So the three of them went down to her room to begin the dressing for the wedding.
They got in the bedroom and Triessa got out the foundation garments first. They put those on and then put on the Bridal Belles Enchantress hosiery with the embroidered flowers on the top and outside above the ankle. They would be wonderful. They were white as were the shoes but the dress had some white on it so they would be fine. The stockings were the kind with the garter on top, very easy to use and wear. So much for the old garter tradition. The shoes would go very well with them. They had lots of beads on the top and outside in the design of flowers and leaves. There was some pink but it was mostly white. They were a perfect combination. The shoes were called Dyeables.
The dress had a slip made into it so that was a very helpful feature. She laid the dress across the bed while Leslie fixed her makeup. It was a perfect blend of colors for Leslie knew her very well, had worked with her for a long time. Her mother was watching all this going on and passing her items as needed. She was mesmerized to see the transformation in her own already beautiful daughter. The flush of excitement was in her cheeks and blended perfectly with the blush and foundation. She already had a perfectly natural blush but they felt better to add a little more. Her mascara was expertly applied, very beautifully emphasizing and enhancing her long lashes and setting off the bright blue color of her eyes.
At last it was time to put on the dress.
Leslie said, “Why don’t I go up and check the other ladies to see how they are doing first? You do not want your dress on too long before the time.”
The ladies were ready and had removed the curlers from their hair. She told them she would be back in a short time. It was time for Triessa’s dress to be put on and once she was already then she could concentrate on supervising the others. She went back down to the bedroom to help with the rest of the preparation.
Leslie gathered the dress up off the bed. She and Sheila slipped it down over Triessa’s head very carefully so it would not mar the makeup or get it on the dress. She let out a large sigh and squeal. It was a perfect fit. It was a fitted dress with a flared overskirt mostly over the back and sides, leaving the front open to show the beautiful work on the dress. It had premiere rose pink satin underneath and was covered with beaded lace letting the pink show through in places. The sleeves were long and had the beaded lace over sheer fabric letting the color of her skin show through. They ended at a point over her hand and looked splendid and attractive and made her nails look elegant. The top of the dress had gathered pink satin that rounded up over the top of the bodice. Wide pink satin bands connected to this, going around the arm below the top of her shoulder. A beaded form like a large pin was located at the point on either side where the arm piece joined the front. It was truly heavenly. Below the waist was a piece of pink satin in a scalloped fashion from the hips across the abdomen. It was very striking. The back had a full pink net over it. The dress came to mid-calf and was decorated with cut out flowers and beaded lace down each side and across the bottom. It was elaborate work and certainly a work of art. She truly did look like a princess.
The tiara was placed on her head with the pink lace veil flowing down behind nearly to the edge of the skirt. It had some lace on the edges to match the dress as near as they could get. The tiara was back on her head a ways so she had her hair combed in front of it and down the sides with soft tendril curls floating down by her face. Her hair was pulled back a little behind her ears to expose her beautiful dangly earrings. They were pink to match her dress color. Her fingernail polish was a perfect match, as well as her blush. They looked her over to see if there was anything missing but it all looked just perfect. She looked all finished and like a dream walking. She soon would be walking to her love and into his life forever. She had a whole squadron of butterflies flitting in loops in her stomach. She still had some time to wait and decided to stay here in her room so he would not see her until she was ready to come into the Rose Garden where he would be waiting for her. She wanted to be sure he had time to get up there and be ready and waiting for her appearance.
Suddenly, a thought came to her mind and she looked at her mother and gasped, “Will I be able to kneel in this tight dress?”
“I don’t know, dear, let us help you to see if it works.”
So her mother got on one side and Leslie on the other and held her while she tried to kneel. It was better than she thought for when she began to kneel the dress was full enough to allow her to do so.
She sighed and said, “Thank you, I am sure Todd will hold my arm as I kneel so it will work. This is no time for an accident. Imagine how I would feel. Thank you both and I am so glad I thought of it now so I can be more relaxed there.”
Leslie left her and went on up to work on the other ladies.
Her mother started getting ready and put on a teal dress Triessa made for her earlier and a small hat to match. The dress had lace and beads on it and was very dressy. Triessa smiled and kissed her and sighed at her beauty. Her dad was planning to wear his dark suit with a beautiful tie she had made for him when she made Todd’s.
“Oh, Mother, what is the matter with me? What about Nancy? I certainly want her to be there. Would you please go down and help her get ready and see if she has any needs for her hair? I could not be happy without her there, too. Please tell her that and make sure she has what she needs to get ready. Time is slipping away from us. Oh dear!”
So she went down to find Nancy. Nancy had brought some things with her feeling like she was already a part of the family. She did not want to miss this wonderful occasion.
“I already did get a private invitation much earlier and have been so looking forward to this. I know Triessa was very busy and involved in so much and knew she would want me there as much as I would want to be there.”
She was already dressed and asked Sheila to help her check out some things. She decided to go up and get Leslie to touch up her hair a bit with the curling iron.
