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Nathan & Elizabeth: An Epic Love
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Chapter Seventy-two
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Friday of Wedding Week
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Part II
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Though the Bride was calm - thanks to Jack, Grace, Julie, and Rosemary, there was a bit of chaos around her!
"Elizabeth! Are you listening to a single word I say?" asked a frustrated Matron of Honor.
"I'm sorry! What is it, Rosemary?"
"Do you want each of us attendants to take our floral bouquet with us or have them all sent together in the Parents' Carriage?"
"I think it's easier for everyone to be responsible for their own bouquet. Besides I want our parents to be as comfortable as possible in their own carriage, not overloaded with bouquets!"
"Thank you, Darling! That was exactly what I was saying," decreed an even more frustrated Grace, who was dangerously close to pulling rank on Rosemary.
Julie raised her eyebrows, but only for her sister to see!
And then it happened.
The Bride's son, who had been up in his room for quite some time supposedly playing Mounties though being dangerously quiet, suddenly appeared, descending the staircase.
"Oh, no, Jack! Not your blue Mountie Uniform! That's for our Wedding this evening!"
"But, Mama, I'm supposed to wear it like Papa's!" insisted Jack. "But I can't get my medal on this one!"
"Okay, Big Bear! Let me go over this one last time. I asked you to do the opposite, so your uniform won't get wrinkled. You are going to dress at your Papa's house later on today at the same time he dresses! And he will properly attach your medal exactly as it's supposed to be! Jack, you have to change right now! No, ifs, ands, or buts! Do you understand?"
"Yes, Ma'am!" sighed Jack heavily, twisting his mouth in that familiar pout of his.
"I'll handle this, Elizabeth! Come with your Auntie Julie, Jack," and Julie steered her darling, but obstinate, nephew back up the staircase and into his room for the quickest change in clothing ever seen.
"Sit, Elizabeth! Everything is moving along perfectly," insisted Rosemary. "I know! We need tea! Hot tea fixes everything!"
And off to the kitchen Rosemary headed to put the kettle on and prepare a serving tray of goodies!
"Come sit by your mother, Dear!" suggested Grace, patting the empty cushion beside her.
By now frazzled, Elizabeth moved toward her mother.
"I just want everything to be perfect, Mother!"
"Just relax, Darling! Everything is perfectly fine!" assured her mother. "Your son is just as excited as you are, and that's a really precious and wonderful thing!"
But as soon as she sat down, Elizabeth popped right back up and ran to her desk to get her Wedding jewelry.
"Mother, look what Nathan gave me last night! As for the bracelet, I only know it was designed to be identical to my Wedding band, which, of course, I haven't seen. And obviously, the earrings were designed to be identical to my Engagement ring! Aren't they lovely?"
"Oh, Elizabeth, what an intricate diamond bracelet, which means your Wedding band must be stunning! And these earrings might just be the most exquisite pair I have ever seen. You most certainly can't go wrong using the same elegant design for them as your Engagement ring. These are simply flawless – just look how they glisten and sparkle! Your husband-to-be certainly has good taste, but my goodness, with a mother like Eleanor, how could he not?"
"He really does! Which always surprises me as a Mountie, but having met his mother, I now understand where he gets it. Nathan is always surprising me, Mother! With everything on his mind, he even remembered to tell me last night that since I was wearing your pearls for our Wedding, he wants to go shopping on our Honeymoon for me to either select a necklace in a style I love or have one designed to match everything!"
"What a lovely and romantic thing to suggest and so fun that the two of you will be shopping for it and/or designing it together!"
Elizabeth's breath caught.
"Elizabeth, Dear, what is it?"
"I've just never had anyone to so attentively and thoroughly love me!" she whispered so Rosemary wouldn't hear.
"In what way do you mean?"
Elizabeth smiled and her mother saw her finally relax again.
"Mother, he knows what I need before I do. He's so intentional and tender with me, that he makes me feel like an absolute treasure, even with the little things. You know, I've always insisted on standing in my own strength, yet it's his strength I need now, too! And I've never admitted that I've ever needed someone else's strength before, not even Jack's, but since meeting Nathan, I do!"
"Elizabeth, because of your loss, you are a changed woman. Time and grief have a way of doing that. You aren't feeling guilty because of how much you love Nathan, are you?"
"At first, I did, and terribly so," she admitted. "The love was so great between Nathan and me, that I just simply ran away!"
"To Lucas."
Elizabeth nodded.
"And I will never forgive myself."
"But my Darling, you must forgive yourself, and you must do it now!"
