I'm getting married today.
The thought popped into Tiana's head even before her eyes opened. It seemed unbelievable. Finally, after all this time, she and Naveen would officially be married!
Inevitably, she thought back to their first wedding in the bayou, and marveled at how far they had come since then. So much had happened in one year.
For a brief moment Tiana panicked. What if they missed something and even after the ceremony they still weren't legally married? They'd have to go through this whole process again! She didn't want to wait another year to get married!
But no. They had gotten their blood tests and applied for the marriage license. It was waiting for them to sign it after the ceremony. It would all be taken care of. After today she would probably frame that marriage license for all to see, or better yet, make a copy to carry around everywhere. Just in case.
In the few minutes before her alarm went off, Tiana looked around her room, realizing this was the last night she would ever sleep in here. It looked so empty with all of her things packed away. She had already moved most of her things over to the boarding house, and packed a small bag for that evening on the riverboat. Everything else she would either get later, or leave it here.
She and Naveen were going to start living together. That thought sent a delightful jump through her stomach. No more sneaking around. No more sideways glances to see if they were really alone or not. No more leaving each other at night.
Tiana laughed to herself. It seemed they really had gotten a bad start with the landlady, Mrs. Proulx. While they were unpacking some of their belongings this past week, she had insisted that they keep the door open, as it wasn't proper for a young couple to be alone together without a chaperone.
One time she had even weaseled her way into their room and lectured them for what felt like an hour after Naveen had accidentally bumped into the door, closing it just an inch too far for her liking.
After today, they could happily shut the door in her face. Though Tiana knew that would only make things between them more awkward than they were.
The boarding house was already looking to be somewhat of a poor choice for living arrangements, but it wouldn't be forever. And it was cheap, with meals provided, which was really all they needed for now. Once they got the restaurant started they could find somewhere better.
The restaurant.
Tiana's stomach jumped again. Today she was getting married. Tomorrow, she'd be getting her restaurant. For real this time.
Naveen had counted out all the checks they had gotten, plus Tiana's savings, and all together it almost covered buying the entire sugar mill in full. It was better than she could possibly have imagined.
That meant they still needed to get a loan from the bank, but it would be much more manageable than she had originally written out in her plans. Only the small bit to cover the building payment, rent of course, and then the rest for the tools they would need to fix it up the sugar mill and turn it into a Michelin star restaurant.
Because, yes, she would get a Michelin star. Or two. Or three. Three was good.
"Why wait?" Naveen had said, when Tiana had asked if he was sure he wanted to get started on this project right after their wedding. "I know you've wanted this for a long time, and I've wanted this for you ever since we first fell in love. There is absolutely no reason not to get started."
She had kissed him long and hard after he said that. It still amazed her that she had been able to find someone like him to share her life with. Someone who could understand her dream so well to put aside their honeymoon in favor of working on a construction project.
She loved him so much. And now they were going to get married!
The alarm went off, and then Tiana heard a soft knocking at her door. Eudora poked her head in and smiled.
"You ready for today, Babycakes?"
"I've been ready for this day for a long time," Tiana said.
Sunil had warned her that the press might be a problem today, and judging by how much they had bothered her before the wedding Tiana had been anticipating a little trouble coming into the church this morning.
What she hadn't expected was this mob of reporters and cameras all screaming to get her attention.
"Oh dear, look at them all!" Lottie gasped. She and Big Daddy LaBouff were giving Tiana and Eudora a lift to the church in their car, but now Tiana was wishing she had just walked. She might have been able to sneak inside without anyone noticing.
But as it was, there was no way anyone could miss Mr. LaBouff's Rolls Royce.
"I think I'm gonna be sick," Tiana mumbled.
"Not on the dress!" Eudora cried out.
"Not in my car!" Big Daddy shouted.
"Deep breaths, Tia," Lottie said softly. "You'll be fine. Just ignore them!"
"Easier said than done," Tiana replied.
"You just gotta get in the church," Lottie continued. "Remember, they're not allowed inside. That's the rule."
Thank goodness for that. Somehow Naveen's parents had set up that rule, but it obviously hadn't done anything to stop them from camping out in front of the church, waiting to catch a glimpse of anyone coming inside. Which obviously included the bride.
"I don't know why they even want to talk to me in the first place," Tiana groaned. "Naveen is the one who is good at all of this. They should just talk to him and leave me out of it."
"Just think of this as practice for when your restaurant opens, Babycakes," Eudora said, straightening Tiana's dress a little. If her daughter was going to be photographed and in the paper wearing her wedding dress, she might as well make sure it looked perfect before they stepped out of the car.