They went up and got the rest of the work done. They stopped in to see Triessa and Nancy was stunned and speechless. How could anything be so beautiful! Triessa was also amazed to see how lovely Nancy looked as well and so glad she had been invited. She could not remember seeing her in such finery before.
Meanwhile, Todd had been getting his things out to get ready. He had been up to the garden and everything was going well. His brother offered to help him dress and he accepted gladly. Matt was already dressed. Todd asked him if he could go up to the house and see if Leslie would have time to come and check his hair. In all the rush he had forgotten it. He wanted everything to be perfect. So he went up to see and Nancy was the only one in the house who was not upstairs, so he asked her to check for him. She went up and came back with the message that she would be there in about twenty minutes.
“That is wonderful,” said Matt. “I will tell Todd. He is so nervous.”
Todd kept on his regular clothes and decided to put on his tux after his haircut. Soon Leslie showed up. His hair did not need too much work so she finished it quickly and went back to the other ladies. She was so glad she was able to help everybody out on this special day. Her fiancé was there also getting ready and she was very pleased with how he looked.
Todd got out his tux and his brother helped him put it on. He put on his shirt, then his pants and tucked the shirt in ever so carefully. It must be totally smooth. Next the vest, cummerbund and jacket. It was a Pierre Cardin tux and very exquisite in cut. The color was a gorgeous blue, and the cravat was a little lighter blue with an intricate dark chevron pattern. The pants had a dark stripe in them. It looked just perfect in combination with the rest. The shirt was white and the whole thing looked very elegant. His dark, wavy hair was clean and shiny and his mustache was neatly trimmed. He was truly a wonderful sight.
Matt marveled and said, “Brother, I am not sure I have ever seen you turned out in such fashion. You are a truly handsome man. Triessa will swoon.”
It was ne
arly ten-thirty. He had just a half hour, how wonderful. He laid out the clothes he planned to wear after the wedding when they went away long enough for the cleaning up to be done and everyone to be gone from the place.
He decided he had better scoot up to the garden and be ready so she would be able to come up to meet him there. He, Matt and Mitch went back up and the whole place had been transformed. The rug was down at the platform for the ceremony and the flowers were on the pedestals. The screen was in place ready to be moved in at a moment’s notice. The tables were set up and in the center was the large ice sculpture in the form of a rose. The most amazing thing was the colors in it. Colored water was used to get the color of the rose and the leaves. It looked so very realistic, it was hard to imagine it was ice. And beside it on either side of the ice sculpture on a glass pedestal were swans made of crystal by a famous designer. This would greatly please Triessa. It may take away her concentration for a moment. It was doing that to him now. They talked about it. Now that it was set up, it was just overwhelming. He was so glad he hadn’t seen the finishing touches until now. The total surprise was absolutely magical.
The tables on the sides were full of foods of various kinds and the gift table at the further end had a gorgeous pink tablecloth with the extraordinary wedding cake in the middle. It was the most elegant one he had ever seen with cascades of pink and white roses down the sides and a bride and groom on the top. The cutting knife had a pale blue handle to correspond with his blue tux and her pink and white dress.
He wondered what her dress was like and was so eager to see her.
How soon will it be before she comes into my view? he thought nervously. “How slowly time is going this morning.”
Everyone was here, seated and waiting. How wonderful they all looked. His parents and hers were in the front rows and the family was behind them, including Nancy. How great she looked. But when did they ever get time to dress and get ready? Ladies certainly knew how to make themselves gorgeous. He nodded at Nancy, as well as his folks and hers. She smiled and held her hand over her heart to show how thrilled she was about it all and how great he looked. They were all looking really eager to see the elegantly beautiful bride. It was the most enchanting feature of most weddings and this would certainly be one of the greatest. A definite treat was in store. It actually should be covered by television so the world could see this stunning event.
He went over to the platform to get ready. It was gorgeous with the burgundy rug and the pink and white roses in their places on the pedestals. It was as beautiful as any church could ever be and maybe more because of the roses in the garden. Their scent permeated the air. He just stood in awe and looked at everything and could hardly wait to see her face when she saw it. It was truly transformed into a veritable wonderland. It did not look like the original Rose Garden. It was beautiful before this, but with the finishing touches, it was very difficult to describe the beauty and elegance.
A band was playing their favorite French romance music and he wondered how they knew about this. Soon he heard them playing, “Here Comes the Bride”. He was really nervous now; his heart was beating wildly. His eyes were glued on the place where she would appear to be sure not to miss one second of it.
CHAPTER 21
All eyes were turned toward the gate. In a few minutes it opened and they looked up to see Triessa on her father’s arm. Todd could not believe his eyes and wondered if she was real or a walking dream. Yet, he was sure he was awake. Gentle ooh’s were uttered by the crowd. He was glad he waited to see her dress. It was divinely elegant; he could not ever have imagined such a design and makeup. She was wearing the exquisite necklace and earrings she got at his show. He was breathless at her beauty, and to realize that she was his bride was a most fantastic realization. He could see her delight as she looked around and saw all the beauty of the garden. She stopped for a moment and looked around; she could not help herself. It was exquisite, more beautiful than she could ever have imagined. She took it all in quickly and was grateful that they were having it filmed on video. Her brother was very good at this sort of thing and was catching it all and not missing a trick. She saw the rose sculpture with the realistic colors and the swans beside it and was extremely overwhelmed. She drew in a quick breath. It was truly a breathless moment. The transformation was incredible. The ultimate cake was set at the far end on the gift table with the gorgeous pink lace-like tablecloth.