"But how, Mother? I do it in degrees, but I don't think I'm fully there!"
"You've already done the hard part. You came back and faced your demons, not once but twice, and many times, I'm sure, in between. You've come out victorious, and now you've made the only choice possible for you, not to mention the only true choice possible for your son. I can say that because a mother only must see Nathan and you together to know you are each other's soulmate! Or Nathan and Jack together, to know they are truly father and son! To experience that kind of love for both of you is such a treasured rarity. You are a very blessed woman! And Jack is a very blessed young boy."
Elizabeth nodded.
"My Dear, Nathan is a Prince of a man, a man's man who thoroughly understands you, my most independent daughter," and here Grace lowered her voice. "Forgive yourself right now by telling yourself so. Then simply put all those broken energies into the honorable and viable energies of loving Nathan well, Elizabeth. You might think he doesn't need this – but always put him first, and he will not only always put you first just as he does now but also love you back tenfold. And the love between you, as great as it is now, will just keep growing, getting sweeter and sweeter as the years go by. That's the extraordinary life you both greatly deserve!"
"Perhaps that's the problem. I can't seem to completely forgive myself for just me. But Mother, I love Nathan, Allie, and Jack enough to do anything for them! You're right, I can certainly forgive myself for Nathan and our family! So, for all of us, I do…I completely forgive myself!"
Grace watched as the weight of the world once and for all, thankfully, fell from her daughter's shoulders.
Smiling brilliantly, Elizabeth embraced her mother, who, having just shared with her daughter her greatest wisdom, finally, after all these years, fully returned her daughter's embrace instead of formally and with the love and care of a true mother, even caressing her hair—a simple thing, really, but one that had never before been done.
It had taken years of misunderstanding between them, but at long last, Elizabeth felt her mother's true depth of love.
"That's my beautiful, strong daughter and our ravishing Bride! Your self-forgiveness is now complete for the most loving and valid of reasons, Darling. Now, you can focus only on being the most loving wife to Nathan and the most loving mother to your children to the very best of your ability, living your lives in the love and truth that uniquely belong to the Grant Family. And what an extraordinary life for all, that's going to be…"
As soon as Nathan and Allie walked into the door of their rowhouse arm-in-arm, laughing together, Archie and Eleanor sighed a smile of relief, knowing Father and daughter had resolved any and all misunderstandings and that, most importantly, their beloved granddaughter felt her true importance again, without any insecurities about all the changes swirling around her.
Both grandparents were so grateful they shared the broadest of grins with celebratory hugs, greeting both.
"Hey, you two, Allie, caught a 21-pounder Bass! We dropped it off at The Café to keep it on ice! Joseph took photos of Allie holding it, but you'll have to drop by and see it for yourself until we get the photos to send you!"
"21 pounds? I've never caught anything as big as that," admitted Archie. "You are the Grant Family fishing champ, Kiddo!"
"It was pretty exciting, Grappa! That's my best ever – but Papa had to help me, or it would have pulled me right into the river!"
"Well, I should certainly hope your Papa helped," insisted Eleanor.
"Mother, what in the world is all this?"
Allie knew her Gramma had ordered clothes for her Papa, but even she was shocked at how many! They were strewn all over their living area, spread out for all to see.
"You, my Son, are about to go on your Honeymoon, so I ordered all this from my favorite designers in London, and they are just perfect if I do say so myself!"
"But, Mom, this is an entire department store! There's no way I can even pack all this!"
"Well, lucky for you, you won't have to! I'm packing everything myself because I want it all just so-so meaning, unwrinkled on your arrival!"
Nathan sighed, knowing there was probably no changing her mind.
"Come, Nate, let's look at everything! If there's anything you absolutely hate, I'll leave that here at home," Eleanor assured Nathan with a take-charge smile, which made Nathan know with certainty that he was not about to get out of this one.
"Papa, Gramma's right. Like I told you earlier. You need new clothes, and these are gorgeous!"
"Gorgeous? Have you been in cahoots with your Gramma?"
"Sort of!"
"Son, you've got two women up against you! If I were you, I wouldn't push it!"
"Alright, Dad's right – no way I could win anyway! Let's look at the clothes," agreed a resigned Nathan.
"Since you're going to the beach, there's even swimwear! But also, lots of casual wear, shirts, sweaters, and trousers. Oh, and a jacket or two. All that I've sorted in this area. Now, for the dressier outfits, I have them here! And because of your stunning blue eyes, there's a solid double-breasted suit in navy linen, and another in navy with a white pinstripe in light-weight wool."