"Yeah Tia!" Lottie squealed. "You know everyone in town is going to want to talk to you about your restaurant when it opens."
"But that's different," Tiana said. "I'll be talking to them about something I want people to know about. Our wedding should be private. Just for friends and family, you know?"
Eudora gave her daughter a small smile and took another bobby pin out of her bag to fix a curl that had managed to escape from Tiana's bun. By Tiana's count she must have had at least 100 bobby pins in place by now, and could expect to have 100 more by the time the ceremony started.
"That's what you get for marrying royalty," Eudora teased.
Tiana was about to protest, saying that Naveen wasn't technically royalty anymore, but Eudora cut her off. "You know what I mean."
She did, but that didn't make any of this any easier. Tiana was nervous enough as it was, she didn't need these reporters to make a fool of her in front of the entire country.
She wished Naveen were here. Then again, if he was here, that would mean they would see each other which would be bad luck before the ceremony.
'Just get inside those doors, Miss Tiana. Just get inside, and then it'll all be fine. You'll probably lose your breakfast once you're there, but that's okay. As long as you don't do it on camera you'll be fine. And there'll be plenty of time to fix yourself up again. You made sure of that.'
Making schedules was a habit Tiana had had as long as she could remember, so of course she had planned everything out to the minute. Even so she had scheduled in some extra time in case something went wrong. Of course she hadn't imagined that the something wrong would be her too afraid to face all the reporters outside the church.
'You can do this, Miss Tiana. It's just a couple of cameras. No big deal.'
Tiana took a deep breath. "I think it's about time, right Mama?"
She could tell that her mother was fighting the urge to tell her that the proper time was 10 minutes ago, but Eudora wouldn't dare say something like that to Tiana on her wedding day.
"I'm ready when you are, Babycakes."
Tiana opened the car door, and was immediately surrounded by the press.
"Princess Tiana!"
"Princess, over here!"
"A word, princess?"
"Would you like to share a few words with our readers?"
Sure she would, Tiana thought to herself. But none of them were fit to be printed. And why were they still calling her princess? Didn't any of them do their research?
She wanted to shout that she wasn't a princess, she was a waitress, but even though all these reporters were clamoring for her attention, Tiana doubted they would pay attention to anything she had to say.
Instead of answering them, she smiled and waved and pushed her way through to the church. Just as she was about to enter, a newsreel camera was practically shoved into her face.
"Well, Princess Tiana, my cameraman and I caught up with you." The man smiled wide as the cameraman kept cranking the camera on his tripod.
"I'm Leslie Thompson, with the Movie Tone news." He took out a small notepad and a pencil. "How are you feeling on this, your wedding day? How does it feel to be marrying into such a distinguished royal family?"
Tiana surreptitiously glanced behind her looking for her mother or Lottie to help, but each of them had gotten caught up in the horde of press. She was on her own.
Tiana had seen this man interview people before. The newsreels that were shown before movies always seemed to have one interview with Leslie Thompson, even though Tiana hardly saw the point. Each interview lasted about five minutes, and most of the time was spent on showing the intertile that had all the words everyone said spelled out for the audience to read.
Still, Tiana knew that if she walked away there would be trouble.
PRINCESS TIANA REFUSES TO SPEAK WITH CHARMING NEWSREEL JOURNALIST LESLIE THOMPSON.
So she put on her best smile for the man, trying to ignore the camera with all her might, through the lense seemed to be burning a deeper hole in her by the second. She really didn't need this right now.
"Well, Naveen isn't really... He abdicated."
"Yes, and how did you manage to convince him to do that?"
"It was his idea."
Leslie Thompson laughed even as he wrote everything she said on his little notepad. "Nice to know you have a good sense of humor."
Nice to know? Why was he suddenly acting like they were going to be friends? Tiana really just wanted to get out of here.
"Anything you'd like to share with the American public, princess?" He smiled at her again, his pencil poised on the paper.
So many thoughts clouded her mind that she could share: it's probably not a good idea to kiss strange frogs, but if you do it might lead you to the love of your life; if you do decide to get married in the bayou by a 200 year old voodoo priestess, make sure she signs a marriage license first; and don't ever take directions from an alligator.
Of course she wouldn't say any of those things. Instead she simply smiled and said, "Follow your heart. Now if you'll excuse me, I need to go inside."
Eudora and Lottie had finally caught up with her, and together the three women shut the door in the reporter's face.
"Prince Naveen! A few words for the Movie Tone news?"
