“Oh my God!” Donna wraps her arms around both of us, and I can’t stop laughing at her reaction. Happy, joyful, and everything else you would wish for from a parent.
“Why didn’t you say anything?” she nearly scolds Ryan when she pulls back. “And why didn’t you get her a ring?”
“I don’t need a ring,” I butt in and tell her.
“Because,” Ryan interrupts, “I never thought of asking her until last night. It just happened, and before I knew it, I asked and she said yes.”
“This is just wonderful news, you two,” she beams with an ear to ear smile.
“But we need your help,” he says.
“Yes, anything.”
“We want to get married here. Either Saturday or Sunday.”
“This Saturday or Sunday?” she questions.
“Yeah,” he says while I nod my head.
“What’s this Saturday or Sunday?” Tori asks as she walks in.
Donna doesn’t say anything and looks to me, but Ryan goes ahead and tells her as he steps behind me and wraps his arms around my shoulders. “Candace and I are getting married.”
“What?!” She gives the same squealed reaction as Donna. “In two days?!”
“Or three,” I mumble quietly, starting to feel a little embarrassed with the reactions.
“How are you supposed to plan a wedding in two days?”
“Tori, stop,” Ryan tells her, and when she looks at me, she back pedals as I’m sure she can see the embarrassment written all over my face. “I’m sorry, Candace.”
“No, it’s fine,” I tell her and then look over at Donna. “We don’t want a big wedding or anything. We were just thinking we could go to Indian Beach in a couple days and simply get married. That’s all.”
Her warm smile soothes the anxiety that Tori was starting to give me and softly says, “I think that’s perfect, dear.”
“We just need someone to do the ceremony, so could you call the church you attend and see if one of the pastors is available? We’ll work around his schedule,” Ryan says to her.
“Of course. I’ll call right now, but you two will need to go to the courthouse to get a license today,” she tells us.
“What about flowers, or a cake, or—” Tori starts.
“Nothing,” Ryan tells her.
“Really?” she asks, looking at me, and I tell her, “Really. I just want a dress. That’s all I need.” But then it hits me . . . it isn’t all I need. Turning in Ryan’s arms, I look up at him, and before I can speak, he reads the panic in me, asking, “What’s wrong?”
“We have to call Jase. I can’t get married without him. I just . . .”
“We’ll call him, babe. No worries.”
Jase is my family, the closest person I have in my life next to Ryan. I couldn’t imagine doing this without him by my side.
“Well, then,” Donna says. “I’ll get on the phone and start making calls. Why don’t the two of you go ahead and drive to the courthouse and call Jase on the way. As soon as I get things figured out on my end, I call and let you know, okay?”
“Thanks, Mom.”
Donna walks over to me and takes my hands in hers, saying, “You have no idea how happy you’ve just made me.”
“Really?”
“We’ll talk later, dear,” she assures and then adds, “I’ll get a list of dress shops together so when you get back, you can decide where to go first.”
“I was hoping that you could take me,” I say, and when her eyes rim with tears and she nods her head, she tells me, “I’d love nothing more,” before hugging me.
After Ryan and I left to head to the courthouse, I called Jase to tell him what was going on. He was shocked, which I expected, but hopped on the computer and was able to switch the flights for him and Mark, and they will be here tomorrow evening.
When Ryan and I got back home, Donna had spoken with one of the pastors at her church, and he agreed to marry us Saturday at five. He wants to meet with the two of us later today, so Donna and I are going to try our best to find me a dress before we have our appointment at the church.
Walking into the first dress shop, I have a pretty good idea of what I’m looking for. So when one of the bridal consultants approaches and asks, I tell her, “Simple. I really like lace.”
“Not a problem. You’re quite small, so if you are looking to buy off the rack, you’re limited,” she tells me as she leads us through the mass of wedding gowns.
Donna and I begin to pull dresses. Most are pretty detailed, so I only take a small handful back to the fitting room to try on. I step out and show Donna a couple of the dresses, but it isn’t until the third one that I know.
Stepping out of the fitting room and onto the platform in front of the mirrors, Donna stands behind me to tie the satin sash around my waist. Smoothing my hands over the ivory lace, I look at myself in the mirror and just know that this is the dress I want Ryan to see me in. It’s sleeveless with a v-neck front and a plunging v-cut dip in the back with a champagne colored satin sash around the waist. It’s form-fitting and simple with a tiny sweep-train and solid lace, which I know Ryan has an affinity for.
“I love it,” I say as Donna steps to the side.
“It’s perfect, dear.”
The hem is a tad long, but it’ll do. Everything else fits perfectly. I never saw myself getting married. I dreamt about it as a little girl, but never really considered it as I got older.