"Have you gone mad? Here's another suit, Mother!"
"It's completely different, Son!"
"Different, how?"
"Well, I know it's also a dark blue, but a much lighter shade than the two navy ones. Completely different! And it will match your eyes perfectly. Oh, and this black tux is the very latest in European evening wear!"
"You got me a tux?" asked Nathan, eyes widened.
"Absolutely, and matching shirt, bowtie, cravat, and dress shoes. So, you will have options, my Dear."
"But you really bought all this? It must have cost an absolute fortune!"
"Indeed, I did, and you will be wearing it, too! And no, I still get hefty discounts from my theater days, thank you very much! Besides, I happen to know your Bride is bringing quite a bit of evening wear for when you take her out dancing at night. At least now, you'll have something appropriate to wear for escorting her!"
"Mother, I was thinking of dancing barefoot under the stars on the beach!"
"That, too! Which is perfectly romantic! As long as you are also taking her out socially where you can show your new wife off!"
"All of this is lovely and quite…wonderful, but you have gone so…so overboard!"
"Not when every single piece is desperately needed, as it most certainly is! Son, your entire closet consists of uniforms!"
"Well, that's fairly true! But at the very least, you have to let me pay you back."
"You will indeed not! This was my one joy to be able to do for my son on the happiest day of his life! All I want from you is to enjoy them thoroughly!"
"And what is this?"
"Your riding gear, of course!"
"But English?"
"Absolutely, you are at least a quarter English! Indeed, why not?"
"Papa, you did say when we rode out this morning, to keep up with Mama and me you needed new riding clothes," reminded Allie. "And boy, no offense, but do you ever!"
"Out of the mouths of Babes, Son!" interjected Archie with a chuckle and a shrug.
Nathan just shook his head.
"Talk about ganging up! And what is this, yet another stack?"
"Pftt! It's a very small one, Son! Don't forget I've seen your ratty old robe and your even rattier pajamas. There is no way in this world a son of mine is going on his Honeymoon like that. These, thank goodness, are of the finest silk!"
"Silk? And you got new leather slippers, too?"
"Of course, I did! I may live on a Ranch, but I am still quite civilized! Have you forgotten your upbringing and what that even means?"
"Can we at least throw in some of my favorite clothes that are already broken in?"
"Oh, yes, indeed! 'Broken in' describes them perfectly! Wouldn't want to leave those out when we have perfectly good clothes to replace them with!" she admonished most sarcastically.
Allie, who could see this was going nowhere fast, kept motioning for her Papa to hug her Gramma and thank her properly, till he finally understood what she was saying.
"Mother, I'm sorry. I'm just so surprised. Shocked even! All this is a Gentlemen's Closet extraordinaire! A designer one, too, I suppose," he added under his breath. "Still, thank you so much! Everything is…is perfect!"
Though he had to grit his teeth on that last statement.
But Allie was still coaching him from behind her Gramma, who was still quite offended.
"And it will all work perfectly for our Honeymoon. Plus, I'm sure Elizabeth will be every bit as thrilled as I am. If not more so!"
It wasn't until Nathan softened, embraced his mother, and kissed her cheeks that she was finally soothed, even though she had previously determined, pretty much when she had ordered the entire wardrobe, that her beloved son was stuck with its entirety whether he liked it or not!
"Come, you two must have worked up an appetite reeling in that 21-pounder, and our late brunch will be ready to start by the time you three get seated. Don't worry about all this mess. Arch has already volunteered to help me pack it all up for you!"
"Dad, whose side are you on?" mumbled Nathan in a low voice.
"Sorry, Son, my wife's! Which if you're smart, you'll very quickly learn that's the first and most important lesson to be learned on this Honeymoon of yours…"
At Elizabeth's rowhouse, thankfully, everything was much calmer, at least now before the storm that was bound to occur later when all her Attendants arrived to have their hair and makeup done before getting dressed together!
"Who's ready for tea and biscuits," announced Rosemary cheerily, making her grand entrance from the kitchen with a silver tray full of goodies, about the same time Julie and Jack came bouncing down the stairs.
"Here, we go, Jack's suit and medal are ready for Father to deliver them along with Jack to Nathan's house," winked Julie, carrying the covered uniform, as she and Jack came down the stairs.
"Thank you, Julie! One less worry!"
"Mama, I'm sorry! I just was so excited!"
"I know, Baby! I am so excited, too, so Mama understands, and now that it's all fixed, everything's perfect, Jack!"