Naveen grinned at the press surrounding him. It he didn't know better, he would have said he was back in Maldonia, with his title and his inheritance and everything being the heir to the throne gave him.
Except he didn't have any of those things, and he had never felt happier for it. He was getting married to Tiana at last, and nothing was going to sour his mood.
"Of course, my friend!" Naveen replied, shaking the reporter's hand heartily. "I am always happy to talk to you."
"I just wish your bride would say the same," Leslie smirked. "When she walked through here earlier we could hardly get a word out of her."
Tiana was here! She was inside, waiting for him! Naveen felt his heart jump at the thought, and he had to fight the urge to shove the reporter and the cameraman out of the way and run to her.
"She is just shy, and probably nervous," Naveen said. "It is our wedding day, and everyone gets the butterflies in their stomachs, yes?"
"Does that mean you're getting cold feet, Your Highness?"
"No, of course not," Naveen replied, somewhat appalled that he could even ask this question. "I have been ready for this day for a long time."
Naveen glanced over to Sunil who glanced down at his watch and raised an eyebrow at his son. It was time.
"If you will excuse me, it is time for me to get married," Naveen said with a grin. He shook the reporter's hand once.
"Congratulations," Leslie said. "And good luck!"
"Thank you, my friend," Naveen replied, and followed his father inside.
Tiana did lose her breakfast when she got inside the church. There was still plenty of time, despite the delays outside, but then Lottie came barreling in saying that she saw Naveen and his family come into the church and Tiana almost emptied her stomach again.
She thought she'd been nervous because of the reporters, but then why was her stomach being so jumpy now when they were very much the afterthought?
Was she afraid to marry Naveen? No, it couldn't be. She loved him so much and wanted this more than anything. Besides, they had already gotten married once before. This was practically old hat to her.
So why, why was she feeling so nervous?
"Everyone gets nervous on their wedding day, Babycakes," Eudora explained as she switched between rubbing Tiana's back and making sure her veil was secured.
Tiana was just focussing on her breathing. "You were nervous when you married Daddy?" she asked, looking for any kind of distraction.
"Lord, yes," Eudora said, laughing. "We just had a small ceremony in your grandparents living room, but it was still shaking like a leaf in my shoes."
Tiana had to laugh at that. Eudora was always so confidant, it was hard to imagine her being nervous.
"Though as soon as I came down those stairs and saw your Daddy waiting there, all those nerves just melted away," Eudora said. "He looked so handsome in his Sunday clothes, I almost tripped over my dress trying to get to him."
Tiana smiled at her mother, and both women had tears in their eyes. Eudora took another bobby pin to Tiana's hair, pinning it in place before gently cupping Tiana's cheek. "He'd be real proud of you, Babycakes."
"I wish he was here," Tiana whispered, her voice cracking slightly.
"Me too."
"Oh Tia! It's almost time! EEEEEE!" Lottie burst into the room again, barely able to contain herself. "Are you excited?"
"I'm just trying not to faint," Tiana laughed.
"Maybe this'll help." Lottie handed her a folded piece of paper. "I was just wishing Naveen good luck (and he looks so handsome Tia, wait until you see him!) and I told him how nervous you were and so he wrote something down here for me to give to you. Isn't that romantic?"
It was romantic at that, though Tiana wished Lottie hadn't said anything to Naveen about how nervous she was. He didn't need to know that. Not now anyway. They could laugh about it later when this was all over and it was just the two of them.
The thought of that sent a bubble of excitement through her, and Tiana held onto it. That was what she needed to focus on. She opened the note and smiled.
T
Last night I couldn't sleep because all I could think about was how happy I am to finally start our life together. Today is our wedding, and tomorrow we will get your dream. I am the luckiest man in the world to be able to share it all with you.
I love you with all my heart.
See you soon. Breathe.
N
She breathed, even as her eyes stung with happy tears. She loved him so much she just wanted to find him right that minute and throw her arms around him and give him a great big kiss. She wanted to spend the rest of her life with him. What she really wanted, was to marry him.
"Well, Babycakes?" Eudora asked. "It's almost time. How are you feeling?"
"Good," Tiana replied, and found that it was the truth. Even though she still felt nervous, her stomach had settled and the happiness inside her was finally outweighing everything else. "I'm ready."
Eudora hugged her daughter tight. Then she put another bobby pin in Tiana's hair.
"Are you nervous?" Sunil asked.
He was waiting with Naveen at the altar. Tiana would walk through the doors any moment now, and everyone in attendance was murmuring quietly.
