Chapter 25

Sitting back on the couch, legs entwined once again, Amanda and Lee just held hands as they sat, her head leaning against his shoulder. Neither heard Dotty come down the stairs until she loudly cleared her throat. "I'm not interrupting, am I?" Dotty asked tentatively.

"No, Mother. We're just sitting here, enjoying the quiet I guess," Amanda replied smiling.

"Who was that on the phone?" Dotty asked curiously.

Amanda answered her sharply, "Joe." Lee felt her body tense again. Lee rubbed her leg to try to calm her.

"Is everything okay with Joe?" Dotty asked. She felt Amanda was holding back something, she just didn't know what.

"Yes, everything is fine with Joe. Did you know he was having a full mass at the wedding, and he wants Philip and Jamie to do one of the readings? And do you know he hasn't even asked them yet?" Amanda turned her body to face her mother as she spoke, her voice creeping slightly higher with each word.

"Amanda, you know Joe. Carrie probably insisted on a mass and he gave in. Do you remember your wedding? Oh, I never thought it was going to end. What was the name of that priest? Father…." Dotty started.

"Father Michael, Mother," Amanda offered.

"That's it, Father Michael! And do you remember how he went on and on and on? Then he started rocking back and forth on the alter? Between you and me, I think he got into too much of that sacrificial wine," Dotty laughed. "You're not planning to get married in a church are you, because if you are, we'll have to get on the phone right away. And a dress… Amanda, what are you going to wear... we'll need to go shopping…"

"Mother, you can stop. I was thinking a nice suit. I saw one at a little shop near Lee's apartment I'm going to pick up. And no, no church. Just a Justice of the Peace will be fine. We need to figure out where we are having the reception tomorrow so we can get those invitations made, addressed and in the mail. We don't have much time," Amanda relaxed as she explained. What she couldn't tell her was she had the suit she wore the first time they got married hanging in Lee's closet.

"I don't know why you're insisting on rushing this, Amanda. October third is only a little over a month away. Do you really think you can plan this whole thing in that short of time?" Dotty questioned her.

Amanda sighed loudly, "Yes, Mother, we can. There's not that much to do and we want October third. That day means a lot to us."

Dotty threw her hands in the air, "Well, if you insist, I guess we'll make it work. Amanda, darling, this is going to be a beautiful wedding no matter what." Dotty patted Amanda on the shoulder.

"Thank you, Mother. Tomorrow, Lee and I will figure out the location. Oh, I have an idea, and this is right up your alley, Mother. If I leave you my car, can you go get the invitations printed for us? I'll let you decide on the style and the wording," Amanda stopped and looked at Lee, "if that's all right with you, Sweetheart."

Lee rubbed her arms lightly with his hands. "Yes, that's fine with me. I'm not good at those kind of things anyway," he answered smiling, just a hint of his dimple showing.

"So it's decided then. Tomorrow we divide and conquer. You and Lee find a location and I'll have the invitations made. Wait, how am I going to know where the location is?" Dotty stopped, confused.

Lee untangled himself from Amanda and moved toward the phone. Looking at Amanda, he said, "May I?" as he picked up the receiver.

"Of course," she answered.

Lee dialed Billy's number and waited while it rang. Hearing Billy's gruff voice answer, Lee said, "Hey Billy, it's Scarecrow. Listen, Amanda and I were wondering… could we possibly rent out the ballroom at the Cumberland for our wedding?"

Immediately Billy burst out laughing so loudly Lee had to hold the phone away from his ear. Dotty mouthed to Amanda, Another reason I don't like the man. Amanda just shook her head and gave her mother a disapproving look. Once Billy stopped laughing, Lee asked, "Does that mean no?"

Billy guffawed a few more times before he began coughing, sputtering to a stop. "I never expected you to ask that," he said between breaths.

Lee was getting annoyed and impatient, "Well… is that a yes or a no?"

"Let me make a few phone calls. I'll call you back. Are you…" Billy started to ask but Lee finished the question for him.

"I'm at Amanda's. Don't call too late, you'll wake the boys," Lee smiled at the thought.

"I'm really impressed, Scarecrow. I didn't see this coming. Not like this, not from you," Billy said. "Give me ten minutes, I'll have an answer for you, then you can have the rest of your night."

"Thanks, Billy," Lee said hanging up the phone. Amanda looked at him, wide eyed. "Billy said to give him ten minutes and he'll have an answer for us."

"Lee, the Cumberland? That's going to be awfully expensive isn't it? I mean, I've only heard about how beautiful the facilities are over there, I've never once been there. Amanda, really, don't you think that's going to be too expensive?" Dotty questioned.

"Mother, you don't know Mr. Melrose. I'm sure he has some connections there. It might not be that bad," Amanda said lightly.

"Actually, if I remember correctly, IFF now owns the Cumberland, part of a legal agreement a few years back. Remember, Amanda? We were working on that documentary about Dr. Tucker…." Lee recalled the assignment at the Cumberland where they played newlyweds.

"Oh yes, Dr. Tucker. I wonder if Mrs. Craddock ever fixed her glasses," Amanda said laughing remembering the nosy older woman.

"And the food… the food was delicious, although it wasn't as good as yesterday when we had lunch with Billy and Francine. We probably shouldn't have the lobster for dinner at the wedding," Lee teased.

"Wait a minute… you had lunch… at the Cumberland yesterday and you didn't tell me? Amanda?!" Dotty exclaimed.

"Oh, Mother, it wasn't a big deal. Billy wanted to treat us to celebrate. I didn't even enjoy it all that much. Lee's right, the lobster was a bit chewy," Amanda tried to downplay the meal when in reality the lobster was delicious, cooked to perfection.

"Amanda? You had lunch at the…" Dotty began again, trying to reprimand Amanda when the phone rang, cutting her off effectively.

Lee, still standing beside the phone, looked at Amanda as if questioning if it was fine if he picked it up. Amanda just looked at him, "Answer it."

"Hello?" Lee said almost awkwardly. "Billy, that was fast. Are you sure? Wow, really? You're sure… Oh, thanks man, I owe you one." Lee's voice was filled with excitement. Hanging up the phone, he turned to Amanda and Dotty and said, "Let's start planning a wedding! Not only do we have the ballroom but we have the entire property for the weekend. And Billy said we don't have to pay a single dime. His gift to us he said."

"Whhhatttt?" Amanda couldn't suppress the surprise.

"Uh huh," Lee said as he pulled Amanda close to him and spun her around, causing Dotty to laugh. Setting her feet on the floor, he forgot Dotty was standing there when he leaned down to kiss Amanda passionately.

Dotty looked away then cleared her throat when the kiss went on for almost a minute. "I'm going to head up to bed. You two… may want to wait for the boys to go to sleep before you … continue celebrating. I'll wear my earplugs just in case," she said as she winked at them walking up the steps.

Lee and Amanda finally separated long enough to realize what Dotty had said. Amanda blushed as she said, "I'll go check on the boys. Come to bed when you're ready."

Lee smiled at her, "I'll make sure everything is locked up down here." As Amanda climbed the stairs, Lee checked the windows and doors, making sure everything was locked before turning off the lights and heading up to Amanda's bedroom. Passing Dotty's room, her door was closed, although a light was still on. The boys were asleep, to his surprise and down the hall, Amanda was waiting for him. As he entered her bedroom, she closed and locked the door behind him before pulling him close to kiss him again, this time without an audience.

Completed 11/27/17

To Be Continued in "Let the Bells Chime"