Elizabeth noticed that Jack allowed her use of the words 'baby,' to go unchecked in trying to make peace with her.
"Can I sit with you, Mama?"
"I would love nothing more! Although I do miss your Papa, too!"
"I miss him too! And Allie so much!"
"You two won't have to miss either one of them for long, though I get the feeling Nathan and Allie are missing you two just as much," assured Rosemary. "Though I bet your Groom is not too thrilled with our no-seeing-the-bride stance!"
"Oh, no, he is definitely not a happy camper! I had to insist, but he said the sweetest thing: he told me if he saw me two seconds before I walked down the aisle, he would still be mesmerized when I did arrive. Believe me, it was hard not to give in with that one. He's being a very good sport though!"
"That is the sweetest thing I've ever heard! I want a Nathan, too," insisted Julie.
"Yours is out there, Jules. You just have to be patient," smiled Elizabeth. "He'll come along when you least expect it!"
"Your sister is right, Julie! You must be patient but also wise enough to recognize him when he does come along," added their mother with raised eyebrows for emphasis.
"Elizabeth, are you sure you have everything packed for your Honeymoon?" asked Grace.
"Yes, Mother, Julie, and Rosemary helped me pack my clothes before you got here, including all the new pieces you and Julie brought me!"
"Like, how hard could that have been? Especially since my sister has bought an entire new wardrobe for this grand event in addition to what we brought?" announced Julie in a chiding-teasing way. "Not to mention the ooh la la pieces!"
"What's that, Mama?" asked Jack innocently.
"Pretty nightgowns and robes, Jack!" answered his Mama while giving her sister the death stare.
"Ugh! That's really boring! I have nice pajamas with checks on them, but they're boring too. But I love my Train ones!"
The ladies couldn't help but break out laughing, with Jack joining in.
"Julie!" shrieked a blushing Elizabeth since Julie was ignoring her death stare. "That's supposed to be private! Mother is also sitting right here!"
Then she mouthed, 'along with my child!'
"My Dear, believe me, your mother already knows!" laughed Grace. "Who do you think helped Julie in our selections?"
"And now your son knows, too! Don't you, Jack?" she added brightly.
"Yes, Ma'am, I understand lots!"
Elizabeth rolled her eyes, but she was pleased that Jack and her mother somehow seemed to understand each other.
She was surprised, but her mother had been doting on Jack and Allie from the moment she arrived, which was highly irregular, given Elizabeth's and Julie's experiences, which mostly revolved around a slew of nannies instead of their mother!
Jack nodded and beamed at his Grandmama as though they had a secret understanding. Then he scooted over to her so that he was equally between his Mama and Grandmama! Grace automatically put her arm around him, hugging him closer to her.
"Then again, we certainly did make a shopping dent that weekend we went to Union City with Nathan and Lee!" giggled Rosemary.
"And Mother and Julie brought me so many gorgeous outfits that filled in all of our gaps! I know Nathan wouldn't have cared, but I didn't want to take anything I'd worn before, and I'm not talking about being frivolous."
The ladies were polite enough not to say, but all knew it was because the Bride didn't want to take things on her Honeymoon that she had worn with Lucas, and that was understandable. In fact, so much so, that had been one of the many reasons Grace and Julie had brought her so many new options to wear either for her Honeymoon or when she returned. It was also why Elizabeth had separated out those clothing items that meant something to both Nathan and her and then donated all the rest, and that laborious act alone had been so freeing.
"I believe the only things left to pack are my toiletries," surmised the Bride. "But I need those when we start to get ready. A courier from the Train Station is to pick our beautiful new luggage up from here and from Nathan's, sometime later today. They'll deliver them to the Station and see that they are placed in our suite before we board, so we can change into our going-away clothes while traveling if we decide to, although I suppose then they would actually be more 'arriving at the hotel clothes' than 'going-away.' At least, no matter what we decide, we'll have options and won't have to worry about any of the luggage, thanks to my wonderful parents who brought us the perfect Honeymoon gift!"
"I can do you one better, your toiletries are already packed as well!" insisted her Wedding Planner.
"What do you mean, Rosemary?"
"I mean the grandest Wedding Planner that has ever existed, who happens to be YOUR Wedding Planner, has already bought you duplicates that are in a Bridal Case that I personally will ensure will follow you everywhere you go today!"
"That's so lovely! Thank you, Rosemary! So, then, I'm completely packed?"
"Completely," assured Rosemary, grinning from ear to ear. "Now, you can totally relax! Oh, I'll get the door!"