There were so many people here, but Naveen only had one person on his mind.
"Nervous? Why would I be nervous?" Naveen replied, but the way his voice cracked slightly betrayed him. Alright, so he was a little nervous. He cleared his throat and pulled a little at his collar.
Sunil chuckled and straightened Naveen's sash. "I'm very proud of you, you know."
Naveen glanced up. He hadn't expected that. "Thank you, Baba."
"I mean it," Sunil said. "Everything you've done, everything you've been through to get here…. You've really come into your own, and your mother and I are just so happy for you."
The music started and Naveen almost jumped out of his skin. The people in the pews must have noticed as there was a low rumble of laughter throughout the church. Naveen smoothed his hair back, embarrassed.
Sunil squeezed his arm. "Good luck, beta."
"Thank you, Baba. For everything."
Sunil gave his son one more smile and then went to sit next to Idhal, who was already crying.
Alone at the altar, Naveen felt his nerves start to bubble up, and for the first time he wished he had asked someone to be his best man. None of the people he had grown up with in Maldonia seemed like a good fit, though. In reality he would have liked to have asked Louis, but having the gator in the church seemed like a bad idea.
Right now he was probably with his band getting ready for the reception later that evening.
Naveen took a deep breath as he imagined dancing with Tiana later when they would truly be husband and wife. Finally after all this time! They wouldn't have to pretend anymore! As long as they made it through this ceremony it would all be ok.
And what could go wrong, really? Tiana had planned everything out to a tee, there was no way anything could go wrong.
A thought popped into Naveen's head, and then he began to worry. It wasn't possible, surely. No. It couldn't happen. It made no sense! But it was magic, and magic didn't have to follow the rules, did it?
Marrying Tiana again after he had abdicated and kissing her wouldn't cause the spell to come back. It just wouldn't!
The doors opened and the procession began. Naveen's heart jumped. Even if this did turn them back into frogs, he was willing to take that chance.
First Eudora walked down the aisle, then Charlotte. Naveen gave them both a small wave. Then Ravi as the ring bearer came. The pep talk Naveen had given him seemed to have stuck, as Ravi took extra care to not trip or fall and lose the rings.
It did take him longer to reach the altar, but when he did, Ravi grinned triumphantly up at his brother.
"Good job, Ravi," Naveen whispered to him.
Ravi beamed once more, and took a seat next to his parents to wait until he was needed once more.
All at once, the congregation stood and turned. A collective gasp sounded as the door opened once more to reveal the bride in all her glory.
There she was. The love of his life. His bride. His wife. Dressed in her wedding gown, Naveen thought that there never had been a more beautiful bride than Tiana.
Everything else melted away. As Tiana walked up the aisle, Naveen was reminded of where they had been a year ago, and everything they had gone through to get to this moment. The love he felt for Tiana had only grown in the past year, and even now Naveen felt that love swell up inside him, bringing happy tears to his eyes.
She smiled at him from halfway up the aisle, and even from that distance, Naveen could see her dimples. It was those dimples that seemed to push him over the edge. Or maybe it was everything about her: her smile, the way she looked in her bridal gown, just her. Even though she was about five seconds away from reaching the altar, it was too long for Naveen. He needed to be by her side now.
Without thinking, Naveen took one tentative step, and then another. Before he knew it, he was running towards her, and then he had wrapped her up in his arms in the most wonderful embrace he had ever experienced.
For a brief moment, when he first started to move, Tiana was worried. The gasp of shock that went around the congregation didn't help matters either, but then she saw he was smiling, even through his tears, and when he hugged her tight, she hugged him back just as hard.
"Naveen, is everything okay?" Tiana asked, pulling back from the embrace. She reached up to cup his cheek with her hand, ignoring the whispers all around them.
He simply smiled and wiped away a tear that had managed to escape. "Tiana, you look so beautiful."
"Oh, Froggy," Tiana laughed, not unkindly. If she wasn't careful she'd start to cry herself. "You're not so bad yourself."
"I love you," he said.
"I love you, too."
Her smile was so sweet, it took his breath away. Everything about her was so sweet. Sweet enough to kiss. But as he leaned down to do just that, Tiana placed a playful finger over his lips.
"Let's get married first."
"Yes, good idea, princess." Naveen laughed to cover up his burning cheeks. It wasn't that he had forgotten, far from it, but Tiana did have that mesmerizing effect on him sometimes.
He offered Tiana his arm and together they walked the rest of the way up the aisle, and when the finally arrived at the altar, everyone in the church let out a round of applause.
