her as she tried to apply tape to a package and broke out in a fit of laughter. “What the hell happened here? It looks like the wrapping fairies lost their way.”
He grabbed her hand and pulled her towards the couch where it, too, was covered with tissue paper, tags, and other supplies. “I see you need my help with this simple task.”
“Simple? You call this simple? Look at all of these gifts. I think they’ve multiplied three-fold since we went shopping.”
He continued laughing. “Well, I have to be honest—I did add a few. But why are so many packages in different stages of being wrapped?”
She glanced at him. He knew she’d have a good reason—at least what she thought was a good reason.
“Well,” she said as she looked at him and then about the room at the packages. “Ah, to tell you the truth, I don’t know why. I thought I’d finished wrapping that one,” she said as she pointed to the package half-wrapped, “but then I found the perfect paper for another gift…” She looked back at him and watched his face. He was giggling and was ready to break into another fit of hysterics.
“I don’t know. I guess I lost my focus,” she said as she also started laughing.
Before they could begin to get organized, the doorbell rang announcing their dinner. They enjoyed their pizza. Then, Alejandro retackled her organizing and, before they knew it, all of the presents were wrapped. “See, I knew it wouldn’t take us too long… That is, after we started over.”
“I was just trying to match the paper to the person to the gift. I guess I got a little carried away. I wanted everything perfect, especially since it’s our first Christmas together as an engaged couple.”
“Honey, next time just grab a roll of paper and wrap. You don’t have to put hours of thought into it.”
They laughed and took in the mess that was once the family room.
“Next time, I promise I’ll do better,” she said as she rolled up some of the remnants of paper. They’d packed the gifts into bags and stored them in the hall closet.
They grabbed the bags then and headed for the garage where they piled them in the car. She thought they were going to be late, but they were actually the first guests to arrive.
As soon as she walked into his parents’ home, Maria noticed her earrings. “Angelina, let me see.” She pulled her into the last remaining rays of sunlight and gazed at her earrings. “Alejandro, they’re gorgeous.”
“Maria, I was shocked when I opened them. I’ve never seen anything so beautiful.”
“Alejandro designed them himself.”
“You did?” Angelina said, turning to Alejandro.
“I did. I wanted to do something special for you. I knew you’d look fabulous in emeralds and diamonds, and I wasn’t wrong.”
Angelina helped Maria with the finishing touches in the kitchen while Alejandro spent time with his father. The remainder of the family arrived and they shared a fabulous dinner, after which they opened their gifts. Everyone l
oved the earrings that Alejandro had given her. The holidays were a happy occasion for both families. Before they knew it, the wedding would be upon them, and the families would be forever joined.
Chapter Twenty-Four
In the blink of an eye, winter was over and the final preparations for the wedding had kicked into high gear. Career Day had come and gone, but Alejandro wasn’t able to participate due to his schedule, so his brother Joe stepped in for him. The April wedding was less than a month away and the teachers at St. Margaret’s threw Angelina a surprise bridal shower during their faculty meeting. Gabriella had been tasked with delaying her to the meeting, so she asked Angelina for help with a bulletin board. Angelina was standing on a chair, stapling a new spring border to the bulletin board, when she realized they were late for the meeting. “Gabriella you know how I hate to be late.”
“I know, so do I.” Angelina climbed down from the stepladder and handed Gabriella the remaining bulletin board supplies.
“Come on, we’ve got to get going. Mary’s not going to be happy that we’re late.
I’ll help you after the meeting,” Angelina said as they hurried from the room.
Gabriella let her precede her into the meeting room. Everyone shouted “Surprise!”
Angelina was taken aback. All of the teachers and staff had gathered to throw her a wedding shower. She turned to Gabriella and said, “You were in on this, weren’t you?”
“What do you think?”
The room was decorated with balloons and streamers. A huge congratulations sign was stretched across the wall opposite the entrance. A table strewn with gifts sat off to the side, while cake and punch sat below the sign.
She immediately pulled Gabriella into an embrace, thanking her for helping her fellow teachers keep this a surprise from her. She’d known about the other bridal showers that were held in her honor, but this one totally took her off guard.
They hadn’t registered for wedding gifts, as Alejandro had a house that was completely furnished. Gifts didn’t mean anything to them. She just wanted to marry the man of her dreams and, in two short weeks, her dream would come true.
The entire staff was invited to the shower, including the janitors and rectory staff. Everyone on staff loved Angelina and wanted to help her celebrate such a wonderful occasion. They were overjoyed with her upcoming marriage. Angelina had never talked much about her relationship with Alejandro—she kept it close to her and really only let certain people in. She guessed it had to do with what both of them had been through to get to this day. Everyone knew Alejandro and loved him dearly, but no one knew that he’d been married before, had a family, and lost them in a horrific accident. No one needed to know that, and no one needed to know about her condition.
Questions were being thrown at her from all directions. Where was she going to live? Where were they going on a honeymoon? And of course, the question of children came up. Gabriella caught her eye. She wondered how she would handle it.
“Alejandro and I want to have a family. I’d like as many children as we can have. Alejandro is open to whatever I want…”
Good answer, thought Gabriella.
Angelina got through the questions and seemed no worse for wear. She told them they were going to live in Alejandro’s home. She had no idea where they were going on a honeymoon, as Alejandro refused to tell her the exact location, only that it was somewhere warm.
Gabriella helped her load the abundance of gifts into her car. She turned to her and said, “I’m proud of you.”
“Why’s that?”
“Because you answered the questions concerning children so matter of fact.”