"It's Joseph and Cooper, everyone," announced Elizabeth's best friend.
"Rosemary, Minnie wanted to send you Ladies a special brunch, so Cooper and I are delivering!"
"But she's coming too, to eat with us, isn't she?"
"She was planning to but is completely swamped at The Café with the influx of Wedding guests in town. So, she sends her regrets! But will catch up with all of you at the Wedding and Reception."
"Tell her we miss her already!"
"Oh, Joseph, do tell her we are so sorry the Wedding is causing her so much extra work, and we are disappointed she can't make it," added Elizabeth earnestly.
"Oh, no, she hates missing your brunch, but she loves having the extra business!"
After everyone said hello, the four walked into the kitchen, and at the table, Joseph and Cooper deposited the crates of food.
"Thanks so much for this, and make sure Minnie knows how much we appreciate it," insisted Elizabeth. "Joseph, would you happen to have a minute we could step outside and talk privately?"
"Of course! Coop, do you mind taking the empty crates back to The Café?"
"Sure thing, Pops! See you back there!"
"See you, Son!"
Elizabeth and Joseph followed Cooper out to the front porch and sat down in a couple of chairs there.
"Joseph, thank you for giving me a few moments, and I do promise I won't keep you long!"
"I'm not in any rush, Elizabeth. I get the feeling this little chat is probably the second most important thing I'll do today, outside of marrying you and Nathan, that is!"
"I believe you are right, Joseph," and Elizabeth couldn't help the radiant smile that lit up her face. "I just wanted you to know that Mother and I had a bit of a stolen chat, and she made me see that I hadn't fully forgiven myself yet for my fiasco, because I needed to think about it differently. That since I hadn't been able to do it for myself, perhaps I needed to do it for Nathan and my new family as well as myself and take all that wasted energy and turn it into positive energy for loving Nathan, Allie, and Jack to the best of my ability!"
"Are you sure your mother isn't a Pastor?"
Elizabeth laughed.
"Quite sure! Though it was great advice. I just had to let you know, I've done it! The forgiveness we've searched for has taken place, and I am finally forgiven!"
"It's about time, and what better time than on your Wedding Day! I've prayed for this day for so long, and I'm so proud that you were able to see how necessary this step is for you and your entire new family to fully move forward in the love that God means for all four of you to experience and share!"
"Joseph, I need to be honest about one other thing. You were right all along. Between us, Lucas admitted he was never in love with me."
Joseph was silent but breathed a sigh of great relief.
"You now have every single answer you and I have sought together, Elizabeth, it's almost as though you were struggling so hard, you couldn't see it for yourself. Maybe that's why it was easier for me to see so clearly, yet I knew you had to eventually see it, too. Perhaps it's because of that blind eye of yours, the struggle has been resolved for you. There was no love beyond a friendship type of love in that relationship, Elizabeth, just as I suspected, even though both of you tried hard to make it more. You and I both know that with an engagement, it should have been the kind of love that is required for marriage, but it was not that for either of you. Therefore, there is no guilt left for you to bear. You both tried your best for whatever reason, but it was never meant to succeed, because it was never what it originally should have been. You are finally exactly where you are supposed to be, and now you can give your heart wholly, holding nothing back. I'm so proud of the hard work you have done, the resolution you have come to!"
"I couldn't have done it without you, Joseph!"
"Let's just say we both couldn't have done it without the Big Guy upstairs!"
"You are so humble," smiled Elizabeth.
"Better to be humble than bear false pride or false witness, for that matter! We are all so small in comparison. God gives us our lives, Elizabeth, and He even defines us in many ways, the way we look, the way we are made. But still, He gives us free will so that we, in large part, determine our life's course. Though I like to think even that is in conjunction with Him! I know beyond any doubt Nathan and you are made for each other, and I know God is going to bless your Union in ways you can't begin to imagine on this, your Wedding day!"
Elizabeth embraced her pastor.
"I love you, Joseph. Thank you for your many hours of clarity, encouragement, guidance, prayer, and wisdom! You've saved me from certain disaster, and I will be forever grateful!"
"So will I, Elizabeth! I can't wait to see the real fruits of our labor as well as the fruits of this extraordinary marriage we're having today! I'll be meeting you, our beautiful Bride, along with our handsome Groom, at our garden altar in a matter of a very few hours for a Wedding I have no doubt was planned by God a long time ago!"
The two beamed with pure joy as Elizabeth watched her pastor walk away wearing a most contented smile on her face, full of thanks deep in her heart for his wise and loving care…