"Well, that was unusual," the minister said with a twinkle in his eye, once everything was quiet again.
This spurred laughter from the congregation, and Naveen felt his cheeks burn again.
"Sorry," he mouthed to Tiana. Had he ruined everything?
But Tiana only smiled and shook her head. She had handed off her bouquet to Lottie and now took both of Naveen's hands in hers. "I love you," she mouthed back and gave his hands a squeeze.
"I love you, too."
"Dearly beloved," the minister began. "We are gathered here today to witness this man and this woman join together in holy matrimony."
And so it went through the ceremony. They promised to love each other for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, for the rest of their lives. The rings were exchanged, and then before they knew it, there was only one thing left.
Naveen was beaming. Tiana was too. It was finally here.
"I now pronounce you husband and wife," the minister said. "You may now kiss the bride."
Naveen didn't hesitate. He cupped Tiana's cheek and brought her in for a kiss. This time there was no transformation, no curse being broken, but that magic that existed between them was still there. They could both feel it as they smiled knowingly underneath their kiss.
At last they were married! No one could deny it now. Tiana started to laugh as they kissed again, and again. Of course Naveen started to laugh too, and soon they were holding each other again, smiling and laughing as the unfiltered joy they felt spilled out.
Tiana had never felt such happiness before. Well, maybe at her last wedding she had, but even so this was different. Naveen kissed her again, and as applause from the congregation filled the church, he took her in his arms and spun them both around.
She laughed again, and held onto him tight, letting the dizziness envelop her in a way she never would have before meeting Naveen. As he carefully set her back down, he kissed her again in such a way that her knees started to buckle, but Naveen's strong arms around her kept her from falling.
"Are you alright?" Naveen whispered.
Tiana nodded, holding onto his waist. "Never better."
And it was true. She felt radiant, and glowing, and so happy that she might burst. It was true that when they faced the congregation, Tiana was met with a sea of faces, many of whom Tiana only barely recognized from the engagement party. But there near the front was Eudora, Lottie, and Big Daddy LaBouff.
Her family. This, this is what she had missed at their last wedding. Grateful that they were here, Tiana blew them all a kiss and waved.
Naveen, in turn, showed off his new wife to his own parents, and Tiana bowed her head to them, and they beamed back. Tiana had to giggle at her in-laws. Had she really been afraid of them a few months ago? Now with Idhal crying, and Sunni raising his fist in triumph, the thought seemed impossible.
Naveen smiled down at her, and gave her waist a squeeze. Tiana looked up at her husband and smiled in return. Her husband. He really was her husband now, and no one could deny it now.
Never in a million years would she have predicted that someone like Naveen would be the love of her life, but now she couldn't picture marrying anyone else.
True that they were very different people, and had grown up in completely different worlds, but they'd already proven that together they could do anything they set their minds to. With Naveen by her side, Tiana knew this was going to be the beginning of a wonderful life together.
"If you don't stop that giggling, princess, we are sure to get caught."
"It wasn't my idea to sneak away before the reception and hide in a coat closet to neck," Tiana teased, but she was smiling through it all. She hadn't stopped smiling since that morning.
Not when they had run out of the church together, hand in hand, successfully avoiding the press, not when Tiana had jumped the gun by throwing the bouquet right then and there instead of waiting for the reception, and certainly not when they signed their marriage license not thirty minutes ago.
"Well, I didn't exactly hear you object to the idea when I suggested it," Naveen quipped as he pressed her further in the closet. He continued kissing along her neck and nibbling along her ear.
"In fact, I would say that you seemed rather excited by the prospect of being alone in a closet with your new husband."
Tiana's sigh of pleasure turned into another giggle. "Oh, I'm not denying that I'm enjoying myself."
"Then what, my dearest wife, is making you laugh so much." Naveen came up and nuzzled her nose with his.
She couldn't help herself, as she giggled once again. "All this time you never wanted to sneak around, and now we've only been married, truly married since this morning and we're already holed up in a closet."
Naveen chuckled even as he kissed her. "Better late than never, no?"
"You got that right," Tiana said. She cupped his chin and brought him in for another kiss. Truthfully, she wouldn't have minded this kind of activity at all during the past year, but he was right - it was better late than never, though best of all was right now.
She shivered as their kiss grew deeper, imagining all the things they could do in this closet. It was hardly romantic, but that bit of naughtiness just made it all the more exciting. For once Tiana didn't push those thoughts away, either. They were married, it was only natural to think of her husband in this way.
