191 - Getting Ready Under the Stars

191 - Getting Ready Under the Stars
Moonlight drowns out all but the brightest stars. - J. R. R. Tolkien

Victoria assured Reese that everything was set up and good to go. Clarence was ready to do his first fully straight wedding in years. But he was willing to pivot like he did with Dean’s wedding. Reese chuckled as he tried to tie the bow tie that went with his tuxedo.

Shaking her head, Victoria swatted his hands away, “How did you make it so far in life and not be able to tie a bow tie? Look up.”

“Because I’ve never –“

“Shush,” she ordered as her fingers moved over the silk. “It’s easier to do if your Adam’s apple isn’t bobbing like it’s in a barrel at Halloween.” After years of practice, she easily tied the knot and smoothed out the tie and fixed his collar. “You know that Helen doesn’t care about all pomp and circumstance.”

“I know,” he said still looking at the ceiling.

She gave a small chuckle, “But?”

He smiled, he had a lot of sisters, some of them knew him better than others. Victoria had always been able to see into everyone’s soul. Maybe that was why she was so good at party and wedding planning. Looking down at his sister, he cupped the back of her neck and pulled her closer to press a kiss on her forehead.

“Because I love her and I can’t give her the world, but I can give her this.”

Wrapping her arms around his waist, she hugged him as he wrapped her up in his strong arms.

“You’re a good man, Owen Reese.” She stepped back and made sure that there was no trace of her makeup on his shirt. “Can you get the cumbersome band on?”

Grabbing the purple silk cummerbund, he started to place it high on his waist, pleats down, “I think I’ve got it.”

“I think you don’t,” she shook her head and took it from him. “Turn around.”

He winked at her and then faced away from her letting her know that he was aware that he was doing it wrong. She gave a soft chuckle as she flipped it around and placed it on his natural waist. After fastening the buckle, she adjusted the strap and tucked the small excess into the small pocket in the back.

“I always thought that a tux with a cumbersome band and suspenders looked really nice. Face me.”

Turning back around, he hooked his thumbs under his black suspenders. “You and my wife.”

“Yeah, but like that you look like Bubba Joe all dressed up.” She swatted his hands again and he dropped them to his sides. With a little laugh, Victoria adjusted the pleats on the cummerbund, or as she called it the cumbersome band. “They look really nice, but they are even better when I don’t have to do all this crap.”

“Yet, here you are.”

“Yet, here I am,” she agreed.

Finishing her task, she grabbed the jacket off the hanger on the rolling rack. Automatically, he turned around and she helped him slide on the jacket with long tails. He adjusted the collar and lapel as he turned back to face his sister. She raised her hands to swat his away, yet again, and he held his up in surrender.

“You do know that I have been dressing myself for quite a while, right.”

“Shut up and let your sister dress you,” Heather ordered her ex-husband as she came up the stairs to the room where the men were getting ready. “It’s gorgeous, Reese. Victoria, you did wonders with the space downstairs.”

“Thank you,” she smiled at her former sister-in-law as she grabbed the groom’s boutonniere and diamond encrusted golden pin. “I’ll be honest, as soon as they said that they were having a wedding under the stars, I had a whole vision board appear before me.”

Reese chuckled as she pinned the boutonniere with two stargazer lilies along with Cosmo orchids, night sky petunias, baby’s breath and greenery on his lapel. The colors of the flowers matched the sheer ribbon that shimmered with stars in the celestial themed background. Once it was secure with the stick pins from the back, she pinned the diamond and gold pin of the Virgo constellation just below the flowers.

Heather lifted her portable sewing machine when Victoria turned around and faced her again. “You asked me to bring this?”

“Yes, when I ordered the vests for them, two of the groomsmen were off playing with grassfires,” she yelled over her shoulder.

“Love you, Victoria!” Ty called back.

“You’re the best!” Waylon added.

She flipped them both off as she scratched her nose with her middle finger. They both caught the not-so-subtle motion and just grinned back at her. With a little laugh, she turned back to where Heather stood with her sewing machine.

“Anyway, it has worked out because, another one decided to have more sons!” this was directed at Neo who blew her a kiss.

Victoria rolled her eyes at him before she moved over to the rolling rack and grabbed two vests with a cosmic design in the silk. “I don’t need them to be perfect, but if you can make them fit the boys,” she handed the extra vests to Heather and then motioned to Gabriel and Abraham to join them. “They got them some black suits off the rack and if needed, we can just use the ties and pocket squares.”

“No,” Heather shook her head. “This is an easy fix as long as you don’t want to let it back out later. And knowing my ex-husband, if they are ever needed again, he’ll just buy new ones.”

“Exactly,” Victoria agreed. “Tell me what you need.”

“Reese,” Heather asked as she moved over to the low table between two couches. “Is this strong enough for them to stand on?”

“Probably one at a time, but not both at the same time,” he advised.

“That works,” she sat the sewing machine down and her backpack that held her sewing tools. Taking one of the vests off the hangar, she flipped it inside out and handed it to one of the boys. “Gaberiel?”

“Yes, ma’am.”

“Put that on, just like that and step up onto the table.” Sitting on the couch, she opened the backpack and pulled out her straight pins and tailor’s chalk. Looking over, she saw the boy wearing the vest inside out but looking at the table with fear.

Reese picked him up and placed him in the center of the table. “It’s my furniture, I say it’s okay for you to stand on it.”

Heather smiled at the man before pinning the vest on the boy closed. After pinning the sides where they should be cut down to, she marked out where to shorten the bottom to before removing the center pins and carefully removing the vest. Reese plucked him off the table and replaced him with his brother. Heather repeated the same actions for Abraham.

Looking around for her sewing machine and backpack, Victoria pointed to the curtain covered doorway. “There’s a workspace through there for you.”

“Thanks.”

“No, thanks for saving me.”