Her eyes scanned over to the platform at the burgundy rug and pink and white roses and the contrast was perfection. The minister was there in his black tux with his book open and ready to perform the ceremony. There in front waiting for her was the most handsome man she had ever seen. His tuxedo was a perfect blend of blues which was definitely his color. It made him look so marvelous she could not think of proper words for it. So much was rushing and whirling around in her head right now. What a magnificent man! Words could not come easily to mind to do him justice. They smiled at each other and he wanted to run to her and hold her in his arms, but with a lot of mental force, he restrained himself. What was he supposed to do? What do people do at weddings in such cases? It had always seemed too solemn in any he had seen or attended. He never paid a lot of attention before. But this was their wedding to do their way and to remember always as the adventure of a lifetime.
She literally floated up to him on her father’s arm. Her father put her hand in Todd’s and walked over to sit beside his wife. Triessa followed him with her eyes and saw the family in great splendor sitting together, and there was Nancy with them. She smiled at them. How wonderful it all was. Triessa looked up at Todd with great love and admiration. He took her hand and wanted so much to hold her and kiss her but held himself back for a while. That would come soon. They turned to face the minister and he looked at them and smiled very happily.
“What a handsome couple. Probably the most handsome I have seen.”
They smiled back at him and stood before him holding hands, truly and eagerly ready to begin this long awaited ceremony.
The bridesmaid and best man came up to join the happy pair. The ring bearer and flower girl walked in together and came down to the front beside the bride and groom. The flower girl had strewn rose petals all along the walkway to the alter. They were an adorable pair. All eyes were turned to look at the very handsome couple and were astonished at the beauty they had portrayed in this perfect setting. This was truly the most elegant and beautiful wedding this area had ever seen.
Mr. Whitmore asked them to join hands and they did so smiling warmly at each other. Then they looked up at him and smiled. He nodded his head and began the ceremony.
“Dearly beloved, we are gathered here in this most beautiful setting and this wonderful and close family gathering to perform a wedding ceremony for this very-much-in-love couple. They have worked so hard to prepare these elegant surroundings for their wedding and now are at the point of enjoying the fruits of their labor.”
They went through the rest of the ceremony repeating vows of love to each other for all eternity, which would be too short for them.
Todd received the ring from the ring bearer and put it on to fit with and match her engagement ring, and she looked at him, adoringly remembering that wonderful night when he gave her the engagement ring.
He said to her as he held her left hand in his, “My beautiful Princess Bride, I want to give you everything I can possibly imagine to make your life an awesome and wonderful experience. I promise to give my all and never cease searching for ways to exalt you. I give you this priceless ring I designed especially for you, which could not be matched by any other. There is none other like it in the world. This makes you my most beautiful and Precious Bride.”
“I want to make you the most happy man on earth, my Handsome Prince, in any and every way I can,” she said as she put his ring on his left hand. “I will use my entire imagination to come up with joys and thrills for you forever. You deserve that and so much more. Thank you for loving me and becoming
my perfect husband.”
On cue the music picked up a song which he sang to her while looking deeply into her eyes. It told of their love and romance, similar to the one he had sung to her when he gave her the engagement ring. It was a sequel to match the first song, as her wedding ring matched her engagement ring. She nearly swooned. Everyone applauded loud and long.
The minister looked at them, smiled and said the words they had waited for so long to hear: “I now pronounce you man and wife. You may kiss the bride.”
He lifted her veil and kissed her long but gently.
“Hello, Triessa Noble, Mrs. Todd Noble,” he said with deep emotion.
“Hello, Mr. Noble, my lover and husband. Welcome to my world. Come in to stay forever.”
The whole group was clapping loudly and cheering as they stood there looking at each other. The couple was oblivious to anything other than each other for a few minutes.
Then the family members and friends came up to congratulate them.
“What a marvelously beautiful couple you are. It was tremendous to have such a fantastic setting for a wedding. You have done an incredible job,” remarked the minister’s wife. “I could not understand my husband’s description of it and now can see why. It is indescribable. Who would be able to ever expect or imagine such a scene as this has turned out to be? I would never have ever dreamed of something this special and wonderful.
It is hard to imagine how you thought of it all. This is truly an unprecedented event in this area and an outstanding one, both for you and for me. I never imagined I would ever live through such an experience. I am overcome with amazement and joy. Thank you so much. I feel sad that the whole world could not have seen it, too. It is certainly worthy.”
All the guests came up to say hello and wished them well. Her parents came up to hug them.
Once Within A Lifetime Page 26