Though try as she might, she couldn't exactly turn off the practical side of her brain. They couldn't stay in here much longer, could they? The reception was waiting for them, and they would have to cut the cake, not to mention the little Maldonian wedding traditions they were going to do.
Everyone would be waiting for them.
"How much time do we have?" Tiana asked, breathlessly.
"Mmm. All the time in the world," Naveen replied, bringing their lips together again.
Tiana giggled again. "With everyone waiting for us?"
Naveen shrugged. "Let them wait."
"They'll come looking for us," Tiana replied. She smoothed her hand along the sash on his chest, smoothing it out. Even this simple gesture was clearly getting him all hot and bothered, and it delighted Tiana, so she did it again.
"That's why we have to be quiet," Naveen whispered, but they both started to laugh again. It really wouldn't be much longer before they were found out.
"Much as I hate to say it, dear husband," Tiana said, wrapping her arms around his neck, "but I think it's time to go."
Naveen sighed and rested his forehead on hers. "I know. I would just much rather stay in here with you."
Tiana traced a finger along his chin. "Me too. But like you said, we have all the time in the world, right?" She kissed him slowly and softly on the lips. "We can pick this up later."
"Tonight."
"Yes."
Naveen shivered. Tonight. They had their bags packed and ready to go on the riverboat, which was conveniently going to wait for them to board before it cast off. Well, not quite conveniently. Naveen did have to convince the captain it was a good idea first, and he may have forgotten to mention that he was no longer royalty when doing so.
Giving up the throne was easy, but losing those perks that royalty gave him would take a little getting used to. But, it was his wedding day, so he deserved a little slack, and he had to do everything he could to make sure his first night with Tiana went as smoothly as possible.
Just the thought of spending all night with Tiana made him shiver again. He had wanted her for so long, and now it seemed like torture to wait even a few more hours. Part of him was tempted to throw her over his shoulders and find any empty bedroom in the house. But he wouldn't.
She wouldn't want it that way, and truthfully, he didn't either. They needed to take it slow tonight. After tonight though... Well, as Tiana said, they had all the time in the world.
Naveen returned her soft kiss with one of his own. He brushed against her lips lightly with his tongue, teasing her, and giving her a taste of what was to come.
"My wife is a very smart woman," Naveen whispered against her lips. Tiana giggled again. "I'm the luckiest man in the world to be married to you."
They kissed again, and then once more, marveling in the love they shared.
"You know," Tiana said, taking one of his curls and twirling it around her finger, "I think we have at least five minutes before people start looking for us."
Naveen raised a knowing eyebrow and smirked. "Why Mrs. Mahajan, are you suggesting we shirk our responsibilities in favor of more ...pleasurable activities?"
"Yes," Tiana said, making Naveen snort with laughter.
"I have been a bad influence on you."
"Yes you have," Tiana replied and beckoned him with her finger. "Now get over here, Froggy, before someone catches us."
When the idea for a short Maldonian wedding ceremony at the reception had come up, Tiana had of course said yes. And it really would be short for Maldonian standards. Naveen explained to her later that traditional weddings in Maldonian could last up to three days, though something like a royal wedding could go for a week or longer.
This ceremony would be rather simple. She and Naveen would exchange flower garlands, and then they would hold hands while Sunil tied them together with a cotton thread wound several times followed by a few vows in Maldonian.
Tiana had taken it upon herself to learn the Maldonian perfectly, and had spent countless hours practicing and memorizing her vows. Her pronunciation wasn't perfect, but even Sunil said it was good for a beginner.
Now though, as the ceremony was reaching its end, Tiana couldn't remember a single word.
Normally in a situation like this, Tiana would be panicking, worried that she would make a fool of herself in front of all of these people, including of course, her mother and her in-laws.
But it was hard to feel anything other than happy with Naveen looking at her the way he was - like she was the only woman in the world. It made her heart quicken, and it seemed like her whole body was getting a warm glow all around it. Though maybe that's because they were now standing in front of a small fire lit for the ceremony.
Naveen had her hands sandwiched in his, and Sunil began to wrap the fabric around them. As Sunil spoke, all in Maldonian of course, Tiana's brain was too fluffy to try and piece out the meanings of the words. She knew tt was something about unity, and vowing to create a happy relationship with each other, but she couldn't remember the exact phrasing, despite her exact translations she had painstakingly done.
Naveen caught her eye again, and he winked. Tiana had to bite her lip to keep from laughing. He was such a flirt, and she loved him for it.
Sunil tied the knot, and turned toward Tiana with an expectant look. She blinked for a few seconds before realizing this was the moment she was supposed to speak her vows.
