As the days flew by, Carly became more and more nervous about her upcoming nuptials. While she had no reservations about becoming Jason's wife, she felt like everything was progressing too easily. Together, they had visited Sonny to tell them about the wedding. Although they had not received his blessing, he had been civil toward them. Carly was certain that he wouldn't do anything to interfere, but in the course of their relationship, nothing had ever gone so smoothly for Carly and Jason.
Looking over the list before her at Kelly's, Carly marked off each item that she had already completed. She had had her final dress fitting that afternoon, and the gown was impeccable. Jason and the boys had been fitted for their suits. Carly had not challenged Jason's refusal tuxedo, electing instead to go with a classic black suit for he and the boys. They had chosen to have only the boys stand up with them in order to keep with the simple wedding theme.
That morning, Carly had stopped by the church to make sure that the flowers had been delivered and set up as ordered. The cake was due to arrive the next morning, and the travel agent had dropped off the tickets the day before. She had made sure that everyone was packed so that they could head to the airport straight from the church.
Everyone had been invited, and all of the guests were coming. On a last minute whim, Carly had called Lucky to invite he, Elizabeth and Cameron. While she had never really gotten along with Liz and she wasn't close to Lucky, she felt it was important to include what little family she had in the ceremony. Lulu was coming as well, and Mike had agreed to come to support the boys.
As she inspected the list one final time, Carly realized that there was only one item left on the paper. Rolling her eyes and taking a deep breath, she folded the paper and tucked it into her handbag next to the box that contained their wedding bands. Quickly, she placed a call on her cell phone and then left the quaint restaurant. After a short limo ride across town, Carly stepped onto the lawn of the plush estate that sprawled before her. Nervously, Carly made her way up the path and rang the door bell.
"Hello, Ms. Corinthos," Big Alice greeted politely as she opened the heavy mahogany door of the Quatermaine mansion.
"Hi, Alice. I'm here to see my uncle," Carly replied.
"Yes, right this way. Mr. Luke is resting in the next room, but he said to wake him when he arrived," the maid said as she ushered Carly into the sitting room.
Inside the sitting room, Alice shook Luke awake. Drowsily, he sat up on the couch. "What's up, Caroline?"
"Luke, I need a favor," she said quietly as Alice exited the room.
"You need a favor? I didn't even get invited to your wedding and you want a favor," he joked. "How can I help you, darlin'?"
"That's why I'm here, actually. Look, I know we've never been close, and you don't actually like me," she told him. "But, I don't have a father, and well, you're about the closest thing this family has to a patriarch. I was wondering if you would...walk me down the aisle."
Luke looked at her in shock. "You want me to walk you down the aisle?"
"Well, yeah. It was Mama's idea, and since I needed someone to escort me anyhow, I thought I could ask you. You don't have to."
"Caroline, I'd be honored to do it," he said brightly. "You're right, we don't always get along, but you're a Spencer. We Spencers always show up when it's important."
"Thanks, Uncle Luke," she said. Wanting to hug him but not quite comfortable with the sentiment, she reached for his hand and shook it firmly. Luke yanked her hand and pulled her into a bear hug.
As soon as she was tucked safely into the limo once again, Carly pulled out the list and drew a bold line through the final item. "Perfect," she whispered to herself.