Here With You | ✔

CHAPTER SIX; part two

     She throws her hands up. "Don't make that face. It may be your wedding day but you have responsibilities. The both of you do. So save it for the honey moon."

     "Are they in there?" someone says behind Amelia and then Jack pushes past her to walk through the doorway. He looks from Dres, to me, and then back again. His expression is giving dad in the worst way.

     "You guys literally can't wait twelve hours?"

     I huff. "I'll have you know we're going to have to wait like twenty-four hours because we have a flight tonight."

     That reality hits me hard. We're not going to have quality alone time until we get to London tomorrow, and even then we'll have to wait until we get to our hotel. Someone (Dres) did not think this through.

     "We weren't doing anything," Dres says pointedly.

     "Yeah right," Amelia says suspiciously.

     "Your photographer is looking for you," Jack says next. "They need solos and then they want family photos and the sitter is coming to get the kids soon."

     "What are you all doing?" Dolores calls as she walks in, brushing past Jack and Amelia. She stays at attention with her hands on her hips, eyes darting between Dres and me. "Do I even want to know?" Her gaze settles on Dres and I stifle a laugh.

     "We weren't doing anything," he says again with emphasis this time.

     "Right. Recall I have access to the cameras at Weston's and I'm well aware of yous twos' penchant for inappropriate time and place," she responds.

     I gasp. "What?" I turn to look at Dres for confirmation and he shrugs his shoulders. "Oh my. You couldn't have told me that?"

     "There aren't any cameras in the break room," he says. "Or the kitchen."

     "The kitchen?" Amelia exclaims. "I'm never eating at Weston's again."

     Jack makes a face. "Did I tell you about the sauna? Because I think I win."

     "What about the sauna?" my mom asks as she joins us in what is now becoming entirely too small of a room with an entirely too inappropriate of a conversation for her.

     "Nothing," I say quickly. There are some things mothers just don't need to know. Except Dres's mother. She can know everything and clearly does, has seemingly had an eyeful. "It's time for photos, right? We should go do that."

     I hold my hands out to Dres, helping him out of the chair. He presses his hand to the small of my back as we follow everyone out of the room back into the entryway before stepping outside.

     "So what's everyone else doing?" I ask.

     "It's the cocktail hour," my mom answers. "They're getting drunk."

     "Jealous," Amelia remarks from behind us as our photographers walk over.

     "Can I steal the grooms for photos?"

     "And I'll take the rest of the wedding party for your photos."

     "Steal away," I say following Dres and one of the photographers away from the reception tent where everyone's gathered.

     We're led down a cobbled path towards a decorated gazebo. It looks like something out of a fairytale with gauzy white ribbons and lots of cream-colored flowers. Their green stalks and leaves are a sharp contrast.

     I can hear the camera shutter as we're walking and try not to let it affect my gait but it's starting to feel like I'm walking funny, too conscious of being photographed. Dres takes my hand, lacing our fingers.