"I'm sorry," she grimaced slightly at her father-in-law, and then at Naveen. "I don't remember what to say."
Naveen gave her an understanding smile and squeezed her hands. "It's alright, princess. Just repeat after me."
Naveen's voice was clear and calm, easy enough for Tiana to follow along. As she spoke, the words started coming back to her. How silly of her to have forgotten them!
When they had finished, Sunil said a few more words as he unwound the cloth. Tiana remembered what those words meant - roughly translated, they meant 'you may now kiss the bride'.
For once, Naveen happily did as his father told him, and they smiled under their kiss. Everything was finally as it should be.
"I love you," he whispered against her lips.
"I love you, too," Tiana replied. Then they were kissing again.
The applause and cheering from their friends and family quickly died down. Tiana pulled away from Naveen and gave him a confused look. Wasn't this the end? Was there more?
He shrugged. He didn't know either, but then they realized that everyone's attention was on King Sunil, who hadn't even had to say a single word to get the crowd to settle down.
Damn if that wasn't impressive.
Sunil raised a glass. "A toast to the happy couple," he said. "I know we are all anxious to party, so I will keep this short."
Everyone laughed politely. Naveen's hand found its way around Tiana's waist, and he held her close.
"I just want to say that I'm very happy for the both of you, and I wish you the best of luck." He raised his glass higher. "To love, and laughter, and to happily ever after."
"Here here!"
Glasses clinked all around, and Sunil smiled once more. "I think that is enough talking for one day, yes? Let's party!"
The whole day had been one long blur, but it was even more so during the wedding party. Tiana thought part of it was due to all the alcohol that was being consumed (which in itself wasn't much of a shock despite the law. Prohibition had never been enforced much in New Orleans, and it seemed that the mere presence of royalty made everyone loosen up), but she was being careful not to drink too much.
She wanted to make sure she didn't get sick or drunk so that she couldn't properly enjoy her wedding night.
Her stomach jumped again at the thought. It had been jumping all night, and for the past few days. And, well, for the past year.
Though she was having a lovely time at the party, there was another part of her that just wanted to leave. But how could she when so many people wanted to talk to her or dance with her, or both.
Everyone who she hadn't met at the engagement party wanted to say hello and congratulations, and even the people she had met and talked to at the engagement party also wanted to offer their congratulations. Tiana was grateful, of course. It was all very nice, but each time she was dragged into another conversation or pulled onto the dance floor again, she would look for Naveen who more often than not shared a look of sympathy with her, because he was getting the same treatment.
Though Tiana did feel like he had it slightly worse. While everyone was still grilling him about his abdication of the throne, Tiana was treated as more of a curiosity, and to double check the rumors flying around about them.
Surprisingly most of those rumors were true, but when asked about them Tiana could see how they would seem outlandish. Prince Naveen had really given up his title and his life of riches to move into a single room in a boarding house where everyone had to share a bathroom? And he was going to willingly do hard labor on a dilapidated old sugar mill to turn it into a restaurant where he would also work at?
Yes, yes and providing they ended up with the sugar mill tomorrow, yes.
Another jump of her stomach at that thought. Getting married and her dream restaurant all in one week, was it really possible?
Tiana looked once more over the crowd at Naveen talking to some other people and laughing as he did so. He smiled when their eyes met.
Yes, Tiana thought. It was possible. Anything was possible at this point.
Except for maybe escaping this dull conversation she was stuck in.
She thought that the man was Naveen's second cousin or something along those lines. Whatever the relation was, he clearly hadn't inherited the wit and charm that seemed to be prevalent in Naveen's family.
This was the most boring conversation she had ever had, and truthfully she had stopped listening to him a long time ago. But the man left no room in the conversation for her to make an escape!
She nodded politely, saying 'Yes' and 'mhmm' whenever it seemed appropriate, while all the while thinking how to get out of this. She shifted her weight from one foot to the other, wincing slightly. Tiana was used to being on her feet all day, but these were new shoes and it felt like a few blisters were forming.
And he was still talking! He seemed to have circled back to his original topic, again. Was this just going to be her life now? Stuck in a never ending conversation?
"Pardon me, Baadal, but I must steal my wife from you." Naveen placed his warm hands on Tiana's shoulders. She had never been more grateful to see him. "You see they are playing our song, and we must dance to it."
Without another word he whisked her away to the dance floor.
"We don't have a song," Tiana said once they were alone.