“It’s true. We’ll have what we have. If it’s one, two, or more children, it’ll be what it is. I can’t control it and neither can your brother. I’m fine now. I’ve pretty much dealt with my problems, and when I’m sad I turn to your brother.”
The next two weeks passed in a blur. Angelina spent that time running around getting last minute gifts for her bridesmaids. She’d already ordered them engraved wine glasses, but she then found little photo albums that she wanted to make them with photos from the rehearsal dinner and wedding day.
She also put together the wedding favors that would be at each place setting. She bought small organdy bags that she filled with miniature mints, and she secured each with a wedding bell that she made out of beads. Each guest would also receive a small gift bag that contained a small bottle of wine. The label was a copy of their wedding invitation.
On her last day at school, Angelina’s class threw her a party. Her classroom mothers put the party together and surprised her by also inviting Alejandro. Mary had called her to the office while her aide led the class to the gymnasium for PE class. When she returned, the doors were closed to the gym. She opened them and another, “Surprise!” rang out. Angelina looked around and couldn’t believe her eyes. She’d been totally surprised twice in just a matter of days. Her class had decorated the gym with balloons and streamers and the room mothers were serving refreshments. She was even more shocked when Alejandro walked out of the coach’s office. He walked over and gave her a hug and kiss on the cheek.
“What’re you doing here?”
“I got a call from Mary. She told me your students were throwing you a shower and wanted me to attend. I guess they wanted to check me out to make sure I was acceptable for their favorite teacher,” he said jokingly.
“Oh, come on now,” she playfully slapped his forearm.
“Kidding, only kidding. They just wanted me to be a part of it.”
They shared in the refreshments and were encouraged to open their gifts together. Alejandro gestured for her to open them. He just wanted to watch his beautiful fiancée enjoy this time with her students. He was overjoyed watching her open the gifts, oohing and ahhing over everything she opened.
They received many handmade gifts which made them even more special. Pot holders that were crafted using a loom were made by several students. She received a mosaic hot plate that she could tell was handmade as it was signed by her student and dated with her wedding date. They received handmade embroidered guest towels and towels embroidered with the letter A. Lastly, they received a quilt whereby each student drew a picture and signed their name on the fabric. These were all sewn together and then quilted. She’d never be able to forget the kindness of the class, especially when she looked at the quilt.
She was happy, truly happy. Alejandro hoped he’d be able to keep the smile that she’d been wearing permanently etched on her loving face.
Angelina looked over at Alejandro and smiled at him. She wanted him to help her open their gifts, but he declined, “I’m enjoying watching you.”
“Well then, you can at least wear this,” She started to slap him with the sticky bows that were attached to some of the gifts. Her students and parents burst into laughter when they saw the playful manner between the loving couple.
“Thanks everyone,” said Alejandro. “I especially want to thank you for inviting me. I had a great time, especially now that I look like a flower bouquet.”
The kids all broke out in laughter. Angelina reached over and brushed a kiss on his cheek which everyone loved.
“No, seriously. Thank you for including me in this day. It means a lot to me and Ms. Samuels that you went to all of this trouble for us. We will always remember this, and I know Ms. Samuels, as well as I, hold a special place in our hearts for each of you. I wasn’t invited to any of Ms. Samuels’s previous bridal showers, so I now have a better understanding what goes on at these events,” he said, laughing. “All kidding aside, I want each of you to know that it means a lot that you wanted to include me in today’s event.”
Alejandro helped clean up while Angelina returned to her classroom for the last class of the day. He joined again her as she released the kids. She received hugs and best wishes on her wedding. Alejandro had already carried their gifts to his car, so they headed to the teacher’s lounge for her final goodbyes.
Mary hugged her and informed her she’d see them at the wedding. Gabriella stopped by and wondered why her brother was there. “I attended the shower held by her class,” Alejandro said.
“I didn’t know that you were going to be here for that.”
“I called him,” Mary replied. “Several of Angelina’s students thought it would be neat for Alejandro to be here.”
“I’m surprised you could get off.”
“It was touch and go today, but nothing was going to keep me from being here.”
They finished their goodbyes and, hand-in-hand, he walked her to her car.
Angelina followed Alejandro to his house. She wanted to organize the gifts she’d received. She’d put them all away and write her thank you notes after they returned from their honeymoon.
After they carried the gifts in, Angelina turned to Alejandro and put her arms around his neck. “I can’t believe we’ll be married by this time on Saturday.”
“I know. I can’t either. We just have to get through the rehearsal and dinner tomorrow.”
“I want to remember everything… I don’t want it to fly by. It’s the only time I plan to get married and I want to enjoy every minute of it!”
“I promise you, honey, we’ll enjoy it.”
*****
The rehearsal at the church went well, as did the dinner hosted by Alejandro’s parents at their country club. His father gave a toast that brought tears to her eyes. “First of all, I’d like to thank everyone for being here to participate in my son and soon-to-be daughter-in-law’s special day. I’d like to say a few words about Angelina. I’ve known her since she was a baby. Being her pediatrician, I watched her grow into a beautiful woman. Never in my wildest dreams did I believe she’d become a part of my family. I watched her friendship with Gabriella grow, and she always referred to Angelina as the sister she never had. Then Alejandro moved back to St. Louis and helped Angelina’s family when Colleen became ill. That was a life changing moment in both of our family’s lives. Angelina’s subsequent illness brought her and my son together in a way only they can describe. He cared for her, but she also helped him through an extremely trying time in his life.