"That is true," Naveen said, "but I could hardly stand by and watch my wife get sucked into what I'm sure was a tediously dull and never ending conversation."
"How did you guess?"
"Baadal is very nice, but he has a reputation for that," Naveen explained, as he lead them in a dance. "I couldn't let my wife wallow in misery on her wedding day."
Tiana smiled and pecked him quickly on the lips. "Well, thank you for being my knight in shining armor."
"I think your knight deserves a little more than that no?" Naveen teased. "Especially from his wife?"
"You sure like saying that, don't you?" Tiana asked. "That I'm your wife."
"I have been denied saying it for the past year," Naveen said, bringing their foreheads together with a slight bump. "No more."
"Well, in that case..." Tiana leaned in to kiss him again, lingering longer this time.
"Better?" she asked.
"Much better. Thank you, princess." He brought her in closer as they danced cheek to cheek. He lowered his voice and whispered, "But you know what would be even better?"
Tiana knew the answer but she still played along. "What?" she whispered back.
"If we left and went to the riverboat where we can finally be alone together."
Tiana shivered in anticipation. More than anything she wanted that. "But this is our party. We can't just leave."
"Of course we can," Naveen countered. "Besides, it is tradition in Maldonia for the bride and groom to sneak away."
Tiana smirked. "Is it really, or are you just telling me that to get us out of here sooner?"
Naveen gasped in an exaggerated way. "I would never lie about my culture to you."
"You would if it lead to us making love," Tiana laughed, even as she blushed at her words.
Naveen gave her that bedroom smile of his, and said, "Well, can you blame me?" He kissed her again on the mouth, and then lowered his voice so only she could hear. "I want you."
Tiana took in a shaky breath, clinging to him tight, lest her knees get any weaker than they already were. "I want you, too."
"Then we should go," he whispered against her neck. "It's been long enough, no?"
She didn't know if he meant that they had stayed long enough at the party, or if he was talking about the last year (a whole year!) that they had basically fought temptation. She didn't want to fight anymore.
But there was still one more thing they needed to do before they left.
"We need to say goodbye before we go," Tiana said. "At least to our parents and Lottie, to thank them for everything they did."
Naveen sighed and once more pressed his forehead to hers. Talking to everyone would add at the minimum another half hour before they could go, but Tiana wouldn't be Tiana if she had just agreed to sneak away with him. "My wife is a very considerate woman."
Tiana smiled and kissed him again, before taking his hand in hers. "Come on. Let's go."
It did take a long time to say goodbye to everyone, but at last they were able to the carriage which was waiting to drive them to the riverboat. After meeting the captain with a hearty handshake, they were shown their suite where their things had already been dropped off.
A crew member explained that there was staff on call if they needed anything, and their ticket also included a complimentary breakfast in the morning. He handed Naveen the key to the room, and with a tip of his hat was gone, leaving the two of them alone at last.
Naveen jingled the keys playfully and grinned. "Well then."
"Well then," Tiana agreed.
"Perhaps we should go inside, yes?"
"That sounds like a good idea."
Naveen put the key in the lock and opened the door. Even from the entryway Tiana could see the suite was immaculately decorated. There was even a tray set out full of cheeses, crackers and fruits.
And then when you looked further into the room, well, there was another doorway that lead to the bedroom.
The bedroom.
Tiana felt another jump in her stomach as she stepped forward, but Naveen stopped her gently.
"Wait."
"What's wrong?"
"Nothing," Naveen said quickly. "It's just... A husband should carry his wife over the threshold, no?"
Tiana pressed a playful finger on his nose. "My husband is very romantic."
"You knew that when you married me."
"Yes I did," Tiana said. "And I love you for it."
Naveen kissed her then, and took her firmly in his arms as he stepped over the threshold of their suite. He kicked the door behind them and said, "Would you be so kind as to lock the door, Mrs. Mahajan? My hands are a bit full, as they say."
Tiana giggled at the usage of her new last name and reached for the door. With a firm click, she locked the door of their honeymoon suite.
A/N: Sorry to leave it here, but the honeymoon definitely deserves it's own chapter, don't you think? If you're not interested in reading that, come back in chapter 21, though I can't promise that the honeymoon will be the only time smut will appear. Actually, I can almost guarantee there will be more, it just won't take up an entire chapter haha.
Since I'm writing this, I'll take this opportunity to thank everyone for reading so far, and an extra thank you to those who have left comments. They really help keep me motivated to write and finish this story. We're getting close to the end, but Tiana still has to get her restaurant so we're not quite there yet.
Thank you again. xoxoxo